Review & Excerpt: Walking on Broken Paths by Amy Aislin
- Debbie
- 26 minutes ago
- 6 min read
Book Details:
Book Title: Walking on Broken Paths
Author and Publisher: Amy Aislin
Cover Artist: Morningstar Ashley
Release Date: July 22, 2025
Tense/POV: third person, past tense
Genres: Contemporary M/M Romance
Tropes: Childhood friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, damaged hero, opposites attract, grumpy/sunshine
Heat Rating: 3 flames
Length: 53 000 words / 210 pages
It is a standalone story and does not end on a cliffhanger.
@AmyAislinAuthor @gaybookpromotions @debbiereadsbooks
@amyaislin @gaybookpromotions @debbiereadsbook
Desperate to escape the pain of his brother’s death, Jesse Melnik ran—but he couldn’t outrun the grief, no matter how much distance he put between himself and his past. Now, after fifteen years of trying, he’s finally ready to face his hometown of Charlottetown again.
He expects the memories of his brother to hover in every corner of his family’s sailboat and whisper in every sea-tinged breeze.
What he doesn’t expect is Parker Willis, the best friend he left behind without a word the day he fled.
And he certainly doesn’t expect old feelings to resurface.
Parker’s been stuck in a rut since his father died three months ago. Every day is the same: try to keep his father’s dinner cruise business afloat so he can chip away at Dad’s debts, all while working a job that leaves him more frustrated than satisfied.
Then Parker’s routine shatters in the best way possible: Jesse Melnik returns to Prince Edward Island for the summer, all six feet three inches of gorgeous hockey player.
Now, that’s different.
Jesse kickstarts Parker’s heart.
Parker makes Jesse feel again.
And although both men are a little bit damaged from struggling down the broken path of loss, maybe—just maybe—if they can lean on each other, they’ll learn to move forward at last.
Content warnings: themes of grief, discussions of a parent’s death from cancer, descriptions/discussions of a sibling’s death by suicide.
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Jesse glanced over and nearly swallowed his tongue.
How dare running shorts be so goddamn tiny and cling so goddamn nicely to long, shapely legs dusted with hair the same shade as the finest dark chocolate? Jesse was still reeling at being in the same place at the same time as Parker for the first time in years—had, in fact, tossed and turned all night thinking about Parker—and now he showed up out of nowhere again and sent Jesse’s libido into a jumble of desire and yearning?
There were things that Jesse had left in his past, and his attraction to his best friend was supposed to be one of them.
Former best friend? Best friend he’d recently gotten reacquainted with? Former best friend who could be his new best friend?
Fuck. Relationships were hard.
Along with the shorts, Parker also wore a long-sleeved running shirt in teal and a baseball hat with Montreal hockey’s logo on the front. His dark hair curled out from underneath the sides of the hat, and the two-day stubble on his jaw was way sexier than Jesse wanted to admit. He was a couple of inches shorter than Jesse’s six foot three, but whereas Jesse was—admittedly—very big, even for a defenceman, Parker was lanky and toned, the muscle definition obvious in his running gear in a way it hadn’t been in the jeans and Willis Dinner Cruises-branded long-sleeved T-shirt he’d been wearing last night when he’d appeared like a figment of Jesse’s childhood wishes and sat next to him on the bench at the marina.
Whatever he wore, Parker looked like he’d fit into all of Jesse’s empty spaces.
Shaking his head to rid himself of that thought, he shoved his phone back in his pocket and scowled. “I’ll get you a new hat.”
Parker’s lips quirked. “I like this hat.”
“Since when are you a Montreal fan?”
“Hey, don’t knock them. They made it to the playoffs.”
The unlike you was left unsaid, but Jesse heard it loud and clear and refused to be amused.
“So.” Parker’s shoulder bumped up against his. “What are you doing?”
“What are you doing?”
“This is my jogging route.”
“That so?” Jesse would have to remember to be by his window in the mornings so he could watch Parker run by in his short shorts.
“Mm-hmm. Is it your jogging route?”
“No.”
“What are you doing here then?”
Glancing back at the house, Jesse let out a long breath. “Deciding what to tackle first. What colour would you paint that door?”
Parker blinked once and frowned. “Why would you paint it any colour?”
“Because that rusty red makes me think of dead bodies on a crime show?”
“No, I mean . . .” That unique greyish-greenish gaze of Parker’s swung from Jesse to the house and back. “Do you know the people who live here? Are you doing work for them this summer or something?”
“I live here,” Jesse said. “And I don’t want to live with that gross colour for the next two months.”
“You . . . bought a house?”
Jesse grunted.
“But you live in Vancouver,” Parker said slowly, as though reminding Jesse of this fact.
“No, I know, but . . .”
But what? He’d wanted a project for the summer? Something that would keep him occupied so he didn’t have to think about where he was and why he was back for the first time in fifteen years? A fixer-upper was as good a distraction as anything.
His therapist wouldn’t love that he was keeping busy instead of sitting with and analyzing his feelings. But she didn’t have to know. Right?
When Jesse didn’t continue, Parker said, “Are you retiring from hockey and moving back here?”
“Fuck no,” Jesse blurted.
5 out of 5 (exceptional)
Independent Reviewer for Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jesse ran when his brother died, and hasn't returned since. He doesn't know if he is staying but bought a house to fix up over the summer. Coming face to face with his childhood best friend was a shock, but Jesse wants to keep Parker in his life, if only for the summer. Parks is dealing with his father's death and he doesn't know what he wants to do. Keeping Jesse in his life, however briefly, is top of his list.
This book has a lot. A lot of emotions, a lot of pain, of joy, of love and I absolutely bloody it.
Jesse's pain is long lived: 15 years since his brother passed away but Jesse still talks to him, Jesse just can't hear him. He carries a lot of the past on his shoulders, but things are getting better a little every day. Parker's pain is new: a few weeks have gone by since his dad lost his fight to cancer, and Parks is struggling with what to do with his dad's dinner cruise business. He knows it's not really going to work for him, but it was his dad's pride and joy.
These guys fall straight back into their friendship that very quickly morphs into more and both are asking themselves, but not yet each other, if they can make it work long distance.
I loved that there was no 3rd act break up/make up. Loved the steam level was low-ish and it was perfect for this book.
There were some other hockey players mentioned, as Parker wants to write a book about gay hockey players and their history and the names rang some bells. I had to go back through Aislin's backlist and find them! Loved that.
AN Absolutely wonderful book, that was just what I needed a the time.
5 full and shiny stars
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
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Amy’s lived with her head in the clouds since she first picked up a book as a child, and being fluent in two languages means she’s read a lot of books! She first picked up a pen on a rainy day in fourth grade when her class had to stay inside for recess. Tales of treasure hunts with her classmates eventually morphed into love stories between men, and she’s been writing ever since. She writes evenings and weekends—or whenever she isn’t at her full-time day job saving the planet at Canada’s largest environmental non-profit.
An unapologetic introvert, Amy reads too much and socializes too little, with no regrets. She loves connecting with readers. Join her Facebook Group to stay up-to-date on upcoming releases and for access to early teasers, find her on Instagram, or sign up for her infrequent newsletter.
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