Home Work by Kaje Harper
Life Lessons, Book 3
MLR Press
Gay Contemporary
ISBN: 978-1-60820-7770
Reviewed by Cassie







Detective Jared “Mac” MacLean has made a lot of changes in his life.  He’s living with his boyfriend, teacher Tony Hart, his daughter, Anna, and Tony’s foster son, Ben.  He’s out at work, which makes things a bit awkward with his partner and downright intolerable with some of his more homophobic colleagues.  Within a short period of time, he’s gone from lone wolf cop who relies on brief encounters for sex and sees his daughter only sometimes to full-on family man.  It’s different, but Mac is happy.

As for Tony, he struggles with taking care of most things at home, issues with the kids, and dealing with Mac’s erratic work schedule.  When Mac gets a new homicide case, their time together becomes even more limited.  Still, Tony is determined to keep his little family together, and to move forward as a team.  Will Mac’s latest case derail their family life?

The Life Lessons series is one of my favorites, and I absolutely loved Home Work.  Both Mac and Tony have grown and become better men over the course of the series, but in Home Work it’s Mac who really shines.  He’s finally accepted who he is, and is becoming comfortable in his own skin.  Instead of hiding things from Tony and everyone else, he’s learning to be open.  The love Tony and Mac have for each other is so strong I could practically feel it as I read.  Despite their difficulties with navigating their new family life, and Mac’s with some issues at work related to his being out, there are no silly misunderstanding type conflicts.  They talk to each other and make an effort to solve problems together.

Some might read the previous paragraph and think Home Work sounds boring.  After all, it features an established couple.  There aren’t any stupid misunderstandings, breakup/makeups, etc.  I promise you, Home Work is anything but dull.  Tony and Mac have a few conflicts with each other, but much of the conflict involves the case Mac is working on, a murder that starts out pretty straightforward and ends up being anything but.  There are other external conflicts as well, and one really sweet development that made me smile until my face hurt.  Then, just when everything appears to be perfect, a surprising but realistic problem comes up out of nowhere (but I won’t spoil anything here).

Suffice it to say, anyone who likes the Life Lessons series will love this, as will any and all Kaje Harper fans.  Readers who enjoy contemporaries, romances with some mystery, and cop stories will no doubt enjoy it as well.  I’d suggest that anyone just starting the series begin with the first one.  If you’ve read the first two and don’t read this one, you’re doing yourself a disservice.  Highly recommended.