soooo GOOD

Loved this story! Fantastic narration as always. I highly recommend this story. I've not listened to the first 3 stories; however, I didn't feel lost with the characters as sometimes can happen in a series.

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This surpasses the others in this series- amazing

We met Jason in Karen’s earlier books, he had kissed Collin setting off a jealous frenzy with Tanner. Now Jason is happy that Collin and Tanner are together and serious but he has a serious crush on Collin’s brother, Quinn.

Quinn is the oldest, slated to become a priest. He’s been very judgmental so far of both Collin (for being gay) and Sean (for getting a divorce). He’s recently been re-evaluating himself and his judgments and is taking a break from his process to become a priest by doing volunteer work at the New Hope House, where Jason works. New Hope is a sanctuary for LGTBQ kids in New York.

What we don’t know is that Quinn may or may not have some serious secrets … and longings. What we do know is that he and Jason are fast become BFFs and Jason is worried his heart is about to be broken.

**

This is an amazingly romantic, sweet, erotic and well written book.

I loved it!

I loved the slow build, the tension, the relationship building… all of it! It totally worked for me.

I worried about the religion aspect – Jason is Jewish and Quinn is studying to be a priest – but that wasn’t a factor in any way that detracted.

Quinn’s question to Jason – early on – about whether or not he was willing to just take a chance on him to see where things could go seemed a bit niave to me (on Jason’s part) but I think it worked in the end. Jason has to trust the process and that process isn’t unlike any other relationship in the beginning stages. In this case, in addition to seeing if the two parties involved are compatible there is the added stressor of whether or not Quinn will decide to leave the priesthood… forever… but it’s not unlike any other career decision…mostly.

The chemistry these two guys have is phenomenal and I loved all the smexy times. The exploration and gentle way they handled one another. I also loved Carter and Mia and I’m excited to read Bryan’s story.

I really enjoyed the Moments in Time series and this is by far my favorite book in that series so far.

Highly recommended.

Audio

Robert Nieman is a solid narrator. He doesn’t do over the top accents, but he always follows through on his pacing, emotion and voice quality. He is just so easy to listen to! His voice grabs you and pulls you into the story – convincing emotion, lovely intonation, great sound quality. It’s just a fantastic experience. There are a lot of really emotional scenes in this story – it’s so heart-wrenching at times – and Robert Nieman is able to hit just the right notes to capture that. I highly enjoyed this narration and recommend it as a great way to enjoy this story.

6 of 5 stars

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A rating...

My Review:
Overall: 4.5
Performance: 4.5
Story: 4.75

What a wonderful book. I'll readily admit that I don't usually enjoy reading books with a religious slant. As a result, I have avoided this book for a while, despite the rave reviews about it. I finally broke down and bought it...and wow, did it surprise me. This book was amazing.

Jason runs a shelter and Quinn has been working there while he's on hiatus from his process of becoming a priest. Jason has a huge crush, but Quinn is NOT available. Not only is he not gay, but he's about to become a priest. A guy doesn't get more not available than that. But then the guys become friends and emotions develop...for both of them. But that priesthood is still out there lurking. When Quinn is through with this experiment, will he leave Jason with a shattered heart?

And yes, there are religious undertones to the story. Quinn is on his way to becoming a priest. Jason's father (who disowned him when he came out) is a Rabbi. But even with that the book NEVER became preachy in any way. In fact, there was never a moment where I felt uncomfortable with the discussions within the book like I normally do with books that touch on religion. The author did an amazing job with that.

I liked the two guys and their honesty with one another. This is a huge experiment for Quinn. He never ever leads Jason on about what might or might not happen. The fact is, even with what they are doing together and feeling, he is very honest about the fact that he still might choose the church over Jason. That is heartbreaking. They are so good together, but Quinn has spent his life planning and studying for this. It's a dream that he can't easily walk away from.

The book was incredibly well written. I loved every single minute of listening to it. I also thoroughly enjoyed listening to the narrator. He did the inflections and voices for both these guys and the supporting cast so well. I highly recommend it.

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Sweet and refreshing

***3.7 stars***

The Story
Okay, so if you think that this audiobook will be heavy on religion, especially after reading the blurb, don't fret. Actually, I wasn’t sure where the author was going with the religion aspect of the story, that is until I was near the end of the book. What Karen Stivali ended up doing was refreshing and enlightening; especially given her analogy to help explain things to us readers.

This book is told from Jason’s POV, however IMO it would have been better if it alternated (for the most part) between Jason and Quinn’s POV. In turn, the author might have had a better time getting certain idea’s conveyed instead of the reader jumping to conclusions. I then would have had a better grasp on Quinn’s thoughts and struggles. Particularly since I didn’t understand why Quinn opted not to tell his brother he was gay until the end. One would think he would want to seek support, but no.

As for conflict, Quinn has no qualms being intimate with Jason. There is no hesitation when it comes to the sexual attraction both MC's have for one another. In the end, it all comes down to his decision on whether to take the last steps to become a Catholic priest.


The Narrator
Robert Nieman did a good job narrating this book. I wouldn't say he is great or amazing, just that his voice is nice to listen to.

I am one of many reviewers at Gay Book Reviews.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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5 stars!!!

I read this book a while back and just finished listening to the audio book.

This book is amazing. When I picked it up, I didn't realize it was part of a series, so I hadn't read any of the other books in the series. I didn't feel like I was missing anything, so don't be afraid to dive in with this book.

Moment of Silence was so much more than I expected. It is told 100% from Jason's POV and I love this character so much. He has been disowned by his family for being gay and is working for a LGBTQ teen shelter, trying to be there for teens struggling with the same circumstances.

Quinn is working at the shelter and Jason is instantly attracted to him. But the more he gets to know Quinn the more he likes.

The problem is that Quinn is almost a priest. He has taken a hiatus before his final vows to make sure the priesthood is what he really wants.

I loved watching these two characters find their way to each other. There was so much angst in this book because these two guys are AMAZING together. But the whole time I kept wondering if Quinn was going to go through with becoming a priest and break Jason's heart OR if he was going to choose Jason. GAH!!!

Don't let the religious part of this book scare you away from reading it. It really didn't delve too deeply into the religious side of things. Only that people of all religions struggle to accept homosexuality. And the people that are gay sometimes struggle to accept that side of themselves in order to make other people happy.

The book was amazing and the audiobook was fantastic!!! Robert Nieman was a perfect voice for Jason. I loved the way he brought the story to life. I could literally listen to him talk forever. His voice is amazing - if you get a chance to listen to this story, I highly recommend!

Bottom line: read this book. It's hot. It's angst. It's struggle. It's love. It's acceptance.

It's everything.

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Another solid story!!

Would you listen to Moment of Silence again? Why?

I've listened to this twice. Robert Nieman brings sweetness and eroticism to his narration.

Any additional comments?

Moment of Silence is book four in the Moments in Time series by Karen Stivali. And while it can be read as a standalone story, in my opinion, it’s best to read the series in order, as the main character’s within appear in the earlier stories.

The reader and/or listener first meet Jason in book two, Moment of Truth, as the boy who kissed Collin during their summer stay on Fire Island. Nothing comes of it except a friendship between the two and a brief quarrel with Tanner.

Jason is a guy who seems to have it all despite being disowned from his family when he came out. He finished college at NYU all on his own and is now running a LGBTQ teen shelter, New Home, in the city. He’s got great friends, a job he loves; and yet his love life leaves much to be desired. He seems to either fall for the unobtainable or the “straight” guy….one too many times.

Enter Quinn Fitzpatrick. Quinn is Collin’s older brother and has been mentioned many times throughout the Moments in Time series. Quinn has spent the last 10 years studying to be a priest. He also has been very vocal in his disapproval of Collin’s coming out and has taken sides with their mother on the issue. Unbeknownst to his family Quinn has his own personal issues to deal with and has taken a leave of absence from his studies of the priesthood. He now volunteers his time at the very teen shelter where Jason works.

In the first half of the story the listener gets an in depth look into Jason’s life. As Moment of Silence is told from Jason’s point of view we really get to see all of his fears and desires; his hurt over losing his family. We learn about his childhood and close knit family. We even relive the incident in which Jason’s rabbi father disowns him as part of their family.

Robert Nieman, as usual, delivers a truly wonderful narration.

With a perfect voice, he has an almost youth-like quality when describing Jason’s younger self in happier family times. His pitch is dreamlike and I felt as if I were right there with Jason reliving every moment. I could really hear the heartache and hurt between father and son during that pivotal coming out scene. My heart just broke as a simple pronoun slipped from Jason’s lips as he told his father of being in love for the first time and Jason’s life instantly changes:

“If you choose this you will no longer be part of this family...And I have no son”

Jason is simply heartbroken during this exchange and Robert Nieman’s voice truly captures his pain and confusion.

Moving forward in the story, Jason and Quinn immediately strike up an easy working relationship, during their days at New Home, which bleeds into a fast friendship. As they begin to spend more and more time together outside of work it becomes harder and harder for Jason to be around Quinn as he realizes that his “insta-lust” has developed into something so much deeper. They share many personal things with each other which causes the listener to suspect there may be more to Quinn’s decision to re-evaluate continuing with his studies than one originally thought.

Robert Nieman portrays Jason’s growing attraction and Quinn’s uncertainty so well.

Between Stivali’s stellar writing and Nieman’s perfect delivery the combination just grabs you from the start.

I could hear Quinn’s conflict, and the questions he’d been asking himself for years, so clearly. I could even see the lingering stares between the two.

Quinn has never been with either a man or woman and the listener gets to hear all of his firsts, delivered with humor and sweet sensuality, especially when his sexuality is revealed.

Jason and Quinn have such amazing chemistry and I have to admit that I listened to this audiobook - twice. Wait til you get to Chapter 28. Just sayin’!

These men do hit a few road bumps on their path to happiness during Moment of Silence but the angst level is low and the story itself is overflowing with romance. It is at times very sweet and also very erotic. I don’t want to give away too much but I will say you do not want to pass this book up, especially its narrated form.

Stivali writes with ease and humor and Nieman delivers an easy banter between the two men.

In fact don’t pass up the entire narrated Moments in Time series. I have truly enjoyed getting to know Karen Stivali’s characters through Robert Nieman’s voice. Nieman is just an amazing narrator bringing each character throughout the series to life through their own distinct voice and personality. Which is a testament to Robert’s skills. He has become one of my favorite narrators.

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1 person found this helpful

My Favorite MM Romance EVER

This is a sweet, charming story that I cannot get out of my mind. First of all, the storyline is realistic. In fact, I know someone who also gave up the Church for the man he loved. The interactions with friends and family add to the story. I also liked the fact that, while the story has drama,it is apparent that the guys love each other all through the story and that they will make this work out well.

I also like the fact that the guys become friends before they become lovers. Lots of meals together, deep conversations. By the time they get around to sex, they are already very emotionally vested in each other. The sexual activity, while steamy, is accompanied by mutual consideration and concern.

The chemistry between the characters make this story delightful. If you don't have your own Quinn, I hope you find one soon!

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My favorite M/M book of the year (2015)

I wrote this review back in 2016 but I either forgot to submit to Audible or they never posted it.

I’ve been saying this a lot lately (because I’ve read some amazing books) – I have the hardest time reviewing books that I love. I just don’t really have the words to convey how Karen Stivali’s writing of this story affected me. I’ve read the other three books in this series and loved them. While those three stories are best read in order and share the same main characters, this book can stand on its own and you won’t feel like you’ve missed anything. (You really should read the other books, though, because they are great.)

Jason’s father disowned him when he came out and since then he also has had no contact with his mother or sisters. He’s lonely and still pretty devastated by the loss of his family.

Quinn is working at the shelter that Jason manages while he takes a break from his training to become a priest; he’s unsure if he really wants to follow through and take his vows.

Jason has been lusting after Quinn but believes that he’s straight. Once again it seems that he’s falling for the wrong guy. Much to his surprise he discovers that Quinn shares his feelings.

This is not a quick and dirty read; there is real meat to this story. Things happen in Jason’s family and Quinn is there for him. When Quinn has to leave suddenly Jason doesn’t know if he will be back or not.

This story is filled with such wonderful emotion; I laughed and I cried and couldn’t put it down until I finished it. Karen Stivali knows how to engage the reader with her wonderful character descriptions and super HOT sexy times. I rarely read books a second time – simply because I have way too many books in my TBR list – but if I did, this one would be near the top of my list. I can’t wait to read what she writes next.

Since I read and review a lot of ARCs I want to say that I did not receive a review copy of this book, I purchased a copy and would gladly buy it again – it was just that good.

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Awesome book

This was an awesome book and has me interested and waiting to hear more and more. It left me with a warm feeling.

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Breathtaking! !!

I didn't want the story to end. It held my interest from beginning to end.

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