If You Love Something

A great second chance story. Second chance stories are one of my favorite romance tropes and this is a good one. The main focus of the story is DeShawn and Malik’s relationship but there’s so much more to it than that. I loved DeShawn’s grandmother. She is a lady who knows her own mind and wants to have things tidied up when she leaves her mortal body. Her son, DeShawn’s Uncle Robert, has a gambling problem and she doesn’t want to leave him money only to have him gamble it away. Instead, she leaves it to Malik, DeShawn’s ex-husband – only they find out that their divorce seven years earlier never went through. This is a romance so we already know that DeShawn and Malik will end up together. What makes this story interesting is the journey they go on to find their way back to each other. This includes pretending to be together again so that Uncle Robert has little chance of winning the lawsuit he files against Malik One of my favorite parts of this story is the two dogs. Corey is a bulldog and he belongs to DeShawn. Bruno is a mastiff and he belongs to Malik. These two quickly become fast friends and the antics that they get up to are adorable. I was a little disappointed that Malik’s wonderful, but kind of secret, desert making didn’t get woven into the story any more than it did. It seemed like the story was being set up to make more of this side of Malik but then nothing more really came up about it later in the book. That wasn’t enough to detract from my enjoyment of the book; it was just something that I felt was a bit unresolved. All-in-all I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more from this author. A review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley but this did not influence my opinion or rating of the book. ***Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions dot com***

If You Love Something by Jayce Ellis is an emotional, and a bit steamy MM romance that has one of the angstyest (might not be a real word, but it works for me here) romances that I’ve read in a while. DeShawn Franklin has almost everything he’s ever wanted to include being the executive chef at a Michelin-starred restaurant in DC. He’s a local celebrity chef and he’s on his way to the success he’s always dreamed about. Then his grandmother calls and tells him she has cancer and will not pursue treatment. DeShawn is devastated by this news, but she goes on to tell him that he will inherit her home and his ex-husband Malik will inherit all her money. And one more thing… His divorce from Malik seven years ago didn’t go through, and he’s actually still married to Malik! Malik never got over his marriage to DeShawn but has returned home to help his family with their restaurant business. He never told his family about his marriage to DeShawn, mostly because it was over before he came out as a gay man. Now he learns that his ex-husband’s grandmother has left him money in her will, and now her greedy son, Robert, is suing to overturn his mother’s will claiming Malik isn’t a real heir and he has coerced his mother into leaving all her money to Malik. Malik and DeShawn have not seen each other since their divorce, but now they must work together to make sure that Robert does not win the lawsuit. And they have to pretend they are together again to make a stronger case against Robert. As they spend time together sparks fly and they both begin to wonder why they ever left each other. I enjoyed the romance between DeShawn and Malik very much. It was obvious from the beginning that they share a very strong love for each other and are true soulmates. The book flew by and I never found the book dragging. I enjoyed all the family members, especially the grandmother. Malik’s family, who run their restaurant were enjoyable too. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good romance. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

If You Love Something is a beautifully written second chance story, with all the feels, about DeShawn and Malik. When DeShawn's Grandma has him come home it's more than to tell him she has cancer and isn't seeking treatment. It seems the divorce he thought he had with Malik didn't go through and they're still legally married. I loved this book from the very beginning. I wasn't sure how DeShawn and Malik would be towards each other when they found out they were still married, DeShawn would be moving in, and they had to play their relationship up in public. It was so beautiful watching them reconnect. They really had grown as men. I loved how their dogs didn't want to be apart. So sweet. This is just a make you feel good story as these two beautiful souls find their way back to each other and the grandmother who wouldn't give up hope to see her babies back together. I definitely recommend this book.