annegoodreads's reviews
75 reviews

Did you have a coach or teacher who went way above and beyond for you in high school? Don't Know Tough by Eli Cranor features just such a character.  Coach Trent Powers plays the archetypal nobleman driving into Arkansas in his noble steed, a Prius.  He places his hand on the shoulders of the hopeful football players to atone for his wrongdoings as a teen.  He’s no match for the quarterback who is a ticking time-bomb.  Billy is a mounting threat to the Coach and the entire town.  At 5’10” and 200 pounds, he lives in the shadow of his football star running back brother Ricky.  Billy and Ricky live in poverty held down by their past and their lack of self-discipline.  Their mother doesn’t help the situation and her drunk, abusive boyfriend makes it all much worse.  Due to small town politics football features the many underlying struggles of the community.  Coach realizes his job is on the line and must keep Billy on the field because a state championship will solve both their problems.  Coach of course has a strong-willed wife and an even more stubborn teenage daughter, Lorna.  Separated by social class, family support, and hope for the future, Lorna and Billy still find themselves intertwined.  There’s a murder mystery and the list of suspects is longer than the list of people trying to give Coach football advice.  This is a story that twists in many different directions which keeps the pages flipping.  When I first started reading the story, I found myself very defensive.  I was born and raised in Arkansas.  It’s hard to read about poverty, racism, and abuse related to a place you love.  Football is a huge avenue for hope, bravery, and mentorship.  My high school won two football state championships while I attended so I know what it’s like to live in the shadow of a famous Arkansas football program.  Our high school also had the kind of coaches and teachers like the Coach in this book who went above and beyond.  So setting my emotions aside, the story was like driving on the old pig trail in Arkansas.  It was curvy, overly decorated with yard art, and quite the exhilarating ride.  

The romance in Going Public by Hudson Lin is like going to a hot springs and you have to go in a toe at a time to get in but once you're in it's ecstasy.   Elvin is the personal assistant to Ray in the cutthroat corporate world of business.  Ray, wealthy in his own right, works his butt off taking companies public.  He has to do complete audits of the corporations to ensure any ghosts in their cleaning closets stay hidden or find somewhere else to haunt.  Elvin helps him with not just the business audits but also makes his breakfast, sends Ray’s one-night stands on their way, and deflects unwanted coworkers. Elvin has secretly had a crush on Ray for quite some time.  Ray has basically been sleeping with everyone he could.  Ray starts having feelings for Elvin, but how can that possibly work when there is not just a great power difference at work but also a wealth gap.  The steam building up in their desire to be together is a freight train that can’t be stopped.  Love seeps off the pages due to the beautiful writing that can express the yearning and empathy Ray and Elvin have for each other.  I loved that the newest company they were taking public created a moral dilemma to which Ray and Elvin didn’t agree.  Workplace romances create an extra tension that wasn’t ignored in their relationship.  The sex scenes fit with the development of Ray and Elvin’s relationship which makes them all the better.  The sex scenes are very descriptive and extra spicy though!  Overall this is a wonderful story and a great example of a loving relationship.