Wayward
Book content trigger warnings:
Past and present drug use; character briefly under knife point
I've been struggling to write a review for this book because it's really difficult to describe my take on it.
Okay, so... The Perils of Intimacy is a book unlike others. It quashes a lot of cliches and even has some totally unexpected twists in there. I could tell the author did his research for both the setting and the plotty content. In addition to those things, there were well-developed and interesting side characters, and the writing style was generally easy to read and absorbing. I enjoyed it. I cared about what was happening with these men and their friends.
I was impressed by the realistically written issues the main characters have and their personal growth and increasingly healthy thought processes. It was GOOD to see lifelike characters doing their best to love themselves.
For all of these reasons, I liked the book.
However, there were a few qualms I had about the rest of it.
For starters, there seemed to be these small contradictions throughout. For instance, at one point a character was remembering getting off in 30 minutes. Later, it was remembered as 10 minutes. Stuff like that, strewn throughout, that was odd and felt... forgetful.
Additionally, I really wanted to feel the romance between Marc and Jimmy, and support it, but I cared more about them as people and their growths separately than together.
For one thing, both the few kisses shared and the sex was fade-to-black. No present details. You get a little information by a character thinking back on it, but nothing up and close. No senses drawn.
For another... listen, I read all kinds of romance, including long and short fanfictions with magical soulmates. Yet this takes insta-love to a whole new level. If it had been intense feelings only ("why can't I get enough of you?"), I would absolutely have been THERE for it. But "I love yous"?? Realistically, even if people FEEL that early on, like, way too early on, as they do in this book, hardly anyone is ready to admit that to themselves, let alone their partner. It was just too much, too fast. I couldn't suspend my belief and therefore was taken out of the story. Which was a bummer because I really wanted to care about these two getting a happy ending, but it was hard to believe.
Still, while this book needed some work, I could and can tell that Rick R. Reed has talent, dedication, and loads of potential. If he improves in a few areas, he will excel, and I look forward to seeing what it looks like when he does.
**I received an ARC of this book free courtesy of NetGalley/NineStar Press in exchange for an honest review, which did not affect my opinion
Book content trigger warnings:
Past and present drug use; character briefly under knife point
I've been struggling to write a review for this book because it's really difficult to describe my take on it.
Okay, so... The Perils of Intimacy is a book unlike others. It quashes a lot of cliches and even has some totally unexpected twists in there. I could tell the author did his research for both the setting and the plotty content. In addition to those things, there were well-developed and interesting side characters, and the writing style was generally easy to read and absorbing. I enjoyed it. I cared about what was happening with these men and their friends.
I was impressed by the realistically written issues the main characters have and their personal growth and increasingly healthy thought processes. It was GOOD to see lifelike characters doing their best to love themselves.
For all of these reasons, I liked the book.
However, there were a few qualms I had about the rest of it.
For starters, there seemed to be these small contradictions throughout. For instance, at one point a character was remembering getting off in 30 minutes. Later, it was remembered as 10 minutes. Stuff like that, strewn throughout, that was odd and felt... forgetful.
Additionally, I really wanted to feel the romance between Marc and Jimmy, and support it, but I cared more about them as people and their growths separately than together.
For one thing, both the few kisses shared and the sex was fade-to-black. No present details. You get a little information by a character thinking back on it, but nothing up and close. No senses drawn.
For another... listen, I read all kinds of romance, including long and short fanfictions with magical soulmates. Yet this takes insta-love to a whole new level. If it had been intense feelings only ("why can't I get enough of you?"), I would absolutely have been THERE for it. But "I love yous"?? Realistically, even if people FEEL that early on, like, way too early on, as they do in this book, hardly anyone is ready to admit that to themselves, let alone their partner. It was just too much, too fast. I couldn't suspend my belief and therefore was taken out of the story. Which was a bummer because I really wanted to care about these two getting a happy ending, but it was hard to believe.
Still, while this book needed some work, I could and can tell that Rick R. Reed has talent, dedication, and loads of potential. If he improves in a few areas, he will excel, and I look forward to seeing what it looks like when he does.
**I received an ARC of this book free courtesy of NetGalley/NineStar Press in exchange for an honest review, which did not affect my opinion
