Book 943: Aaron’s Awakening (Maine Men #6) – K.C. Wells

When this ARC landed in my inbox I recognized the series and the author, but if I’m 100% honest about why I decided to read this, it’s that gorgeous colorwork sweater Aaron is wearing on the cover.* Priorities right? I just finished knitting my first colorwork sweater and am in the process of workout the design of another from a TV show so obviously, it was already in mind!

I’m glad I decided to jump back into the series. I remember enjoying Finn’s Fantasy when I read it but hadn’t kept up with the series so of course had to rush through and read books 2-5 to catch up on the friend group! And the overall thought on this book is: I’m not sure how Wells is going to close out the series (aside from who she’s closing it out with), but after these last two she’s got her work cut out for her to make it even better!

This is the story of Aaron, the token straight (but fluid) guy in the friend group who works as a park ranger in Acadia National Park, and Dean, a painter who lost his mojo after a bad break up who has come back to his childhood refuge to try and find it again.

What worked most for me was Aaron’s willingness to see what was right in front of him. He’d not questioned his sexuality as an adult, but he also hadn’t explored the fluidity he’d tease some members of the friend group that he had. Again, Wells brought this out with conversations between Aaron and his mom. I legit LOLd when she started to tease him about his childhood crush on Spiderman and reminded him that he swore he’d marry him someday. Says a lot about societal expectations and toxic masculinity that Aaron did and said all that, but had no recollection of having repressed it.

Dean’s character was also well written and the trauma he brought from his failed relationship wasn’t overdone. It worked as a great counterpoint to Aaron’s I’m too picky to be in a relationship as they navigated the complexities of friendship and then friendship with benefits and ultimately a relationship.

Aaron’s idea to have Dean paint Grammy, Levi’s grandmother who raised him and was really the matriarch of the entire group accepting all of them as they are, was adorably sweet, and sneaking Levi into the picture made it that much better. It was a little too cutesy that Dean happened to be the artist who’d painted a much-adored (by Aaron and Grammy) painting in Grammy’s house, but that’s kind of what you sign up for with these MM Romances.

The sex scenes were very well written with Wells once again walking the walk on verse characters. The books are kind of blending together at this point, but there was one continuity error in one of the last three books where a character was wearing boxers at the beginning of a scene and all of a sudden briefs. Small error and didn’t pull me out of the story, but I was like wait a second that’s not what I was visualizing. Similar to most of the other stories, Wells had the characters practice safe sex, but ultimately test and go condomless. I like that she kind of provides an education as she’s writing these because hopefully some kid reads them and it sinks in.

There wasn’t a lot of drama in this book after the emotional ringer that was Shaun’s Salvation and I very much appreciated it. The biggest crisis, like most MM romance novels, was that Aaron and Dean couldn’t get out of their own way and have a conversation about what they wanted with each other. The other manufactured crises, involving Dean’s brother’s fiance’s BFF, was just over the top and annoying to me but it wasn’t surprising in the least.

I have one bone to pick with the series and it’s that Wells name-checked a character in multiple novels (Jack, Marcus’s nephew from Seb’s Summer) and yet decided to tell the story in the books wasn’t important enough. Wells decided that it would be a newsletter exclusive and mentioned it in the post-book content multiple times and that was annoying AF. Like don’t get me wrong I appreciate trying to drive readers to your newsletters and website, but name-checking a character and hinting at their story over and over again not to dedicate a book or novella to that is accessible by some other means is just bait and switch marketing.

Recommendation: So glad I caught up on this series. Aaron and Dean’s story was so endearing and well written. I enjoyed Aaron’s re-awakening we’ll say and Dean’s re-kindling. Wells does a great job portraying the various parts of Maine and a group of friends who’ve grown up together and are making their forays into adulthood and first love. There was a wonderful surprise proposal at the end of this one (not saying who, you’ll have to read to find out) and I’m interested in seeing how she concludes the series and if I’m honest, I’m surprised it took until the final book of the series for the two protagonists to be two of the friend group 😀

*I received a copy of Aaron’s Awakening via Gay Romance Reviews in return for my honest opinion. No goods or money were exchanged.

Opening Line: “Finn and Joel huh? Here’s to the happy couple.”

Closing Line: “Aaron grinned. ‘Yeah me and Spidey? We’re history.’ He kissed Dean once more. ‘ You’re my future.'” (Whited out to avoid spoilers, highlight to read.)