Junkyard Heart by Garrett Leigh (Porth Ewan Bay #2)

TITLE: ⟫ Junkyard Heart

AUTHOR: ⟫ Garrett Leigh

SERIES: ⟫ Porth Ewan Bay #2

RATING: ⟫ 4.5/5

BLURB: ⟫ The drifting photographer and the man who knows just what to do with lost things that wash up on the beach. Get lost in this smoking hot trends-to-lovers hurt/comfort MM romance.

Tired of the London rat race and the heartbreak that comes with it, photographer Jas Manning returns to Porth Ewan, the Cornish seaside town where he spent every childhood summer on his father’s farm. Resigned to year-round rain, wind, and homemade jam, he’s sorely unprepared for the impact that artsy carpenter Kim Penrose has on his heart.

Kim’s free-loving reputation precedes him, and he’s as generous with his inked-up body as he is with his time. The sex is hot, the easy friendship even better, and Jas’s time with him building his family’s new farmhouse canteen is everything Jas was missing in his empty city life.

But Kim’s carefree existence isn’t as simple as it appears. He’s worked hard to vanquish his demons and build his dreams, but the devil on his shoulder is ruthless, and when it comes to call, their happy bubble bursts like it was never there at all. The canteen opening looms, but Kim is gone in more ways than one, and it’s down to Jas to shore up Kim’s soul and convince him that he deserves his place in Jas’s heart.

*Previously published with the Porthkennack shared world series, these books have been significantly reworked and re-edited

REVIEW: ⟫ This book crept on me, much the same way that Kim crept up on Jasper. Jas is in no position for a relationship – he still bears the scars from his last one, and returning to Porth Ewan was meant to be a bit of a bolthole while he sorted himself out. Meeting Kim one morning changes that in momentous ways that Jas could never have imagined.

I adored the first Porth Ewan book and didn’t think I could love anyone more than I loved Brix and Calum, but Jas and Kim swept me away and dragged me into their relationship with their open hearts, vulnerability and the beauty of what they create together. I love love love reading these stories and cannot believe how well Garrett Leigh creates such characters that make you feel so much for them, root for them, and sigh happily when they reach their well deserved happily-ever-after. I’m fascinated by the hints we have of things in the future – Lena and the baby come to mind with that one – and can only say that alongside the Rebel Kings, these may well be my favourite characters by this writer.