Promise

I'm just so full of feels right now. Promise was such an effing perfect way to close out this series. It's bittersweet. I want this series to go on forever but if it has to come to an end...Jared and Tristan were the perfect way to say goodbye. It's fitting because it brought out the same feelings in me as Delicious, Ben and Gavin's book, did when I read it for the first time. (And the second...third...)Tristan is perfection. I have loved every guy in this series and not gonna lie I've had solid favorites that the rest have come close to taking over but just not quite made it. But none of them could hold a candle to Tristan once I met him. He's just effing adorable and sweet and a bit awkward and his heart and inner light shined so bright through the pages how can you not love him? Impossible. Ask Jared.Who, by the way, COMPLETELY took me by surprise. I've been looking forward to getting to know him and had all these preconceived ideas in my head about his character. It took all of about a minute and the prologue to show me just how wrong I was. In such a delicious (pun not intended just love the word hehe) way. I think my favorite thing about Jared's character is he was an artist. So when it came to him describing things or thinking things out in his head it was all this beautifully, flowery description that I loved Aubrey giving him. He just felt so much more tangible and real. I think it also helped me to love Tristan so much more deeply, it was seeing him through Jared's eyes that just made my heart feel so full.Don't get me wrong all the books in this series have been sexy as hell but holy crap on a cracker...like from the prologue I was ready to hop on the cold shower express. Normally I need a bit more to warm up to a possible couple and see that build up of tension before I'm all in. But once I started in on that sneak peek I was done for. Scribbling Tristan + Jared forever in my notebook. Sigh. I just love them. It was captivating watching the things that they brought out in each other and equally as captivating to see them react to those new depths.Oh my gosh I'm just so sad it's done! But just as over the moon at all the wonderful reading (and lots of rereading) of 6 really, really great books I've gotten out of it. Honestly probably my favorite series I read in 2016. Easily.And Aubrey, if you even see this haha, that END end? Effing brilliant. Best way to say goodbye to characters ever.Sigh. I'm not sure if I want to sit here and wallow in my bookish hangover state and cry or start rereading them already...decisions, decisions.

The great thing about his series is that most of the characters keep coming back to interact (except for Ben, Gavin's BF from Tulsa, which is disappointing). However, this one takes another couple of turns like the others do in terms of believability, but for the most part, it's a fun ride.Jared (the blond) has been around before--he's Robbie's brother and has suffered no indignities in life like Robbie did at the hands of their monstrously homophobic and success-consumed father. That's because he has played his life straight to the family's wishes--he's in investment banking, he has had a string of nice but non-committal girlfriends in his 30-odd years, and he is not totally comfortable with any of it. Why? Well, even if he doesn't know it, he's not cut out to be an investment banker and be happy--and his hobby is where he should be. With a man.Enter Tristan, a waiter at the restaurant where Jared's art gallery friend has taken him--and Jared's life (as well as Tristan's) goes completely haywire. I can very well imagine such a scenario, but the manner in which Tristan is portrayed on the cover (one of my peeves) took the subsequent heat quotient down a bit. No matter--there's enough heat in this to scorch the Cascades which surround Seattle.Nice things about this book: So many of the previous characters are back, mostly for the wedding of Beck and Liam (see book 5), but in other ways as well. The exposition of Tristan's mystery stalker and why he was following him is neatly woven into several parts of the weak plot. Weak, that is, until all sorts of puzzle pieces come together in a mildly unbelievable, but sweet, way. The love scenes, one of which is totally off the wall.The weakness here is that there are gaps in the narrative in terms of timeline. I would have preferred a few more chapters on how Jared and Tristan progressed rather than "here's what happened" as an introduction to a new chapter two weeks after a crucial section.Otherwise, well worth it, but you have to read the whole series.P.S. The epilogue is followed by a conceit which is cute, somewhat cheeky, and totally unique in summing things up.