Sapphire Spring

Sapphire Cove, Book 2

By: C. Travis Rice

Narrated by: C. Travis Rice, Nazanin Nour

Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Under his pen name, C. Travis Rice, New York Times bestselling author Christopher Rice offers tales of passion, intrigue, and steamy romance between men. The second novel, SAPPHIRE SPRING, once again transports you to a beautiful luxury resort on the sparkling Southern California coast where strong-willed heroes release the shame that blocks their heart’s desires.

Naser Kazemi has never met a problem a good spending plan couldn’t fix. But working as the chief accountant for his best friend’s resort isn’t turning out to be the dream job he’d hoped for. It doesn’t help that his fashion designer sister is planning an event that just might bring Sapphire Cove crashing down all around them. When the wild party unexpectedly reunites him with Mason Worther, the gorgeous former jock who made his high school experience a living hell, things go from bad to seductive.

The former golden boy’s adult life is a mess, and he knows it’s time to reform his hard partying ways. But for Mason, cleaning up his act means cleaning up his prior misdeeds. And he plans to start with Naser, by submitting to whatever the man demands of him to make things right. The offer ignites an all-consuming passion both men have denied for years. But can they confront their painful past without losing each other in the process?

©2022 Christopher Rice. (P)2022 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

This is a ten for me!

This book in the series had me blubbering and nose running quite a few times. To me, this is a testament of the talent of the writer and narrator. Fair warning, this one touches on topics that can be hard, but is cathartic.

Phenomenal narration of a story that feels real

I'm so happy Christopher Rice ventured into romance. His storytelling is superb, featuring intricate writing, in-depth character development, and a thorough exploration of complex topics. He approaches subjects and situations meticulously and reverently, leaving nothing to chance.

Sapphire Spring is an MM second-chance, redemption romance. Naser Kazemithe comes face-to-face with Mason Worther, who bullied him all through high school, while at an event at Sapphire Cove, the exclusive resort in Southern California where he works.

Facing the past is never easy, but Naser is not the scared kid and insecure teenager he used to be. When an opportunity for payback arises, Naser sees beyond Mason's façade and recognizes he is also a victim. Mason's story is heartbreaking, marked by an emotionally abusive father, substance abuse, low self-worth, and an utter sense of loss.

Naser, too, has complex family dynamics magnified by cultural differences, which make his story so much richer. Both have demons and fears to face. Mason doesn't rush into his recovery and bears his soul for others to see. His growth and introspection throughout the book are mesmerizing, making him feel real.

The audiobook is a real treat, made perfect by Christopher Rice's narration. It just gives Sapphire Spring an extra layer of awesomeness.

Emotional

Absolutely fabulous story. C. Travis Rice has written a great group of characters that I’ve really come to care about. I don’t usually go for bully romance, but in Sapphire Spring the story begins years after the bullying took place and becomes more about redemption. The story is emotional, sweet and funny but it also shows the negative effects of bullying, stereotypes, verbal abuse and addiction. It went much deeper than what I was expecting and also had an element of suspense at the end.

Because this is essentially a romance, I did get a very satisfying HEA. It was an emotional journey to get there and was a journey I wouldn’t have wanted to miss.

Good narration by Chris Rice and I enjoyed the addition of Nazanin Nour.

Romance can be comp!dictated

Twists and turns in the plot like a path along a perilous cliff. Sun bathed forbidden love takes flight.

Naser and Mason

"𝙊𝙠𝙖𝙮, 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡, 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙄 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, 𝙄'𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧."

Sapphire Spring by C. Travis Rice | 4 Maple Leafs

Naser had a horrible high school experience but has been living a pretty comfortable life since and is enjoying working at his best friend's resort. That is until Mason, his high school bully shows up at an event and tries to make amends, turning Naser's world upside down.

Naser and Mason had a rough and rocky road to making it to each other but I truly did feel from the beginning that Mason truly wanted redemption for what he did to Naser in the past and that he achieved it in the end.

Sapphire Spring is my first book by C. Travis Rice and I enjoyed the book as a whole but felt there was a little more focus on Naser and Mason's lives separately than on them coming together as a couple.

Sapphire Spring is book 2 in the Sapphire Cove series and contains... mm, enemies-to-lovers, redemption, dual third-person pov.

Content Warnings... abuse (alcohol, drug, verbal, emotional), homophobia, homophobic and racial slurs, bullying, assault (sexual, retold), sexual kinks.

I neeeeeed more!

Oh my gods was this good.

I love the whole high school bully years later turned lover. LOVE it. And don’t mind me trying not to sob at work… just play it cool, Kat.

I didn’t play it cool.

Omfg I wasn’t ready for it to be over!

And who else REALLY needs a certain secretive characters book????

Love And Forgiveness Is In The Air

As usual, Christopher Travis Rice has come up with a beautiful tale in his Sapphire Universe. The bully turned lover might be unbelievable if, and only if, I had not experienced something mightily similar in my own life! Amazing how lives change as we age and mature over the years! Bullies can indeed become buddies and besties years later as our souls learn to accept ourselves and we realize that all we had before were childish prejudices and anger. Like Naser and Mason, we gain the ability to learn, to forgive, and to accept that the past is the past and that the future can be different if we are willing to give up the anger and learn to forgive.

The story is smooth and the characters are likable. Our bully Mason matures and his spirit expands to be able to love the man he has loved his entire life. As well, our hero Naser learns to forgive and accept love from the man who treated him so badly before.

What I especially loved about this story is that it seamlessly weaves in characters from the previous story without making the current tale all about the earlier characters. It makes the story more real and allows us to envelope ourselves into this Sapphire universe that Rice has created.

Can't wait for the next in the Sapphire series!

excellent story

absolutely love this series. sapphire spring is a continuation of the daily lives of the characters who live and work at the Sapphire cove resort. this story features Nas and Mason. high school enemies. now 10 years later, Nas realizes things weren't always as they seemed. As Mason tries to earn his trust, Nas has to deal with other issues from that time. narration for this series is wonderful, read by the author himself.

5/5 stars

Brilliant heartbreaking and wonderful love story

with every chapter you get more and more sucked into the lives of the characters of sapphire cove.