"We love who we love. It may not make sense to anyone else, it doesn't need to. It may not even make sense to you...It doesn't need to."

We met Henry Clark in Searching for Moore as he was Mia and Schooner's college friend and we were reunited with him again twenty five years later in Moore Than Forever. Seeing his good friends finally get their long awaited happily ever after, it makes Henry ache for what he has always been searching for...that forever love to share his life with. 

How was he going to live without the dream? And he had this odd, sneaking suspicion that he didn't know how he was gong to live without him.

We follow Henry through relationships and friendships over the years. We see how some men touched his life in good ways and others in negative ways...but most left a profound impact on him. We see his happiness and enthusiasm when he is in relationships that he feels have promise for a future, and with connections he makes with friends that give him support. We see his pain and disappointment from bad times and his attempts to rebuild his life  after difficult events. All along Henry desires long and lasting love with and someone to share his life with.

The younger Henry is charming, flirty, social gay man being more open and taking some calculated risks in a new environment where being gay is more accepted. He is trusting, romantic, and caring. But due to circumstances, we also see a more cautious, guarded, and fearful Henry emerge. He has challenges to face and personal demons to conquer. But all along he still has a good and lightness about him that people respond positively to. He is a strong, resilient, and loving man who craves acceptance and companionship.

There were some moments that completely angered and frustrated me, some that completely broke my heart and had me gasping or in tears, others made me swoon, and many made me smile. This was truly a journey for Henry towards finding lasting love and partnership. Each significant relationship brought out something different in Henry. Sometimes he was the pursued and other times he was the pursuer. Initially he was the one who was more inexperienced in relationships and often submitted, where as later he learned the importance of a mutually beneficial partnership and balance. Each relationship had lust, infatuation, passion, and companionship. But some relationships were healthier, balanced, and more reciprocal and mutually satisfying. He learned something and grew with each one. And each one shaped the man he became and how he proceeded with future decisions and treated others.

I grew very attached to Quinn, Edwin, and Stephen. All were strong men that gave something different to Henry and who he learned various lessons from. Quinn especially was a character that I absolutely adored. He was so steadfast, supportive, and honest. Henry learned so much about love and life from him. And he was so important in Henry being able to trust and learning about what a partner really means. But Edwin and Stephen also served such important roles in Henry's growth, acceptance, and understanding of who he wanted to be. But there were also more negative influences that shaped Henry's life in other ways. I felt all of what Henry did along the way...the good, the bad, and the really devastating. There were several times that my heart broke and sometimes I was in tears. But there were also some times of acceptance, sweetness, joy, passion, and humor that made me smile. But each step along the way brought Henry one step closer to finding himself and where he truly wanted to be.

He wanted that someone. That forever someone.

All of the small intersections with the Needing Moore series just added more depth to the story for me (but if you did not read that series, it is all clearly explained as well so it should not stop you from reading this one). I was thrilled to see more with Schooner and Henry's friendship past and present. These two men had been through so much and knew when the other one needed support, advice, or a kick in the ass.

"How are we going to run through this one?"

Seth Shapiro has been such a fun character throughout the series. He is Mia's best friend, business partner, and closest confidante. He is a true New Yorker, planner, fashionista, and completely outspoken and dramatic. He is usually in a frantic state about something and almost always makes me laugh with his behavior. I was glad to get to know more about him and see what makes him tick. And it was fun seeing some other familiar faces Mia, Kami, CJ, Holly, and Zack.

I love how Julie A. Richman weaves her stories with strong, likable characters, interesting dynamic plot lines, and intersecting stories and has created such a framework of friendship and love that spans years and locations. My only small complaint is that I was not ready for it to end and I wanted a bit more with Henry and the man he finally ended up with. But I was also satisfied enough with how it all ended up and the true connection that was made.

I highly recommend the Needing Moore series often as it is truly one of my favorite love stories. And this M/M stand-alone spin off let me spend a bit more time in that world, but gave me a new lovable hero and story to become invested in. This is a moving, memorable story of one man's journey of finding himself and someone to share his life with, and his personal growth and the life lessons he learned along the way. 

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had a mental picture of the direction this story would take before I opened the file for the first time. I loved Henry and couldn’t wait to find his happy. But where this book actually took me was beyond anything I had imagined for Henry. This book had me grinning, and gutted, and at certain points bawling my eyes out with the pain.

Henry Clark just wanted forever. He knew it was out there, and he wanted a life partner. His past made my heart ache for him as he searched for his future. As he navigates friendships and romantic relationships in a community where being openly gay was accepted, Henry was outgoing, energetic, and entirely likeable.

The timeline covers much of the period of time between when Henry finished college right up until and past Schooner and Mia’s wedding. With such a large timespan, there is a lot of ground to cover.

The way events unfold throughout the book left me curious, wondering, and ultimately kept me turning the page to find out what Henry’s end was going to be. His road was not a straight line to the forever he was looking for though. He learned both the horror that can happen in relationships, and the happiness, and what he thought he found each time wasn’t always what he was looking for. There were moments that were gut-wrenching, moments that were sweet and heartwarming, and everything in between.

I love the friendship between Schooner and Henry. During the original series, Henry was often Schooner’s rock as he dealt with his various emotions. There are plenty of moments for Schooner to give back that support here. I loved the connection between these two men. While I knew their love was brotherly, and as such wasn’t the kind Henry was searching for, it was the perfect love to sustain Henry through everything else he faced. It’s presence filled me with a warmth, and brought tears to my eyes in the moments where it was displayed with the most strength.

The new friends introduced here quickly burrowed into Henry’s life and I loved them more for the support they gave him. Stephen, Edwin, and Quinn each had their own roles to play in Henry’s journey. Each of these men quickly became favorites simply for the relationship they had with Henry.

This book left nothing back. I was full on bawling and felt ill at some of the things that Henry experienced over the course of his life. But watching him with Schooner, Mia, Quinn, and Seth I was often struck with how much good he was able to find, and the immense reach he had taken to get where he finally ended up. I didn’t think I needed Henry’s story, until I was in the middle of it. It was while I was in the story that I realized how much I loved Henry and Schooner’s friendship and how much I needed to see Henry find his own happy ending.

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Henry was deeply ensconced in his own head, making resolutions about moving on, not paying attention to his surroundings, or seeing the man, as he approached his car. He was leaning against the hood, his thick muscled arms folded across his chest. Calm, cool, collected, in charge and so damn freaking handsome.

“Your place?” was all he said.

Henry felt the sharp stab in his heart as his adrenal glands shot a release of hormones into his blood stream. Shaking his head no, he was shocked at how cool and calm his voice sounded, when he was anything but, “No. I don’t think so. You haven’t even bought me a drink yet.”

Walking around the big Marine to the driver’s side, Henry hit the remote, unlocking the door.

With a palm to the solar plexus to stop him, “Where are you going?” the Marine asked.

“Home,” Henry was very matter-of-fact.

“I thought you wanted me to buy you a drink?”

Stepping around the Marine, Henry opened the door to his black BMW and got in. “I do…” and he closed the door and started the engine.

Rolling down the window, he added with a smile, “… on Sunday.” Gunning the Beamer's engine, he left the Marine in the dusty parking lot with a smile on his handsome face.Well played, Henry congratulated himself. Let him ache for me as much as I’ve been aching for him.