Loved, loved, loved!

I read Blind Faith about four years ago, back when I was just starting out this wonderful m/m journey I've since travelled. Now some 1500+ m/m books later and many adventures; everything from building houses and mending relationships to sailing the seas and battling pirates. I have fought werewolves bent on revenge and toured the world with bands playing music. My eyes have been opened and I have learned so much and met so many wonderful people (fictional and real). It's been humbling experience to say the least. So when I had the opportunity to go back to where it all started - for me, and re-visit Carter and Isaac I was so happy. I couldn't wait to see these guys again.

Blind Faith is a typical Walker story - in the best of ways. It's sweet and engaging with wonderful characters and side characters that are easy to fall for. Carter is the new vet in town, taking over when the current vet is retiring. Contrary to common practice, this vet makes house calls to a select few customers. We meet Mrs Yeo and her cat Mr Whiskers, both elderly and with failing health, but then we meet Isaac and Brady. To say that they were far from what Carter expected is putting it mildly. To start with, Isaac is the same age as Carter and drop dead gorgeous. He’s also rude, insistent and completely ignoring his new dog Brady. And completely blind. So why he was ignoring his guide dog yet having a standing vet appointment Carter could not fathom.

I loved this story a lot. It was sweet and tender and it all just worked. The relationship between Carter and Isaac developed slowly and organically. I love it when characters get to know each other before jumping directly into a serious relationship. Personally that’s when I get the most invested. Being there for that initial getting to know you, the building attraction, beating heart and sweaty palms. It’s thrilling and wonderful and Walker gave us that and more with this story.

One of the things I’ve come to realise by reading m/m books is that this genre (at least from my experiences) is much more open and including. One of my absolute favourite tropes is reading about people with different disabilities, mental or physical. They humble me, inspire me and make me grateful for what I have. Reading about blind main characters, or characters in wheelchairs is something I never came across before finding this genre. But in this genre everyone is celebrated, everyone gets their happily ever after. This genre sees beyond the physical and into the persons beneath. So not only was Blind Faith one of the first books that resonated with me in this way, it’s a wonderful love story start to finish.

Michael Pauley did a fantastic performance of this book. He captured the essences of both Isaac’s standoffishness but also the shyness and uncertainty. Equally he also captured Carter, his need to help, the curiosity of all things Isaac and not the least love of animals. Pauley made them both come alive and feel real. He made you walk beside them in the rain, petting Brady and feeling that thrill of falling in love. I know that this is a book that I will come back to more than once as it truly stands the test of time.

A copy of this book was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review for Love Bytes.

9 people found this helpful

A sweet romance and two cute dogs

Blind Faith is one of N.R. Walker’s early stories. It’s a first person narrative from one character’s perspective and has all the fluffy elements the author has come to be known for in her stories.

The two main characters are ideally matched. Carter comes across as the vet who’s kind and caring to both people and animals. Isaac is the blind teacher who has suffered several tragic losses in his past, and as a result can be arrogant and uncooperative. He is, in fact, a nice guy too, and Carter soon falls for him, despite Isaac’s initial stubbornness and awkward temperament. Carter deals with him admirably at times. Both men suffer from their moody moments in this story, with several pouting scenes and giving the other the ‘silent treatment’. I couldn’t quite understand the logic behind Isaac not showing affection to his guide dog (Brady) and not sure why Carter didn’t discuss this issue with him. Surely as a vet that would have been an important matter.

Mark, Carter’s best friend, lightens the story, providing some humour and someone for Carter to share his thoughts and feelings with.

Overall this is a sweet romance, with a little angst with regard to Brady and also a misunderstanding between the two new lovers. Dog-lovers will probably enjoy it as Carter has a dog too and there are plenty of 'doggy' moments.

Michael Pauley’s narration of the story was enjoyable and easy to follow. He created voices consistent with the characters’ personalities and portrayed their emotions well.

3 people found this helpful

As Always, NR Rocks - Loved Isaac and Carter!

I fthink NR does a great job of giving us Isaac an Carter - Isaac became blind at the age of 8 - and his whole life has been guided beyond that by his family and his sister and yet he has some shades of independence - he teaches at a school for the blind and helps others adapt to blindness and learning to flourish within that. Carter enters the picture as a vet - who helps with Isaac's Working Dog. I think there is a pretty good balance here between these two and they are pretty emotionally and intellectually suited to each other and thereby attracted. It takes some work on Carter's part - but for me, NR is an automatic purchse every time. I have loved almost every one of her books and her Red Dirt Heart series remains my all time favorite m/m series - such raw emotion and amazing love and dialogue between those two - so yes, NR - I look forward to everything you put out - that said, Joel Leslie, Sean Crisden, Iggy Toma, Nick J Russo and many others remain favorite narrators. Michael Pauley was less casual in his narration of this one - and downplayed the lilt - for some reason I cannot cotton to him as much as the others but he did this one justice. Can't wait for the Next Book NR!

2 people found this helpful

Young Vet meets young man mourning old guide dog

I've always loved stories that allow me to walk a mile in someone else's moccasins. For whatever reason, I've also been drawn to stories with blind main characters. I love being able to gain a new perspective and really admire how someone deals with blindness. The mix of vulnerability and their invariably sensible ways of coping with the additional challenges always leaves me feeling a bit in awe.

Here Isaac lost his sight aged eight as the result of an auto accident that claimed the life of his mother and contributed heavily to his father's death due to alcoholism. Now pushing 30 and teaching at a school for the blind, Isaac loves to project an aura of capability and confidence but in some ways have never completely healed his wounded inner child.

That's most pronounced in his inability to form loving relationships. After the the aging and eventual death of his first guide dog he went two years without a dog until he finally gave into his sister and got a new dog. As great as the new dog, Brady, is, Isaac is afraid to show the dog any affection fearing the pain that he knows will come when he too grows old and passes away.

Enter Carter, a newly minted vet who's taking over the practice of Isaac's old vet. Carter's immediately attracted to Isaac and the building desire was tantalizing. but Carter also noticed the lack of affection shown toward Brady and is bothered by it. Carter's gentle handling of Isaac is unimaginably sweet. Having to balance Issac's need to be independent with his still somewhat childish bottling up of emotions puts both guys, and even the dog through the wringer.

Yet, here we have three souls that are meant to be together and all three are smarter than average. While that means they're smart enough to get themselves into trouble, you just know that they're also smart enough to work it all out in the end.

In the long run, this is a none too angsty, feel good story. I really enjoyed it. Michael Pauley does a good job with the narration and gives all of the main characters their distinctive voices without being too flashy. He makes the audiobook an easy to listen to experience.

1 person found this helpful

Pretty good!

4.25 Stars!

I've had this book in my kindle for 3 and a half years and unfortunately, something or other prevented me from reading it until I had the chance to listen to the audiobook, which turned out to be for the best anyway.

I loved Carter, he was a great character and I just adored him and how sweet and good he was to Isaac. I wasn't all that happy that he kept pushing away the issue with Brady to avoid a confrontation with Isaac, though. Isaac, on the other hand, was temperamental and immature. While he had his reasons for treating his guide dog, Brady, like he did (not that they were all that good reasons, imo), I just wanted to slap him every single time he ignored Brady or that he threw a tantrum when Carter or Hannah (Isaac's sister) didn't avoid the issue like he wanted. Carter and Isaac had great chemistry, but Isaac's behavior throughout the book muddled my enjoyment of how good they were together. 

Michael Pauley keeps getting better and better. He did a great job with all the voices in this book and I loved the emotion he injected into the story. If you have a chance to pick this in audio, do it, you won't regret it. 

1 person found this helpful

Love the audiobook of this heartwarming love story

Narration:
Michael Pauley’s narration of this book was all I could have wished for. I love how he performs the more emotional scenes and brings such feeling, nuance and depth to every word. I really enjoyed listening to his take on Carter’s and Isaac’s story. He seems to always have such a good understanding of the MC’s and excels at bringing them to life for the listener.

Story:
This is an incredibly sweet slow-burn romance with a couple of surprisingly intense emotional moments thrown in as well. A classic N.R. Walker book, beautifully written and with complex but lovely, three-dimensional characters.
Isaac has known a lot of loss in his life and as a result has an understandably hard time letting people, or an utterly lovable and smart dog, into his heart. He’s never been in a relationship and doesn’t seem to have much of a social circle outside his work and family. When he meets Carter, there’s an almost instant connection between the two men and it was quite endearing to see them slowly circle each other and get closer step by prudent step.
However, there are some bumps along the way that they need to overcome and learn how to deal with as a couple. Isaac has a temper and a tendency to lash out rather than show his vulnerability or talk something out calmly. The moments when he does open up about how he feels though, are wonderfully written and deeply moving.

1 person found this helpful

A treat for lovers of cute dogs and hot men

I’m starting to learn there are times to keep tissues close at hand. Ms. Walker’s books are on that list – and this is a happy book. Any times pets are involved, I’m likely to tear up. I’ve adored the pets who have shared my life. It’s a privilege. And if you’re not a pet owner or dog lover? There’s more than enough in this book to keep you engaged.

The book is entirely in Carter’s point of view and that worked because he’s an open and easy to read character. Isaac is tougher to read – as the synopsis says: arrogant, moody, and totally gorgeous. Of course Ms. Walker wouldn’t make him that way if he didn’t have good reasons and my heart went out to him – not just because he’s blind but because of all the things he’s endured since losing his sight. Isaac is very independent and able to do many things on his own, but much of that is because of his new guide dog Brady. His relationship with Brady is often a source of friction between the two men.

Friction is a good word – there is love there, for sure, but Isaac’s moodiness was a little much at times. This book was about his journey into how to be in a relationship with someone he cares about. I had a lot of joy watching these men find navigate their way to love.

This book was a joyful and easy listen – just what I was looking for. I adore Michael Pauley and he is one of my favorite narrators. He handles the job admirably, giving great voices for each character. I also like his portrayal of females in the book. I liked that there were strong women in the story, something that is often lacking in m/m romances.

I highly recommend this wonderful book.

1 person found this helpful

Only weird thing

The author referred to Brady as a Golden Labrador. That isn’t a thing. There are yellow labs and golden retrievers, not golden labs :-).

Great book!

Fantastic series. Stubborn, feisty, bone headed Isaac and the awesome vet who comes to town. Great character building. Fantastic book one in the series.

Great Story!

I really enjoyed this story! The narrator is one of my favorites. Sweet, romantic, unique and realistic. Highly recommend!