Review: Brick by Brick

Brick by Brick by Maryn Blackburn

My rating: 2 of 5 stars




Ménage with a triad where it's m/m/f is truly delicious. Sometimes, one person gets left out and when it's the woman, there is hell to pay.

Natalie and James are a happily married couple who are doing their best to get by. James is a customized bricklayer who is putting in long hours to keep his company afloat. Natalie is a good housewife who takes care of her husband.

The two of them meet movie star Gage and their life turns upside down. Both of them are attracted to him and he wants them just as much. Sometimes, too much isn't a good thing. The threesome starts out a bit awkward and quickly goes into a honeymoon phase. Before this new relationship can bloom, it withers as Gage never calls Natalie and James back. To bring it back into a second bloom is difficult.

Ms. Blackburn does a good job of showing the pitfalls of a threesome. She also show how things fall apart as well as how a happy marriage can tear apart. Basically, jealousy will eat a person through.

I'm honestly mixed about this story. I liked the ménage. The sex between the men is very hot. The sex with Natalie is not so hot. I think the problem for me in this book is that Natalie is too down on her body. She feels as if she is a 5 and both her husband and their lover are 10. She competes with Gage for her husband's sexual attention and it makes her look needy and petty. She also behaves in some ways which I categorizes as crazy woman logic. At the end of the story, I didn't like her and really felt the threesome should have ended and have Gage drive off into the sunset with James. The two of them have amazing chemistry. Natalie thrown in should have kicked the heat up. Instead, she brings it down and is kind of a dud.

The emotional baggage of this story is also a bit of a drag. Characters are flawed and that's okay. The way these three are designed, it makes them all seem shallow and insecure. When I'm not as fond of the characters, it makes for a difficult read. The sex between Gage and James carried the book. Recommended for ménage lovers who enjoy watching men getting rough with each other.

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