I really liked this. It's probably closer to 4 1/2 but I'm gonna give this one the benefit of the doubt rather than rounding down like I usually do.
TI really liked this. It's probably closer to 4 1/2 but I'm gonna give this one the benefit of the doubt rather than rounding down like I usually do.
The two main characters are great, and even better together. The story doesn't just deliver yet another M/M romance but it goes a bit further and has additional levels of complexity. It also introduces us to a cast of characters that continues to grow and become more complex as the series progresses. (At least if book 2 is anything to go by)
It's not perfect, the epiphany inducing, life as a whole, changing my world-view hurdle is a tough one to clear and this tale doesn't quite make it but now that I've read it (after borrowing it via Kindle Loans) I'm buying my own copy because I'll be wanting to re-read this again from time to time.
I also borrowed (and listened to) book 2 at the same time. In some ways that's a better story and really is a 5 though the text is better than the audio.
Book 2 can be read and enjoyed without book 1 but both are worth the time and effort. ...more
There are so many different takes on shifters these days... wolves, panthers, bunnies, even duck shifters -- but this is my first experience with DinoThere are so many different takes on shifters these days... wolves, panthers, bunnies, even duck shifters -- but this is my first experience with Dino-shifters.
And who better to pair up a dorky paleontology professor with than a smart-mouthed, devil-may-care, punk-rock paleo-shifter? A pink Mohawked, Dino-Dalton, is the perfect shake up for the stodgy, slightly older lab rat Simon. Together they're adorable and unstoppable.
These two gayboys bring a new bent to M/M shifter lore in a cross country road-trip chased gun-toting fossil smuggling bad guys along the way.
Though the action is almost non-stop, the Dino punk-rocker and the paleontologist do find time to bone. And since the paleontologist has previously identified as straight, there are plenty of firsts here. Even the trite blowjob declaration “you taste good” takes on a slightly different kinky vibe, when one's scientific side is wondering “Does he taste like chicken?” There are also some laugh out loud funny moments, such as hearing Velociraptors described as “Death peacocks.”
Of course this is an M/M romance so the boys do end up routing the baddies and getting together but this is clearly only the beginning and I can't wait to see the mayhem that ensues in book 2.
The audiobook is ably narrated by Kirt Graves and he brings a charm and a sassiness to both of the main characters. There were even a few “bleed through” moments where his performance here reminded me of moments in his narration of the Green Creek Shifter series and it sort of added to the fun.
And feel good fun is what this one is all about. By all means check this one out....more
Wanting a change of pace, (and partly wanting an aural sorbet to stop Greg Boudreaux’s voice from “being” Merlin in my mind), I decided to listen to IWanting a change of pace, (and partly wanting an aural sorbet to stop Greg Boudreaux’s voice from “being” Merlin in my mind), I decided to listen to Invitation to the Blues. Although the print version of this was reviewed by Becca back when it was released in 2018, I thought I’d do a review of the Audio-book version as released by Tantor in 2019.
This is NOT your light and frothy M/M romance. In fact, some trigger warnings are in order… (Depression / suicide attempt / low-self-esteem / food issues)
This is told from the POV of a thirty-something guy with severe long-term depression and a love of the piano, who’s recovering from his latest failed relationship. The story opens after an unsuccessful suicide attempt and a retreat from Boston to his parent’s home in Philadelphia. In chapter one, he “fires himself” from a job his younger brother’s sandwich shop, since he can’t even pretend to be doing that well.
At one point Jude compares himself to a “black hole” and there is some truth there. He does have a strange attraction and if you’re strong enough in your own path, then this book may well give your empathy a “gravitational boost.” Those less secure in their own orbits might do well to steer clear.
This is not an easy book to listen to. While you realize that it’s beyond the main character’s control, he’s not an easy person to spend time with. You start by feeling a bit sorry for him but too much of that with no end in sight can just be exhausting. But if you really want to understand someone with these issues, this might be the best way to gain some understanding.
Greg Boudreaux’s calmly analytical tenor is perhaps the perfect choice for this book. I imagine this litany of fears and self-deprecating thinking could be insufferable if voiced by a more flamboyantly dramatic narrator. As it is, it’s an enlightening look into another perspective on the world; one no less valid than mine, and one that’s worth a bit of discomfort to see, but I’m glad I don’t have to spend more time there than I do.
Several people dinged this book because of "the overused trope of an overextended farmerboy." I must have missed that memo. Though I've read a number Several people dinged this book because of "the overused trope of an overextended farmerboy." I must have missed that memo. Though I've read a number of M/M books that involve farmers, it's nowhere near as overused as some of the other m/m romance tropes. Personally, I loved the poignant set-up of Jaime's familial over-commitment. It's a real small-town problem that many urban people just don't understand.
Others criticized this because of the "friends with benefits" aspects. I found that to be one of the more winning aspects of this tale. In some ways Jamie's being over-committed and telling Briar up-front that he would LOVE a relationship but didn't really have time for one seemed like an honest (and somewhat charming) thing.
On the other hand, Briar's silence about his own background, and struggle to stay honest made him seem weaker (and stupider) than I other-wise envision him. Only when he finally starts to level with his lover, does he start to really win my heart.
Cooper North and Tim Paige do the alternate chapter narration here and both do a good job bringing life to both Jamie and Briar and the host of other characters that populate this story. This is a generally low angst read and I'm now looking to check out the five books in the series that came before. Though this one reads perfectly well as a stand-alone, I may well listen to it again once I have the backgrounds on the other characters.
Given that the folks I normally review for had already reviewed this one, I was glad to have found it on HOOPLA.
BTW... the book that Briar mentions in chapter 2 really does exist. It's called Dragons Love Tacos...more
This is a story of young love, befuddlement, and coming out amid the barely legal. At least they’re legal for each other so don’t expect much more thaThis is a story of young love, befuddlement, and coming out amid the barely legal. At least they’re legal for each other so don’t expect much more than a few kisses here. That said, this story is sweeter than you-tube puppy videos. The two boys are charming, the parentals are charming, even the older brother and the girlfriend are charming. This is perhaps the least angsty coming out story ever. I mean when Gideon tells his parents, his biggest fear is that his mom is gonna throw him a “surprise” coming-out party.
There are some of the usual high-school age mean girls shenanigans but just enough to make the story interesting. What was amazing to me is just how idyllic these boys’ comings out were. It gives me hope that just maybe, as a society, we’ve progressed over the last forty years or so. I know my coming out was much more worrying even after moving 1200 miles from where I was raised. I’m just hoping that things are easier for most kids today.
Of course I don’t think I’ve ever felt older than when the kids start talking about not being born yet when the Lord of the Rings movies were in theaters. If you’d like to read a nice, sweet coming out styled M/M romance , or are looking for one to gift to a teen you know, you could do much worse than choosing this one. Full disclosure: though I’ve tagged this one as friends-to-lovers, considering their age and how far their physical relationship goes, this is more like friends-to-likers.
I selected this because I needed something a tad more bittersweet (and a tad more substantive) after reading one too many too-frothy M/M romances. TurI selected this because I needed something a tad more bittersweet (and a tad more substantive) after reading one too many too-frothy M/M romances. Turns out this was a great choice!
If you were diagnosed with terminal brain cancers and given less than a year to live, what would you change about your life? What if you’d lived much of your life “in your head” and the cancers were affecting your recall, your sense of time, and even your ability to read and make new memories?
What if you start re-thinking some of your life choices, replaying those incidents in your head, and what if after awakening from your mini-seizures, those re-imagined timelines seem to be becoming real … or is that just one more symptom of your condition?
Socrates is reputed to have stated that “The unexamined life is not worth living” at his trial. Of course, in his case that resulted in his being found guilty of “impiety and corrupting youth” and sentenced to death. Our main character here has already been given that sentence, so what’s to lose?
This is the tale of one man’s re-examination of his life choices. And while it’s not primarily intended as a romance, the choices that James made, and is now remaking, certainly pushes it into that category. When the opening chapter of a novel involves a diagnosis of a terminal disease, one cannot reasonably expect to have a HEA ending. But, call me a hopeless romantic, this one seems to have one as I interpret it.
I actually listened to this for free via my local library’s HOOPLA lending program, but it’s readily available as an e-book or through Audible.
Jerry L. Wheeler narrated the audio-book and does a good job with pacing and keeps the characters distinct without going too far with accents and gender differences....more
The third installment in the Green Creek series, this might has well have been called "A Tale of Two Packs" it certainly contains the besRobby's story
The third installment in the Green Creek series, this might has well have been called "A Tale of Two Packs" it certainly contains the best of times and the worst of times. This epic series is as addictive as they come and at times as sweet and genuine as they come but at other times is almost unbearable to listen to.
This one keeps us wondering just how reliable the narration is for a LOT longer than I found comfortable. While it might have made the tale more dramatic, I felt it maddening.
T.J. Klune seems to have a fondness for allowing the "big bad" to speak his (or her) piece just before the "big boss battle." It may be a personal quirk of mine, but having endured four years of hearing the Orange Abomination spew his bile, I just don't have the patience required to hear anyone who's thoroughly evil spouting off.
But, as I said, these books are addictive. The good so far outweighs the bad that a little fault like that isn't going to stop me from listening. The first book was endearing and pulled us in. The second book just deepened that, making the world being created just that much richer and satisfying. This, the third, continued that trend adding yet more more layers of meaning and detail to an already rich fantasy world.
I especially like the character development here with Kelly being ACE and his and Robbie's relationship really reflecting that. It was interesting (and refreshing to see) but of course it kept the flames level on this one down a bit more than in the earlier volumes.
I'm really starting to wonder what TJ Klune's relationship with his dad was like... three books in and three villainous fathers so far. Also someone seems to have a bit of haircut kink.
So it's on to book four, and hopefully an end to some of the evil in the world and just perhaps the prospect of a complete happily ever after.
As always Kirt Graves does a great job with the narration. Each book is narrated primarily from one character's POV, but most of the characters have their own distinctive voices. The men and the women here are all well represented in the dialogue sections with vocal inflections that highlight aspects of their characters....more
This book is the second in the saga of the Green Creek Pack and features some of the same events as retold from the POV of Gordo LivingstGordo's story
This book is the second in the saga of the Green Creek Pack and features some of the same events as retold from the POV of Gordo Livingstone, the witch of the Green Creek Pack. We learn more of Gordo's younger years (and his family history) and get to revisit several major events told in book 1 from a different perspective.
Oddly though, even though Gordo is telling the story, he comes off as more of a curmudgeon (albeit still a lovable one) in this version of the story than when we witnessed the same events from the POV of Ox in the first book. I think in some ways that reflects how Gordo sees the world after experiencing all of the pain that he did in his own childhood. You can really understand his love for the "team Human" part of his pack in this book even more than we see in book 1. (I do sort of love the way this book lampoons the "Twilight" pop-culture references, acknowledging the debt that so many shifter books owe to Stephenie Meyer while still poking fun at it. While we've met no vampires here in Green River (Still part of the Pacific Northwest) and no one sparkles, we do have the pack-mates sharing some mental links. And let's not forget their "mystical moon magic."
It was laugh out loud funny when Gordo's straight buddies, sitting in a bar with Gordo, discuss their plans to get Gordo laid. The straight boys acknowledging their kinship with Gordo, despite his being gay while they're so clearly "clueless straight-boys", is hilarious, while providing yet another example of how pack membership lowers boundaries.
That said, I felt that there were couple of story-telling miss-steps here that kept me from giving this book that fifth star, which it otherwise so richly deserved.
First... "when is enough enough? Three sermonettes from Elijah? Hearing the woman Elijah pontificate was more drawn out than I would have liked. I prefer NOT to spend that much time with a detestable 2 dimensional character. Focusing on an interesting villain (like Salieri from Amadeus) is one thing, but an insufferable religious zealot is a bad choice to give that much attention to. That was particularly true for me after all of my patience for suffering bigoted fools had been exhausted by 45.
Second, but related to my first concern, is just how much of this book dealt with the negative aspects of the situation that was developing in Green Creek. It reminded me of that Evelyn Waugh quote from Brideshead Revisited.
“A blow, expected, repeated, falling upon a bruise with no smart or shock of surprise, only a dull and sickening pain and the doubt whether another like it could be borne.”
I tend to read primarily for pleasure and some aspects of the climactic conflict here felt like they were just too much and inflicted more pain on the reader than was really necessary. It felt like that " blow upon a bruise." I may be projecting here but I'm guessing that the author felt that as well. The comedic relief via Rico's ribald repartee was especially thick in those sections as well.
My third concern was in the order of the presentation of the various story-elements. Yes, we needed to see parts of Gordo's childhood when we did, and there was a danger of becoming too negative too early by presenting some of the other elements earlier than they were presented but some of the flashback within a flashback moments and some of the repeated dialogue sections just felt like they needed to be reworked. There was even one point where what I'm now guessing was a flashback sequence at first felt like an audio transcription error. I'd even made a note... "At 9:33:02 there seems to be a glitch it repeats a few seconds from an earlier chapter up about 9:33:44" Only upon later reflection did I realize that it must have been a portion of repeated dialogue for dramatic emphasis.
Speaking of audio... This book is the second in the saga of the Green Creek Pack and while I READ the first book in the series, I LISTENED to the second as available on HOOPLA. Partly because of that switch in media, I found myself reflecting a LOT on the differences in the two methods of delivery.
I actually checked out both the audio-book and the e-book from Hoopla.
I love Kirt Graves's narration in the Codename: Winger books that I've listened to but his "dramatic presentation" of the excerpt from Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" as the prelude here is kinda painful to listen to. I've listened to James Earl Jones and Christopher Lee do dramatic readings of that piece. (Both are readily available on You-tube), and compared to these masterful actors, Kirt's interpretation just felt like "something less." I also had trouble "settling in" to hearing Kirt voice Gordo as Gordo had felt "older" to me than Kirt sounded; particularly when I was still fresh from having read book 1 from the younger Ox's point of view.
Another issue with Hoopla Audio-books in general... Audio-books still need chapters particularly when one is trying to switch back and forth. Given my discomfort with Kirt's "too young" voice for the older Gordo, I felt he might be fantastic as the younger Gordo (he was) but it became a real pain to easily switch between the two media types without having chapters in the audio-material.
I eventually gave up the dual-media approach and stuck to the audio-book version. Kirt does a great job with the various voices, giving distinctive characters to the members of "team human" beyond just what's written on the page. Rico's loud and frequent assumption of the role of "put upon" latino amidst a sea of gringos is hilarious to this "white-bread" reviewer. It clearly felt like Rico's way of reveling in the acceptance he feels and Kirt does a good job of emphasizing that in his voice interpretation. Then there's soft-speaking Kelly, Goofy Chris and his dauntless side-kick Tanner, not to mention the plain-spoken (if slow spoken) Ox and a sadder but wiser adult Joe.
The women's voices sound clearly female without being "too falsetto. " Each member of "team human" was distinctive. The major wolves all had their voices as well that really fit what we learned about their characters. In an ideal world I'd be able to "fast forward" easily through Elijah's sermonettes, skip the Raven prologue poem excerpt, and re-arrange a few of the flashback sequences. Given that, this would be a five star read and a five star audio-presentation.
Reading through this again and the remarks in my earlier review still apply....more
This review is probably pointless. This title completes an epic saga that has spread over four books. If you’re new to the saga you really need to staThis review is probably pointless. This title completes an epic saga that has spread over four books. If you’re new to the saga you really need to start with book 1. If you’ve already read the first three, you already know how amazing this story is.
That said, this saga is a tale of pack, and belonging, and the strength of having a cadre of folks who all care for one another. It’s strengths are those of pack, and unity, and acceptance, and working together for the good of all. The joy of it is addictive.
And yet this is an imperfect world filled with imperfect beings. This book in particular fills in some of the darker moments in the story. It’s also the first time we have an extended period where the main character is NOT supported by pack. As such is much grimmer than the tales that have come before. Listening to this I kept having to set it aside and immerse myself in something less harrowing.
It may be that I’m a sufferer of PTSD. Almost 20 years ago today I lived through the trauma of 9/11 and lost dozens of friends and co-workers in that tragedy. While my offices were on the 94th floor of Tower 1, my apartment was just across the street and I’d yet to head in to work when the first plane impacted the tower. So I was spared, at least from death. However one of the things that I lost that day was a large part of my capacity for tolerating the cruelty of others; whether in real life, or in fiction. So this book, and the darker parts of the earlier books in the series, were tough for me to get through. And yet, the lighter moments, the joys of pack and family, the rewards of friendships and romance are too addictive to completely ignore when they’re as well expressed as they are here.
Ostensibly this is Carter’s tale and his POV does dominate, but by this point in the saga so many of the characters are old friends that one can lose sight of that.
Kirt Graves does the narration in this series and it’s a masterful job. This is a dialogue heavy tale. This tale has a cast of about 20 characters in significant roles, male and female. Many of them appear at several different ages and over several years. Kirt manages to give each of them a differentiable voice with distinctive qualities that distinguish their characters while further defining them. And these characterizations remain remarkably consistent from book to book and are easily recognizable.
Given that they all originate from a single voice actor, there are certainly some similarities. Yet almost all of the voices are instantly recognizable for who they are. Several have distinctive accents, others have distinctive vocal cadences. They range from quick quipping Rico’s salacious, clearly Latino voice, to slow speaking Ox’s considered utterances. There’s the slow (sedated?) cadences of Tanner’s retorts. Robbie’s clearly East Coast otherness is clearly the product of a racing mind. Regal Elizabeth’s motherly pronouncements clearly portray all that she’s lived through. Each is unique and clearly on character. Though the author clearly deserves full marks for creating such vivid characters, when one actually thinks about it, this is truly a virtuoso voice-acting performance. At one point there’s a conference call with about 8 of the major characters, all speaking one after the other, and each has the distinctive voice that we associate with them by that point. It’s a bravura performance.
In getting to this fourth book in the series I read the first as an e-book and listened to books 2 & 3 as audio-books via HOOPLA. Now into the fourth and final book, I found that I wanted to re-read parts of book one again to remind myself of some of the plot’s more intricate details. I found myself reading large segments (again) just for enjoyment.
Revisiting book one sold me once again on this series and made me realize that this is one series that I’ll need to add to my permanent collection. I can’t imagine NOT returning to listen to some of the sweeter laugh out loud funny parts of this tale again and again.
The tale of a closeted NFL superstar and an independently wealthy computer programmer with an abusive boyfriend in his past. In some ways, the best moThe tale of a closeted NFL superstar and an independently wealthy computer programmer with an abusive boyfriend in his past. In some ways, the best moments of this one are when we learn something new about the supporting characters.
The main characters are pretty appealing and the tale was told with mostly solid workman-like prose, the plot was well thought out and the sex scenes were plentiful and well crafted but it lacked that little something extra I'm always looking for in my favorite books. As to the sex scenes being frequent... there was nothing really new or terribly erotic here. In fact they sort of got in the way of the story telling. Also, the author relied on the whole "miscommunication" crutch to keep the plot moving along. I've always felt that this may be OK for TV writers but readers should be able to expect better.
For me a Five-star read has me ready to start the book all over again almost immediately upon finishing. A four star read, I'll definitely consider reading again if I'm in the right mood and there's nothing better in the queue. A three star read is one that I'm glad that I read but probably won't ever return to. This one merited its solid three star rating.
For what it's worth... I got this via the Hoopla program at my local (St. Petersburg, FL) library. Oddly, the Kindle Hoopla app is no longer available for my Kindle Fire so I ended up reading it on my desktop computer. I am really intrigued by the other titles available through this program but really wish Hoopla and Kindle would learn to play nicely with each other. The current state of affairs makes curling up with a good book a lot more difficult than it needs to be. ...more
Young Gay Wyoming ranch kid drops out of college and takes over the running of his dad's spread when his dad develops MS. After several years of 51 weYoung Gay Wyoming ranch kid drops out of college and takes over the running of his dad's spread when his dad develops MS. After several years of 51 weeks rancher 1 week gay vacationer, things change when the gay veterinarian friend of his latest vacation buddy comes to visit.
Can a gay pro-wolf veterinarian and a gay anti-wolf rancher find happiness in straight laced Wyoming?
Andrew Grey sets up interesting tales and lets his characters flail around a bit before discovering that an open gay life is possible in these current days. And this is another enjoyable variation on his theme.
By all means check it out for yourself. I enjoyed it and was pleasantly surprised to find it available for e-loan at my public library....more
This book is going into my Listopia list "Crash Course in Empathy"
It's a great read for that most reluctant of readers, the pre-teen to teen male. ItThis book is going into my Listopia list "Crash Course in Empathy"
It's a great read for that most reluctant of readers, the pre-teen to teen male. It's told from a guy's POV. It features sports, and life, and buddyhood, and growing up and coming into one's own. They say that reading allows you to walk a mile in the other guy's moccasins. Well this book takes that analogy about as far as one can.
It gives you an often tear-jerking, often laugh out loud, view of life growing up on a pacific coast Indian reservation told by one of the complainingest, irrepressible old souls in a kid's body that you'll ever meet.
What the pioneers, the settlers and the American government did to this country's indigenous people is worse than a crime and just as the Jim Crow south has never fully been expunged, we've not made a dent in the crimes against humanity that were committed by the "Buffalo Soldiers" and the "injun fighters."
Some days ago, I posted the fact that I'd started reading this along with one of the many cartoons the author has included in the text of this book on a social media platform and was immediately criticized for being a bleeding heart lefty loony by some "Karen." This as much as what I read in the rest of the book just drove home just how little most Americans think about this past and continuing injustice.
I'm sure that the author has exaggerated some of the details of this story for dramatic effect, but isn't that true of all fiction? I'm pretty sure no one named Jennifer Cavileri died of Leukemia but that doesn't make the truth of the story any less real.
Do yourself a favor and read this, and then do the world a favor and get a copy into the hands of some oblivious teen guy somewhere....more
Though I read this decades ago it had faded enough from my memory that I felt it was time for a serious re-read.
The story is amazingly well written. Though I read this decades ago it had faded enough from my memory that I felt it was time for a serious re-read.
The story is amazingly well written. One immediately identifies with the old man and somehow loves him as much as the young boy does. His stoic way of enduring suffering and his uneducated but noble musings about the world around him endear even the reluctant into identifying with him.
I was a bit put off when I read in the preface that Hemingway had not created this story from whole cloth but was retelling a tale that he'd heard some years earlier. No matter. He told it beautifully and it's a tale worth telling. The tough but beautifully constructed prose just makes it all the more appealing. ...more
They say that one way to succeed at the office is to marry the Boss's daughter. But what if you're gay and the boss has a son?
This is tale of a novelThey say that one way to succeed at the office is to marry the Boss's daughter. But what if you're gay and the boss has a son?
This is tale of a novel approach to topic and it's complicated a bit in that the son is just a teen while the object of his affection is a somewhat bearish twenty five year old. Still the story is entertaining and sweet with only the mildest sprinkling of graphic detail amid a basically feel-good story.
This book has been on my radar since reading a glowing review of it by an English teacher who talked in class about how half the pages were half emptyThis book has been on my radar since reading a glowing review of it by an English teacher who talked in class about how half the pages were half empty as a way to get her reluctant readers to read it.
The thing about this book is that it's stealth literature, yes, it's about basketball, and having a twin brother who's got his first girlfriend. And yes the book is set in verse that feels a lot like rap. But even the title has surprising aspects that one only finds out about when the hook is well and truly set.
And surprisingly it isn't a juvenile read. An adult picking this up will see things in it that a younger reader might miss the first time around, but the issues that it touches upon are timeless and just as interesting to an adult as to the young teen age group that it's middle school narrator seems to suggest.
This is a great book and by the awards it's gotten I'm guessing that pretty much everyone agrees. BTW... the electronic version that I borrowed via my local library had a preview of Booked by the same author which promises to almost as good and as tricksy....more
Drew McAuliffe was the somewhat sensitive almost member of the popular set in Rock Bay's small high school set. He's now grown and wishes he'd had theDrew McAuliffe was the somewhat sensitive almost member of the popular set in Rock Bay's small high school set. He's now grown and wishes he'd had the courage to express himself more and to be honest and come out. When he sees how happy his high school buddy Tally is with his lover Lex, one of the guys that they used to pick on, he wonders if he'd be happier if he could come out as well.
When Drew sees Mason Anderson in his scrubs at the hospital its a it lightning struck them both. But both guys have their baggage, can the get over it and themselves enough to find happiness?
This is the middle book in a series but I came to it last. While it is an OK read, it's probably the weakest of the three. Still, I'm glad that I read it. ...more
Ethan is an odd guy. He's bright and quiet, and reasonably attractive, but he's bit goth and his hobby of taxidermy kinda freaks people out. He's convEthan is an odd guy. He's bright and quiet, and reasonably attractive, but he's bit goth and his hobby of taxidermy kinda freaks people out. He's convinced that he's got what it takes to pursue a career in art, but his parents (both lawyers) foresee a law school in his future.
Robert is the golden boy. A good student and athlete but with a hidden interest... I meant cooking!, but your first guess was right too. He's interested in guys but he's resolved to NOT have a boyfriend in high-school or suffer the pangs of coming out in such a judgmental environment.
When some teasing at a party goes horribly wrong and Ethan is injured, Robert is convinced he's at fault and is desperate to keep yet another secret.
This is a strange book and it's tale is kinda embodied in the character of Ethan, the taxidermist of the title. There's really a lot of sweetness and charm inside an exterior that's initially off-putting. What I found most intriguing was how the wrong-doing was so quickly distributed. Both MC's yield temporarily to their baser instincts and both must find their way back to a sort of redemption. And as with real-world redemption, the end result is not a shiny new soul as is so often promised by organized religions but a sadder but wiser character, that is perhaps more tolerant of the shortcomings of others as well.
Yes, this is a MM romance (and as the authors say, more new adult than young adult) but there is also some deeper meaning here as well. There are also some things here to object to as well... some very two dimensional parent figures, a non-consensual sexual situation, and a curious but possibly correct questioning of the value of a college education. Also there is the whole question of taxidermy as an acceptable art form. But then, I aspire to be one of those sadder but wiser adults and hopefully can find meaning and value in things even when I don't agree with all that I encounter.
By all means, I'd recommend this book. Like one of its MC's Ethan, it deserves more attention (and acceptance) than it's gotten.
Oddly: Unlike so much of today's self-published fiction, this tale is strictly third person (and fairly well written and edited) so the title is a bit wrong in the sense that it's not really a diary. This note is not a criticism, but more an attempt to set the record straight so as to not allow this book (like it's MC, Ethan) to undersell itself. ...more
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