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Cyberlove #2

Fast Connection

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After a decade of serving in the Army, everyone still expects me to be Dominic 'Nicky' Costigan--the skirt-chasing player. They don't know I've been spending my days trying to figure out my post-military life. Including how to pick up guys.

When I meet Luke on a hookup app, he makes it clear it's for one-night only. That's fine with me, because I'm down to see what this silver fox can do. But after I arrive at his doorstep, it doesn't take long to realize we have serious chemistry, and we end up meeting again.

He's got more walls around his heart than a military base, but I think he's as addicted to me as I am to him. He can't resist me for long. I mean, who can? Except Luke's rules exist for a reason, and when I test his limits, things get complicated. Maybe too complicated.

247 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 11, 2016

63 people are currently reading
2100 people want to read

About the author

Megan Erickson

48 books1,843 followers
Megan Erickson is a USA Today bestselling author of romance that sizzles. Her books have a touch of nerd, a dash of humor, and always have a happily ever after. A former journalist, she switched to fiction when she decided she likes writing her own endings better.

She lives in Pennsylvania with her very own nerdy husband and two kids. Although rather fun-sized, she's been told she has a full-sized personality. When Megan isn't writing, she's either lounging with her two cats named after John Hughes characters or... thinking about writing.

For more, visit meganerickson.org

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 832 reviews
Profile Image for ✦❋Arianna✦❋.
790 reviews2,545 followers
August 9, 2016
4 Stars!!

description

If you have read and enjoyed 'First Signal', the first installment in the series, then for sure you’ll enjoy 'Fast Connection'. This second installment was as awesome and well written as at first one and once again I fell for the two main characters from the very beginning. While this one can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend reading the first installment since you don’t want to miss another great read by these two authors, another great mix of sweetness and sexiness.

Dominic ‘Nicky’ Costigan (character we previously met in 'First Signal') has just left the military. All eight years in the military had changed Dominic. He is not the same Dominic, now being more mature and responsible. Forced by circumstance he moves in his parents’ basement and works at his father’s bagel shop. He spends his days trying to figure out what to do with his life, what career to pursue next. He also tries to figure out how to deal with his bisexuality. He still wants to explore his gay side and to meet someone with whom to hook up occasionally. Through a hook-up application he meets Luke. Luke is older, divorced with two teenage kids and wants from the beginning to keep his sex life separate from his job and his family. He had a good reason to do that and he’s not willing to change his reasoning, who he is, for anyone. He “doesn’t do relationships”, hooking up only being his way of keeping everything simple. However, sometimes it’s lonely even for him to be all alone, but he hadn’t met anyone who was worth changing his life for.

Sparks start to fly between Dominic and Luke from the moment they meet. They continue to meet even if until Dominic Luke didn’t hook-up with the same man twice. Slowly, Dominic starts to want more from Luke, but the older, stubborn man is not willing to change who he is for the sexy younger man, until he does and his walls slowly but surely come crashing down.

I enjoyed this one very much! In my opinion it was better than the previous installment, mainly because for me the dynamic between Dominic and Luke was better done than the two main characters' dynamic from book1. I liked the fact that both main characters were bi-sexual. It was definitely a nice change! The plot was done pretty well and the interactions between the main and supporting character were really great. I liked both Dominic and Luke. Both of them were well portrayed and complex. Honestly, I liked more Dominic than Luke. He was a great brother to his sister Adriana, he was sweet and protective with the people he cared about and he was thoughtful and considerate with Luke. Overall, he was pretty great, but I would have liked for him to be a little more confident at times. As for Luke, well, it took a little time to warm up with him. His cold behavior toward Dominic at times annoyed the sh*t out of me, but as the story progressed he won me over. AS the story unfolded, he proved he is good for Dominic. He was good listener and friend being supportive and helpful. The steam aspect was great. The sexy scenes between these two were well written, sexy and so passionate at times. Needless to say I liked these two together in and out of bed. I also liked the chats between them. They were fun, sweet and at times sexy and overall really entertaining.

Overall, 'Fast Connection' was a fantastic m/m read and a great addition to the series! Can’t wait for more from these two authors!
Profile Image for Judith.
724 reviews2,925 followers
July 13, 2016
5+ Stars.....So Good!!!!

Dominic,27...








Luke,39...






I loved the first book in this series but I thought this was even better.
I really didn't like Dominic in book one but I did a massive u turn here because I absolutely LOVED him here.

Dominic has just left the Military.He's kind of drifting through life,doesn't really know where he fits in.Add into the mix his highly volatile family,at the age of 27 he's a bit jaded with life.
He's bi sexual but has become more and more interested in men so goes on Grindr where he meets Luke.

Luke is 39,also bi sexual.Forced out of the Military at a young age,he's finally getting his life together.He's divorced with teenage twins and his barriers are firmly in place.He likes one time hook ups with men but never goes back for more until Dominic pushes down his defences.

There's drama as their two families cross paths.This was an integral part of their relationship and extremely well written.

I'm not sure which Author was responsible for the sex scenes but they are just delicious.It's raw,dirty,desperate and very passionate.

And how refreshing to have a M/M book that's not Gfy(not that I'm not into that) , but this was all the more believable because they were both bi.

I cannot recommend this book/series highly enough for M/M fans.

My Dominic inspiration.....enjoy!!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mjjsaDv...


Profile Image for *J* Too Many Books Too Little Time.
1,921 reviews3,719 followers
July 12, 2016


Yep, this one ticked all of my boxes!

Right off the bat, I'm laughing my ass off.



I loved all of the electronic communicating. I love texts, e-mails....all of that stuff. Megan and Santino really nail it on this front.

I started reading this one on my lunch break and honestly couldn't quit. I would have finished it in one sitting had work not gotten in the way. As it is, I still finished it in a day.

I LOVED Dominic. LOVED him.

Luke on the other hand, took some warming up to. Together, they were great.

Seriously, I can't think of one complaint. Not one. This one had everything....the banter, the steam, and just the right amount of angst.

The Megan and Santino duo....



Can't wait to see who the next book is about!
Profile Image for Rachel  L.
2,115 reviews2,499 followers
February 28, 2018
Reread 2/27/18 still amazeballs

5 stars!

“He's completely complicated. And lost. And frustrating. But we do something for each other. . . . We fit. We need each other.”



I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!! This was my first full five star rated book of 2017, this was the perfect book at the perfect time!

Dominic Costigan served his country in the army for many years, and it was there he realized that his skirt chasing days may also include pant chasing. Basically, he's bisexual. Upon returning home he gets a gay dating app and finds himself in a hook up with silver fox Luke.

Luke is a divorced father of two teens, also bisexual, and has zero interest in a relationship. But there's something between the two of them that Luke recognizes and doesn't want to. Can Luke look past his reservations and open up to Dominic?



“I couldn't get enough of him. He was an addiction now, and I hadn't decided yet if he was a healthy one like eating apples every day or an unhealthy one like meth.”

I loved this book, I loved it. I am going to keep saying that. I LOVED IT! There. It's all out. Maybe. If you read the first book, the Dominic Costigan we met wasn't his best self, I was wary of his character to be honest. But I love when authors take a character who doesn't appear to be great in one book, and we see a whole new side of them in their own book.

Dominic is one of my favorite book heroes now, I loved reading about his journey to find himself and what he wanted to do with his life. His insecurities came from a real place, not having a supportive figure in his life. Luke was his perfect counter point despite being kind of a dick in the beginning. The two of them got each other, one kind of goofy and the other stoic. Dominic breaks through Luke's hard exterior, and Luke recognizes that "Nick" needs affection.

Perk for all of you pervy pervs out there like me, this book was seriously HAWT. Very, vert hot. But it was equal with plot which is so hard to do and I appreciated that. And it had the perfect level of angst, the delicious kind where rainbows come out of my mouth while I am reading it. (Yes, I am weird).

Anyways, if you are in the mood for an awesome MM story between a hot Captain America type and a silver fox, this is the book for you!

“I want you. To be mine. Only mine."

Profile Image for .Lili. .
1,275 reviews272 followers
Read
March 10, 2018
Rating removed.

Original review under spoiler.
Profile Image for Gigi.
2,148 reviews1,061 followers
July 12, 2016
5 stars, loved it to pieces! Here are my feelings, expressed by the great Beyoncé:







Not much else to say that hasn't already been said. Fucking incredible book.
Profile Image for Dia.
534 reviews148 followers
July 14, 2016
5 HUGE stars for this WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL STORY - THE ATTRACTION WAS PHENOMENAL!!!

THIS. BOOK. IS. MIND. BLOWING.

SILVER FOX - LUKE


Dominic


I was blown away by all that SMOKING HOT CHEMISTRY!!! The sex is out of this world. And Dominic and Luke fit perfectly together!

I don't know if I can describe in words how much I LOVE this book!!! But I will try.


I never expected a book's release as much as I expected this one. I counted the days! I pre-ordered it a long time ago. I knew I will love every single word, but it still surprised me. A LOT!

This book felt REAL, the characters felt REAL, their stories felt REAL. Even if it hurt a lot to read about what they were going through, the authors did such a good job in keeping the angst to a bearable level and the end of the book was so sweet!

I ADORE Santino Hassell and Megan Erickson, but still this book was much more than I expected! I was glued to the pages!!

I have to admit I didn't like Dominic Costigan in Strong Signal. I couldn't understand him, but this book made me love him so much.

Their Grindr messages were hot, dirty and also made me smile a lot!

I loved Kai's and Garrett's appearances. I think I will reread the first book soon. I didn't believe I could love another couple as much as I loved Garrett and KAI, but Dominic and Luke are equally adorable!!!

I can't really say which one is my favorite. Strong Signal was the first book written by these authors that I got to read, so I was really impressed by how much it consumed me, moved me and also made me want to read more. When I started Fast Connection I expected a similar story, but I got MUCH MORE. I am so happy the first chapter broth me the most UNEXPECTED DETAIL. That "one word...".

If you didn't read this book, YOU HAVE TO, and I strongly recommend to read both books, in order. Wish I could read them for the first time AGAIN!
Profile Image for ~Mindy Lynn~.
1,396 reviews661 followers
March 21, 2017
How I love this story... Second time around with this one and I loved it just as much as the first time around.

This one is my favorite out of the three. The guys had the best connection for me and it just felt more real for me. I think it was because of the strong sense of family the book has.

Dominic was so damn endearing. He needed to be wanted. He needed to be taken serious. He needed to feel a connection to someone that could understand him. He needed someone to love him. He needed, Luke.

Luke was pretty closed off guy who was hiding a soft heart. He needed someone to break down his walls. He needed someone to make him smile. He needed someone to make him laugh and relax. He needed someone to make him trust again. He needed, Dominic.

These two together was like puzzle pieces fitting into place. They just fit. The passion and attraction was strong and it came through on the pages. They were exactly what the other needed. I loved both of them together and apart. My favorite couple of the series yet.

The family side for Dominic broke my heart. His father really was a piece of work. I really didn't like him and although he started redeeming himself near the end I still had no love for the guy. I didn't like how he continuously dismissed Dominic's career in the Army or his dreams of being an EMT. The screaming and banging around he did when he talked to both his kids was annoying. He annoyed me. The mother annoyed me more by doing absolutely nothing. Pathetic.

These two author's fit their writing styles together so well that I can't tell who wrote what. They are brilliant apart and brilliant together. I look forward to more from them.
Profile Image for Mirjana **DTR - Down to Read**.
1,471 reviews805 followers
March 21, 2017

***5 Stars***

You want a review? Some advice about this book? Here you go....

READ THE BOOK!!! DO IT!! Do not walk...run. Do not stop at Go and collect $200. Do not dilly-dally. Make good life choices. Put a smile on your face, a zip in your step, a stutter in your chest and a tingle in your body.

I hope the Megan Erickson and Santino Hassell collaboration NEVER ends! If things get rough, go to couple's counseling, but DON'T YOU DARE BREAK UP!

Let me break down my love.

- Dominic Costigan - I loved him. He was charming and vulnerable and funny and sensitive and spontaneous and so many wonderful and real life things. He was relatable and endearing. I'm pretty sure I spent most of my time wanting to crawl into my kindle and give him a big ol' hug and ass squeeze.

- Luke Rawlings - Not gonna lie....homie takes a minute to get warmed up to. He starts off as distant, compartmentalized, cold and rude. But that slowly melts away and you find a man who's been burned in the past, a man who's terrified of complications in his boring and orderly world... a man who comes to life in Dominic's presence.

- The Grindr Messages - Luke and Dominic meet on a hook-up app and let me tell you, I'm already a sucker for books that deal with some form of online communication (email, texts, chats, whatever), these two do not disappoint. It's hot, it's honest, it's funny....it's fantastic!!

- An Addicting Story - It's impossible to put this book down. Two chapters. That was all it took for me to know I had a 5 star read on my hands. I started reading this yesterday, and I finished reading this yesterday. I was completely enthralled with what was going on. The humor, the banter, the family dynamics, the angst, the scorching hot sex, the heartfelt and passionate chemistry between the MC's....all of it kept me glued to my kindle.

- The Epilogue - My cup runneth over with awesome. My heart bursts with love. I went back and re-read it a second time.



I loved the first book in this series (I'm so glad we got to see and catch up with Kai and Garrett in this book) and I had no doubt that I was going to enjoy this one...but this book was everything I look for in a romance and everything I love about reading. Unforgettable characters, addicting and engaging story, fantastic banter, laugh out loud humor, a touch of heart stuttering angst, passion, explosive chemistry, and an HEA that makes your heart smile.

Now, after having laid all that out for you, I will say one last time...

READ THE BOOK!!

Profile Image for Elsa Bravante.
1,156 reviews198 followers
March 1, 2018

No sé ni por dónde empezar con esta review, durante las últimas semanas y meses he aprendido que en una comunidad tan pequeña como la del MM es muy difícil tener opiniones distintas a las más populares, porque muchas veces, cuando así ocurre, en ocasiones se produce un "castigo" público por parte de autores y otros lectores, o uno privado, pasando a ser ignorada por la mayoría. Así que me he encontrado en la tesitura de si decir de verdad lo que pienso, o no. Supongo que estoy bastante protegida por el castellano.

¿Qué cosas me han gustado del libro? Creo que el retrato que hacen de una pareja bisexual es natural y respetuoso; las conversaciones por Grindr son divertidas; tanto Costigan como Luke son personajes que atraen y a los que terminas queriendo... Pero, poco más.

¿Qué cosas no me han gustado? Muchas:

- El personaje de Luke. A lo largo del libro Luke sufre un cambio en su forma de pensar que no pasa por ninguna transición, es muy brusco y lo hace poco creíble, nos perdemos realmente su proceso de pensamiento. No se puede ser de una determinada manera durante más de 10 años y luego convertirse en el protagonista de una película de Hallmark. No es que no me guste el personaje en sí, es que creo que no está bien desarrollado.

- El padre de Costigan: parecido a lo que pasa con Luke pasa con este personaje. El cambio en su forma de pensar y actuar es muy brusco y no me queda claro ni las razones de su forma de ser anterior, ni ese cambio tan brusco, no es creíble.

- El asunto con John, el "amigo" de Costigan. Simplemente, no lo he entendido, no comprendo su función en la historia ni lo que aporta.

- Las escenas de sexo me han parecido las mismas que he leído mil veces con un montón de ass, dick y fuck. Me parece fabuloso, nada en contra, pero son igual que otras cien mil más y sin ninguna carga emocional.

- A medida que iba leyendo la impresión que tenía era que todo el libro era un cocktail de lo que se supone que la gente quiere leer: la importancia de las relaciones sociales online, la bisexualidad, unos personajes POC a los que creo que no se les da el desarrollo debido, el sexo, los chistes, el personaje gruñón. Todo junto y a leer, pero con falta de fundamento, de sustancia, de profundidad.

- El asunto de los veteranos de guerra: tengo un problema moral aquí, no entiendo cómo alguien quiere ser soldado y matar gente, es algo totalmente incomprensible para mi, pero sí comprendo la cantidad de gente que hay en USA y otros países que pasan a formar parte del Ejército por ser la única salida que ven. En dos o tres ocasiones Costigan y Luke hablan de su vida como soldado, de cómo deben matar gente y siempre manteniendo que lo importante es lo mal que lo habían pasado y la gente que habían visto morir y que la cuestión de si esa guerra era "justa" no era importante. Lo siento, no, cuando tú estás en esa guerra por voluntad propia, cuando estás matando por voluntad propia y son ellos mismos los que le dan la importancia que se debe a esto, sí es importante si la causa que defiendes es justa o no, es lo más importante.

- El final, uffff...

- Al final del libro hay una equivocación temporal, no importante, pero detalles que a mi me molestan muchísimo y que supongo que un beta debería haber notado.

- Para terminar, constantemente he oído estos días el término silver fox. Puedo estar equivocada, no soy una académica de la lengua inglesa, pero siempre que he leído ese término ha sido para referirse a hombres de pelo cano de alrededor de 50 años o más, hombres mayores atractivos a los que se supone con mucha experiencia vital. De hecho, lo he buscado en el Urban Dictionary y pone: attractive older man, y el ejemplo es Sean Connery que tiene 70 años. Cuál es mi sorpresa cuando veo que el personaje al que se refieren como silver fox, Luke, tiene 39 años. Lo siento, no... Mi marido tiene 39 años, tiene canas y es atractivo, pero no es un silver fox. Cuando equiparas a una persona de más 50 años con una de 39... No. Puedo resultar no importante para algunos, pero a mi su utilización me parece desafortunada e insultante. ¿Qué pasa con las edades? ¿Estamos locos? Parece que si un personaje tiene más de 30 años hablamos de alguien que ya ha hecho todo en su vida. No.

Cualquiera que haya leído mis reviews sabe que yo no necesito leer a García Márquez para que un libro me guste o tenga cinco estrellas. Sé diferenciar muy bien esos libros que leo por entretenimiento y que disfruto muchísimo, y esos libros que son algo más. Pero, en esta ocasión, este libro que sería para entretenerme y disfrutarlo, no ha funcionado para mi. Si os soy sincera, hay veces que hasta me ha aburrido.
Profile Image for Catherine.
1,608 reviews267 followers
July 2, 2017
Every bit as good as I expected a book from these two to be.

My only critique is that I feel I could tell which chapters were written by Megan and which were written by Santino. *shrugs*
Profile Image for Megan Erickson.
Author 48 books1,843 followers
Want to read
July 11, 2016
Writing this book with Santino was a blast. I laughed to the point of tears numerous times. "I don't do yoga."

This series has my heart, and I'm thrilled readers are connecting with it (see what I did there?). Yes, there will be more books in this series, because writing with Santino is that much fun, and apparently readers like us doing our writing thing together.

Anyway, Fast Connection is out now on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, iBooks and All Romance ebooks. Get it if you're into a grumpy silver fox meets smart ass Chris Evans-look-alike. And don't forget to read all the way to the end for a link to a free special bonus scene. :)
Profile Image for Jaime.
1,800 reviews309 followers
no-no-cuz-reasons
March 15, 2018
Review & Rating Removed 2018
Profile Image for Mónica BQ.
868 reviews136 followers
March 2, 2018
Deleting review because of reasons. They are easy enough to find if you care to.
I'm leaving my original rating and review under a spoiler tag to evidentiate I did read it and the majority of this space is dedicated to the book.

Profile Image for E.
415 reviews131 followers
July 12, 2016
As usual, my ipad review disappeared, so here's take 2:


I FINALLY GOT TO READ THIS BOOK!!!



So this book popped up on my Kindle app a little after 12 am, which means I was FORCED to read it until after 3 am. Forced!

Really though, I stayed up until that time reading it because I was enthralled. I found it to be amusing, honest and generally realistic. I could totally see there being two asshole-ish guys very much like Dominic and Luke that meet through an app like Grindr and end up falling in love.

I enjoyed very much their characterizations and thought Dominic was very true to your typical Staten Island douche bro that ends up growing up through no fault of his own. He also rang very true to your typical soldier, of which I've had the pleasure of knowing many since I grew up around a plethora of military bases in Panama. I do think that this story was more on the light side, seeing that most soldiers that have seen action and death would often be much more fucked up than Dominic was (unless they're more on the sociopath/psychopath side, personality-wise), but that aspect of the story didn't bother me as much. I also very much enjoyed Luke and thought he seemed very realistic. Assholes gotta asshole, but sometimes they're nice guys under that gruff exterior.

I will say, though, that the reason why I didn't give this story 5 stars is because of the diversity. See, don't get me wrong: I'm a fan of seeing more books with diversity, and I enjoy seeing a book with black characters that aren't stereotypical black characters. Where I have the problem is when books seem to have random PoC characters just to have them in there, without fleshing them out as real people with the real issues PoC face daily. I especially have a problem when they only make mention of the fact that the character is PoC in passing, so that you wouldn't even notice it if you weren't paying attention.



I mean, I know the book was not about Luke's ex wife being black or his kids being mixed, but here's the thing: I'm very familiar with Staten Island people, having worked with and around many of them for years, so I'm pretty sure that the main reason why Dominic's dad (Duffy) would probably have not liked his daughter (Adriana) hanging out with Luke's son (Micah) would very well most likely be because he was part black, not because he was... I don't know... just there being a good friend.

Because the authors choose not to make mention of any of the racial issues these two families would face, certain parts of the book seem out of place. Why else would Adriana have to make this speech, which seemed really random in the context of the book?:

"Sometimes it's hard because even though we live near each other and hang out all the time-in person-people still seem to act like... what we have isn't real. Because it started online and because we're so different..."

The only other differences they seem to really have are that Luke and his family seem somewhat more well off than Dominic's family. Otherwise...

I have no idea.



There was a part towards the end of the book that really had me side eyeing it, because, in my mind, a big part of the reason why but others could very well have a different way of looking at things if they're looking at this book through a non-PoC lens.

Otherwise, the book was fun, extremely hot, and a delightful read. I do also have to make mention of the fact that this book was self pubbed and yet still managed to have only a few errors, grammatical or otherwise.




Previously:

Me every time a review for this book pops up on my feed:



Come onnnnn the 11th!!
Profile Image for Wendys Wycked Words.
1,590 reviews3,952 followers
February 10, 2017
 photo tumblr_inline_nn4n3hXW2V1tnj84r_500_zpsr8sxqiej.jpg

This book was amazing, I loved every freaking page !!

We've met Dominic in book 1, in which he was a bit of an ass. He's a bit cocky, that's for sure, but an asshole....no way !! I loved the guy. Dominic has discovered his bi side in the army and he's al for exploring it more fully now that he's out. This brings him to Grindr.

 photo grindr_zps1qc5uzqf.jpg

He makes himself a profile and starts looking for an easy lay...

Luke is a 39 year old divorced father of two. He has always been bi and ever since his marriage ended, he's been hooking up when the kids are with their mom. Because of bad relationship in the past, he doesn't do serious....only simple hook-ups, which he finds using Grindr. This is how he ends up fucking Dominic's brains out... Damn these two were hot together !!!

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Ofcourse he kicks Dominic out afterwards, he doesn't want his seperate worlds mixing and he doesn't do repeats.

But Dominic is not easy to forget. He's hot and sweet and funny and he doesn't take no for answer. He just keeps texting Luke on Grindr, were they start a sort of texting relationship and get to know each other better. I loved the texts. Dominic was hilarious and ofcourse Luke can't resist what Dominic is offering.

 photo grindr9_zpsfl8oyyv1.jpg

Eventually Luke starts to appreciate who Dominic is a person, instead of just some fuck and these two become closer and closer. But when they find out that they are more closely connected than they realised, shit turns very complicated. This is not good, especially for Luke, who really doesn't like complications.

I loved this book and I adored Dominic. He is one of my all time favorite characters. He was cocky and sweet and funny and I really wanted him to have the world. I never expected that, what with him being an ass in book 1. We also get some snippets of Garrett and Kai. Also I really appreciated the fact that Luke's ex-wife was not some raving bitch. I really hope there will be another book, because these are the shit !! So 5 stars ofcourse :D

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Profile Image for Belle.
594 reviews566 followers
January 19, 2019
4/5 stars

“I couldn't get enough of him. He was an addiction now, and I hadn't decided yet if he was a healthy one like eating apples every day or an unhealthy one like meth.”


reread:
20/01/19

This is the second book I’ve read now in the Cyberlove series and although I enjoyed the first in this series, Fast Connection blew that book out of this universe. This had everything I needed in the first book, it had more substance and the issues that the authors weaved into the story were executed in a much better fashion, didn’t feel like they were in there just to add a little more angst and complication. They all had a purpose and related well.

Fast Connections follows Dominic “Nicky” Costigan who was first introduced in Strong Signal as a character fighting against his sexuality. This book begins with Dominic coming to terms with the fact he is bi and using the app Grindr to explore with casual hook-ups.

In this book you see a whole new side of Staff Sergeant Costigan that you missed in Strong Signal. He’s a hilarious softy with a side of vulnerability that makes him so easy to love. He was born into a dysfunctional family in Staten Island, with a father with severe anger issues, a misunderstood (but also sweet) younger sister and a mother who put up with all their shit the best way she knew how. Throughout the book you follow Dominic’s battle with how to come out to his family, money issues, ultimately not knowing how to move on with his life after the war and feeling worthless with the way his life was now progressing.

While using the app, Dominic ends up hooking up with the older and equally as complicated Luke, a divorced father of two who doesn’t want anything even close to the realm of a relationship.

But as one hook-up turns into a set date and time, Luke begins to break all the rules that he had set in place after a pretty disastrous relationship put his children in danger years ago. The one rule Luke refuses to bend is that his sex life won’t touch his family life, those two boxes kept completely separate. But when it turns out that Luke’s teenage son is friends’ with Dominic’s younger (and slightly delinquent) sister, things begin to get messy.

I felt that the two balanced each other so well throughout the book, their relationship having all the good ingredients to an addictive romance story. There was angst, real life problems, utterly hilarious banter and some good ol’ romance scenes (with a mix of dirty scenes as well, what can I say other than, yes please?).

I felt like this book packed so much more of an emotional punch and the authors created characters that were much easier to empathise with. The plot and story flowed well together and I never felt uncomfortable because of cheesy dialog and uncomfortably awkward romantic declarations that filled a lot of the first book, Strong Signal.

The family aspect in this book was strong for both characters and I found some of my favourite parts to be the way they all interacted together, with even the children and Luke’s ex-wife having strong personalities and leading interesting lives throughout the story that all wove together beautifully.

An absolutely beautiful romance story that totally tugged at the heartstrings and left you feeling completely and utterly satisfied by the end. Will definitely be added to my go-to romance rereads!

My review of the first book, Strong Signal
Profile Image for Cristopher.
55 reviews13 followers
August 13, 2016
5 STARS!

Dayuuuuum!

@)!?!£<{^€¥~%#!!!!

Sorry for my incoherency, but man this book is totally awesome! Its a damn total package and I've enjoyed it far more than I thought I would!

Santino & Meg put up the ante of their game here. And for me, its better than the first book by miles.

So..
I wasn't into the MCs of this book right away. Not really.

Dominic "Nicky" Costigan an ex-army was a bit of a needy desperate slut who after being kicked out few minutes after orgasm was already thirsty for another round..

And Luke Rawlings, a stoic and cold divorced man was just fucking inconsiderate who couldn't wait to shut the door on the face of his hook up after release..

I was like.. What the hell? Am I gonna like this?

Turns out. Oh boy, I didn't like it.
I LOVED IT!!!

Slowly, and steadily I began to like them and soon I couldn't help but to be engrossed, worried, sucked in the life-like situations of these two characters.

I loved how Luke couldn't build a wall strong enough against Dominic when all this time he have managed to do so with every other hook up.

I loved how responsible, selfless, caring Nicky was, that he sacrificed his own goals for his family.

I loved the damn scorching sex scenes! They're totally insanely hot, I swear!

I loved the chats!!! The jealousy. The possessiveness. The teasing. The care. The love. And man..

I LOVE the fucking happy ending. It was just so sooo satisfying.

It was sooo real that I feel like Meg & Santino could make me believe anything, with the way they write!

Sigh. Maybe, it's time to give Grindr a chance? LOL!
Profile Image for Vivian.
2,914 reviews480 followers
no-thank-you
March 8, 2018
I loved Dominic's struggle and how it played out, how he made the transition from soldier to civilian and all the disruption that caused and especially because it didn't revolve around PTSD. The change from regimented time and duties to the amorphous construct of everyday life and how unmoored he felt were really well done. Tacking on his sexual identity growth made it more and less challenging because while he wasn't the guy who left town ten years ago and had to rebrand himself to his family and neighborhood, it was still another thing to figure out. It ended up being a great distraction and comfort, and thankfully, the response wasn't all homophobic vitriol.

Still not a fan of the texting/IM conversations. The use of colloquial speech was sporadic and thus disruptive because my brain spent time trying to figure out if it was poor editing or intentional at times. The resolution between Dominic and his dad seemed a bit easy, but definitely more realistic and I didn't miss the absence of the demon of religious beliefs as a major catalyst.
Profile Image for Martin.
807 reviews571 followers
July 17, 2016
Funny that this is actually book 2 in a series. I’m saying funny, because book 1 was clearly a 5 star book for me, but this one literally blew me away. It’s made it to my top 10 favorite reads in 2016!

description

Literally every single aspect of the story of Dominic ‘Nicky’ Costigan and Luke Rawlings touched me and made me drop EVERYTHING else in my life to read this in one go (luckily I’m on leave this week, LOL).

Costigan first appeared in ‘Strong Signal’ as Garrett’s fuck-buddy during his deployment in Afghanistan. Following his first steps in man on man sex, he started to question his sexuality enough to be ready to actually date a guy. Back home in Staten Island after his military time is up, he finds himself once again in his parents’ basement, selling sandwiches from behind the counter of his abusive dad’s deli and wondering when his miserable loser life will ever change. He is 27 years old after all and has a decade of military service under his belt.

He decides to lighten up his mood by getting some of the man on man action he’s been wetting his appetite for with Garrett and starts using the famous gay hook-up app Grindr – a dating service that is not necessarily famous for happy endings – except maybe the sexual kind.

The same goes for 39 year old landscaping professional and divorced father of twins, Luke Rawlings. After his divorce and terrible experiences with a previous boyfriend, he has sworn off relationships for good and spends his time being a hard working and scowling but caring family father during the week and uses the weekends (when the kids are with their mother) to hook up with hot twinks on Grindr to satisfy his urges without any strings attached. He never does anyone twice, so when he logs into the app and discovers the gorgeous abs of a nearby guy’s new profile named ‘StaffSergeant’ he’s inviting the guy for some hot action over to his house.

To Luke’s surprise the guy is young, hot and adoringly funny – but he still kicks him out after a sweaty fuck, not intending to break his rule of not bonding with anyone - unaware that he should already know the guy, if he had paid a little more attention to what’s going on with his own kids. It’s a small world after all.

But when the hot hunk starts sending him funny messages on Grindr encouraging a second hook-up, his walls slowly start to crumble – and an amazing romance ensues.



This story was absolute perfection. I almost didn’t pick it up because I didn’t care much for Costigan in Strong Signal, but his character in this book is simply amazing. The authors even referred to Chris Evans several times, so the inspiration is kinda obvious. And I was thinking about the guy constantly while picturing Nicky - the careless, funny guy who craves for a strong shoulder to lean on and give him pointers in life.

description

And Luke was simply my favorite type of character ever: The calm, headstrong, brooding middle aged divorced dad who doesn’t do love and always puts his kids first. It says a lot about Nicky that he managed to find his way into Luke’s heart. And I absolutely loved how Luke treated Nicky as an adult, calling him Dominic, making him feel like an equal instead of a Staten Island loser who still lives in his parents’ house with literally no friends after a decade spent serving his state.

I feel like ordering a whole bunch of paperbacks of this story to distribute it among friends and family. This plot and these characters are clearly a paragon of gay romance.

Awesome character building, setting, plot, pacing, side characters (like the gay romance reading ex-wife!!)… awesome everything. This needs a different rating system even.

5 stars are not nearly enough!
Profile Image for Trio.
3,546 reviews201 followers
May 12, 2017
That was fantastic, I loved Dominic! It's amazing how Santino Hassell can bring a character from a previous work and show all these different facets to their personalities and make me love them. It happened for me with David and with Caleb from the Five Boroughs series so why not with Costigan? And Luke, holy hell what a hook-up, Grindr really worked out for them, yeah?

Excellent story - my favorite in the series so far :) and yes I stayed up all night to read it.

Special shout out and huge thanks to my very wonderful GR friend Liz (Bugetta) for kicking my ass to get me to finally read this book - thanks Liz xoxo!
Profile Image for Denise H..
3,215 reviews266 followers
September 4, 2016
*** Another amazing novel by these two authors ! *** Wow, it is fantastic !
We met handsome, hunk Dominic Costigan in the first story,

as a fellow Army member serving with Garrett. Now back in the states, he has reached out to Garrett, but he's busy with Kai, (we met them in #1) and has moved away. Dominic goes on Grindr to hook up, and accountant/landscaper, silver fox, Luke finds him

and they hook up at Luke's. It turns out to be momentous for each man. It is first time anal sex for Dominic, and he has many more firsts with Luke, because his bisexuality lean toward men is fairly new. They can't stop thinking about the other, and their hook-ups are frequent, which has broken Luke's personal rules. He can't help himself, because there is an irresistible quality in Dominic, with smokin' hot combustion when they touch; plus the added bonus of turning into best friends also.


Magnificent writing, important characters, funny scenes, deeply meaningful ones as well, all make this book superb. Beautiful emotions from everyone involved, and it's heartwarming. We get to see how Garrett and Kai are doing, which was terrific. These stories can stand alone and have happy endings.
I wholeheartedly recommend this series ! I happily look forward to more.
ENJOY !!
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Profile Image for Marcie.
219 reviews1 follower
August 2, 2016
****4.5 Texting Stars****


Silver fox!


Texting! I absolutely loved all the texting!!*happy sigh*

I will admit that when I first heard book 2 was going to be about Dominic I wasn't too thrilled.



Dude was a straight out ass in book 1. So I was surprised to see when peeps reviews started popping up how much they liked him. Were we talking about the same guy here? For a while I thought that maybe I had gotten my characters mixed up...again :/ (and Paul, if you end up reading this review.. hush, you!) But nope, we were talking about the same guy and it only took me a few chapters for my dislike to turn into like!

Loving the whole Megtino combo! And hoping for more books in this series!



Profile Image for * A Reader Obsessed *.
2,616 reviews562 followers
February 17, 2017
4 Stars

Geezus.

Let me clarify because I mean that in the best way possible.

Luke is the grumpiest grump who ever grumped. Thank gawd Dominic is made of rubber. Everything bounced off him with relative ease, because Luke definitely throws some great resistance at first.

Apathy is Luke's armor. He's got a painful past and no way is he getting involved with anyone ever again. Nope. Not going to happen. Until that is, one persistent guy changes everything.

Dominic just wants to explore his new desires. His easy going, no filter charm is just the thing to slowly chip away at Luke's self imposed isolation and shields. Little by little Luke unravels, and I too, was under Dom's spell.

Maybe as a warning, this had a shit ton of family drama, but it was still full of smart and funny, and had all my requisite angst of insecurity, doubt, and longing. Throw in some very, very nice hot and dirty, and this was basically all but unputdownable as I read this in one sitting!
Profile Image for Jay Northcote.
Author 52 books1,651 followers
August 20, 2016
Great addition to this awesome series. This is another favourite read of the year for me. Hot and gritty, with the perfect amount of angst and sweetness to balance it. I adored the main characters, especially Dominic/Nicky. The combination of his cocky exterior and vulnerable squishy centre made me swoon. And Luke was the perfect foil for him. I loved all the family drama too, it was well balanced and enriched the story without detracting from the relationship arc.

Hoping for more in this series :)
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