Stray Awakening: A First-Time Gay Small Town MM Romance (Rainbow Rescue Cat Café Book 1) by F.A. Ray

Spinning off from the Boyfriend Cafe series, F.A. Ray moves the romance to an adorable Cat Café and our first book in the series is Stray Awakening. 

From the blurb:

I fled my hometown seven years ago. I never planned to come back. I never planned to give up my city life for a small town. And I definitely never planned to fall for another man.

Henry

Tripp Lake, the place I love the most. Working at a cat café on Main Street gives me a chance to get some deserving cats their forever homes.

But when a blast from the past walks into my café, I’m not sure what to feel. Alex was always hot and popular in high school – and straight.

So it’s a shock when he keeps accepting my invitations to hang out. I don’t think I’m imagining the spark between us, but is Alex actually interested in me, or am I letting this straight boy break my heart?

Alex

Tripp Lake, the place I hate the most. I’m only here because of my father’s heart attack. But the second I return home, I remember all the reasons I ran away.

My parents are overbearing. This town is small and boring. And I want nothing more than to flee back to my new life in San Francisco - a life that doesn't come packed with any surprising new feelings about a guy I went to high school with.

Henry is a ray of sunshine amid this bleak journey home. But I've never been interested in a guy before. When a relaxing hike results in my first timid kiss with another man, I start questioning a lot more than just my decision to leave Tripp Lake. Is Henry worth staying in this crappy town for?

Stray Awakening is a small-town MM romance with first-time gay experiences, a sweet ray of sunshine winning over a jaded grumpy, spicy open-door scenes, and, of course, lots of cats. Go to linktr.ee/faraywrites for CWs.

Heather's Review:

This book is an adorable introduction to the Rainbow Rescue Cat Café, with a grumpy/sunshine, small town, awakening story that brings two sweet men together as they bond over cats... This friends to lovers story has very little relationship angst - that comes from Alex's home life... which for me never actually resolves - it just kind of gets lost in the steam, 

I really like that Henry is a good sounding board, as well as a sweet, sunny boyfriend for Alex, but I wish Alex would have addressed more of his issues head on.  That being said, it was a quick and steamy read and a nice start to the series - I look forward to seeing how the cats bring more people together.

Stray Awakening is currently available as an e-book and paperback and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription