Review of Best Laid Plans (Garnet Run #2) by Roan Parrish
Best Laid Plans is the second book in the series Garnet Run.
Charlie Matheson takes care of things. When his parents died, he stepped in and became a parent to his younger brother and took over the family business. Now his brother Jack is grown and happy in a relationship. But Charlie has never had a relationship outside some messing around with a teammate in high school.
Rye Janssen left home at sixteen and has gone from apartment to apartment and was stuck couch surfing when he found out he'd inherited a house in Garnet Run, Wyoming, from a grandfather he never knew. He drops everything in Seattle and moves to Garnet Run.
Charlie sees Rye in his hardware store buying random things several times and wants to help. He discovers Rye's house is falling apart and needs serious renovations. He offers to help and gives Rye a place to stay while the house is fixed.
The draw between the two men is strong and Charlie is at a loss as to how to handle it. Rye, in his experience, helps Charlie navigate his first relationship.
I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first one, Better Than People.
Charlie was a weaker character than I expected, and the relationship had Rye almost being a therapist who had to gently guide Charlie through the exploration of sex. Rye's handling of it was tender and sweet, and he certainly helped Charlie discover the things he liked and didn't like.
Rye was a grumpy and surly character who opened up to Charlie and revealed a sweet man with a big heart. His attachment to his cat was adorable, and the way he bonded with Charlie's cat was touching. I liked when Charlie started to be able to infer what Rye's different scowls meant and that it wasn't always that he was angry.
They made a sweet couple, though not as much as Jack and Simon from Better Than People. I enjoyed their story, but there was a bit of insta-love happening, and not enough explanation as to why they fell in love.
Descriptions were good. Rye's house was pretty clear, and Charlie's moderately so. The hardware store even less. I think Roan Parrish could have done much better with them. I didn't even know if Charlie's house had more than one floor. Description of characters could have been better, but they weren't bad.
The dialog was smooth for the most part and realistic. There were a few dips into cheese, and one time a character pointed out that the other one had said something cheesy which made me laugh.
Overall, a decent companion to the first book.
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