First Impressions

Auckland Med Series, Book 1

By: Jay Hogan

Narrated by: Gary Furlong

Michael:

Two years ago, I made a mistake, a big one. Then I added a couple more just for good measure. I screwed up my life, but I survived. Now I have the opportunity for a fresh start. Two years in NZ. Away from the LA gossip, a chance to breathe, to rebuild my life. But I’m taking a new set of rules with me.

I don’t do relationships.

I don’t do commitment.

I don’t do white picket fences.

And I especially don’t do arrogant, holier-than-thou, smoking hot K9 officers who walk into my ER and rock my world.

Josh:

One thing for certain, Dr. Michael Oliver is an arrogant, untrustworthy player, and I barely survived the last one of those. He might be gorgeous, but my daughter takes number one priority. I won’t risk her being hurt, again. I’m a solo dad, a K9 cop and a son to pain-in-the-arse parents.

I don’t have time for games.

I don’t have time for taking chances.

I don’t have time for more complications in my life.

And I sure as hell don’t have time for the infuriating Dr. Michael Oliver, however damn sexy he is.

©2018 Jay Hogan (P)2020 Jay Hogan

Great start to the series!

Loved the storyline, emotion, snark, and characters. Backstories of the MCs really fortified the plot. Excellent supporting cast and interesting world. Jay Hogan is always good for all the feels! Really love Gary Furlong’s narration, but the American accents were a little cringey…only downside to this book, and definitely not a deal-breaker.

Love this series / author

Love this series. Great author, great narrator, great book, great cover. Love being around Auckland Med.

Really good

What can I say....Gary Furlong narrating is awesome. He’s truly outstanding. The story line has action mixed with angst. I didn’t feel the connection of the two MCs in the beginning but as the chapters went on that changed. Absolutely loved the story and ending.

Come for a story, stay for the performance.

I loved this book. I consume MM romance like its going out of fashion so I do tend to get bored with the standard tropes and humdrum story lines. There's nothing particularly special about this story line. It's your standard boy meets boy, falls for boy, conflict, breakup, resolution storyline. It is, however, very well written. The characters are well developed and interesting. The relationship feels real and developed enough to not feel contrived. It also has that laconic feel that kiwi people have which feels less fake than some American writers.

The narration is top notch and the NZ accent is pretty good (although I'm Aussie so it could be worse than I think). There is some muddying of accents around the interchange between the American and Kiwi accent but it's generally not too bad. Only criticism is that the narrator reads in a kiwi accent even when the story is written from the POV of the American character.
All in all a well written story with a stellar performance.
I'll be following up both the author and narrator for other books.

One of the best of this genera!

Exciting, thoughtful, passionate, realistic, and super enjoyable to listen to. You won't be disappointed with this book!

Amazing Audio Performance

Storyline:

I read book three in the series first and immediately went and purchased the first two. I would suggest you read the entire series as the character development is simply fantastic. This author’s writing is incredible. The characters are so fleshed out and real. Their problems are not over exaggerated, felt so true to life, and so relatable.

I need to disclose that Michael Oliver is one of my favorites and I might be a tad protective of him. He is dealing with some serious inner demons that nearly caused him both his job and sanity. Moving temporarily, to work in a hospital in New Zealand, from the states is how he has decided to cope with his past. He may appear care-free, but this brilliant physician is barely hanging on. He uses his sharp wit and avoiding any lasting relationships to mask his pain. Joshua is a police officer that is a dog handler. Being in the K9 unit is the perfect fit for this devoted cop and father. Michael meets Joshua when a fight, that leads to a stabbing, happens at a club he is visiting. Wrong first impressions are dispelled as the two men get to know each other.

I was riveted to the fast paced storyline and read almost non stop to the finish. The secondary characters are just the best, and the charge nurse, named Cam, demands your complete attention. Josh’s daughter, Sasha, was a pure delight.

A scorching romance, along with the perfect amount of angst and suspense, grace the pages of this well written story. If the men can realize how much they mean to each other, then their lives can drastically change for the better. I highly recommend this intriguing and brilliant story. Happy reading!

Audio: Narrator: Gary Furlong

I love this narrator’s voice which was a combination of sultry and soothing. I always appreciate when you are able to tell who is speaking in a story and there was never a time I was lost. The narration did justice to the book and was fast-paced and perfect! Mr. Furlong’s interpretation of Dr. Oliver was impeccable and matched his giant and snarky personality to a tee. I highly recommend this audio and urge you to give it a try. Happy listening!

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loved it!

great story, great characters, engaging story line, interesting setting (I love books set in New Zealand! ) and a top-notch narration. I loved everything about it!

Enjoyable

Good story, good characters and the usual brilliant narration by Gary. I enjoyed this completely.

I like it

First off I have to say the cover of this book did nothing to make me want to read it. Is this the best the author could come up with? I did like Michael and Josh a doctor and detective. Their meeting was funny but the relationship was are we or aren’t we. They had a great connection between the sheets but other circumstances kept them from committing.

I will listen to anything Mr. Furlong performs

I really liked this book when I read it so listening to it was a no-brainer, especially when I found out who was performing it. I will listen to anything Mr. Furlong performs.

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Here is my original review of the book after reading it.

4.5 Stars so rounding up to 5.

I’m impressed with this first-time author. The story moved at a good pace…the romance and the suspense. I liked all of the characters (except Josh’s parents), flaws and all.

Michael is a bit of a mess after trauma in his hospital in the States and after reading the opening scene he doesn’t appear to have much under control still. He’s a good guy but he’s buried that and gives the world his devil may care attitude. He’s immediately attracted to Josh but Josh wants nothing to do with him. Unfortunately for Josh, they’re forced to be around each other…and they cannot deny the sexual attraction and chemistry. When they finally give in to their attraction they’re fantastic together. I didn’t like their lack of communication about their true feelings (I never like that in any book) and I thought Michael was a huge coward near the end of the book. Thankfully Josh took over and fixed everything. :)

The suspense plotline was good and not over the top…there was even a late twist which surprised me (and that’s not easily done). I really, really nope Mark and Cam get books…they are both REALLY outstanding. The ending is pretty perfect!

My one complaint surrounds Michael and him being an American (and I’ll admit it’s a bit nitpicky). I suppose it’s possible Michael picked up the dialog and slang in the time he’d been in NZ, but he definitely didn’t sound like he is from the States.

This is definitely a must-read by an author that should be on your radar!