"Masters & Boyd"

Review - "Masters & Boyd" by SJD Peterson

Wonderful long term view of a relationship

Very Highly Recommended

Carrick Masters met Ed Boyd while he was an intern.  Their brief conversation on a bench outside the hospital where Ed's dad was taken after an accident led the young intern and lawyer to begin to see one another.  And to love.

But three years after their marriage, the demands of his specialty draws Carrick's attentions more than the love of his partner.  After missing one too many milestones, putting his work and studies first, and making Ed feel less than, Carrick needs a wake up call.

When he misses their third anniversary dinner, that may be it.  The last straw for Ed.  The slap in the face Carrick needs. 

So Carrick puts his focus on the most important thing in his life - Ed.  And inadvertently, he discovers a new way of expressing himself and his love to Ed.  Because Ed, he really gets off on the blindfold Carrick puts on him to take him to a surprise.  Which leads to talk about tying him up.

Which leads to a whole new understanding of their relationship.  What's important to them. 

SJD Peterson has given us a glimpse into what happens after the ring is on the finger and the commitment made.  There is more to life together than the initial joy and glow of a relationship.  There is the life after Happily Met.

And what a journey this is.  Ed and Carrick are two wonderful men, happy in life, successful, but by no means complete.  Ed is unhappy with the direction Carrick's obsession with his career is taking him, and Carrick, he is so focused on being someone else's version of success, he almost loses his most precious item in life - Ed. 

We get to see them slowly realize there is more to life than work.  That there are always depths to plumb in love, and many ways to satisfy each other.  That it's never too late to discover what makes your partner happy when you simply pay attention.

Ms. Peterson does here what she does so well - gives us solid interesting men we can care about, shows us what's important to them, and lets us watch as they make those discoveries with each other.  She adds layers of texture, color, shading and love to her men, and let us fall in love with them as much as they fall for each other.

And she never sells them, or us, short.  She lets us into their joy and their pain, always emotionally connected and honest. 

She shows us love, not as a shiny bauble to be put on a shelf, but as a favorite treasure taken out of your pocket and admired over and over, the edges frayed and the finish worn from so much handling.  Something that is looked at, cared for and valued.

That's why I love her books, her men so much.  They are true to life.

Great book.

Tom