Leveled: A Saints of Denver Novella

As the first installment in the Saints of Denver series, Leveled is the perfect bridge between Ms. Crownover's past and her future as characters from her Marked Men series interact with characters from this new world in an intensely emotional read. Fans of the m/m genre will find themselves drawn to Dominic and Orlando's relationship and their rocky road to HEA that's based on fear and the desire to be acknowledged. It all adds up to another well-crafted and sensual tale that's a promising start to her new series.Dominic's still struggling to recover from a work-related injury that's keeping him from returning to the job he loves and that defines him. His last chance to regain his way of life just might be the sexy and serious-minded Orlando who has a past full of pain that he's still coping with too that has them engaging in an emotional tug of war. Dom's an outgoing and engaging man who can always be counted on when help is needed. Fun and flirty and quick to smile too. After his policeman father died while on the job, Dom became the man of the house which led to a solid bond with his family that added to his sexiness and endeared him to me. He always knew he wanted to be a cop though and will see it as failure if he can't return to it; for him there's no Plan B. On many levels he appears to be the opposite of Lando, both economically and personality-wise, but the moment they meet their connection crackles. Their burgeoning relationship teems with sexual tension and quickly morphs into something more but is constantly on fragile footing as Lando can't move on from the past and Dom's job cast a shadow of fear over their future. It all adds up to a journey full of angst, steamy interludes, and smiles that I enjoyed every step of the way.Lando once thought that his high school love and he would always be together but his lover's fear of coming out had Lando walking away on the night tragedy struck and left him mired in guilt ever since. He no longer believes in love and has no desire to commit to anyone for fear of falling back into the emotional darkness of loss. He's instead devoted himself to his job of saving others through physical therapy and helping others find their HEA since he knows he'll never have one. Meeting Dom is a shock to his system and has his heart beating once again, but knowing what he does for a living has his past coming back to haunt him with the knowledge of the fragility of life. Fear over losing another person he loves puts a strain on their burgeoning relationship and it will take an act of romantic bravery to help them reach their HEA. Lando is serious-minded but kindhearted and his encounters with Dom brought out a fun and flirty side to him that was enjoyable to see. His feelings of loss and his fear of the future led to palpable feelings that had me sympathizing with him and made his somewhat unreasonable view of Dom's profession understandable. Lando and Dom bring out the best in each other and though it was Dom who came for help it was ultimately Lando who was saved. For so long he let fear rule his heart but with Dom by his side he was finally able to forge his own HEA in this sweet and sensual story.From start to finish this was an engaging read with a likable cast of characters, both primary and secondary. The romance was sweet yet sexy and pulled at your heartstrings while turning up the heat. The differences between Dom and Lando were very apparent but those differences had them making the perfect couple as they brought to their coupling what the other lacked. Being together made them stronger and helped bring about their HEA after much angst. Amidst all the angst were numerous steamy encounters that made Ms. Crownover's first foray into the m/m genre so successful as sweet and tender moments were beautifully balanced with steamy and erotic encounters. Though this book can be read on its own reading the previous Marked Men books will give readers the strong sense of family permeating all of these series. On a whole this was an immensely satisfying goodbye to Ms. Crownover's previous series while giving a heartfelt welcome to her new one and I recommend all of her works as each story and character is as entertaining and romantic as the last!

Dominic Voss, A Denver cop has been injured and his last hope for a full physical recovery and to return to the force is Physical Therapist Lando Frederick. (Squee! Yes, this is Royal's best friend Dom and Remy Archer's first love Orlando!). They find they have a strong attraction to each other. A bit of flirtation and some smoking hot tension lead to stolen kisses and resistance.They have some obstacles. Lando was destroyed as a young man by the loss of Remy so dating a man that risks his life everyday is not something he thinks he can handle. And he doesn't date clients anyway. But Dom does not mind a challenge. He understands he may need to heal his own physical wounds, but Lando has his own emotional ones.Despite their passion and chemistry, guarded hearts and fear place limitations on their possible future. They will have to learn to take risks, fully trust, and get past fear and regret if they want a chance at moving on with a new normal. It is a battle of love vs. fear...especially for Lando.I loved both of these guys. I was already attached due to Lando's relationship with Remy and his family and Dom's bond with Royal shown in previous books. I honestly thought that Lando was going to be my favorite because his history had been so heartbreaking, but I have to say that Dom won me over and I adored him. Lando actually frustrated me a bit since he did have more reservations and issues.They seemed so different with Dom being a rough around the edges cop while Lando was more refined and reserved. They both had good hearts, wanted to help people, and wanted love, but it was also difficult to trust and believe it was really possible due to their issues. These guys were both hot, sweet, funny and intense. Their chemistry was volatile. They had vulnerability and were believable. I was totally rooting for them.I loved getting both of their points of view and getting to visit with some of the Marked Men and their ladies. I am looking forward to Sayer and Zeb's book Built. This was a good transitional novella to bridge the Marked Men and Saints of Denver series. And most importantly to me it gave us some more closure over the loss of Remy Archer and let us see these two men find each other.Marked Men, Crownover style, M-M love, transition to a new series--it's a win win! This did not feel like a quickie novella, but more of a full rich story. The characters were well developed. likable, and had depth and issues. Even though the plot was not overly complicated or angsty, they did have difficult challenges to overcome and healing that needed to occur. She seamlessly brought together old friends and new ones and it was a comfy, sweet, sexy, humorous, and emotional read.

本国レビュー数の多さに釣られて購入してしまったのだが、本書を読みながら自己疑念に（ちょっと）苛まれてしまったのだった。本国レビューは相当によろしいようだが、どう読んでも単なる駄作としか思えないとゆーか、小説とさえ思えないとゆーか、亜小説とゆーか…。これはアテクシが米国BLを読めなくなってきているとゆーことだらうか…BLを読めない人間が次々とBLをば読んで低評価を乱発しててもむしろ皆さまの迷惑なのではないか…英語圏BLレビューごっこを始めて一年ほどだが、そろそろ引退してフツーの本読みに戻る潮時ではなかろーか…（苦悩）。本書は単発物ということになってるが、大嘘である。本書以前にシリーズ物（男女物）があったらしく、その中のゲイ脇キャラが本書では主人公設定されているらしい。本書登場の脇キャラたちもそのシリーズ物からの客演らしい。ハッキリ言って全く意味が分からない。人間関係も見えないし世界観も状況も見えない。ゲイ警官が大怪我をしてセラピーに通い出した途端にゲイのセラピストに瞬殺一目惚れする。危険な仕事に就いておった元カレが事故死したとゆー悲しい過去（←笑うとこか？）があるらしいセラピストは「警官とは恋愛でけん」とかモノローグでブツブツ言っておるんだが、割とサッサとエッチし出し…まあ何回もエッチしてるだけ。関連シリーズを読めばキャラたちに多少は何かを感じられるのかもしれんが、これ一冊じゃ人間像もクソもない訳よ。キャラだって「設定だけ」としか思えないし。えんえんと「へのへのもへじ」がエッチだけしてるのを読んでるだけー、みたいな。てな訳で、「皆さん、お馴染みのキャラですよー」ってな感じで脇キャラをドコドコ出して来る作者にかなり腹が立って五割地点でギブアップ。「単発物を書く」というプロの覚悟が全くないフザンケンナ系の一本。しかもこの作者、「まえがき」まで書いてて、シリーズの方も読んでね、みたいな売り込みをしておる。こんなプロ未満の作家の小説なぞ金輪際読むか。

Another great start to another great series by Jay Crownover ... I love this authors booksThis is her first attempt at an M/M story and my first time reading one,Dom and Orlando really enjoyed their story, also the occasional visit by the Old crew before meeting the new is a massive bonuslooking forward to more in this series

got it in great condition as said. Haven't read it yet, waiting to get the complete serie to start. I really loved Jay Crownover other serie Marked Men & this is the sequel to those

Great way to wrap up the old series, and start with the new.

Leveled is a book that definitely took me out of my safe place and pushed the boundaries for me. In all honesty, if it wasn't written by one of my favourite authors I would not have given this book a second glance. Male and Male romance is not something I generally read, nor is it something I go out of my way to read, I just didn't think it was for me. But after finishing the sexiness that is Leveled I am willing to have a change of mind and venture into a new genre for me.Leveled is a short book, and a way to merge The Marked Men Series with the Saints of Denver. Leveled does a great job of not only merging these two series and forging a strong connection, but also giving us the much needed information on Orlando that readers of The Marked Men series desperately needed.For every injured hockey player or football player that came into my clinic, I made sure that the cost of their care and rehab would be enough to cover the rehab of at least two disabled veterans or first responders injured in the line of duty.Leveled is Dom's and Lando's story, and it picks up with Dom getting an appointment with Lando for physical therapy, to help recover from his accident and get his leg and shoulder back in working order so he can go back to work and be a part of the force again. The moment this duo meet sparks fly, and I really liked how quick these two were attracted to each other. However, Lando is still recovering from a loss of his own that happened years ago, trying to recover his lost love, someone who he will never get back. He doesn't want to fall for someone who actively goes out every day and puts themselves into the firing line, whose job it is to walk on the edge of danger. But we all know that fighting your heart is not an easy thing to do, and Lando soon realises that he can't live his life in the past, that he has to move forward at some point, he has to take a risk.Leveled was a quick read, one that I finished in an hour or two. This was also my first foray into male/male romance, and I had no idea what to expect from that aspect itself. All I knew was that Jay would make this an incredible read. Leveled is full of romance, hot sexy boys, and some very steamy sex. I loved how it was a mix of the old and new, that we get to see some old faces that we love, but that we also see some new faces. I not only enjoyed catching up with the gang, but also seeing an ending that Lando deserved.Final VerdictLeveled is a great introduction to the new series from Jay, but you definitely need to have read The Marked Men series in order to understand the history of Orlando and his 'family'. I devoured this book the minute I woke up, and enjoyed every single word of it.