Hard Ink

Get Ink'd, Book 4

By: Ali Lyda

Narrated by: Connor Brown

I don’t have the best history with older men.

When Mateo saw my last relationship implode, he was there to help. He saved me. Hopefully, self-defense lessons will keep me from getting hit again.

I can’t ask for more of my friend. Even dreaming of keeping him is wrong. But when my ex makes things difficult, Mateo steps up again.

I don’t want a protector, but maybe, it’s time to accept a little help. For the first time in my life, I want something real.

What will it cost to keep the man I’m falling for?

Bryan needs a protector. Those rich old guys that chase after him aren’t the answer. All I want is to keep him safe.

I want to watch him grow into the strong man I know he can be. Falling for him wasn’t the plan. But now that I’ve had a taste, I can’t let him go.

Sparks and ink fly in Hard Ink, a 60,000-word stand-alone m/m workplace romance between a tattoo artist and teacher Mateo and his student and co-worker Bryan.

©2020 Special Fiction Books (P)2020 Special Fiction Books

Fantastic

Hard Ink by Ali Lyda is part of the Get Ink'd series and is a sweet and steamy m/m romance that is a mix of  co-worker and  teacher/student  love.  Mateo and Bryan are fun characters and their story made me smile.  Anothet great addition to the series.
For the audiobook, Connor Brown does a fantastic job as Narrator of this story.  Great voice performance and recording

Mateo and Bryan's story!

The magic of Ali Lyda and the Get Ink'd series continues with Mateo and Bryan's story. This is an age-gap/protector story with a little bit of kink thrown in. As always, Ali developed these characters to be relatable and likable. The story was well thought out and developed to make it easy for the reader to follow along.

Bryan is being stalked by a former daddy he met on a dating app. Mateo is there to save him when he gets into trouble. Both Bryan knows he needs Mateo to protect him and their relationship forms on the premise that not only would Mateo be his protector but he would be a good daddy to Bryan. Their chemistry is amazing and the ways Mateo is always there for Bryan are heartwarming

This can be read as a standalone but if you want to understand what's going on and how the other characters play a role, I would highly recommend reading the other books in the series first.

I received and reviewed this book as part of Gay Romance Reviews.

Misunderstood bad boys

These 2 are the sweetest bad boys who are actually really good guys and just get the short end until they don't! I loved this when I read it myself and Brown's performance made it even better for me!

Fantastic

I adored Mateo and Bryan. I love the voices of these characters. It’s great to catch up with these guys.

Inked protector with a slight age gap

I enjoyed this so much. I had not read anything by the authors before and I had not heard the narrator. So I went in blind, and it was right up my alley. A big inked protector who is trying not to notice how sweet and sexy his co-worker and now student is. Brian is a 19 year old just trying to figure out his life and get it back on the track he wants after an unfortunate upbringing. Matteo seems to have his life all together, but he too had a rough childhood. Now with Brian being stalked, they come together to help Brian learn self defense and decide further protection is needed to help keep Brian’s grandfather safe so Brian lives in with Matteo!! Their relationship develops naturally, as they were both trying hard not to be together. Once they are together it is sweet and lovely. They do have a misunderstanding but Brian seriously made up for it. And there is a scare with Brian possibly being hurt. And in the end Matteo gets a wonderful HEA with his family and Brian.

ARC provided by GRR in exchange for an honest review.

Age-Gap Romance with Personal Growth at Its Heart

"Hard Ink" is the second audio book I've listen to in the Get Ink'd series and, while it works as a standalone, further goes to show how I need to catch up on the first two audios that I leapfrogged over because they're so good.

The undeniable chemistry between tattoo artist Mateo and his student and co-worker Bryan absolutely crackled in my headphones, and Mateo's protectiveness of the younger man only added to it. Their individual journeys - Mateo's relationship with his mother, and Bryan's personal growth from an emotionally hurt kid lacking direction to an open and capable young man - are as satisfying as their HEA together.

Narrator Connor Brown delivers another engaging performance here that added to my overall enjoyment of the audio book. I received this free review copy audio book by request and have left this honest review voluntarily.

Very enjoyable

Brian and Mateo’s book, Hard Ink, pick up right where the last book left off. This is the fourth and so far (Thor still needs a book) the last book in the series. Get Ink’d is a tattoo shop where everyone is family; from book one to book four. I have thoroughly enjoyed this series all summer on audio. Connor Brown has done a fantastic job for all the characters.

Brian has a stalker from a former almost Sugar Daddy and Mateo was there to save him, which causes him a small bit of trouble. This forces him and Brian to spend more and more time together, this helps in their attraction. There are other issues between them along the way that they have to work through which they do.

I like these two. I really liked these two. They were cute and fun, but serious and important. I found them to be so adorable. Mateo was so important to Brian’s growth, but also let him grow on his own when he had to let Brian.


*Listener Note: I listened to this as an Advanced Listener Copy (ALC), I received this free for an honest review.

Great Addition to the Series

I really like this series! I'm so excited to not have to wait too long after the ebook has been released to listen to the audiobook.

Just like the previous books, I enjoyed Mateo and Bryan's story. The pace of their relationship was just right given what Bryan has been through.

The narrator did a good job, and I enjoy listening to his voice. I can't wait for Bad Boy Ink!

Loved it

I love this series so much and this book is probably right at the top of my favorite in the series. I love the whole older man younger man kind of stories. The charters were wonderful and so full of life in this book. Connor did a good job with the telling of the story for this book.

4th book in the Get Ink’d Series

This is the 4th book in the Get Ink’d series, focusing on Mateo and Brian. Their romance is an age gap story which some elements of Daddy kink. I liked this story as Mateo acts as Brian’s protector from an abusive past sugar daddy. I appreciate their backstory and character development. I also really like the narration! I will continue listening to this series.