Rating: 2 stars out of 5

Jim Franklin lives a life in the closet. With no real connections, he seems to drift as the wind blows him. Where he ends up this time is at Windsor college. He’s got a girlfriend and friends, and while life may not be all butterflies and roses, it’s good enough.

A romantic literature class places Jim and Glenn Martin in each others paths. Glenn is a live-in boyfriend of a rich man. He came from nothing, and now he’ll do anything to hold on to what he’s got.

Snowy nights and alcohol bring them together, but could they also drive them apart?

For the longest time I had trouble distinguishing between a showing narrative and telling one, but this story is the perfect example of full-fledged telling.  Actual dialogue is rare and discussions are often summarized. To make matters worse, there’s no clear point of view, and the story lacks heart.

Within the first few pages I was bored. I didn’t get to know any of the characters, they were all just kind of there. In the end, I didn’t really care what happened to them, but that didn’t stop me from being taken aback with the final chapters. Could the way this ended be more realistic? Absolutely – but the fact is that, like everything else, it was glossed over so easily and without much thought, that it had no effect other than to irritate me.

There was a point in the story where I felt like I was reading the script of a bad soap opera, and I’m sad to say that that’s the impression this book left on me.

So why two stars? Well, there’s a few reasons. The cover art by Wilde City Press is great. It fits the story and was what lured me into reading it in the first place. Secondly, the author must’ve put some effort into the story, even if it didn’t connect with me. And finally, I truly believe that the author has potential. There were some words put together that were lovely, and if you read the bio, it sounds like maybe this author is better placed in a different type of writing – something that isn’t gay fiction for the current M/M fan base. Still, I thank the author for writing the story, and applaud their effort.

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Cover artist:  Wilde City Press.  Just lovely, see comments above.

Sales Links:  Wilde City Press      ARe         amazon             Thunder Snow

Book Details:

Published by Wilde City Press

Release date: 29 October 2014
ISBN: 978-1-925180-58-9
Category: Gay Romance, Erotic, Romantic
Number of words: 15,000
Formats available: ebook only