Learned Behaviors has a great premise, but I kind of feel like something was missing. The characters are likable for the most part. I did have some trouble with Matt, and maybe that's why I struggled. He just seemed to be stuck where he was, like personal growth was lacking. Another thing that fell short for me was the chemistry. These two were okay together, but they didn't make it to the point where I wanted to root for them. There was definite attraction, and I felt that, but that thing that pushes a couple over into real relationship territory was missing for me. That's to say that it's a bad story. It's really not. It is an entertaining workplace romance, and I appreciated that these guys are all grown up - their children are the new adults, so these are the guys who are supposed to have it all together. The fact that they really don't did go a long way toward keeping me turning the pages. I mean, do any of us really have it all together? So, in that, they feel more real I suppose. This is the start of a series, and I liked the secondary characters enough to see where things go. I'd say this one just wasn't for me for whatever reason, but it was still worth the read.

4.5 Stars

JaQuan “Jaq” Reynolds is a single, Black, gay dad with a college-aged daughter, Tanisha, leaving for her first semester. He’s so into his daughter and loves that she’s finding her wings. While he is helping her move in to the dorms at Howard, he makes the acquaintance of a couple of other out Black men raising college-aged kids, Carlton and Lawrence. He doesn’t have a lot of community, so he’s happy to build some new friendships. Jaq is the right-hand man to eccentric Patricia Kingsley, owner and head designer of Kingsley Enterprises, a home furnishings design company. They had a bid to design a line of products for Bernhardt’s stores. They hadn’t heard back, but suddenly the company wants designs for a Black Friday surge, and it’s all hands on deck for the next few months to meet the ridiculous deadlines. Jaq is not pleased to work closely with Matthew Donaldson as they bring Patricia’s designs to market–mostly because Matthew is pompous and his attitude is beyond the pale. Even if he is one fine man…

Matthew Donaldson is a Bernhardt’s analyst who usually takes nine months to a year with his new accounts to help them acclimate to the Bernhardt’s process, and ensure a successful partnership. This unexpected account with Kingsley designs is breaking all the patterns for his usual project management. He’s worked for the Bernhardt’s for two decades, to the chagrin of his ex-wife and grown children. They all have had their fill of his excuses for ignoring them on behalf of work. Matthew’s female boss has made it clear that she only trust his with this roll out because management is looking for reasons to axe either of them. As a Black bisexual man, he’s definitely outside the white culture of management at Bernhardt’s and failing to meet deadlines on this rushed project could be the end of Matthew’s tenure at Bernhardt’s. Add to that his eldest son is about to get married at Thanskgiving–the day before Black Friday, and his youngest daughter is having struggles at Howard. So, he’s not interested in Jaq’s excuses for Patricia’s seeming flightiness. Even if Jaq is a delicious-looking dude…

Thing is, the more these two work together the more they recognize that their animosity is fueled by frustrated attraction. Maybe if they take a little “professional” break they could get some clarity and also some sexual satisfaction. Interestingly, they only get more taken with one another–because they finally start to appreciate the struggles the other has faced. They are the hardest workers in the office and their commitment to the project is common ground. Also, it turns out Tanisha and Matthew’s daughter are acquainted–although this causes some conflict when Jaq recognizes that Matthew’s daughter kinda broke her heart. That said, they can’t shake the other man, so they decide to go for it. It seems to be developing well, until the wedding, to which Matthew has invited Jaq as his guest. If they bust their humps they should be able to relax at the occasion. Unfortunately, it’s a total mess. Why? Because Matthew can’t turn off work, as per his usual. And, because Tanisha has an emergency that increases the conflict.

This is a fantastic and delicious romance between two determined, driven and strong Black men. Their personalities were so strong on the page, and their dedication and responsibility was honored and celebrated in the most poignant ways. Matthew has a long way to go to make amends to his family, and to Jaq for his recent behavior. Matthew is used to being autonomous, and his struggles to include people and be vulnerable are interesting. Jaq has been a caregiver for his whole adult life. it’s hard for him to be independent, but he grows his wings once Tanisha leaves home, encouraged by his loving mother. This story has a strong theme of family and self-sacrifice, which both men need to overcome. I really loved it, and I loved Carlton and Lawrence and their absolutely stone cold, but loving, advice for Jaq. I’m glad that we will see these characters in future stories. A happy ending and a strong recommendation from me.

I absolutely loved this MM romance.

Such a great book with a solid storyline and great characters.

I eagerly look forward to reading more from this author.

A definite recommend!

I’m generally not a reader who gravitates to single father stories but this cover drew me in because it’s gorgeous. This story has so much going on, but all of it works together. Two single men, with families, both with heavy work loads, working together and fighting their growing attraction.

I really enjoyed the subplot there is with their two daughters also being in love with each other and how that one is not tidily resolved at the end, because young love isn’t so tidy. I loved the friend group Matt and JaQuan both bring to the table and my romance ears were perked up trying to figure out who we’d be seeing more of in the future. I especially loved the families of both men and how accepting and loving everyone is.

Just a really lovely queer Black romance that is also steamy with protagonists over 35.

Grade: A-

Learned behavior is about two workaholic, single dads trying to maintain relationships with their adult children all while trying to finally get a life of their own. When Matt and JaQuan first meet it's dislike at first sight but they quickly learn to respect and admire one another, the process sped along but their extreme attraction to one another and the story plays out from there.

I have to say from the beginning I was really sold on this, the main characters were interesting to me and I loved their personal journey"s, Matt and his attempt to reconnect with his daughter Angela, and JaQuan, trying to finally get a life and some friends of his own after sending his only child off to college. I found these elements to be really strong and made me fall pretty quickly for both mc's! Their chemistry was fun and for the most part I enjoyed them as a couple, I was almost fully prepared to give this 5 stars. But once we reached the halfway mark it felt like the story was pretty much just turning it's wheels and there wasn't much going on beyond a work project the two had to collaborate on which was utterly dull to read about for chapters on end. Their relationship just felt like it stopped developing after the 50% mark and as such I sorta lost interest for the rest of the novel. Also the conflict in the end was a bit...eh

It was nice but the execution left something to be desired for me. 3 stars

This was a really surprising read for me bec it's my first one from Jayce Ellis and it hit all of my favorite tropes, scenes, and dialogues AND still, it went beyond what I expected an I loved it so much!

JaQuan is a workaholic, but it mase sense why he would become like that. He really loved his work and he really didn't have enough emotional skill(?) to connect with his daughter at the beginning of the story. The way that evolved within the book was lovely to see and experience.

Matt, on the other hand, seems to have it all figured out, except on matters of the heart. And the conflict I was expecting that would come from his life situation didn't come, instead I got a better, more nuanced conflict, making the resolution and HEA even more delicious.

Jayce Ellis is one of my fave romance authors now and I can't wait for the second book in this series!

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

I liked the sound of this one and decide to request it when it showed up on Netgalley. When I was in the mood for a contemporary romance book I decided to pick this one up. I liked reading this book, although something was missing to fully make this a win for me. Learned Behaviors is the story of two workaholics who fall in love and have to navigate their beginning relationship while also navigating their work and family life.

I liked the set up of this book with both main characters being single dads and their only/ youngest kid being off to college now. I was especially curious to see how Jaq would deal with it, he became a dad when he was young and most of the past years resolved around his kid, now he has to figure out who he is. Sadly there wasn't as much focus on that as I had hoped, it mostly was about his work and the romance.

On the topic of work there are a lot of scenes resolving around that. And I have to admit at times it made me a bit uncomfortable with how their work lives went, these are both big workaholics who aren't always treated right by their boss or assistant. There are plenty of relatable scenes here and as someone who struggled with life and work balance in the past that part definitely felt realistic, but at the same time I just didn't find it that interesting to read about. The solution to some of the work problems is pretty clear while reading, but they didn't really seem to work on it at all until the last few chapters.

I liked both main characters. Matt had a bit of a gruff exterior at first, but it was nice to see him warm up to Jaq and the people they worked with. I liked reading about their relationships with other characters and how they dealt with it, although at times I would've liked a deeper look at their personalities.

Then there are plenty of side characters as well. I liked Matt and Kendra's friendship. As well as seeing how Matt interacted with his family, especially Halo and I had hoped for a bit more scenes were he tries his best to better relate to her. It was clear he wanted to, but it felt like it never quite made it into the book. It was fun to read about Jaq and his daughter and how they interact and resolve things. Jaq's new friends were nice enough, but it felt like they got added just so Jaq had his group of friends to talk with and ask for help at times. I never felt like I really got a good feel for their personalities. There are also some side plot lines regarding some side characters that don't get resolved, although I feel that some of Jaq's friends will get their own book and those were simply the set ups for their stories.

For a long time I didn't really feel the romance between Jaq and Matt. At first it just felt like mutual attraction and they didn't quite like each other. It had a bit of enemies to lovers vibe at first, but not quite, as that dislike part got resolved quite easily once they worked together more. I just didn't really get why they fell for each other and would've liked to see more scenes of them spending time together outside of work, especially the early start of their romance was mostly set at work. By the end I did warm up to them and liked the romance more. Until the forced drama at the end and the weird way one of them was going to solve it and then it was weeks later. Then there was the big gesture scene which didn't feel as fitting for the characters as what I initially expected to happen. I would've liked to see an epilogue as it would've been nice to get a glimpse of their future.

To summarize: this was a solid work place romance type story. I mostly enjoyed reading this book, but it was missing something to make me fully invested. I liked the set up of them both being single dads and how Jaq now had to figure out who he was without having to focus fully on providing for his kid, but I felt like that wasn't developed as much. I liked how relatable and realistic the works scenes were, but sadly I just didn't find it as interesting to read about. I would've liked a bit more scenes with the couple connecting outside of work. I liked the main characters, but didn't quite feel the romance for a long time. I didn't care for the drama toward the end and the way it resolved it felt a bit off. There are some interesting side characters and some plot lines that are left open probably for future books in the series. I felt that a work related plot line got resolved a bit too sudden and easily toward the end and would've liked a bit more build-up/ talking about that earlier. All in all if you're looking for a work place romance with a hint of enemies to lovers at the start this one might be for you.

LEARNED BEHAVIORS is the first book in Jayce Ellis’s Higher Education Series and introduces readers to two single dads who, when they first meet, don’t really like each other. LEARNED BEHAVIORS explores these two alpha males’ journey to love and it is this journey, with all its conflicts, that is totally delightful.
Single dad JaQuan Reynolds has recently dropped his daughter off at college and intends to embrace his freedom, but instead finds himself on a tight deadline and forced to work with the insufferable Matthew Donaldson.

Matthew, also a single dad, is not pleased about having to work with JaQuan. He is focused on his son’s upcoming wedding over Thanksgiving and he doesn’t need the stress that working with JaQuan brings. However, neither of them can deny the attraction between them. What develops is a story that sees JaQuaan and Matthew evaluating their future, learning to balance work with the responsibilities that comes with being fathers and dealing with the unexpected feelings of love. Both of the characters show a maturity which allows them to communicate easily, but that does not mean that their happily-ever-after also comes easily.

I was introduced to Ms. Ellis’s work when I read JEREMIAH (which I loved) in 2019 and she has fast become one of my ‘must-read’ authors. While Ms. Ellis focuses on the issues which may confront a couple navigating the journey of love, she does not fail to up the heat between the protagonists. The love scenes are intense (and hot), but I never felt that they were just for the readers’ pleasure but were an importance part of the characters’ journey. Ms. Ellis also emphasizes the important of family and friendship, and the secondary characters play significant roles in the story.

LEARNED BEHAVIOURS is Ms. Ellis at her best, and fans, like me will be looking forward to the next book in the series, LEARNED REACTIONS, to be published in March 2021.

I forgot to review this!

Run, don’t walk, to buy this author’s books.

I loved this. It was...quiet and lovely and a gift for this difficult year.

Highly recommend.

Older MCs? Single dads? Divorced bisexual with adult children? A story filled with characters of color written by an author of color?

Yes to all of the above, please!

I very much enjoy Jayce Ellis' characters and stories. She creates rich, multi-dimensional characters that come alive on the page. The DC setting and surrounding areas are descriptive enough without being distracting.

Learned Behaviors is a great start to a series of single, Black queer men looking for love. I love that the MCs aren't twenty-year-olds; they are older and have already established themselves in a career and know who they are. I enjoyed getting to know JaQuan and Matt and there journey to couple-dom. The adult children play an important role throughout the story without feeling out of place or merely there to provide drama.

The theme of family (biological and found) is strong in all of Ellis' stories, and the same goes for Learned Behaviors. The author has nicely set up the next two books in the series, and I am ready for them!

I appreciated the idea of this book, but the execution fell somewhat flat for me personally. It will probably resonate for other readers though.

This is the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last because I thoroughly enjoyed.
Great character and plot development, an interesting and compelling story,
I loved the slow burn romance and how the MCs changes and grows.
It's an excellent and highly entertaining read that I strongly recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

It seems like most books with the single-father trope are set when the child is younger, while the father is focusing on the struggle of raising a child alone. As a parent going through the other side, grown children leaving the nest, it was refreshing to read a story focused on that struggle. Although JaQuan has a successful career, he finds himself at loose ends and trying to figure out who he is as a person when his daughter goes off to college. When Matt enters the picture, there are instant misunderstandings caused by assumptions, but the story does a good job of working through them without unnecessary drama. The ways that work and family commitments almost come between them are very realistic and the characters are well developed enough that I was rooting for their happy ending. The cast of side characters, including JaQuan's mother and his boss, are endearing. A very satisfying read.

I tried to read Learned Behavior. I really likes the blurb. But the writing just didn't draw me in and I got bored. Maybe another time it would be more interesting to me. But for now, I didn't find the development to be good early on. I loved the opening, and then it went downhill.

This was the first novel I’ve read by Jayce Ellis, and I loved it! I’ve got all the rest of Jayce’s novels on my wishlist.

JaQuan Reynolds is a dedicated, hardworking, young single-father. At 35 he’s dropping his daughter off for her first days of college and finding out who he is outside of fatherhood. He loves his job, but being thrown head first into a time crunch with a partner company to release a line of home goods for Black Friday, it’s stressful.
What JaQuan didn’t factor in was Matt and how, smart, determined, and undeniably attractive the man was. Matt is a little too married to his job and it shows in his family life. He almost doesn’t get an invitation to his son’s wedding, his daughter doesn’t talk to him about her personal life, and his ex-wife has little faith in him when it comes to anything besides work.

What I loved what how distinctive JaQuan and Matt were. I could hear their voices in my head as I read, and oh my, it felt like fingertips dancing down my spine. I was in the office they worked in, on campus with their girls and at Matt’s son’s wedding. I could picture their daughters, Jaq’s mother like they were my family. The secondary characters, were strong, independent women. I don’t think we get that enough in books. They were just as important to Jaq and Matt’s storyline as their interactions were. Ellis paints a vivid picture with her writing.

JaQuan, while younger than Matt, taught Matt more about the important things in life. Your family, friends, and individual happiness is more important than the whir of work. Someone is always there to take your place at work, but not with your family.

The chemistry between Jaq and Matt *fans self* oh from the moment they laid eyes on each other I could feel the heat. They may not have liked each other all that much in the beginning, but the more they worked together the more intense their feelings became. I do wish there was a little more to the romance scenes.
I’m going to go see which book I’m going to buy next!

I really enjoyed this one.

Learned Behaviors is the third book I've read by Jayce Ellis and I'm really enjoying her writing. As an over 60, white female, I am sometimes challenged by the vernacular used in her books but I like that and think it's a good thing. I like that this story is about two older single fathers; there aren't enough romances featuring middle-aged and older couples.

I loved the chemistry between Jaq and Matt, it sizzled! Dealing with their attraction for each other, and the potential complications it creates with each of their families and jobs, kept the story interesting and engaging.

The secondary characters that Jaq made friends with were great and I hope we'll be seeing more of them in future books in this series.

A review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley but this did not influence my opinion or rating of the book.

Actual Rating: 3.5 stars

Two single dads find love in Learned Behaviors, a steamy m/m workplace romance. This feels like a good autumnal read and the characters have to overcome very real relationship challenges.

JaQuan is sending his daughter off to college and finally might feel free to date, though a big work project overseeing the design a line of home goods for a a prestigious brand is going to keep him busy. Matt is the pansexual, divorced father of adult children (with his youngest daughter in college with Jaq's daughter) and a definite workaholic. He's also the liason on the project JaQuan is involved with and there is definite chemistry.

But Matt's intense dedication to his job may be a challenge, not to mention the complication of something more than friendship brewing between their daughters. In general I enjoyed this, getting to see the characters work through challenges and come together. A few of the steamy scenes I was a bit more iffy on- particularly anything involving sex in the workplace I'm not a fan of, and some of the conversations around Jaq's mom and daughter were a little uncomfortable. That said, I think this has a lot going for it and it a nice option for this time of year. I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I loved how both JaQuan and Matthew complement each other while still having flaws. I'm honestly normally not a fan of characters with children (it's just so far out of my realm of imagination that I typically can't get into the story) but I grabbed this one because Jayce Ellis has been so good at what she does with characters that I gave it a shot and it blew me away.

When Jaq and Matt meet at work, it’s not very cute, but there’s no time for drama because if they don’t collaborate, they aren’t going to get everything together before the big product launch—with only three months away, the deadline is looming. But even though they don’t seem to have anything in common, there’s an ever-present undercurrent of desire.

Jaq was a single teenage father, who raised his daughter with the help of his mother. At the beginning of the book, he drops her off at Howard University, a huge accomplishment considering that he never had the opportunity to go to college himself. Now that his baby girl is settled, he plans to finally focus on his own career, as well as relax for the first time in 18 years—Jaq hasn’t had time for relationships because he always prioritized his daughter.

Matt, on the other hand, was married for 20+ years until his wife cheated on him with a much-younger man. He’s devoted himself to his career as a consultant and hasn’t prioritized relationships either.

When they finally get together, wow, the chemistry is amazing. There’s a bit of an age difference, which makes things interesting, and Matt is a bit (ha!) bossy, which also makes things interesting. They’re both trying to act like this is something casual, but it’s meaningful for both of them, even if they don’t want to admit it.

Jaq and Matt are supported by a great cast of secondary characters. It’s hard to pick a favorite among the group, but if I had to, it would be Jaq’s mom Gran, who stole every scene she appeared. She had me howling at some of the things she said.

I would absolutely recommend Learned Behaviors. This is a sweet romance, with more of an emphasis on family life than one might expect from a “workplace romance”. This book was great, and I’m already excited for the next book in the series, featuring two of Jaq’s friends.





I received an ARC of this book from Carina Press/NetGalley.

At 35, JaQuan Reynolds is an empty nester. His daughter is off to college and, since he raised her on his own, he feels the loss, even though she’s not that far away. But since he was 17, Jaq’s been focused solely on his girl and between his daughter and his job, he has no social life. And maybe he’s ready for that to start. But first, he has to deal with his demanding but sweet boss.

Matt Donaldson is railroaded into taking over the Kingsley account, and now it’s his job to get the launch ready for Black Friday. It’s not impossible, but it will mean that he has to leave his office at Bernhardt’s and spend his time in the Kingsley offices. Matt doesn’t get off to a good start, as his misconceptions about the way things are run cause him to act like a jerk. And Jaq definitely thinks the pretentious man needs to be taken down a peg or two.
Jaq and Matt butt heads at every turn, but that doesn’t stop their attraction to each other. And when their lives intersect outside of work, the ice between them begins to thaw. Acting on their attraction comes naturally, but their feelings aren’t enough. Matt is a workaholic who doesn’t know how to say no, even though he’s vowed to be better since it caused him to miss out on a lot of his children’s lives. And Jaq doesn’t understand how Matt can continue to put the job first, ahead of his family and ahead of their relationship.

When a small crisis arises, both Jaq and Matt say things they don’t mean, and it could spell the end of their relationship. Some major changes are needed if they hope to get their happily ever after.

Learned Behaviors is the first in a new series by Ellis and she lays the groundwork here for future books without going overboard. Jaq makes some new friends who become a support, and I won’t be surprised when these other single dads show up in upcoming books. That being said, this is absolutely Jaq and Matt’s story, and focuses primarily on them. Ellis does a great job fleshing the two MCs out and making them well rounded characters. And since it’s dual third person POV, we get to really delve into their thoughts and see where they are coming from.

Right from the start, Jaq was the more likable character for me. He’s wholly devoted to his daughter, and he’s exceptional at his job. He’s just all around a really good guy. And from his first dealings with Matt, Jaq has the man pegged. And I have to say, at the start, I agreed with Jaq’s assessment of Matt. He seemed out of touch and full of himself. I wanted to give him a shake. But the more we got to know him and see his true self, the more I warmed to Matt and eventually really liked him.

These guys start out at odds, but they aren’t enemies. They don’t like each other much, mostly due to misconception of the other’s motive, but they, along with the rest of the team, are working toward the same goal. The chemistry between them sparks from the start. I would even say there’s a little bit of a slow burn between them, though I can’t really classify it as that. It just has the same feel. And when Matt and Jaq finally act on their attraction, they explode. Feelings develop quickly, and it felt natural for their relationship. By the time these guys get together, I was ready and waiting, and rooting them on.

However, Ellis relies too heavily on the big miscommunication for my liking. Almost right from the start after Matt and Jaq get together, there are little moments where the lack of talking really got under my skin. For the most part, those little moments are resolved quickly. But then, of course, the black moment comes and it’s all down to neither of them actually talking to the other, and then instead of communicating, they hurl insults. This is followed by a couple of chapters of them pining for each other, but still not talking. This irritates me for a lot of reasons, but the biggest on here is that when they finally do have the grand gesture and talk, everything is resolved with literally a few sentences and that it’s. So I was a little frustrated by the formulaic feeling of the black moment and big miscommunication, but even more so by the lack of resolution.

That being said, I do like Ellis’ overall style. Her characters always come alive for me and feel wholly real, as if they could walk off the page, and Matt and Jaq are no exception. They are flawed and lovable, even if it takes a bit. I’m always invested in the characters, even if I would have preferred a different take on how things played out at the end. If you’re looking for a solid romance, then absolutely pick this one up.