Sweet, sexy, and sassy story. Great narration too!

As a fan of both the author and narrator, I jumped at the chance to review this book for the Audio Review Tour. As usual with Joel Leslie, the narration felt spot on. The softer tones used for Adrian were great vs. the harder voice of Marty.

The story itself was really good. I was thrown off a bit at the beginning when the pov was from a main character in the previous book and not one of the ones in this book. But it was good to see a glimpse of Adrian from a neutral perspective as he navigated the bullying years of high school. If I had heard it from Adrian himself, it might have been harder to forgive Marty for his actions, or rather, inaction during that time.

The main part of the story starts when the previous couples from the first two books double date at a drag club where they meet Adrian/Adrienne almost a decade after he left town. He is fabulous and fierce and there are barely any traces of the boy he’d been before. He’s kind of new at the club so he is slowly making friends with the other drag queens. After a few weeks a frequent customer comes in that the others all know and warn Adrienne about. All the warnings in the world can’t stop the shock at seeing his old high school crush and bully.

Marty is living a lonely life. His only excitement is going to the drag club, but he still hides who he is and what he really wants. His bullying of Adrian in high school was more watching his friends pick on the smaller guy, not taking any real action himself. He had his own share of problems at home. In an ideal world, he would have stood up for Adrian but we all know peer pressure is a real thing, and parental pressure too. It’s easy to be annoyed with Marty but especially after learning what he was struggling with it’s hard to hate him.

Adrian isn’t feeling the love right away though and through Adrienne he enacts a little bit of revenge. I don’t feel angry that he did it so much as some of the other people in Adrian’s life do at witnessing it. I admit to being a little petty at times. But I’m glad for those characters for making Adrian (and me) see what he did was wrong.

Both men have a few regrets about their actions in the past and the present. And when they get the courage to talk to each other, they manage to work through hard feelings to admit an attraction still exists for them. The story doesn’t really focus on their relationship after as much as it did the obstacles both needed to get past. Family still presents a few problems for Marty but it only feels like the issues were touched on and not completely resolved. That’s probably down to it being a novella vs a full length novel. A few loose ends didn’t feel tied up, but I really came to love Adrian and Marty. They were sweet and totally hot together. There are great side characters also, from the previous MCs to some of Marty’s co workers. I definitely recommend the story and the audio for sure. It was a great author/narrator combo.

4.5/5 Stars

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The drag queen love story you've been waiting for

This is a fun, well paced story.
That one of our leads is a glamorous drag queen is a pretty unusual slant, and it makes for a better story because of it.
Adrian is bullied, but finds strength in the things other saw as a weakness. He's a pretty inspirational character.
Marty was in the gang of bullies that tormented Adrian in high school, although he mostly just hung out in the background, trying to go unnoticed with his own problems.
Adrian, years later, has reinvented himself as Adrienne, a glamorous and successful drag performer.
Marty is living a life of quiet desperation, whose only release is quickies with Adrienne's fellow drag queens. Marty becomes infatuated with Adrienne without recognizing their shared past, but Adrienne does recognize Marty, and sets out to give him a taste of the humiliation Adrienne felt.
But being a kind and sensitive person, Adrian quickly feels bad for what he does to Marty and out of that a new bond begins forming between them.
I felt like there were a few issues that didn't gel with me emotionally. Adrian was crazy in love with Marty in high school without them ever really spending time together, and their only interactions centered around Marty being part of the crowd that bullied Adrian. I know teenagers's hormones can get a little crazy, but I found it hard to swallow that those feelings lingered for so many years.
My second issue was that the heart of Marty's fear of coming out was his blowhard father, who he spoke to on the phone once a week and saw once a month. His presence in Marty's life was just pretty distant to be such a dominant force in how he lived. The consequences of Marty coming out were a little too easy breezy, but maybe I just like angst too much.
This is a lighthearted feel good romance. The sex is hot and it's a nice subversion that Adrian seems to be more sexually dominant. Marty is turned on by Adrianne including drag in their sex play, which isn't something you see everyday in romance novels.
Joel Leslie's excellent narration enhances the story. I particularly loved the colorful voices he gave to Adrienne's drag friends.

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Enjoyed this story

Any additional comments?

3.5 - 4 Stars

I liked this story, it's one of forgiveness and growing as a person. Both Adrian and Marty have issues that need to be addressed and both learn a lot from each other, about standing up for who you are and about love. Adrian was severely bullied as a teenager and Marty was a part of it and it certainly left a lasting impression on both men. Adrian has become an incredibly strong person, confident and proud and a total Drag Queen star so imagine his surprise when he discovers Marty in the audience. 

Marty doesn't have an easy life, he hides who he really is and lives a very lonely life. He doesn't have friends or even connections to other people. He does have the Drag shows though, but when he gets called out one night it makes him question and re-evaluate who he really wants to be. I really did feel bad for him and his struggles even though I didn't really expect to. I think he really has a good heart, but he thinks his family expectations matter more than what he feels and wants. 

I liked the relationship these two build once they sort through their issues, they seem to really bring out the best in each other. They both have felt an attraction to the other since their ill-fated high school days and it's sweet to see it finally work for them. I loved the confidence that seemed to grow in both men as well. I would have liked to see more in the growth of their relationship, I felt like the story did jump ahead a bit, but in the end I was happy with the way it all turned out for them. I think Joel Leslie does a great job bringing this story to life and giving it the right amount of feeling. Overall a great an enjoyable story to listen to! 

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See Me: Lightning Tales, Vol. 3

Would you listen to See Me again? Why?

Yes, I enjoy the story and the narration.

What did you like best about this story?

I love drag queens! And I enjoy the combination of a KC Wells story with Joel Leslie's voice.

What about Joel Leslie’s performance did you like?

He did a much better job than the narrator of the first 2 books. I never wondered who was speaking, and I thought he did a good job with the regional dialect.

If you could rename See Me, what would you call it?

Second Chances

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Great Audio

I enjoyed the story of Adrian / Adrienne & Marty. From a history in high school, they meet again as adults and it doesn't go well. Adrian becomes determined to make things right between them...
I loved the accents, they really made Marty & especially Adrian come to life. There was great character development & growth. I understood the story well enough as a stand alone with the exception of some confusion for me at the beginning. Overall a great story with excellent narration. Happily recommend.

*I received a copy of this audio for an honest review.

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Great!! Another one to add to my favorites list!

Really enjoyed this one! I'm a big fan of KC Wells and have read many by her....Joel Leslie really brought these characters to life for me! He is very gifted with his voice acting and this book was no exception!

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Good story. Had to acclimate to the performance.

Any additional comments?

STORY: Great job. Interesting story. Loved the MCs. I have not read any of the others in the series, and this intrigued me enough to follow up on the previous ones.

PERFORMANCE: I had a hard time with the voices at the start of the story, but eventually acclimated to them. I thought the narrator did a fine job. Loved the varying tempo of the dictation. It beautifully portrayed the intensity of the scenes.

(*I received a copy of the this audiobook in return for a fair & honest review)

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See Me

In high school Adrian was picked on and bullied by the jocks. One day another young man befriends him, and it gives Adrian a new perspective on life and how to live it. Years later we see that Adrian has become a famous headlining drag queen. When both his friends and bullies from high school show up at the club Adrian’s life is thrown into turmoil.

I liked the premise of this story but there were a few things that threw me off in the story. This is the third story in this world so even though it can be a stand alone you will not get the full effect of the characters if you do not read the previous stories. The beginning of this story starts with Ric who is the main character of the previous book and the boys are in high school. So right off the bat it can be confusing and the pace is a bit slow. Once we get to the main couples story the pace of the book picks up. I enjoyed the interactions between Adrian and Marty, both the good and the bad. I was not so happy with the way Ric and another friend seem to put all the blame on Adrian. He is berated for how he acts and is told to just go ahead and give a sexual favor to Marty early on to get him to leave Adrian alone. I felt that Marty’s actions with the drag queens was creepy and mean. He sort of redeems himself, but Marty is never really made to face his past actions with the drag queens, and it is all brushed off as being a problem caused by his father. Marty’s father is a nasty piece of work, but I never truly understood just what his problem is. It all seems to revolve around poor Marty and how Adrian must forget and forgive everything that was done to him without any closure for him and putting all the blame on Adrian. Narrator Joel Leslie does a nice job of bringing Marty and Adriane to life, but I did not like a few of the other voices that are used for other characters.

An original story on the life of a drag queen

I love it when I discover a writer who gives me a new experience, each time when I open a book of theirs to read. K.C. Wells did that for me with this book. For me it was a short read (I devour series and longer books in a span of hours) and one that was a treat. The MCs were sufficiently developed for the ride and the storyline kept me engaged. That’s what I look for in a book: emotional involvement. I have to live the story while I’m reading it. And Mr Leslie did it here also; brilliant. Four stars. ❤️

Feel Good Story

I truly enjoyed this story. It had me laughing and smiling, and just wanting more. I really enjoy listening to Joel Leslie. He makes the story just so much more. Couldn't stop listening. The 3 volumes that I've read were purely enjoyable.