An impossible man, an impossible relationship, an impossible future. Niles knows he shouldn't fall for the annoying and egotistic August, but there is more to August than what is on the surface. August is struggling with his new parenting responsibilities and his attraction to beautiful and angry Niles, especially knowing he will have to leave both his daughter and Niles eventually.
From the blurb:
Music teacher Niles Edwidge gets the shock of his life when Maestro Augustus Castellanos, a world-renowned musician and composer, shows up at Timber Creek Academy. Not only has the maestro been asked to guest teach alongside Niles, but he’s brought his prodigy daughter and enrolled her as a student.
Niles has been waiting for the day the academy decided to replace him. His educational background falls short of the school’s usual demands, but a revered maestro? It doesn’t make sense. Why would such a prominent figure want to teach high school music?
Fearing for his job and envious of the other man’s career, Niles doesn’t give the maestro a warm welcome, but their feud doesn’t last when Niles learns the respectable musician is struggling with a mountain of problems and would prefer to be anywhere but Timber Creek.
As the truth about August’s troubled life surfaces, so too does a secret he has carried for decades. As a self-proclaimed repressed bisexual, August rarely allows himself the freedom to explore his sexuality, but an undeniable attraction to Timber Creek’s music teacher threatens to test his resolve. He can’t afford to fall for Niles. He has a life and responsibilities outside Timber Creek.
The minute his obligations are fulfilled, he’s out the door.
Unless he finds a reason to stay…
Lesetiger's review:
Koa from the previous volume is one of my favorite characters of the author and I was really looking forward to this second volume.
As always, the author's writing style is wonderful and she puts her heart and soul into what she writes.
This time it's about the music teacher Niles, who I really liked in the first volume. Niles fears for his job at Timber Creek Academy because his training is not at the level the private school usually hires their teachers at. This fear becomes very real when maestro Augustus Castellanos comes to teach alongside Niles as a guest teacher. Niles' welcome is correspondingly cool. Augustus wants to give his daughter Constance a normal life and she should therefore attend this school.
I absolutely loved how easy it was for Niles to deal with Constance. He has a very good understanding of the teenagers he teaches. Constance hasn't lived with her father Augustus for very long and he is having some difficulty adjusting to his role as a father. He only wants the best for his daughter, but the right path is very rocky. The more time Niles spends with Augustus, the more sympathetic he becomes to Augustus, as Niles sees that the maestro has very real problems.
Initial enmity turns into friendship. The two have great chemistry together and you can feel that as a listener. I also loved how natural Niles' interaction with Constance was and how easily he recognized her needs. In contrast to Augustus.
It took me a little longer to warm to Augustus, but his action near the end of the book was unnecessary in my eyes, or rather the lack of communication shouldn't have been. Niles and Constance deserved better.
But overall, I enjoyed the story again and Nicky James took me into the world of music with words, which was very intriguing.
Nick J. Russo is a fantastic narrator who did a great job of capturing the wide range of emotions and bringing them across to the listener. He chose appropriate voices for the different characters and I always knew who was speaking. It was an absolute pleasure to listen to Nick.
This book was very entertaining and engaging, very well written with lots of emotional moments and once I started listening I almost couldn't press the pause button. Highly recommended!
Symphony of Salvation is currently available as an audiobook, e-book and paperback, and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription
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