A Brush of Blue - Amazon US

My Review

No matter how far you go, love will always lead you home again.

The world has changed quite a bit since Carl Cimino was a young man in Port Plechard. The small Connecticut coastal town once had everything that he held dear: his family, his friends, his hockey team, his school, and his first love, Mike Rinnert. Back then gay boys didn’t parade along the rocky shores in bright rainbow swim trunks. They hid their shame then moved away or married a nice girl and pretended to be happy. After a dismal marriage attempt and a lackluster playing career that ended with an equally unsatisfying coaching job, Carl is called back to Port Plechard to attend Mike’s funeral and swears that he’s just seen a ghost.

Either that or he’s had one too many sips of his father’s homemade wine. He soon discovers that the spirit hovering around Mike’s grave isn’t a phantom at all, it’s Tigh, Mike’s much younger brother. Tigh is nearly an exact replica of young Mike right down to his dark sensual eyes, wavy hair, and lips that beg to be kissed. The two men are drawn to each other immediately, but there’s more than one hurdle to overcome: a sizeable age difference, small-town gossip, personal demons, family problems, and a hurricane just to name a few.

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My Rating - 5 Stars!

VL Locey's Songs of a Red Currant Wine is an absolutely beautiful May to December romance. The sixth book in the Colors of Love series, it's a powerful standalone.

I was drawn in from the start, as we meet Carl, a former hockey player, who's in his fifties and floundering through life.

The first scene between Carl and Tigh, when Carl believes that Tigh is Mike's ghost, wow. What a scene! I love it.

This story is one with years of homophobia, not just in a small town, but also in the hockey world. It's a tale that explores the ramifications of spending one's life in the closet. Lying to others and denying himself from being honest has left Carl an unhappy alcoholic.

And then he meets Tigh.

What follows is a journey of starting over, finding a purpose and grabbing onto happiness. I love the way the author gives Carl a chance to live authentically. Seeing him do what he wants to do instead of what he's been conditioned to do is wonderful.

If you enjoy romances with closeted athletes, you will love this story. Damn, the sports world is tough to live as openly gay, and with Carl being in his fifties now, he certainly couldn't have been open when he was younger.

The ex's brother aspect is obviously a huge deal when they first meet. But it's never an obstacle, which is quite impressive.

Songs of a Red Currant Wine is a serious story, full of pain and addiction. But this VL Locey romance is one of getting over one's past and working on a better future. And it's fantastic. Basically, another amazing book by VL!

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USA Today Bestselling Author V.L. Locey – Penning LGBT hockey romance that skates into sinful pleasures.

V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, Torchwood and Dr. Who, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a pair of geese, far too many chickens, and two steers.

When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in one hand and a steamy romance novel in the other.

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