Narrated by Gomez Pugh

I struggled to find something to fit this month’s “Older Couple” TBR Challenge prompt – not because I don’t like the trope, but because I do; I’ve read all the books I own that feature older couples (which I count as people in their forties and/or fifties.) So I ended up going for a book which, although the leads are in their thirties (thirty and thirty-seven) rather than their forties, is nonetheless very much a grown-up romance between two guys with complicated pasts and emotional baggage; one has teenaged children and a difficult ex, the other is dealing with a physical disability which has led him to change careers, and neither has ever considered the possibility they might be anything other than straight.

Former firefighter Ryan Ward’s first day at medical school ends with a bang when his bum knee gives out as he’s about to start down a flight of stairs. With nothing to grab on to, he slips and lands on his arse, the back of his head cracking onto concrete. Ow. When his vision clears, he blinks up into a pair of concerned hazel eyes and can just about hear, through the ringing in his ears, a deep voice offering to get him some help. Ryan tells the man he’s fine and just needs a minute, but when his knee won’t cooperate, the man heads outside, cuts a branch from the nearest tree and fashions it into a makeshift cane. Ryan watches, incredulous – who is this guy that he can just cut down bits of trees on campus? Fortunately, he’s the head groundskeeper, John Barrett.

A couple of weeks later, and having – again – been unable to do any studying due to the loud sex noises coming from his flatmate’s room, Ryan makes his way to one of the local bars in search of some study space, a couple of beers and some snacks. Unfortunately, he’s not the only student with that idea; there are no empty tables and he’s resigned himself to sitting at the bar when a vaguely familiar voice calls out and offers Ryan a seat. He turns to see the guy who’d helped him when he’d fallen, and gratefully settles into the empty chair at his table, only then noticing that John is a little drunk. Ryan isn’t quite sure what to say, but asks about John’s job and makes small talk until John suddenly starts talking about his kids (who are twelve and fourteen) and about how his ex wife – who has full custody – is making it nigh-on impossible for him to see them. When a far-from-sober John gets up to leave, car keys in hand, Ryan goes after him and grabs the keys, telling John he’ll drive him home.

John and Ryan embark on a tentative friendship over the next few weeks, bumping into each other at the bar a few times and enjoying each other’s company and their wide-ranging conversations. When Ryan’s flatmate drives him out yet again by embarking on another noisy sex-fest, John suggests that maybe Ryan would like to study at his place; it’s quiet, he’s ordering pizza and will be working on a project of his own, so won’t expect Ryan to entertain him. It’s too tempting an offer to resist; they spend a pleasantly companionable evening together and then John drives Ryan home. As Ryan turns to get out of the vehicle, John tells him he’s been thinking of renting out one of the rooms in his house and lists all the reasons why Ryan would be the perfect fit – and why it’s the perfect solution to Ryan’s housing/noisy flatmate problem. Ryan agrees – he and John get on well and it really would be great to be able to study in peace – and moves in not long after.

That’s the set up for a lovely, slow-burn (double bi-awakening) romance that is skilfully combined with real-life challenges – managing difficult family relationships, stressful jobs, parenting – and authentic, mature communication. Their chemistry sizzles, and their attraction is filled with longing looks and glancing touches as they both try to deny the obvious; that they want each other despite having never been attracted to a man before. When that attraction spills over into a passionate kiss at a vulnerable moment, they agree to go back to the way things were, to continue to live together as friends and roommates – but it’s simply impossible. There’s a strange new tension to their interactions, an uncomfortable awareness of each other that wasn’t there before, and the memories of that kiss – how the other man had felt and tasted – just won’t go away.

John and Ryan are likeable, decent guys who have had to deal with significant setbacks in their lives. Ryan suffered a terrible injury which has left him badly scarred, cost him his job and almost cost him a leg, while John’s ex-wife is preventing him from having any access to his kids, and allows her new husband to treat them like status symbols rather than actual people. I’m not generally a fan of the evil ex in romance as they often tend to cross into caricature, but Kaje Harper keeps to the right side of that line here; Cynthia is simply a horrible person, egged on by her equally horrible husband.

While the story is strongly focused on John and Ryan realising they have feelings for each other, figuring out how they affect their sense of self and identity and working out what to do about them, there’s a also an intruguing mystery/suspense plotline bubbling along in the background concerning the mysterious deaths of a couple of students at the college. I’m not sure the sub-plot is completely necessary – the relationship/family drama is sufficient to keep the story moving and make it engrossing – but it’s well-handled and sets up an exciting finale.

The secondary cast is fairly small, and John’s kids – Mark, aged fifteen, and Torey, twelve – are well written and age-appropriate. I really liked the relationship that develops between Ryan and Mark, and the scene in which Ryan handles Mark’s outrage when he discovers his dad is in a relationship with a man is superbly done. The one thing that struck a slightly duff note is the fact that the idea of bisexuality is barely mentioned – John and Ryan pretty much decide they must be gay once they fall for each other, which seems a bit odd.

Gomez Pugh is familiar to me and many other m/m audiobook fans as the voice of Victor Bayne in Jordan Castillo Price’s entertaining PsyCop series, so I was pretty sure I’d enjoy his narration. He’s an accomplished performer with a good range of expression and variety of vocal characterisations (even if Cynthia sounds a little Marge Simpson-esque!), and clear differentiation. He portrays the two leads very well; Ryan is fun and upbeat, John is quieter and more laid-back, all qualities that come through strongly together with just a hint of underlying vulnerability lying beneath the surface, and his interpretation of Mark is terrific, bringing out all the teenaged angst and snark and uncertainty.

The Rebuilding Year is a tender and romantic story about love, friendship, and family that worked for me on pretty much every level, and I enjoyed both it and the narration very much. It’s going straight onto my keeper shelf.

Breakdown of Grade: Narration: A-; Story – A-

Running Time: 9 hours, 45 minutes