Daddy's Boy (Arizona, #2) by Romeo Preminger

Daddy's Boy (Arizona, #2) Reviews

• 
  Anna

  Dla mnie ta książka jest jeszcze lepsza niż pierwsza. Poznanie siebie i świata wymaga poświęceń.
• 
  ML

  Book 1 left you shocked and I wondered what book 2 would bring…..Arizona may have landed on his feet but his siblings are a mess. Dolly, Duke and Douglas are all in perilous situations.
  All are being abused in some way. It’s very dark turn of events.
  
  Arizona is at his fancy boarding school in the Boston area most of the book. He thinks he has 3 solid friends there but one of them betrays him in the worst way.
  
  Preston is there for Arizona but they are both on completely different paths and aren’t really meant to be.
  
  This was a very entertaining book. Arizona gets into some crazy situations and you think how is he going to recover from that.
  
  Side note 📝:Daddy’s Boy has NO Daddy kink in it. Just an FYI.
  
  I hope book 3 ends happy because Arizona deserves that HEA or some form of it.
• 
  True Loveislovereview

  Money does make life easier. Living with his daddy (not a Daddy!) who’s immensely rich, gives Arizona perspective, still, the hurt life gave him so far, doesn’t disappear.
  
  He got friends in college, that’s a win. He wants to help his (step)siblings. Should he give up his current life and try to help them?
  Arizona is struggling, hard. On his way to his sister, he finds his first love Preston again. They loved each other, made promises, but Arizona had to leave. The spark is still there.
  
  Arizona’s last name is Bondurant now, nothing connects him to Gus Fanning, not even Gus’s kids.
  Visiting his sister Dolly was shocking, visiting his little brother Douglas even more. His head and heart hurt, he wants to help them so much. The desperation of the situation was awfully palpable.
  
  He lives in a home that not always feels like home, he is grateful for his opportunities, the sweet boy he is. While Arizona feels a lot older than his sixteen going seventeen, his brain is still young and meant to make mistakes, like crushing for the wrong person.
  
  Arizona, Dale, Russell, and Jonathan are close friends, all gay, and have to fight for their rights. Not everyone is as determined as Arizona to stand up and speak.
  While it’s his strength it’s this downfall too.
  
  The story takes place in the ’80s. I think this journey gives a good picture of that particular time.
  If you love a good, solid story with a lot of content, read this series.
  I couldn’t put it down, every page hold my attention. There are some stories where you can skip pages, not this one, I didn’t want to skip. It wasn’t maybe as spectacular as the previous installment of this series, but it was an immensely intriguing, captivating, entertaining story, marvelously developed. Following a young guy, growing up, going through life, a life that isn’t easy for him, making choices, some right, some less, but always with the best intention, it was everything.
  It’s an extraordinary story, widely, exquisitely, and extraordinarily written. For me, in its genre a masterpiece.
  A must-read!
  
  Read and reviewed for
  LoveBytes - LGBTQ bookreviews
• 
  Florence .

  RTC but I enjoyed this one. I really like the premise of the series and I liked following the same character on a journey through a lot of exploration and life experiences, but this one was just a little too dramatic for me. I just prefer less dramatic books, so this book didn't fully work for me.
  
  I received an ARC of this book and this is my honest opinion
• 
  Kirstin

  I had high hopes for this book, but it just didn't do anything for me. I felt like the MC's weren't holding my attention and just couldn't get into the story.
• 
  Ana Nimity

  The second in Romeo Preminger's The Arizona Series, Daddy's Boy picks up not too long after the end of book one. It's possible you could read this without having read Sins of Yesterday, but I wouldn't recommend it because it sets up the characters for this book.
  
  Daddy's Boy is also a coming-of-age story, and the main character, Arizona, is still 17 at the beginning of the book. Again, it's not a traditional romance, because there's no HEA or no couple with a HFN at the end. It's gay fiction, and I'm okay with that because the story is still strong, in my opinion, though the language that was charming and seemed on point in book one seems to have gone from the early 80s to the late 50s, early 60s. There's talk of the AIDS crisis, but the characters speak like they're from Leave it to Beaver. I was the same age as Arizona in the 1980s, and the vocabulary is just off, even for a river rat from the bayou.
  
  There also didn't seem to be as clear a direction to this volume as the previous one. Perhaps that was by design, I don't know. It didn't pack the same punch as the first book, but I still enjoyed it.
• 
  Cindy M. Green

  This is a continuation of Arizona's life, you need to read the first book to follow along. I really loved his journey, it was so intriguing and sadly still relevant towards people who don't fall into "societal norms."
  
  I loved Arizona's attitude towards life and his need to take care of others. At times I think he was lost, trying to fit into a world that didn't accept his life choices. He broke my heart, yet his resilience kept him going and I admired him for that.
  
  The supporting characters were great and they all touched Arizona's life in different ways that shaped the man he was to become. The relationships he forged were challenging, but helped him to grow as a person. There was lot going on, sometimes Arizona put himself in difficult situations, but it was his time to figure out who he wanted to be in life and what was important to him.
• 
  Bkwrm24

  4 Stars ⭐️
  
  Yay! The continuation of Arizona's story. Honestly, it's everything that I expected this author to continue with after reading the first book. This isn't necessarily a romance at this point, it's more or less a coming of age story but fantastic nonetheless. I am so excited to see what's next for Arizona, he deserves his HEA. I would recommend, but the first book is 100% necessary for this book to be relevant.
  
  * I received an ARC from GRR, this is my open and honest review *
• 
  Haylee Wireman

  I had such a high hopes after the first book. It was so good. But I think the rest of Arizona’s story could have been condensed into this one book. It was good, it just could have been better.
• 
  S.K.

  After reading the first book, I was quite eager to get to the second so I couldn’t understand why I couldn’t get into it. We start from where the first book ended and follow Arizona to college, where he struggles to fit in with boys who have lived a privileged existence from the time of their birth – nothing at all like him.
  
  I picked this up and put it down numerous times, before finally determining that I was going to bull through. And I finally realised why I couldn’t get into the book. I don’t like Arizona – like, at all. In the first book, I sympathised with his plight and supported many of his decisions – or at least, understood them. In this book, I found Arizona to be reckless, uncaring and selfish. Even the things that were happening to his ‘siblings’ all seemed to be based on how it made him feel – little about what they were suffering through.
  
  His behaviour at school – the lack of empathy for what his actions could cause – really annoyed me. Admittedly, he’s a young man and there were times when he tried to show maturity and responsibility like when he and his friends went out to clubs, etc, but I just couldn’t find anything about him to like. And that meant that my investment in the story dwindled until I finished it because I felt like I should rather than because I wanted to.
  
  It is a very well written story, evokes the era extremely well, and the writing style is engaging, but my feelings towards the MC, how he treated Preston, some of how he behaved at school meant that I lost any inclination to read further. I completely understand that this is a ‘me’ problem rather than anything to do with the book, and perhaps it was written intentionally to create this feeling. Either way, for me this book was a 3/5 and I’m not sure if I care enough to read the third and final book.
  
  I received an ARC from Gay Romance Reviews.
• 
  Reed

  This is an ongoing story. Arizona is now dealing with finding out things about himself and trying to adjust to his new life. He is trying to do something about his siblings but things just don’t work. He is only seventeen and really has no authority over them. As he looks at his relationship with Pres he makes a major decision that changes both of their lives.
  At school he starts to really enjoy life until as a senior the group start having opinions and actions that break them up. At this point Arizona makes more than a few mistakes that make his life nothing he wants. As graduation approaches, he has plenty to deal with and a whole summer before he starts college at Columbia. I really didn’t like Arizona in this part of the story. He seems hot headed and focused on his opinions and actions regardless of who he hurts. He is pretty much living a life he can make what he wants it to be yet he seems to push people around him. I’m looking forward to the next book.
  
• 
  DJ McCready

  I received this book as an ARC from a third Party in return promising an honest review.
  
  In some ways this book sickened me because of some of the behaviour of some of the characters.
  
  The redeeming aspect of the book - it does an excellent job of showing how not knowing oneself can lead to other problems. Obviously Arizona, the main character had been plucked from a poor background and placed into a home with servants and a residential school for boys in Massachusetts as we learned in the first book in the series and he had some very difficult lessons to learn about his two selves. His roommate Jonathan, a Mexican brought up in a poor hard-working family having a scholarship to the boys school also faced two selves - the non-white poor but very bright kid living with boys with money and privilege. That message came through clearly - teenagers already have identity issues and these two even more so.
  
• 
  Brandyn {Nyn}

  This second book in Romeo Preminger's 𝘋𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘺'𝘴 𝘉𝘰𝘺 {The Arizona Series} picks up shortly after the end of book one. While it is possible to read without having read 𝘚𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘠𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘢𝘺, I wouldn't recommend it; book one definitively sets up the characters for this book.
  
  Arizona’s future continues to unfold and despite being rescued into a new life by his über wealthy father, he continues to struggle navigating life. Like book one, 𝘋𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘺'𝘴 𝘉𝘰𝘺 is rich, complex, and unpredictable; Arizona’s escapades continue to surprise. His struggle with loyalty to Gaston, his reconnection with his childhood sweetheart, and his siblings new circumstances are heart wrenching. Arizona’s character is written ealistically as he makes decisions {good and bad, and horrible} like any seventeen year old.
  
  While often a roller coaster read, I was not disappointed.
• 
  Chelsea Moore

  This was book 2 in the Arizona series Book 1 left me so shocked and i was so curious as to what book 2 would bring. This book was very entertaining and it was great to see some of the crazy situations Arizona got himself into. It leaves you questioning all the time what is going to happen and how is he going to get himself out of this situation. Arizona’s journey is so intriguing to read and I just love him so much. I’m excited to see what book 3 brings.
  
  I received a copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews, and this is my honest review.
  
  POV: 1st person single POV (Arizona)
  
  Standalone or series: Book 2 in The Arizona Series
  
  Would I recommend it: 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ highly recommend!! 🤩
  
  Would I read it again: Most definitely!
• 
  Lydia Devlin

  Having read the first book in this series I was really looking forward to reading this book.I am more than happy to say that I loved this story!
  This is beautifully written, and it is just as compelling and emotional as the first book.
  Arizona is seventeen in this story, that had me hooked straight from the first words written.
  I don't want to say too much about this as I don't want to spoil this brilliant story for anyone.
  I received an ARC copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews and this is my honest review
• 
  Ida Umphers

  If you enjoyed meeting Arizona and learning about his life in the first book, you'll definitely appreciate seeing where he is now. Lots of things have changed for the better, at least in terms of physical safety and monetary comfort but Arizona still is confronted with finding his younger siblings and deciding what kind of future if any he has with Preston. These characters feel like people I know, when they hurt I hurt and when even the tiniest things go right and get better I am relieved and happy for them. Cannot wait to see how everything wraps up in Book 3.
• 
  Malia Winger

  After reading Sins of Yesterday I was on pins and needles waiting for this book! Arizona's story pulls you in! It reminds me of the big dramatic epics I used to steal from my mother and get lost in when I was a teen. The book finds Arizona still struggling to find his place in the world. After finding his father money is no longer an issue but he is still fighting to find solid ground. His prep school is a mine field of constantly changing loyalties and he can never be sure of his true friends. My only regret is I read this way too fast and now I have to wait for the next book!
• 
  Saskia Veldhuis

  3.5 stars. I didn't like Arizona much in this book, but his struggles with all sorts of unpleasant people are well written. It shows well how difficult various aspects of being a teenager from a really poor home being thrown into a school full of extremely privileged boys, being openly gay at the time AIDS was becoming a problem and being unable to help the children he grew up with. I am curious to what will happen in the next book.
  I received a complimentary copy of this book and am happy to leave a voluntary review.
• 
  Sarah Mitcham

  MM, Historical (80's), Dark themes, YA. Fantastic second installment, Arizona who is now 17 is struggling to know his place in the world. He's torn between pleasing his guardian, his step grandfather and wanting needing to be there for his siblings. He's desperate for love but jumps in with both feet unwisely. I thoroughly enjoyed reading and binge read from start to finish. Not a stand-alone book as the story continues to the next book. Compelling and emotional story.
• 
  Jo Atkins

  This is book 2 in the Arizona series and it's okay. Arizona is a young gay man finding his way through life that has thrown so much at him. Unfortunately he is a bit of a brat and although I found this book better than the first one I am just finding them so, so. I've read worse but I've also read way better. Book 3 to come when released