Sometimes you have to play love by ear.

Aaron Seavers is a pathetic mess, and he knows it. He lives in terror of incurring his father’s wrath and disappointing his mother, and he can’t stop dithering about where to go to college—with fall term only weeks away. Ditched by a friend at a miserable summer farewell party, all he can do is get drunk in the laundry room and regret he was ever born. Until a geeky-cute classmate lifts his spirits, leaving him confident of two things: his sexual orientation, and where he’s headed to school.

Giles Mulder can’t wait to get the hell out of Oak Grove, Minnesota, and off to college, where he plans to play his violin and figure out what he wants to be when he grows up. But when Aaron appears on campus, memories of hometown hazing threaten what he’d hoped would be his haven. As the semester wears on, their attraction crescendos from double-cautious to a rich, swelling chord. But if more than one set of controlling parents have their way, the music of their love could come to a shattering end. 

Review

So good! Heidi Cullinan is taking all my money.

Giles and Aaron are young and finding themselves. The stumble a great deal. Aaron very shy and lonely though on the outside he doesn't look it. Giles is very brave with everything but his heart.

They don't take enough risks with each other at first but as they grow into themselves they grown into friendship and a deep abiding love.

This is a really grand romance.

The whole cast is wonderful.

Great series. Great book.

Proposals don’t come with instructions.

Walter Lucas knows his boyfriend has been looking forward to the newest movie about a certain snow princess, but he isn’t prepared for the reality that is the front-row seat of Kelly Davidson’s cartoon obsession. There’s more going on in November than just the movie, however—Walter’s been working up the nerve to ask Kelly a certain question. When Walter set up his elaborate Thanksgiving marriage proposal, it seemed like such a good idea, but as the holiday, the movie premiere, and the question Walter never dreamt he’d be asking anyone converge…let’s just say even Hollywood’s best couldn’t sing and dance their way out of Walter’s tangle.

Review

Wow. I can't get over how much wonderful Heidi Cullinan was able to pack into the Walter and Kelly short story.

I almost didn't pick this up because we had seen the proposal in anther book.

This is so worth it. All the Disney and loving your partner and awww.

The details are grand. If you like this series, read this one.

Even hot messes need a happily ever after.

With the quiet help of his wealthy family, Sebastian “Baz” Acker has successfully kept his painful past at bay. But as the end of college draws near, his friends—his buffer zone—are preparing to move on, while his own life is at a crippling standstill. With loneliness bearing down on him, Baz hooks up—then opens up—with Elijah Prince, the guy Baz took a bullet for last year. The aftershocks of their one-night stand leave giant cracks in Baz’s carefully constructed armor. For the first time, the prospect isn’t terrifying.

Accustomed to escaping his demons by withdrawing into his imagination, Elijah isn’t used to having a happy herd of friends. He’s even less comfortable as the object of a notorious playboy’s affections. Yet all signs seem to indicate this time happiness might be within his grasp. When Baz’s mother runs for a highly sought-after public office, the media hounds drag Baz’s and Elijah’s pasts into the light. In the blinding glare, Baz and Elijah face the ultimate test: discovering if they’re stronger together…or apart.

Review

You need to read the other books in this series to enjoy this book to its fullest but enjoy it you will.

As always, Heidi Cullinan writes compelling flawed lovable characters. Neither Bas nor Elijah are nice. Elijah has massive trust issues and Baz too easily use power. But they are both kind.

They each have so many open and closed wounds and have physical and mental disabilities created by the events of their past. They have coping mechanism that are not healthy.

They are drawn to each other and they come to love each other. And we can believe that while not easy, they will be each others soft place to fall.

They love.

A great circle of friends and all kinds of support systems, reaching out, healing of others, and fun details make this a really great book and romance.

Hot messes have a hard time with happily ever after.

Baz Acker and Elijah Prince have it all. They're engaged, and their wedding is guaranteed to be a spectacle no event will ever top. So why are they hunkered down in a quiet corner of the Acker mansion, restless and edgy while they wait out the holidays?

When Baz suggests a road trip with Walter and Kelly to Las Vegas, it sounds like an ideal escape, but it turns out Vegas only amplifies their unease. Elijah can't slough off the self-hating his parents programmed into him, and he worries how that will affect his marriage. Baz, crippled en route because of too much time spent in the car without rest, must face the truth that his wealth and influence can't always counteract the limits his disability will put on his--and Elijah's--life.

With help from their friends, a wily poker player, a take-no-prisoners drag queen, and a smooth-talking casino owner, they face the truth that happiness is a state of mind, not a destination where they book a stay. What happens in Vegas won't stay in Vegas--it will follow them all the way down the aisle.

Review

At first I was reluctant to read this short story with Baz and Elijah because I wanted no more drama for them.

I am glad I did. This is a wonderful New Year's Eve romance that puts all the whipped cream and cherries on their happily ever after.

They struggle through self esteem, chronic pain, and lack of communication issues but they learn how to be a unit. 

There are ton of easter eggs in here for Cullian's other series.

It is a great big romantic time.