Contemporary . K. A. Mitchell . M/M

Bad Company by K. A. Mitchell

On April 7, 2019 by

Bad Company by K. A. Mitchell

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Blurb:

Some things are sweeter than revenge.

“I need a boyfriend.”

Hearing those words from his very straight, very ex-best friend doesn’t put Nate in a helpful mood. Not only did Kellan Brooks’s father destroy Nate’s family in his quest for power, but Kellan broke Nate’s heart back in high school. Nate thought he could trust his best friend with the revelation that he might be gay, only to find out he was horribly wrong and become the laughingstock of the whole school. Kellan must be truly desperate if he’s turning to Nate now.

Kellan’s through letting his father run his life, and he wants to make the man pay for cutting him off. What better way to stick it to the bigot than to come out as gay himself—especially with the son of the very man his father crushed on his quest for money and power. Kellan can’t blame Nate for wanting nothing to do with him, though. Kellan will have to convince him to play along, but it’s even harder to convince himself that the heat between them is only an act….

Review:

I read the second book in this series (Bad Boyfriend) first, so I already had some preconceived notions about these characters. Eli was a saint, Kellan was made of chill and could do no wrong, and Nate had some redeeming characteristics somewhere.

In Bad Company, Eli is a mooch, Kellan has a lot more depth, and Nate – well, he’s still not my favorite guy. I can understand where he’s coming from. I’ve been bullied, and the desire for revenge can be strong. And that’s without the familial trauma Nate remembers.

Nate never did grow on me, but I think I was just carrying a grudge against him because of Bad Boyfriend. My dislike of him in no way inhibited me from thoroughly enjoying the growth of his relationship with Kellan, or their ultimate happily ever after.

I did have some issues. The biggest one was Kellan’s trauma. It only came up toward the end. The trauma made sense, and it went a long way toward explaining his behavior toward Nate while they were in high school. I couldn’t understand why he’d be willing to go through with a fake relationship like the one in this book if he’d been through what was described. I get that trauma works differently for different people and it’s not for me to judge, but it still struck me as a little off.

I can’t say enough about how much I liked this book, especially given that I already had preconceived notions. (Note to self: try to read things in order, it tends to go better for you.)  As an author myself, I admire the skill and craftsmanship with which Mitchell made me care about a relationship in which one character was someone I actively disliked. That takes talent, skill, and commitment.

I’m looking forward to reading book 3!