Monday, November 23, 2015

Jesse's Diner by Cardeno C. Blog Tour


Two men with a shared history and a mutual attraction must be honest with themselves and each other so both their dreams come true.

Quiet, unassuming Tanner Sellers spends his time running a diner in Hope, Arizona. Not particularly social, twenty-two-year-old Tanner keeps to himself and enjoys his simple life, but he longs for someone to call his own. In his most secret fantasy, that someone is sexy Steve Faus. But Steve is his friend’s father and mentor’s widower and therefore off-limits.

Despite some challenges, thirty-nine-year-old Steve Faus has had a good life. He’s extremely successful at work, has a great relationship with his college-age son, and lives in a wonderful town. Eighteen months after losing his partner, the one thing Steve lacks is someone to share his life. If Steve is honest with himself, that someone is the young man he has known and cared about for years. Steve and Tanner want one another, all they need is a little push in the right direction to make both their dreams come true.

Add to Goodreads


Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
ARe  ~  B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Smashwords  ~  Smashwords Code: YT92D




“Tanner, Mike’s on the phone for you.”

“Thanks, Miranda.” I set down the knife I was using to julienne peeled broccoli stems, wiped my hands on my apron as I walked into the tiny office off the kitchen, and then picked up the phone handset. “Hi, Mikey.”

“Hey, Tanner. Did I catch you at an okay time?”

“Yeah.” I dropped into the beat-up leather chair. “Lunch crowd is gone and the dinner rush won’t start for another couple hours yet.”

“What’s for dinner?”

“Your pop’s broccoli coleslaw. Jared McFarland had a great crop this season so he gave us a bunch.”

“Still using Pop’s recipes at the diner, huh? You know you don’t have to.” He paused and lowered his voice. “Same with his name.”

Mike’s father had opened Jesse’s Diner thirty years earlier and everyone in our small town of Hope, Arizona had loved the food almost as much as they’d loved the man. Jesse had been a father figure to half the town, myself included, and a year and a half after he died, we all still acutely felt his loss.

“This will always be Jesse’s Diner,” I said firmly. “I’m just taking care of it for him.”

“He left the diner to you, Tanner. No conditions or strings. He wanted you to run it, not turn it into a mausoleum.”

Unsure of how to respond to the reminder that Mike’s father had left his business to an employee instead of his son, I cleared my throat and wriggled uncomfortably.

“I’ve told you a million times that I have no issue with it. My pop knew I’d never move back to Hope to run the diner and my dad has more than enough money to put me through school.”

Both true statements. Shortly after high school graduation, Mike had moved to Las Vegas for college and immediately proclaimed Sin City as his forever home. His fathers weren’t surprised because Mike had always wanted to live in a big city, and frankly, they were just thankful his new home was only a three and a half hour car ride away. Plus, while the diner had brought in enough money for Jesse to get by, his partner Steve Faus had been the primary bread winner in their family.

“Don’t go silent on me, Tanner. The whole town knows you love that diner as much as my pop did and they’re glad he left it in your hands. Quit feeling guilty about it and doing everything exactly like he did. He would have wanted you to make it your own.”

“I, uh, changed the way we deliver the checks,” I admitted quietly.

After a pause, Mike asked, “The way you deliver the checks?”

“Yeah. You know how we had those black plastic trays?” I rubbed my lips together.

“Uh-huh.”

“I replaced them with old books.”

“Books?”

Old books.” I nodded even though Mike couldn’t see me. “I picked a couple dozen of them up at Second Hand. Now we tuck the check into the book, bring it over with a pen, and encourage the customers to write a note inside. Everyone’s been having fun sharing comments and reading what other people wrote. It’ll get even better as the years pass and the pages get filled. People can see what they said when they were younger. Kids can see what their parents wrote, someday even their grandparents.”

I loved the idea of ongoing connections through generations. It was something I’d missed in my own life, that sense of being part of something. Living in Hope helped because the community was exceptionally tightknit, but I’d moved there as a teenager so I didn’t have the same ties as many others.

“That’s a…charming idea. Very Hope.”

Exactly. “Thanks.”




Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Shannan☆☆☆☆
Tanner is not a very social person. He keeps to himself while he runs Jesse's Diner. He was given the diner by Jesse, his best friend's father, when he died. Tanner still feels a little guilty over getting the diner but everyone knows how much he loves the place and it's what Jesse wanted.

Steve has been the man Tanner has been crushing on since he was sixteen years old. The only issue with that is Steve was Jesse's husband and his best friend's dad. Can Steve bring Tanner out of his shell? Will Tanner stop blushing every time Steve talks to him?

I love C.C.'s writing. I fall in love with characters every time. This was no exception. Tanner was so naive and inexperienced but Steve was tender and loving with him. It was sweet and innocent, but spicy and hot at times, too. It's the perfect balance for a quick romance read.


Angie☆☆☆☆☆
Another wonderful story by Cardeno C. Short but sweet, we get so much packed into one story. Tanner has always had the hots for his best friend’s dad but would never act on it. Steve has had a great life, had a wild youth, an amazing son and a husband who passed away, and now finds himself lonely. When Tanner goes to check on Steve at his best friend’s request and that starts the nightly dinners. Such a sweet lovely story that makes you feel good all over.

Characters: Well written and easy to relate to
Sex: Yes
Religious: No
Would I recommend to others: Yes
More than one book in the series: Yes
Genre: M/M Romance
Would I read more by this author: Yes


Veronica☆☆☆☆☆
Jesse's Diner made my knees weak. Even hours after finishing the book, pieces of the story would flash in my mind filling me with pleasure and making me smile. This story of the 22 year old virgin and the 39 year old widow is a lovely romance. It is also incredibly hot and had me chuckling in a few places. Wonderful story.


Ruthie☆☆☆☆
A really lovely short story. There is plenty of explanation of the scenario, and as the story unfolds we cannot do but wish these two men an amazing future together. By the end, many more things become clear and somehow make it even better! Cardeno C. continues to find delightful characters to write about, and does so with great ease and style. I would suggest that you find a free few hours, drink and snacks to hand, and hide yourself away, because you will not want to leave your Kindle until you have finished. This is the kind of story that can be read again, just to bathe in the heat and happiness that ensues.

C.C. is on my automatic read list, this continues to justify that decision.


Also Available in the Hope Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
ARe  ~  B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo  ~  Smashwords

For reviews & more info, check out our stop on the McFarland’s Farm Blog Tour.




Cardeno C. – CC to friends – is a hopeless romantic who wants to add a lot of happiness and a few "awwws" into a reader's day. Writing is a nice break from real life as a corporate type and volunteer work with gay rights organizations. Cardeno's stories range from sweet to intense, contemporary to paranormal, long to short, but they always include strong relationships and walks into the happily-ever-after sunset.

Cardeno's Home, Family, and Mates series have received awards from Love Romances and More Golden Roses, Rainbow Awards, the Goodreads M/M Romance Group, and various reviewers. But even more special to CC are heartfelt reactions from readers, like, "You bring joy and love and make it part of the every day."

Connect with CC

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
FB Fan Group  ~  Pinterest  ~  YouTube  ~  Google+



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted by
http://www.wlkbookpromotions.com


Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Jesse's Diner (Hope #2) by Cardeno C. to read and review for this tour.

No comments:

Post a Comment

All comments are reviewed by a blog admin before being published. We thank you for visiting our blog & leaving a comment.