Review: Without a Compass

Without a Compass by Helen Juliet
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Can I just tell you how adorable these boys were???



Be still my heart!

M/M titles have been my guilty pleasure lately, but Kai and Riley? Their story was so sweet it almost gave me a toothache!!! My favourite trope (no matter sexuality) for a romance is the older sibling's best friend and this is just that.

Riley has always known that he's gay, a lot like he's known that for years he's been crushing on his older brother's best friend Kai. They've known each other for years, have the comfort of a relationship like friendship considering how much they've been thrown together in the past, and these kinds of relationships are always my favourite! The one problem? Kai is straight. Or so it seems…



A Truth or Dare kiss brings an awakening moment to Kai. From the beginning, he's drawn to Riley - even mentions that he has always thought Riley's mannerisms were cute (so we have our unnoticed attraction) and that makes me happier that this isn't just a GFY story. It is, but it also isn't. Also, labelling is not Bi which usually comes with these but Pan and that makes me feel better as well because it's used correctly here. Seriously, if you don't know anything about the difference between Pansexual and Bisexual don't write about it. This is not the case with Helen Juliet so thank you for bringing that voice to the foreground.



So, camping holiday, the story focuses mostly on what becomes the beginning of Kai and Riley, and leaves me wanting more. Yes, there's sex and yes, it’s hotttttttt, but I've seen how they handle slight trouble together - now I want to see how they navigate their life. I would have loved a little flash forward before that epilogue two years later. That is the only thing I did not like about this story.



I'm just gonna bask in the glory of the sweetness of Riley and Kai. Le sigh!

View all my reviews