Recent Release Review: Charles by Con Riley

04 August of 2021 by ButtonsMom2003

Charles By Con Riley

Genre: Contemporary Romance, GLBTQ, MM

Tropes: Opposites attract, slow burn

Released: July 22, 2021

Publisher: Self-Published

Series: Learning to Love, Book 1

Length: 344 pages

Cover Design: Natasha Snow

Synopsis

Opposites attract in this low-angst romance filled with British snark and humour.

Life should be a breeze for a playboy like Charles Heppel. As the third son of an earl, he lives for the moment, partying and playing. Settling down isn’t for him. Not when London is full of beautiful men who he hasn’t one-and-done yet.

To escape his family’s nagging, Charles applies for a temp job that matches his playful skill set. A role in a Cornish classroom could be his until the summer, if Charles meets two conditions: he must move in with the headmaster’s best friend, and teach him to be happy.

Living with Hugo should be awkward. Charles is a free spirit, but Hugo’s a man of faith, with morals. A man who almost took holy orders before disaster changed his direction. Only far from being a chore, Charles finds that making Hugo happy soon becomes his passion.

Together, they share physical and emotional first times. Ones that change Charles, touching his soul. He wants Hugo for longer than they have left, but learning to love with his heart, not just his body, will take a leap of faith from Charles — in himself as well as Hugo.

New from Con Riley, Charles: Learning to Love is the first novel in a series based at Glynn Harber, a very special boarding school set in England’s glorious Cornwall.

♥ This shared-world series starts with Charles and Hugo, but each book follows a different couple in their own standalone novel, with a fulfilling happily ever after. Want to hear more from Charles? He stole the show in His Haven. ♥

Review

Reviewed by ButtonsMom2003

Loved it so much!!

OMG, I’d give this book more than 5 stars if I were allowed to.

Charles is book one in the new Learning to Love series by Con Riley. It’s kind of a spin-off from her “His” series but you definitely don’t need to have read those first. They are great books, though, so I do recommend them.

This story is one of the most delicious slow-burn romances that I’ve read. Charles is the ultimate no-strings-attached, f*ck ‘em and leave ‘em guy. He feels no shame for enjoying the company of many different men; he doesn’t want to settle down. What Charles does want, though, is to secure a permanent position helping children learn to play. No one ever seems to want him on a permanent basis which is really sad as he is wonderful with kids.

Hugo is just the opposite of Charles. He’s been studying to become a clergyman. He’s devout in his faith but has been questioning his calling lately. He’s gay but very inexperienced. The attraction between Hugo and Charles is palpable but nothing happens until about half way into the story. If you’re looking for a super sexy story with a lot of hot time between the sheets this might not be the book for you. But if you pass this one up you will be missing a fantastic story.

I loved everything about this book. The richly descriptive writing kept me turning the pages quickly and yet I didn’t want it to end. I loved how it made me feel things deeply and how it touched my heart and brought me to tears more than once. Most of the tears were happy ones but there are some sad scenes in this book, too – they’re needed to move the story forward.

I am so happy that Con Riley has been writing epilogues for her recent books. I love it when we get another glimpse of the characters a little way into the future after the read end of the main story.

♥♥♥♥♥

O Factor: Spicy

Learning to Love Series

♥ Amazon US ♥ Amazon CA ♥ Amazon UK ♥

About Author

CON RILEY lives on the wild and wonderful Welsh coast, with her head in the clouds and her feet in the ocean.

Injury curtailed her enjoyment of outdoor pursuits, so writing fiction now fills her free time. Love, loss, and redemption shape her romance stories, and her characters are flawed in ways that make them live and breathe.

When not people-watching or reading, she spends time staring at the sea from her kitchen window. If you see her, don’t disturb her — she’s probably thinking up new plots.

Author Links