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ARC Review: A Home in You by Courtney W. DIxon

by - Monday, February 27, 2023

I love you. You're my home. Forever.
Dillon

At first, when Cade and his dad came to the farm to live, I didn’t want a brother or a new father. Mom and I were doing just fine on our own, but when Cade walked into my house for the first time, I was instantly drawn to him. How was that possible? I never had a crush on anyone before, let alone a boy.

Cade

I have a secret. Two really. I’m gay and I have a huge crush on my stepbrother. It’s all wrong but I want him more than breathing. Dillon is quiet and stoic, but sweet and caring. We do everything together and are as close as two brothers could be. How long can I fight my need for him?

How did we feel so right, yet also so wrong? We became stepbrothers at fourteen years old, keeping our love a secret for three years until we were finally discovered and torn apart. It took over a year to find each other again in college. But reuniting wasn’t so simple.

CW: Teen sex, underage drinking, homophobia, bullying, explicit language, and sexual content. While this story goes from ages 14-18, this story is NOT for readers under 18. I have been gentle in writing this during their early years. If any of these things makes you uncomfortable, please don't read it.

This is a standalone stepbrother, MM, SLOW burn, taboo, small-town, coming-of-age, demisexual, and gay romance of two TEEN boys in a consenting and loving relationship. I did not write this to be YA.

Make sure to read the author's trigger warnings in her description.


Just a quick heads up, please know that the author does not write fade to black. There are some detailed intimate scenes before these young men are 18. I think the first encounter was around 15 or 16. I can't recall the exact age. Teen sex doesn't really bother me, as I'm a realist, but it's also not my thing so I skimmed/skipped those parts. If teen sex weirds you out or it isn't something you agree with, this is not the book for you. Also in case you missed it in the description: this is a TABOO-STEPBROTHER romance. Turn back now if you know this isn't your cuppa. You'll be doing both yourself and the author a favor. 

OK, on to my review, let me start by saying, I adored these two teens, even as they put me through the ringer. Dillion and Cade didn't waste any time smashing my damn heart into pieces. I bawled many of tears. Gosh, my mama heart wanted so badly to reach between those pages and offer them every ounce of comfort and acceptance I could. Well mostly. There were also instances where I wanted to put my foot up a certain teen's ass. But I get it. He had issues, some major issues. And who could blame him. Certainly not I. Not to mention, their connection started at the tender age of 14. Add to that the forbiddenness of being gay/demisexual AND step siblings. Hello....can we say a whole host of contention and toxicity. The thing is, mixed in-between all the chaos was a beautiful evolvement of friendship and love.

Dillon and Cade's exploration and navigation of life, in general and within their relationships, immediately captivated me. Which kind of surprised me, especially since this isn't my typical read, and lately nothing seems to keep my attention. However, they wormed their way into my soul and my mama heart ached for them. The pain I felt was no joke. The anger I felt was no joke. The harm I wanted to do unto others was no joke. I seriously wanted to rip some damn faces off. I wanted to break them and make them suffer for the roll they played in Dillion and Cade's trauma and misery.

Ms. Dixon did that with her writing, even a week later as I sit here writing this review, I can feel my animosity rebuilding. She made me fucking FEEL for these fictional characters, as though they were real people. The fury, hatred, sorrow, happiness, love, hope, exasperation, compassion, etc I cycled through was concrete. The story may have been a work of literature but my emotions certainly were not. Her words were intense, poignant, and held so much damn truth to them. They hit exactly as she meant them to...HARD. I most definitely didn't walk away unscathed.

I don't say this often, but A Home in You was the perfect mix of realism and fiction.

Dixon pulled zero punches as she exposed the raw, gritty reality surrounding homophobia, bullying, abuse, conversion, and societal expectations/conventionalism. She kept shit as real as it could be, making their narrative tangible. Validating everyday experiences of the LGBQT+ community. It's sad to say, Courtney didn't need to write contrived drama, which is why I think Dillion and Cade's journey hit me just a little bit harder. I have kids around their ages and to think of anyone ever doing unto them what was done to these young men, well let's just say it wouldn't be pretty.

With that said, I'm truly glad I stepped outside of my norm and picked up Courtney's newest novel. It was an experience I can't say I will soon forget. And one I do recommend, if the content warnings aren't a trigger for you.

Courtney W. Dixon loves to write erotic romance. She writes both m/f and m/m stories all in one series to add a variety to her characters. Though there are erotic elements to her stories, they are rich with relationship growth. Even those enemies to lovers, a favorite of hers. Her characters are filled with deep POVs with trouble pasts, full of depth and emotion. She tries to give them complexity and growth as their stories move. And her favorite is to break her main characters down to lift them back up in order to give them their HEA's.

Courtney is also a mixed media artist who's primarily been focused on writing lately. You can find her working in Central Texas with her husband, two boys and two crazy dogs, none of whom know how to knock on a door while she's working.


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