Title: Medium, Sweet, Extra Shot of Geek
Author: R. Cooper
Release Date: October 9, 2013
Rating: ★★★★★ / 5 Stars
Genre(s): Contemporary Romance M/M
Former soldier Octavio “Tavio” Reyes works as a barista, a favorite with the customers—especially Tommy O’Shaughnessy. An avowed geek, Tommy comes in daily to flirt, usually under the guise of Trekkie talk. Tavio hesitates; now that he’s out of the army, he’s not sure how out he should be, or whether to take his chances on a geek devoted to sci-fi and comic books. But when Tommy compares him to an unemotional Vulcan, Tavio finally considers dating an out-and-proud nerd. Then Tommy surprises him again and introduces him to his daughter, whom Tommy loves even more than Star Trek or Tavio. Now Tavio has a whole new decision to make: Is he ready to romance a family man?
Another excellent recommendation from Piper Vaughn. They recommended me around four contemporaries and I managed to snag them all because they’re so affordable on Amazon.
A little stronger on the angst than Checking Out Love, Medium hit me even harder in the feelings department. I couldn’t help but ache so much for Tavio.
The barista is extremely quiet but his point of view is so observant… except when he’s being so clueless about Tommy’s so obvious feelings for him. Rather. I think Tavio knew but what’s so amazing about this short is that it emphasized the aspect of waiting to be okay with going on with life. Being a veteran isn’t easy living for Tavio and I think it’s the fact that he doesn’t speak much of it that amplified it even more for me. If anyone’s familiar with Bucky Barnes and the many many fanfics that explored him living in a life after being brainwashed into a murderous assassin, you’ll know what I mean.
Reading stories with soldiers, I always make sure I’m in a good place because these stories can be so heavy especially if the characters go through PTSD. Although Tavio wasn’t A-Ok, the book didn’t jar me and throw me into a shock of Tavio’s struggle. It eased me into it. It has such lush descriptions of Tavio’s surroundings, of the habit Tommy developed, the passion the two shared for one another (yes, Tavio was salivating for Tommy even if he said a handful of words to Tommy in the year that he’s met him!) I especially found myself giggling at the way Tavio would reward Tommy… with sugar!
Worthy of mention comment is that Tavio, the narrator, is Mexican and while I can’t comment on the rep very aptly, I really enjoyed the brief yet meaningful interaction he had with his mother. Tommy on the other hand is a bisexual single dad who is very open about his daughter and how much he loves her. We even get to see his very friendly relationship with his ex.
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