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Second-Best Men
£3.99
Two snowed-in men. 300 cows. And a mangy dog.
Tucked away down a rutted dirt track lives a grumpy dairy farmer.
Tucked away down a rutted dirt track lives a grumpy dairy farmer.
He’s firmly in the closet. And he’s desperately lonely.
That farmer is me—Rob Langford. I have more meaningful conversations with my prize bull than people. Except, one snowy night, I stumble across a fancy car wedged into a ditch.
The driver needs my help.
He’s injured. Stranded. The snow lies two feet deep.
And over the next few days, I discover this quiet, thoughtful man doesn’t mind my run-down cottage and my lumpy old sofa. He’s even quite tolerant of my smelly arthritic dog.
Strong. Handsome. Self-possessed.
A man who knows what he wants. In bed and out of it. And bizarrely, that thing is me.
But to be what he needs? I must step out of the shadows. And into his life.
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Additional information
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| File size | 3883 KB |
| Text-to-Speech | Enabled |
| Screen Reader | Supported |
| Enhanced typesetting | Enabled |
| X-Ray | Not Enabled |
| Word Wise | Enabled |
| Sticky notes | On Kindle Scribe |
| Print length | 162 pages |
by Dawn Barrell
It was so good to be back in the world of Rossingley with another beautiful love story about two men who are opposites in every way. Rob the dairy farmer, terrified of anyone in the village finding out that he’s gay, and who has more meaningful conversations with his beloved bull Watermelons, yeah I’ll leave you to figure that one out, than he does with people, and Evan, a doctor and a friend of Jay’s who mixes with the posh people at the big house, has recently come out and is divorcing his wife.
Their worlds collide when Rob is driving home in heavy snow and finds a fancy BMW has skidded off the road. He helps an injured Evan out of the car and takes him to his farm cottage where they are snowed in.
We met these two characters in other books in the series and I wasn’t too impressed with them. I hated the way Rob used the adorable Toby, manny to Lucien and Jay’s children, although Toby is now happy with Noah, but as we get to know them and discover just how damaged and lonely they both are and how they bring out the best in each other I came to love them. Fearne seems to have a deep understanding of the human psyche and because of this her stories seem very real, her characters worm their way into your heart and I love her character development.
Evan really sees Rob, not the brash dairy farmer but the lonely, scared guy inside. Rob has been living his life in fear for so long he doesn’t know how to change. Illogical really as he is surrounded by gay couples on the Rossingley estate and the villagers accept them, maybe he just needs the right man to take his hand and lead him out of his closet and when Evan ask’s if he would come out for him Rob believes he just might be that man.
The author has a wonderful talent for writing stories that bring all my emotions to the surface and leave me with a smile and a warm feeling in my heart, beautiful memorable characters, an engaging storyline and lots of the witty banter I love in her books. Special mention to Rob’s ancient smelly dog Zeus, the “attack” poodle. This series is like a warm hug.
by Bluevitriol
Thoroughly charming from start to finish. The author’s prose is so smooth and easy to read and her character are so well drawn, you feel as if they’re in the room with you. I wish they were.
Not only are the main characters wonderful, the cast of secondary ones are too, many of whom we’ve met in the Rossingley books, though there is no need to have read those to enjoy this one.
It’s not just the people who are great in this story. Zeus the dog, the herd of cows and the cockerel all play a role. It’s full of heart, and humour, but touches the soul because the two main characters are not out, for very different reasons. We’re taken on their journey towards understanding what they are, what they need to be and I loved it, start to finish.
by Edga
Above all what you want out of a book is to be carried away by the story and be involved and invested in the characters. Second Best Man is one of those books that you can’t put down. The characters are very real and relatable and the writing, as usual, from Fearne Hill is superb. It’s a cosy and cute read; and Rob is wryly hilarious, he made me smile so much. His love of his farm animals, especially Watermelons the prize bull and Zeus, the ‘attack dog’ had me in stitches. Evan, Rob’s love interest comes along at just the right time, poor ‘manly’ Rob is feeling lonely. What we get is a match made in heaven, with a little bit of a twist in the tale. Ms Hill has quickly become one of my go to authors, I absolutely adore her work. Great addition to the Rossingley series, which is a fantastic read all round.
by Dee176
I enjoyed reading this story and liked Rob and Evan together, I haven’t read any of the books in the series that this would link to and it didn’t take away my enjoyment but now that I’ve met the Rossingley characters I really would like to read there stories. Looking forward to reading more from this author soon.
by Hayley Smith
Second best men features Rob and Evan, both who were characters in books set in the world of Rossingley (The books are fantastic and is favourite of mine!)
I loved this story, it’s a great read and the writing is wonderful!
by Meph666
I am a huge fan of the Rossingly series and so happy that both Rob and Evan get to have their own HEA after experiencing loneliness and woes in the series.
Rob is made to be a farmer. His love for his animals is clear in his interactions with them. It’s a pretty isolated life though and he’s never attempted a relationship, not that he’s out anyway. Evan literally crashes into Rob’s world on Boxing Day, his car skidding and hitting the verge, causing injuries and a broken car. Staying at Rob’s is the only possible scenario and allows the two men to get to know each other in a world they would have otherwise never met in. I like that things don’t jump straight into anything between them, not really feeling like that would like them, especially Evan.
Rob’s confidence comes later when they meet again and brings about a relationship that stands true to both men. Each man’s work is hugely important to them but they also become important to each other so decisions need to be made about finally stepping out of the closet. They do have a great amount of chemistry but things definitely work out differently to how Rob imagined but absolutely in his best interests. We do get to meet up with other men from the series which is always fun, Freddie always providing a laugh and some much needed peace between Rob and Toby.
A wonderful addition to the Rossingly world and a great way to tie up the HEAs for two side characters who are important to the series.
I received an ARC and am happily giving a review.