A Love Song for the Sad Man in the White Coat

Giving this 4 stars because Roe Horvat's writing is so beautiful and their characters are so genuine. It's been a while since I felt so involved in a book and cared about what happened to the flawed but realistic characters. However, having said that, I felt that the pacing was strange; I wanted more scenes of Simon and Matej interacting, especially after their reunion, which felt rushed. I didn't understand why some of the scenes were written from secondary characters' POVs; it just took me away from the MCs who I wanted to understand better. It might have helped to re-read [b:Dirty Mind 36086082 Dirty Mind Roe Horvat https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1503279452s/36086082.jpg 57671026], which first introduced Matej as Alex's troubled friend and occasional F-buddy in order to have a little more insight into how the original breakup with Simon affected him, but I still felt like there were unanswered questions and many unresolved issues. Also, while I appreciated the honest portrayal of depression, I was a little uncomfortable with the suggestion that the answer to all of Simon's problems was Matej and the anti-depressants he was prescribed to help his dysthymia were no longer necessary. I doubt that Horvat is planning on a sequel but I would love to read one that starts with this book's HFN ending and shows the two men building a new, healthier relationship together. In a short time I have become a big fan of this author, and my frustrations are really a tribute to the high expectations I have of their work.