Genre: Contemporary
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay, Pan
Reviewer: Lucy
Get It On Amazon
About The Book
Well, this puts the “ex” in “explosive”…
Felix: What would happen if everyone you’d ever dated got together and plotted against you?
For me, it’s glitter bombs. Lots and lots of glitter bombs.
Okay, maybe I deserved the first one or two. Or three. But when things become less glitter and more grenade, I’m forced into hiding with the smokin’ hot older client I just had a sizzling one-night stand with.
Malcolm’s gruff exterior hides a marshmallow center (who else would hire a pet massage therapist for their elderly cat?) — but until the bomber is behind bars, neither of us are safe.
And no one would risk their life for a disaster like me…right?
Malcolm: I wasn’t under any illusions the night I ended up in Felix’s bed. He’s just my type — smart, funny, and adorable with just the right amount of meat on his bones.
But a guy like that deserves more than a grouchy forty-something ex-FBI agent with a broken body and a screwed-up brain. So, I knew we were only ever in this for one night.
Except now with his dating history blowing up in his face, Felix is turning to me for help.
And I’m pretty sure my feelings can’t be defused.
Head Over Feels is a low-angst MM contemporary romance. Come for the grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity (but there are two beds, sorry), hurt/comfort, and found family. Stay for the 1985 Buick Riviera convertible, dreams coming true, personal growth, game nights, and an online date gone very, very, wrong. HEA guaranteed!
Head Over Feels is part of the Bent Oak, Texas series. It can be read as a standalone but will be more enjoyable if you’ve read Heart Me Up first. Characters from Holding On to a Hero have significant roles as well, in case you want the complete backstory.
The Review
This was absolutely adorable. It was so much goodness wrapped in a gloriously fun story, with a nice mix of snarky and sweet characters. It is not the first in the series, and while it read perfectly well as a stand-alone, I did miss out on the backstories and relationships between characters. I will definitely go back and read the previous stories.
Head Over Feels is a delightful story about self-improvement, personal growth, and finding love in unexpected places. Felix had had several dates with people with unusual habits or interests. His mistake was in sharing the details with his sister, who used the information to create a sit-com but didn’t bother to adequately hide the identities of the men involved. Meanwhile, Malcolm is a grumpy former FBI agent with an aging cat, a cane, and a group of meddling friends. Together, Malcom and Felix are delicious and adorable. This story has some of my favorite tropes including hurt/comfort, age gap, and force proximity.
The writing is stellar. The story grabs you, drags you along, and keeps you interested until the last page. Having not started at the beginning of the series, I was also intrigued by the other characters and what their stories are. I love series where you get to see the main characters from previous stories, so I’m definitely looking forward to reading those books, as well.
Head Over Feels was my first Bix Barrow story, but definitely not my last. The excellent writing, beautifully flawed characters, and well-developed plot kept my interest from the first paragraph to the very satisfying end. I look forward to more from this author.
The Reviewer
I’m an avid reader who loves pretty much all genres except math textbooks. As a kid, my parents exposed me to everything from fairies, hobbits, and dragons to the biographies of interesting people around the world, interspersed with poetry, plays, and music. Into adulthood, I spent a lot of years with my nose buried in various textbooks. Now, I read whatever grabs my fancy.
