Breaking Out

I've rarely been so conflicted about rating/reviewing a book, but this has stumped me. Let's see how it goes.I'm not too diligent about reading blurbs, I may skim them a bit to get an idea, but quickly forget them. I'm also not a stickler for tropes, genres, or whatever the categories are. I'm perfectly happy with a HEA, HFN, bi-sexual characters, PWP, light-kink, heavy kink, TPE, murder mysteries/procedurals, pure romance, PNR, sci-fi etc. I just want a story (it doesn't even have to be original) well told, good writing, and narrative drive. I came to this story because I'm always looking for new narrators, and this was on Audible Escape, which is the Audible version of KU. I really liked [a:Alex Alvarez 744192 Alex Alvarez https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s narration. The pacing could use some tweaking, but that's a fix for the producer. Overall a very good listen and I'm sorry he doesn't seem to have any more titles, at least not in this name. The book? Issues. The blurb (which I just read) is pretty true but also misleading. I usually don't like to do spoilers, even with tags and I'll try not to do so here but I'll give prospective readers an idea of what not to expect: a romance of any sort. Maybe that's one problem. For some reason it's marketed in the romance category which it's not. I don't even think it's MM or even gay fiction but I'm shelving it as LGB because at least three of the MCs are gay. So there's that. This could more accurately be described as a coming of age story though the leads are in college. Mike Sloan is 24 y.o. senior at IU, a champion swimmer, and contemplating furthering his education through a dual MBA & Law degree. Mike's college has been largely underwritten by Paul Sturgess, a local Bloomington businessman, friend of Mike's parents and he doubles Mike's age (he's 50) and he's Mike's lover. (Not a spoiler, the book opens with Mike & Paul having sex.) I have zero problems with age-difference relationships however IMO Paul is a creep and a predator. He saw Mike grow up, took up the slack in Mike's upbringing including his education when Mike's philandering Dad bailed on his family. When Mike gets to college Paul starts a sexual relationship with Mike. Sure at this point Mike is of age and being a young gay man is more than happy to be with Paul. Paul lets him live in an off campus house free of charge away from crowded dorms. Paul introduces him to the finer things in life, which is fine and dandy, except for the fact that Paul expects in Mike's own word recompense. That's just wrong and unacceptable. Sure he doesn't DO anything to make Mike comply just the sad puppy eyes and guilt trips. Mike isn't repulsed, he feels affection, pity, and gratitude towards Paul. He likes having sex. Win-win, right? It rubbed me wrong. Mike doesn't see Paul as a villain, he's a young man who's basically been groomed to this tit for tatrelationship. What bothered me was that the author seems excuse Paul's behavior because he loves Mike, because he's older, because he's lonely. I call BS. He's a lascivious creepster gorging his sexual appetites on younger men in a predatory way and the author doesn't call him on that. The other MC is Hank Schechter, a transfer student and fellow swimmer who Mike takes an interest in. Hank is “different” and Mike makes it a point of easing his way with the swim team. There also seems to be more to what they can be to each other but that story line is summarily dropped like so many others and that is my GIANT gripe with this book. Potentially interesting storylines are broached and then just left blowing in the wind: what does one owe a benefactor? what are the ethics of a “normal” person having a romantic/sexual relationship with someone “different”? what does the future look like for a gay man living an essentially heterosexual relationship? I'd be interested in ALL of this but the book just stops with zero satisfying resolutions to any of these threads and it's an absolute pity. I liked the non-cookie cuter direction of this story. I generally liked the writing. I liked the flawed characters, their possible missteps unprotected sex everywhere and the mostly unromantic approach to sex. It's just sex, separate from love. But then it's as if the author suddenly got tired, bored, or had no idea how to end this. It just stops in a We'll See What Happens moment. I'm tired of myself ranting too. I'll stop here. I'll just add that despite everything I'm glad this book exists and that I read it. Maybe it will nudge other authors in interesting directions.