Felix is at his best when he’s taking care of someone. Responsible for his siblings at a young age, he knew there was more to life, he just wasn’t sure how to get it for himself.

Huey has been alone for a long time. His past and addiction kept him from a full life. Then Felix steps into his bar, bouncy, sweet, unsure, but wanting to take a chance on the big guy, he couldn’t say no.

Felix was outraged when he found out Huey was a nickname on their first date.. He looked much more like a Dane than a Huey. Dane was amazed that Felix made him FEEL. Dane brought the neediest parts of Felix to the surface, something he’d never allowed.

Life should of been good for our heroes but life seldom follows a set path.

Both men had enough issues to fill a dumpster. I liked the book and feel that maybe it’s the strongest in the series but at times their isolation from themselves and the world in general made me want to skip parts. After finishing the book I understood that’s what needed to happen to tell their story though. I really liked the visual (that I got from the story) of them Razing their walls to the ground to truly find each other.

Roan Parrish has a talent for writing emotionally heavy books but which have such a satisfying conclusion. Huey has been a repeat face in the Riven series, first as Caleb’s friend and sponsor then as a friend of Rhys’. From early on I hoped to learn Huey’s story, and Raze did not disappoint.

Huey has been sober for over ten years, and in that time he has sponsored many people and is used to being relied on and not relying on others himself. He meets Felix one night when Felix and his sister Sofia come to his bar to sing karaoke and he feels Felix would be a good fit for the band Riven since Theo left the limelight. Felix is also used to being the one relied upon, having helped his mother with bills and his younger siblings from the moment he was old enough to get a job. He and Sofia have always been a team, but he will always sacrifice everything for her dreams, and in that way he gets Sofia connected with Riven as their temporary lead singer.

Both Felix and Huey have a lot of baggage to unpack and histories of sacrificing themselves on different ways to work on. Huey is used to distancing himself, which is part of what has made him such a good sponsor, but lately he’s found cracks are appearing and he’s starting to feel. Felix worries about being seen as needy if he asks for anything because he’s so accustomed to being the one constantly giving.

I really enjoyed this book and seeing the ways Felix and Huey learn to heal and learn healthy habits, and especially love their support networks and the ways they support one another. As much as I enjoyed it, though, it didn’t feel as emotionally satisfying as others by Parrish, almost as though Raze is too similar to others in the series. It was a satisfying story around addiction, healing, and learning to want for oneself, and I definitely recommend it but it wasn’t my favorite book by Parrish.

Where to even start on this review. I started reading this story and could not put it down. It grabbed me because I’ve never felt two characters so unmatched to each other and yet so drawn to each other. These two have such hang ups and the author does a great job explaining why. Felix, who has basically given up his life to care for the other members of his family, now can’t find where he fits nor where he wants to be. He doesn’t even know what dreams he might have had. He and his sister Sofia have been each other’s support since they were small children and that change adds to Felix’s issues. Felix could have been the rock star but just doesn’t feel it’s him.
Dane who lost his mother when he was twelve and lost his father to grief over the loss of his wife. He and his father have been strangers since then. He is recovering from an addiction and is so set on recovering that he gets addicted to his schedule and activities. He has learned to shut out everything and try and keep his feelings to himself.
After these two meet the interaction or lack of almost causes them to not be together. Their personalities are so opposite that they can’t seem to communicate.
The secondary characters add so much to this story. Sophia and Coco Swift rock start guitarist and their relationship. The other guys who all seem so happy in the relationships they are involved in. Even the places they work and go to are so well described that I could picture them in my mind. I love the way the author also pointed out how the two could lean on each other and deal with their differences.

Huey and Felix have such a sweet and emotional story! The things they want in a relationship are all the mushy gushy love stuffs- the cuddles and tender moments. They have great physical chemistry as well, but that's not what I'll remember most about this couple.

I've loved this series. Huey is a hulking man of many words, who is misunderstood and struggling with more than anyone realizes. Felix is a man who is floundering, without direction, and in the midst of figuring it all out. They both have tremendous personal growth along with the blossoming of the relationship. Also, we get to see how our other favorite couples are doing. All in all, Raze made me melt and swoon.

I liked this a lot. I especially loved Dane and how he dealt with his past. It showed so clearly that addiction is traumatic that still affects people years later.
I also loved how they both had been so focused on taking care of others that they had neglected themselves, and how they both found a way to live their own lives but also found each other.
I liked the other characters and now want to read the other books in this series.

3.5 stars

I was excited to see that there was another book in the Riven series. I had enjoyed the previous two books and was hoping that I would like Raze. For the most part, I did like it. But the parts that I didn’t like did affect my rating.

Raze’s plotline was enjoyable to read. It was well written, and the author didn’t let anything lag. She also didn’t drop storylines. The plotline was also a fast moving one. Put it this way; I was able to sit down and read Raze within 2 hours.

I liked Felix, but man, he annoyed me. He was too whiny and too clingy. He didn’t know how to talk to people. He was immature. But, when he wasn’t being any of those traits that I mentioned, he was a good guy. He was a good son and a great sibling. He cared about Huey. But those good traits were buried beneath the stuff that I didn’t like. I wish they were showcased more.

I didn’t know what to make of Huey. Getting his backstory was like pulling teeth. It was leaked a little at a time. It drove me nuts. I didn’t like that I couldn’t pinpoint what his feelings were for Felix. Again, drove me nuts. I liked seeing a different Huey appear by the end of the book. He was grounded and happy. Loved it!!

Like I stated in the paragraph above, I couldn’t get a handle on Huey’s feelings for Felix. Because of that, the romance between them seemed forced.

The sex scenes were hot. What Felix and Huey lacked in the romance department, they made up for with sex. Those scenes were so hot that I was expecting my screen to implode. The only scene that didn’t do it for me was the ass eating scene towards the end of the book. I am open-minded about everything but I just couldn’t with this. As I was reading that scene, I kept thinking, “What if he didn’t wipe good.” Which then led my thoughts too well, you know where I am going with that.

The end of Raze was heartwarming. I was left wondering if there was going to be a book 4 or if this is that last book in the series. There were some characters (Grin, Morgan, Jhoi stand out the most in my mind) that I would love to see get their happily ever after.

I would give Raze an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 16 read this book.

I would reread Raze. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

I've been invested in these character. Theo and Caleb. Matt and Rhys. Huey... always sat in my peripheral waiting for his turn and I waited with him knowing that what ever Roan gave us would be absolutely worth it. I never would have guessed that Huey, or Dane as we soon learn, was simply torturing himself every day to try and keep himself together. I also never would have thought that a young mother hen type would come along and shake him up. And even though I know that Roan write for the LGBTQI genre I always thought that Huey would end up with a younger less world weary woman. In a way he did. Felix is phenomenal.

I started Raze with a lot of assumptions(seeprevious sentence!) that I didn't have in the previous books. I couldn't tell you why. Past experience with Roan's books tells me that her characters are flawed and broken and bent whimsical and talented and scared, but their pieces fit so well together.

Huey completely surprised me. Felix absolutely blew me away.

Together they're a mess of contraindications that mesh and compliment. They hold each other up. Bring each other in tight or let them loose. Huey, even being older, was not the wiser one and even though Felix spent years raising his siblings he wasn't exactly the smartest in the relationship either. They learned and took ten steps forward for every twenty backwards. This type of writing makes Roan Parrish's books and instant read for me. Her words are real. I feel them to my bones and and when they struggled I stopped and thought 'yup... I remember feeling like this too!'

You don't have to be gay or trans or bi to feel a kinship with any of the men from the Riven Series, simply being human with feelings and wants, hopes and dreams and fears makes you the perfect addition.

Side note: despite being a Roan fan I hadn't actually noticed the use of "they and them" as pronouns. I didn't latch on right away when Huey was meeting with a sponsee and it took me a moment to adjust but after that initial sight it fit perfectly and became natural to see.

I love this series, tho Raze is not my favorite of the series, I loved the first one the best so far, I still loved it. Dane was so sweet & he is battling his demons & is still in recovery. Felix has been taking care of his family & has basically putting his life on hold. I understand when his sister, who he lives with and has been taking care of, up & gets the dream job & goes on tour and doesn't have time him, he is hurt. But there was a point where he came off as whinny 12 yr old who like, "oh poor me, no one to pay attention to me, etc" . He does the same with Dane, who he is a sponsor for a lot of people & is on call 24/7 & if all that is needed is for him to sit & watch TV with, he does. Felix gets all out of sorts every time someone calls & takes Dane away from him. What was he supposed to do, just drop all of them?? Felix finally grows when he goes to see his sister & has a grownup conversation with her. I just would have liked Felix to have come along a little faster.

Really liked this book. I’m leaning towards a 4 star, but the second half didn’t pull me in as much as I’d liked, so it’s 3,5 stars for me.

This was the first book I’ve read by this author, it’s alternating first person POV m/m and can be read as a standalone. Before starting the book I didn’t realize it was a third in a series. While reading I did think that some of the secondary characters might have had an interesting story to them, but didn’t stop to question whether they already had. Only now, writing this review, I know. And reading some reviews stating that this book wasn’t their favorite in this series, I want to backtrack and start at the beginning.

Felix and Huey are both in a sense recovering from a period of overpaying attention to others. Felix took care of his siblings while his mother worked, and Huey sponsored recovering addicts, having been one himself. They both do a lot of growing up with respect to selfcare in this book. Felix is forced to let go of the close bond he has with his sister, and Huey chooses to help recovering addicts in another way.
The romance between them was sweet. I really liked that Felix, the youngest and smallest of the two, took the initiative, and through shear persistence melted Huey’s heart. Huey needed some time to get to his own feelings, and that caused some drama.

Stuff I didn’t like as much or wonder about?
I hated it that Sofia, Felix’s sister didn’t make Felix quit the job he hated after he helped her through college and after he got her into her paying-the-big-bucks job. She helped her mother, and Felix would probably have declined, but I needed that conversation in the book.
I found the transition for Felix into another job too slow and resolved too quickly and easily. He liked working in the bar, so why didn’t he ask to work there instead of staying in the job he hated. Especially since it would have brought him together with Huey more often, something he really wanted.

All in all, I am definitely going to read more by this author.

*** I received an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Reviews are for readers. ***

<i>For everyone who sometimes needs permission to be a person.</i>

<i>Raze</i> had a different feel to it from the past two installments. It was a quieter story, but still packed an emotional punch. Huey is a absolute gem, and I related with his feeling of overloading, and of not doing and being enough, so very much. It was so uplifting to see him open up to love, and to give himself room to just breathe.
And, I absolutely loved the Dune references.

I really liked it, and I highly recommend it.

<i>ARC courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

This was my first read by RP and I am definitely going to be reading more. This was a very good story about two people with some issues that they have to work through to find their true selves and be what each other needs. I actually am having a hard time with the star rating. There were parts that topped at 5 stars but then others that I just couldn't get into. Felix was a little too over the top needy for my liking and because he was the rock in his family for so long I felt the two parts of him really didn't mesh well and he said "like" way too much. Huey was a very good, well rounded character but sometimes his character as well was a little too over the top with trying to be strong for not only himself but everyone else but then being totally detached.

Now this had some very hot, hot, hot sex/love scenes that I absolutely loved!!! When I say hot I really mean it.

ARC received through NetGalley. Reviewed voluntarily**

Thanks to NetGalley and Loveswept for this free eARC.

Roan Parrish is such a talented romance writer. Her books are lovely studies of flawed characters trying to be better and trying to grow together. This one, about Huey (a minor character in the past books of this series) and Felix, is no exception. We see these characters work through their life and intimacy issues together and come out happier and healthier. The barriers they face are realistic and relatable, and it feels cathartic to see them go on their journey together. If you like a steamy & emotion in your romances (plus queer stories), Roan Parrish may be the author for you!

Also, I have read the previous books in the series, both of which I would recommend, but you don't have to read them first to get this companion.

While I enjoyed Raze for the most part, I felt disconnected to the story. I can’t pinpoint why that is, just that that’s how I felt.

Both characters were likable and showed tremendous character growth. While this can be read as a stand alone I did feel at times like there was a book I was missing. I’m unsure if Raze is part of a series, but I really wouldn’t be surprised to find out it is.

I was really excited about this novel as I love Roan Parrish, her middle of somewhere series caught my heart so I decided to request this as well as the other books in the series. Raze can be read as a standalone although it adds a bit more of background to the character of Huey if you've read the previous two books. Raze is a character driven books (if you're familiar with Roan Parrish you;ll recognise this from her books) with two individuals who are a bit damaged, have various issues but when together help and make each other better. It;s not a novel about fixing each other but about character growth and healing. Although I have to admit this wasn't my favorite of the series, as a standalone I think it's very engaging with amazing family and friend dynamics. The character of Huey specially I felt fully invested in, his fears, his hopes, his lack of communication in moments where words are needed. Felix as well was insecure and impulsive and resteless but beautiful. I loved both the character, the storyline and the sidecharacters too. As usual I'm not disappointed at all when reading a Roan Parrish novel. A solid 4.5

Felix Rainey is a caretaker. The eldest of five children, he’s been caring for his siblings, cooking and assisting his mother with household tasks, and working to put in money to support his single-parent family since he was a child. He and his sister Sofia are besties. Closest in age, the duo are now living together while Sofia gets her degree and Felix works to support her. When they walk into a bar to sing a duet on karaoke night, they have no idea their lives are about to change.

Huey has worked to stay clean and sober for over ten years. Caleb’s sponsor, we first met Huey in Riven. His life revolves around his meetings, his sponsees, and the bar he owns. He’s also very rigid in the control he maintains over himself as he adheres to a strict schedule of gym activities, shopping, contact with those he sponsors, and more, including listening to podcasts on every topic known to man. He also uses a magic marker to write daily quotations on his abdomen to help reinforce the positives in his life. In a word, he’s rigid in his control. And then, in steps Felix with Sofia to sing a duet on karaoke night—a duet of one of Riven’s songs. And they nail it!

Huey’s world is turned upside down as the sweet, gorgeous young man seems more interested in him than in meeting Theo Decker, the famous rock musician and former lead singer with Riven. Nevertheless, Huey arranges a meeting, which ultimately turns out much different from what he envisions. The bottom line, however, is that he’s left with a crush on a young cutie and that cutie seems to be attracted to him. Now, what should he do about it?

Like others in this series, what happens along the way makes for a complex and beautiful love story. The author’s treatment of addiction, recovery, and triggers in this book is just as good as in the other stories, but with a difference. This time, the focus is on the sponsor, and along the way, we learn that Huey has lost sight of his own needs. The love and support he receives from Felix goes a long way toward helping him release some of his old fears and controlling behaviors and embrace a new way forward, even though the road to this revelation is fraught with ups and downs of heartache and pain.

I struggled a bit with this book, unlike the others in the series, because I had a hard time relating to Huey. The stern, quiet man was not an easy character to warm up to. However, later in the story, when I got to know the person behind the façadethe man whose real name is DaneI was sold.

Felix was the type of character I love, possibly because I can relate to being the oldest and taking on the role of family caretaker. He rarely lost his temper with Dane, mostly because he didn’t feel secure in their relationship and therefore felt unworthy, so why get angry. It’s not until Felix makes strides in his own personal growth that we see the two moving toward each other emotionally, and we can see a happy ending as their outcome.

So, in summary, both characters are different from the norm or what I expect to be the normand often difficult to like, never mind love. But by sticking to the story and being open to their emotional growth, readers will be rewarded with a very satisfying love story.

Roan Parrish is one of those rare authors who can create chemistry and tension between two lovers, in Raze she will wow readers again with the chemistry between Felix and Huey.

There is a pattern to all of Parrish's novels in that both characters are essentially isolated from the world around them; sometimes it's romantic as in Middle of Somewhere, or manic and harmful as in Out of Nowhere, it can also be homesick like in Where We Left Off. But Raze feels like an echoing chasm between the world and Felix and especially Huey. New York felt small, I would have liked to have seen a wider scope to their world. And while the sex scenes where detailed and lovely- they were not on the level of Middle of Somewhere or Out of Nowhere. With those two previous novels, the connection between the love interests was off the charts. Would love to see Parrish bring such passion and intensity to her next novels.

“Once you look a truth in the face, you can’t shove it away again. But change isn’t necessarily bad.”

GAH Felix and Dane deal with a lot of change and learning and growth in this book. I loved watching them navigate not only their relationship but their own lives.

This was uplifting and a joy to read.

I received an ARC through Netgalley. I love romances where the lovers build each other up and make each other better. Huey and Felix are both caregivers... Huey with his sponsees through NA and Felix with his younger siblings and mom. But when they find each other, both struggle to rely on each other after being the ones to hold others up. Get ready to fall in love along side them while finding out it's okay to change for the better.

This book depicts a really nice romance between two messy characters fighting their own demons. There’s a size difference between the two characters, as well as an age difference.

Dane Hughes, or Huey, owns a bar and is Caleb’s best friend from Riven. He is a sponsor, helping those coping with addictions at any hour they may need him. He’s not much a talker and is afraid of feeling deeply for someone.

Felix Rainey meets Huey at his bar during a karaoke night. He has worked at jobs he’s hated to help his family out. He’s very close to his sister, Sofia, and always put someone else before taking care of himself. He also listens to audiobooks!

As mentioned above, these characters are very messy. Felix is whiny, selfish. and insecure in himself and his relationship with Huey but this is explained by his past. He feels like he’s easily forgettable and doesn’t have his own friends, and is never someone’s first priority. He has a very large family and helped his mother take care of them, so when Sofia starts touring he doesn’t know what to do with himself now that he’s alone.

Huey has detached himself from people for so long that he’s afraid of his feelings and being overwhelmed by them. He keeps to himself and doesn’t want to burden people with his feelings, even when he’s spiraling and afraid he’s going to rebound.

When they got together, there was an ease with the way they figured each other out. Roan Parrish really knows how to depict very accurate relationships between complex characters and how they might deal with real world situations. It’s okay to step back from something you initially loved doing because it started to exhaust and hurt you or to grieve who you previously were.

While Roan Parrish isn’t a new to me author, this is the first I’ve read of this series. There are plenty of cameos from the two sets of main characters from her earlier books, Riven and Rend. I can’t wait to read the first two in the series, but you don’t need to in order to understand what’s happening though it would help.

Overall, I didn’t finish this story feeling excited for the characters, but I do love how she dealt with Huey’s addiction and how he dealt with being sober for over 10 years and the reforms they made to the bar at the end to help people that cannot or do not drink.

Best book in the series! This story was so wonderful. Felix felt like a reflection of myself and my life, at this moment. It's an inspiration and hopefulness, to see to slightly broken people find their way to each other and find a healing. I couldn't put this book down. It was touching, heartbreaking, healing and had definite moments of total hotness!