So, here I am, writing another review for the Desert Island Keepers (DIK) Reading Challenge, my second one. Does this get easier? I hope so, or I’m going to dread the last week of every month for the rest of the year! I think I agonize over this more than I do my own writing. Oh, well. Onward… Even though I now live in Florida, I’m still hard-wired into needing a pick-me-up for the February blahs. J.L. Langley’s The Tin Star makes an awesome antidote.

[openbook booknumber=”9781596323278″ templatenumber=”2″]Jamie Killian has just come out to his family, and although his siblings are supportive, his father is not. In one fell swoop, Jamie loses his home and his job on his family’s ranch. Ethan Whitehall, friend of the family and Jamie’s long-time crush, rides to the rescue.

Ethan’s lived in the closet most of his life – he’s got a livelihood in a small town, which he’s never seen fit to jeopardize until Jamie enters his life. With Jamie out, Ethan knows a relationship with Jamie will automatically mean outing himself. He has to decide if being with Jamie is worth more than hiding his who he is. Loving each other has serious, life-threatening consequences for both Jamie and Ethan, and the question remains whether they are stubborn enough to see this relationship through anything.

The love story is sweet and hot, between two sexy heroes: one who needs to come to terms with who he is when his father destroys what he though he always knew about himself and the other who needs to figure out that being true to himself is the only path to happiness.

It’s a great book, a great romance, and I couldn’t get enough of Jamie and Ethan. J.L. Langley never disappoints, and The Tin Star is one of my all-time favorites.