Category Archives: GLBT

December 8, 2021 · 12:01 am

Review: If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales & Cale Dietrich

Title: If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales & Cale Dietrich
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Genre: Contemporary, Gay, Bi, Romance
Length: 408 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich’s “If This Gets Out is an absolute showstopper! Equal parts edgy and adorable, this bright, joyful book has everything I look for in a queer YA romance.” —Phil Stamper, bestselling author of The Gravity of Us

Eighteen-year-olds Ruben Montez and Zach Knight are two members of the boy-band Saturday, one of the biggest acts in America. Along with their bandmates, Angel Phan and Jon Braxton, the four are teen heartthrobs in front of the cameras and best friends backstage.

But privately, the pressure to stay in the closet has Ruben confiding in Zach.

On a whirlwind tour through Europe with an unrelenting schedule and minimal supervision, the two come to rely on each other more and more, and their already close friendship evolves into a romance. But when they decide they’re ready to tell their fans and live freely, Zach and Ruben realize they will never truly have the support they need.

How can they hold tight to each other when their whole world is coming apart?

Review:

If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales & Cale Dietrich is a terrific young adult LGBTQ romance with fantastic characters.

Boyband Saturday is embarking on a European tour but the trip is nothing but business. Eighteen-year-old Ruben Montez and Zach Knight are close friends as well as bandmates. Ruben is gay but the band’s management will not let him come out. In fact, they have minimized his appearance along with his vocals. Zach is an introspective songwriter but he is cast as a bad boy and their manager never agrees to let them perform his songs. Exuberant, energetic Angel Phan’s role in the band is bland and suppresses his personality. Jon Braxton is nothing like his band persona and although his dad runs their label, he doesn’t get any say in anything with their band. During their overseas tour, everyone chafes at the lack of free time and Ruben and Zach become even closer. That is until a kiss between Ruben and Zach threatens to derail their friendship and leads to unexpected trouble with management. The band has achieved success beyond than they dreamed,  but will Saturday survive the fallout when Ruben and Zach want to take their romance public?

Despite their success, Ruben and Zach suffer from self-doubt. Ruben is constantly undermined by his mother and he has yet to set clear boundaries with her. Zach is easily paralyzed by worry since he is somewhat passive. Both are a little on the anxious side and neither want to do anything to jeopardize the band. Despite their personal concerns, they always let Angel and Jon know about anything that could impact Saturday.

Although If This Gets Out is an enjoyable LGBTQ young adult romance it can sometimes be a little angsty. The characters are vibrantly developed and very appealing. Ruben, Zach, Angel and Jon are very close and their friendships are always rock solid. The storyline is engaging and offers a realistic portrait of the exploitative side of the music industry.  The romance between Ruben and Zach is very sweet and Ruben is very patient with Zach as his new boyfriend becomes more comfortable with his sexuality. With the Saturday’s future hanging in the balance, Sophie Gonzales & Cale Dietrich bring this heartwarming novel to an uplifting conclusion.

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Filed under Contemporary, Gay, GLBT, If This Gets Out, Rated B, Review, Romance, Sophie Gonzales, Wednesday Books, Young Adult

October 1, 2012 · 3:57 am

Review: Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth by Scott Terry

Title: Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth by Scott Terry
How a Gay Child was Saved from Religion
Publisher: Lethe Press
Genre: GLBT, Memoir
Length: 248 pages
Book Rating: B+

Review Copy Obtained from Author

Summary:

Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth: How a Gay Child Was Saved from Religion offers an illuminating glimpse into a child’s sequestered world of abuse, homophobia, and religious extremism. Scott Terry’s memoir is a compelling, poignant and occasionally humorous look into the Jehovah’s Witness faith — a religion that refers to itself as The Truth — and a brave account of Terry’s successful escape from a troubled past.

At the age of ten, Terry had embraced the Witnesses’ prediction that the world would come to an end in 1975 and was preparing for Armageddon. As an adolescent, he prayed for God to strip away his growing attraction to other young men. But, by adulthood, Terry found himself no longer believing in the promised apocalypse. Through a series of adventures and misadventures, he left the Witness religion behind and became a cowboy, riding bulls in the rodeo. He overcame the hurdles of parental abuse, religious extremism, and homophobia, and learned that Truth is a concept of honesty rather than false righteousness, a means to live a life openly, for Terry as a gay man.

The Review:

Scott Terry’s memoir Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth: How a Gay Child Was Saved from Religion is a riveting account of his abusive and isolated childhood.

Scott and his sister, Sissy, were raised by their father Virgil and stepmother Fluffy following their parents’ divorce when Scott was three years old. Virgil and Fluffy are devout members of the Jehovah’s Witness and throughout the years Scott lives with them he too, embraces the teachings and beliefs of his religion. Scott slowly realizes he is attracted to men but the homophobia he experiences through both the church and his father leave him fervently praying for God to take away his homosexuality.

Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth is a heartbreaking story of emotional and physical abuse by Scott’s stepmother Fluffy. Unrealistic demands and denial of basic necessities occur on a daily basis. Scott’s father, Virgil, is absent much of the time and refuses to acknowledge the abuse his children suffer at the hands of Fluffy. He does allow the children visits with various grandparents throughout their childhood. These trips are the only glimpses of normal life Scott and Sissy have. They are full of the love and caring that these two children desperately need. Unfortunately, these visits come to an abrupt end and when Sissy demands to live with her mother, Scott is left to bear the burden of abuse alone.

After an attempt to run away from home fails, salvation comes in the form of Scott’s Aunt Dot. With Aunt Dot, Scott finally finds unconditional love and support. Under her care, he slowly leaves the indoctrination of the Jehovah’s Witness behind and finds a place for himself in the rodeo world. Scott forges a semblance of a relationship with his mother and reconnects with Sissy. He reconciles his previous misconceptions about homosexuality and he slowly embraces his own sexuality.

Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth is a powerful story about forgiveness and acceptance. It is sometimes difficult to read and I found the actions of Virgil and Fluffy incomprehensible. Scott Terry provides valuable insight and information about the Jehovah Witness religion and their almost cult like beliefs.

Cowboys, Armageddon, and The Truth: How a Gay Child Was Saved from Religion is an incredibly engrossing and moving memoir that I highly recommend.

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Filed under Cowboys Armageddon and The Truth, GLBT, Lethe Press, Memoir, Rated B+, Review, Scott Terry

September 26, 2012 · 9:55 pm

Review: The Paternity Test by Michael Lowenthal

Title: The Paternity Test by Michael Lowenthal
Publisher: Terrace Books, University of Wisconsin Press
Imprint: BookSparksPR
Genre: Contemporary, LGBT, Fiction
Length: 288 pages
Book Rating: B+

Review Copy Obtained from Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Having a baby to save a marriage—it’s the oldest of clichés. But what if the marriage at risk is a gay one, and having a baby involves a surrogate mother? Pat Faunce is a faltering romantic, a former poetry major who now writes textbooks. A decade into his relationship with Stu, an airline pilot from a fraught Jewish family, he fears he’s losing Stu to other men—and losing himself in their “no rules” arrangement. Yearning for a baby and a deeper commitment, he pressures Stu to move from Manhattan to Cape Cod, to the cottage where Pat spent boyhood summers.

As they struggle to adjust to their new life, they enlist a surrogate: Debora, a charismatic Brazilian immigrant, married to Danny, an American home rebuilder. Gradually, Pat and Debora bond, drawn together by the logistics of getting pregnant and away from their spouses. Pat gets caught between loyalties—to Stu and his family, to Debora, to his own potent desires—and wonders: is he fit to be a father?

In one of the first novels to explore the experience of gay men seeking a child through surrogacy, Michael Lowenthal writes passionately about marriages and mistakes, loyalty and betrayal, and about how our drive to create families can complicate the ones we already have. The Paternity Test is a provocative look at the new “family values.”

The Review:

Michael Lowenthal’s The Paternity Test is an incredibly compelling and absorbing novel that impossible is to put down. I planned on reading about half the book, but instead I wound up staying up until 3 AM because I just HAD to know how this fabulous story ends. And boy, was it well worth losing a little sleep to finish it.

Pat Faunce and Stu Nadler have a committed but open relationship. In the early years of their relationship, both indulged in casual hookups, but in recent years, Pat remains faithful while Stu continues to stray. Pat’s solution to Stu’s infidelity is to move to Cape Cod, reconnect with one another and start a family. The plan seems to be working; Pat and Stu are closer than ever and Stu’s wandering days seem to be over. The time is finally right for the men to take the next step and begin the process of finding a surrogate to carry their baby.

As Pat and Stu soon discover, surrogacy is not to be undertaken lightly. The expense involved is tremendous and the legalities are complex and oftentimes murky. There are psychological issues to consider as well as physical limitations that are often imposed on the surrogate. What should be a straight forward legal agreement quickly becomes complicated by unexpected emotion as they go through the ups and downs of trying to conceive.

Pat and Stu are realistic characters with flaws and failings that make them easy to relate to. Their honesty with one another is refreshing and sometimes unexpected given their sometimes rocky history. Their relationship is fascinating and I love how the dynamic between them completely shifts by the end of the book.

The Paternity Test is beautiful and emotional read that provides a fascinating look into one couple’s struggle to become a family. It is a captivating and thought-provoking novel with appealing characters and a unique storyline. Michael Lowenthal takes what I thought would be a predictable (but never boring) story in a shocking and unanticipated direction and absolutely floored me with its conclusion.

An absolutely amazing novel that I highly recommend.

1 Comment

Filed under BookSparksPR, Contemporary, Fiction, GLBT, Michael Lowenthal, Rated B+, Review, Terrace Books University of Wisconsin Press

September 25, 2012 · 3:58 am

Review: Third You Die by Scott Sherman

Title: Third You Die by Scott Sherman
Kevin Connor Mystery #3
Publisher: Kensington
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Romance, GLBT
Length: 344 pages
Book Rating: A

Review Copy Obtained from Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Finally settling down with his hunky cop boyfriend, former callboy Kevin Connor is giving up the “oldest profession” for a new career: producing his mom’s TV talk show, “Sophie’s Voice.” But when their latest guest—gay porn sensation Brent Havens—ends up floating in the East River after vowing to blow the lid off the adult film industry, Kevin returns to the world of high-stakes sex to find out: Who killed the twink who had everything?

Was it the X-rated director who exploited his star—for his own desires? The bartender boyfriend who hustled more than just cocktails? Or the eye-candy co-star who left the sweet actor for a sugar daddy?

Either way, Kevin is zooming in on one twisted plot with no shortage of drama queens. But is he ready for his close-up…with a killer?

The Review:

Third You Die by Scott Sherman is the entertaining and somewhat insightful installment of the absolutely fabulous Kevin Connor Mystery series. This clever and fiendishly witty whodunnit finds protagonist Kevin Connor settling into his new life with his cop boyfriend, Tony Rinaldi and his new job as a producer on his mom’s daytime television show, Sophie’s Voice. He once again stumbles into a mystery when gay porn star Brent Havens disappear.

I absolutely adore Kevin Connor. He is kind, caring and incredibly compassionate. Kevin is quite perceptive and non-judgmental which leads to his ability to accept other people’s kinks and sexual deviations. He has matured over the course of the series and this maturity is best demonstrated by his more cautious approach to his investigation into Brent’s disappearance.

In the midst of his search for Brent, Kevin is also dealing with his relationship with Tony. Tony is still deep in the closet and his inability to publicly admit to their relationship continues to be a source of frustration to Kevin. He still questions Tony’s commitment to their relationship and Kevin is unsure of his role in Tony’s son’s life.

Third You Die is a well-plotted and fast paced novel with an appealing cast of characters. The story is well-written and Kevin’s sharp sense of humor and caustic wit are laugh out loud funny. A lengthy suspect list keeps the reader guessing as to the killer’s identity.

But the most intriguing mystery of Third You Die is not what happened to Brent Haven. No, the biggest mystery is what is going to whether or not Tony and Kevin are going to live happily ever after. And Scott Sherman skillfully keeps that answer a secret right up until the very surprising conclusion of this wonderful installment of the Kevin Connor Mystery series.

Although Third You Die can be read as a standalone story, you won’t want to miss the other novels in this unique and refreshing series. I am eagerly anticipating the next book in this delightful series.

3 Comments

Filed under Contemporary, GLBT, Kensington, Kevin Connor Mystery, Mystery, Rated A, Review, Romance, Scott Sherman, Third You Die