I really loved this book.

I may be strange, but I keep a spreadsheet record of all the tropes, triggers, kinks, etc. in books I read. And let me tell you, this book had sooo many of all of them. It was jam-packed full of interesting stuff. You may think that having too much “stuff” in one book is not good; but somehow, in this one, it just WORKED (at least for me).

I am a huge fan, clearly.

Strict Top/Bottom?: No
Angst: 2.5/5
Spice Frequency: 4/5
Spice Level: 4.5/5

I’ll list some notes here for what is in the book, but please PLEASE don’t keep reading if you don’t want spoilers. I’m including them for people who may need the trigger warnings or those who need spoilers bc of anxiety :)
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Tropes, kinks, and other things:
- Enemies-to-lovers
- Stepbrothers
- Grief
- Touch-Him-and-Die
- Bi-awakening or GFY (it’s a little unclear which one)
- Age Gap (5-10 Y)
- Hurt/Comfort
- PTSD
- DubCon
- Female anatomy words for MMC anatomy
- Anorgasmia
- D/s
- Sounding
- Watersports
- Docking
- Shibari

Triggers (probably not a complete list as I ran out of room in my tracking table):
- War (flashbacks only)
- Substance abuse
- Suicide attempt
- Physical assault (not between MCs)
- Physical assault (between MCs)
- DubCon? Or NonCon (this is controversial)
- Domestic abuse (not between MCs)
- Abuse by a parental figure (physical and emotional)
- Death of previous partner (off-page)

Well, this was freakin’ fantastic.

I very much felt the emotional connection between the MCs and I also found myself highlighting soooo much in the book. The writing was awesome.

Hmm.
Listen, this just wasn’t for me. Why am I giving it 4 stars? I guess because the writing is good and the book isn’t bad.
But man, I feel like nothing really happened in this book. Like it was just people living, and a couple falling in love. And sometimes that works for me! But it didn’t work for me here because… I guess because I didn’t really feel the couple fall in love. I felt them start to form the beginning of trust, but then all of a sudden they were in love and the book was over.

Cute and enjoyable. I love AJ Truman’s humor.

So, this is a story that exists.

This was super enjoyable, cute, and sweet, with just the right amount of humor. The scene with the suit

This was a fantastic and thought-provoking book.

Lloyd's character is so loveable (especially the way he just keeps saying "Oh boy" at all of Shaun's directness lol) and all he wants is someone he can coexist with. His OCD tendencies have made that difficult in the past, but in his new android companion, Shaun, Lloyd gets so much more than he bargained for.

I like the thought that Lloyd's OCD tendencies shouldn't make him feel unworthy of love, just because it is difficult for him to live with a human. He isn't something to be fixed; and he finds companionship and love in a way he doesn't expect.

Shaun's joy at discovering the world is so endearing. His main focus is making sure Lloyd is safe and happy, but soon enough Shaun starts to develop goals for himself as well. In fact, he just starts to develop all sorts of original thoughts, and even emotions. He's not supposed to be able to do that. But he has evolved... which makes him and Lloyd targets.

The book makes for interesting shower thoughts of what constitutes intelligence, sentience, and sapience.

Some Details:
Pairing: MM, Lloyd (human) & Shaun (android)
POV: 1st Person, single
Tense: Past
HEA?:

Spoiler

Yes

Breakups?:

Spoiler

No

Angst: 2.25/5
Spice Frequency: 2.5/5
Spice Level: 3/5