Echoes of Us

By: Alex Cross

Narrated by: Patrick Mealey

Atticus King had his life mapped out—train hard, play volleyball, keep to himself. That is, until Noah Rossi burst onto the scene: charismatic, impulsive, a storm that tore through Atticus's carefully built walls and set his world on fire. They didn't fit—Noah was everything Atticus wasn't—but somehow, they found a rhythm in their shared love for the game and an undeniable pull toward each other. It was everything Atticus never knew he wanted.

But just as quickly as Noah entered his life, he disappeared. No explanation. No goodbye. Only silence that left Atticus drowning in confusion and pain.

Two years later, Noah walks back into Atticus's world as if nothing ever happened, stirring up old feelings Atticus has tried to bury. The bond they shared is undeniable, but so is the hurt that lingers beneath the surface. Why did Noah leave? And can they rebuild something from the shattered pieces of their past?

Love isn't easy. But for Atticus and Noah, it might be the only thing worth fighting for.

©2024 Maria Alexandra Donado (P)2024 Tantor Media

Second Chance MM College Romance

This book is an emotional rollercoaster - especially if you’ve ever been in an “I can fix him” type of relationship. It showcases how toxic love can upend your life, and how the fallout can be just as devastating.

I listened to the audiobook. I was originally gifted an ALC through NetGalley, but I missed the archive cutoff and ended up purchasing it on Audible to finish my review. The story is single POV, so there’s only one narrator, but he did a fantastic job voicing all the characters. One advantage of MM audiobooks is that a single narrator can often convincingly perform both leads, and that was definitely the case here.

This story wrecked me. If you’ve ever been in an unhealthy, codependent relationship that consumes you, this may hit harder than expected. I definitely felt like I was reliving parts of my own “blunder years” in my late teens and early 20s. The characters - much like I was at that age - don’t have the maturity or emotional tools to handle the huge issues and responsibilities life throws at them. Instead, they have explosive fights that end in reconciliation without any real resolution so the same conflicts repeat over and over again getting bigger each time.

That said, the love story between Atticus and Noah is also beautiful. They’re two young men trying to figure themselves out while being so completely head-over-heels in love that they can’t get out of their own way.

Another reviewer said it perfectly: this is a great story that is not always enjoyable to read. That doesn’t mean I didn’t like it, but it is painful at times. It does end on a hopeful note, though, and I’m looking forward to the second book in the duet, which will be told from Noah’s perspective and revisit both the past and the present from his point of view. The present story picks up where this book left off and I'm excited to see where they end up.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the ALC.

A beautiful 2nd chance romance that will break your heart and put it back together

Echoes of Us is a heart wrenching second chance college romance told from the POV of Atticus King. It has a dual timeline that goes back and forth between before and after (2 years) his break up with his first love Noah Rossi. This story beautifully delves into themes about dealing with addiction, grief, and toxic codependency when all all those things pile up but you find yourself falling in love anyways. The dual timeline does an excellent job of building up their relationship while also showing you all the tidbits to where it started going wrong all to come full circle at the end. The best way I can describe this book is that it will break your heart and put it back together by the end so make sure to stick it out.

Patrick Mealey does an excellent job of narrating as Atticus King, he was clear and concise and managed to wrench my heart as hard as the first time I read this book. He does a good job of voicing the secondary characters without doing anything over the top to differentiate them.

Brilliantly beautiful

This book is just…sigh…beautiful? Heart achingly stunning? You know that feeling after a good book where the pain in your chest is competing with the smile on your face? Yeah , this one hit me right in the feels. This book deserves an epic review and honestly if I could I would, but I just finished it and I kinda need to lie down and let this feeling linger. If you know, you know. So yes, I would very much recommend not only this book, but this audiobook. It’s added to my favourites folder.

Didn't love the resolution

Writing the honest parts of loving someone coping with addiction and finding a way to have us ready for their happy romance ending is tough - I would have loved more evidence and examples of how Noah was managing his addiction and mental health and more time showing us them rebuilding trust. the ending felt rushed and after all the love bombing and abandonment I needed more.

Oh the pain but what a beautiful story

This was a painful but beautiful read/listen. Easy 5 stars. Patrick Mealey did an excellent job with the narration. His portrayal of all the characters was chef’s kiss. I’ll be listening to this again very soon.