[ARC Review] All Tied Up by Reese Morrison
Format: eARC
eARC provided by: Reese Morrison via Gay Romance Reviews
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Neil’s life has been stagnating; his job at the law firm is time consuming, he rarely takes vacation time, and his closest friends are happily committed in their Daddy/Dom relationship. Neil knows his life would be better, different - complete - if he could just find a Daddy of his own to care for him, ensure he eats, and make him happy. But Neil is 48, and he just knows no Daddy wants to care for someone that old and a bit out of shape. His friends convince him to go on a retreat, though, one catering specifically to finding matches just like what Neil’s looking for. As it turns out, Neil’s friends might have been onto something. He didn’t even expect to find a Daddy, but Neil found so much more. Love, acceptance, and contentment were waiting for him in Sebastian and Jamie’s arms, and Neil discovered that there’s no such thing as too old or too quirky when you have the love of a good support system.
There was a lot happening in All Tied Up. Lots of issues were addressed: ageism within the Daddy community, trust, roles and how fulfilling needs goes both ways, the delicate balance of work and play, addressing disabilities, self-confidence; this book can open a lot of doors to further discussions, especially within the Dom community. When I first started reading All Tied Up, I honestly wasn’t expecting it to touch on so many issues, but Reese Morrison handled it all very well. The characters themselves were dynamic and we see their faults so clearly on the page even as they’re just coming to terms with them themselves. Neil always has his age on his mind, doubting anyone would want him. Jamie hides his hurt behind an upbeat, effervescent mask. Sebastian takes his role as Daddy and his job seriously, but questions how good of a job he is doing at both. There was always the potential that this story turned into just a bunch of bedroom or dungeon scenes, but Morrison definitely turned it into much more. The characters were definitely three dimensional and relatable, even if you aren’t a part of the community or haven’t experienced these particular situations yourself. I also really liked that this story wasn’t just about the Daddy relationship. Characters had to question their life choices and career goals. The relationship between the three of them was very well done, but I’m really glad that All Tied Up had more going on and the characters had issues and problems outside of the roles they played in the bedroom. All of Neil’s self-conscious behavior - always doubting that anyone would really be into him - was sort of repetitive and a downer, but at the same time not unheard of or uncharacteristic of a person in his position. There was great representation in the book as well; the characters all had different sexual and gender identities, some of them more fluid than others. I loved that Neil had those conversations with Sebastian and Jamie, working to understand these characters at the same time as the reader. Overall, I really liked Neil’s story and his coming into his own; yes, there was plenty of steamy scenes, but All Tied Up is about so much more.
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