Di Team Phison mi è piaciuto molto il fatto che entrambi i protagonisti, Phil e Tyson, si conoscano videogiocando a Protect Earth At All Costs e ammazzando alieni per completare le missioni mentre si raccontano delle loro giornate. Cosa c’è di meglio per rilassarsi di sparare a frotte di alieni e cazzeggiare con il proprio ciarliero compagno di squadra?

Peccato per l’assoluta inconsistenza di questa storia, che non è riuscita a coinvolgermi più di tanto nemmeno con l’adorabilità di Phil e Tyson. Qualunque tematica che avrebbe potuto portare sostanza alla storia – sia il background familiare di Tyson, sia la differenza di età tra i due – vengono liquidate in una manciata di pagine e sembrano volare via come un palloncini sfuggiti di mano. Hai letto quelle pagine, sai che la questione esiste, ma… puff, tutto finito, la storia va avanti.

In definitiva, non so se consigliarvi o meno questa lettura: alla fine, è un romanzo divertente, ottimo se volete proprio passare un po’ di tempo senza pensieri. Ma non aspettatevi più di questo: al di là di personaggi adorabili e una storia carina, non troverete altro. ( )

4 stars

Synopsis: Phil is older and set in his ways. In fact, his long term boyfriend left him because he was "too old". He's a little crusty, and owns and runs a successful restaurant. One night, while playing a MMORPG, he is teamed with someone named BisonFalls. He is a new player, and Phil gives him some hints on how to play the game. They keep playing at the same time, and eventually they exchange phone numbers.
Even though Tyson is much younger than Phil, they have a connection, and Phil looks forward to texts and playing the game with Tyson. Tyson is optimistic, where Phil is more of a pragmatist, but somehow, without meeting in person, Phil's feelings become involved. Then he has to worry about the physical distance between, and the age difference.

What I liked: this was just sooo adorable! Phil and Tyson were so cute together and complimented each other really well. I liked that Tyson didn't put up with Phil's crap, and brought out a (slightly) softer side. I liked that they were each their own person, and that Tyson didn't get swallowed up in Phil's older, more established personality.

What I didn't like: I would have liked this to have been longer, just because I was enjoying the exchanges between the two of them, and wanted to see more.

Overall impressions: I will definitely read more of this author. ( )

This novella is consistent sweetness. It needs another line-edit and the 'about this story' isn't defined at all; in the ebook it kinda flowed right off the ending. And, the ending is ...I dunno. Too soft. But I don't care, none of that matters. This is a beautiful fantasy that left me smiling, and that, my friends, is worth five stars. ( )

Perfect

This is as close to a perfect short contemporary mm romance as I have read. Tyson and Phil are so real, their reactions and interactions sound true and believable. I loved it. ( )

Phil is a grumpy restaurant owner who spends his free time playing first-person shooters and going on unsuccessful dates. He's playing his newest favorite FPS one night when he meets an enthusiastic newbie player, BisonFalls, and agrees to give him a few tips. He figures that's the end of it, but then Bison sends him a friend request and the two men eventually start talking about more personal stuff. It turns out that Bison's real name is Tyson, he's bisexual, and he's currently single. Phil finds himself arranging time to play with Tyson, texting him, calling him, and just generally thinking about him a lot. But the guy's just a gaming buddy. A young gaming buddy, 28 to Phil's 55. Surely there's no way he'd ever be interested in someone like Phil.

This was pretty sweet. For the most part, Phil and Tyson's romance was light and fluffy. The main things keeping them apart were distance and Phil's own doubts about his attractiveness to Tyson and worries about the difference between their ages.

Tyson was like a friendly Golden Retriever in human form. Phil had a tendency to jump to conclusions and be a bit judgmental, but he was willing to listen, reevaluate his ideas, and apologize if necessary. Watching Tyson slowly turn Phil into putty was adorable, and I loved the encouragement Phil got from his friends and staff (even as I raised an eyebrow a bit at the hypocrisy of Phil texting Tyson during work hours while telling his staff they shouldn't be on their phones at work).

As I believe I've mentioned in the past, I'm not generally a fan of first-person present tense. It mostly worked okay here, other than a few moments that gave me fan fic vibes. And the sex scenes - first-person present tense sex scenes are weird.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.) ( )