There's a reason Amy Lane is widely considered one of the greatest m/m romance authors of all time, and this book is a shining example. When Lane is oThere's a reason Amy Lane is widely considered one of the greatest m/m romance authors of all time, and this book is a shining example. When Lane is on her game, she makes other competent writers look like children writing essays with crayons and craft paper.
The emotional complexity of the main character is unparalleled, and the dynamics of his relationships, both with lovers and friends, are masterfully wrought. The story is simultaneously heartbreaking and uplifting, sweet and sad. It's rare for a book to make me cry, and I was at that point several times while making my way through this one....more
When Keira Andrews does it for me, she really does it for me. Interestingly enough, this was one I wasn't all that interested in reading back when I fWhen Keira Andrews does it for me, she really does it for me. Interestingly enough, this was one I wasn't all that interested in reading back when I first started checking out Andrews' work, but I caught the story "A Very English Christmas" in Wish Come True and realized it was a continuation of this trilogy. So I decided to give it a whirl. Definitely not sorry I did. The entire trilogy is worth a read, but this one sets David and Isaac's story up so beautifully that it's definitely my favorite. A peak into Amish life, and a heart-wrenching look at what it means to be different in an intolerant environment. ...more
This is one of those stories that has left me relatively speechless. It's absolutely amazing. If you want an example of superb characteriza
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This is one of those stories that has left me relatively speechless. It's absolutely amazing. If you want an example of superb characterization and poetic storytelling, this is it. Rust broke my damn heart, Ancel broke his, and the two of them together just made me want to curl up in a corner and cry the confused tears that only come after an emotionally jarring journey to that much deserved Happily Ever After. ...more
This book is just fucking fantastic, all right? Just really, really, really fucking good. It's always nice when a story makes me cuss like a dock workThis book is just fucking fantastic, all right? Just really, really, really fucking good. It's always nice when a story makes me cuss like a dock worker for the right reasons, and Wiltshire certainly proved himself capable with this book.
Now if only the magic could've kept me going through the rest of the series. I'm stuck on the second and not sure I'll be able to finish. Le Sigh....more
Why did I love this story so much? Why? I'm kind of at a loss here because there's just something about this story thHoly shit, holy shit, Ho.Ly.Shit.
Why did I love this story so much? Why? I'm kind of at a loss here because there's just something about this story that spoke to me. Maybe it was the lack of melodrama. I liked that there was a little bit of possessiveness, but it never went over the top. Thomas and Cooper respect and trust each other through everything, and that is truly something special to witness. I loved both of them separately, and as a couple, they were a force to be reckoned with. The age dynamic was done so well that not only was it accepted, it was almost necessary. It made sense in a way it doesn't often make sense in stories revolving around the older man/younger man dynamic. Thomas and Cooper just fit, and the reader is made aware of that pretty early on, not with flowery declarations or melodramatic angst, but with simple, straightforward character building.
Kept on Kindle...probably for a good long time....more
Why did I love this story so much? Why? I'm kind of at a loss here because there's just something about this story thHoly shit, holy shit, Ho.Ly.Shit.
Why did I love this story so much? Why? I'm kind of at a loss here because there's just something about this story that spoke to me. Maybe it was the lack of melodrama. I liked that there was a little bit of possessiveness, but it never went over the top. Thomas and Cooper respect and trust each other through everything, and that is truly something special to witness. I loved both of them separately, and as a couple, they were a force to be reckoned with. The age dynamic was done so well that not only was it accepted, it was almost necessary. It made sense in a way it doesn't often make sense in stories revolving around the older man/younger man dynamic. Thomas and Cooper just fit, and the reader is made aware of that pretty early on, not with flowery declarations or melodramatic angst, but with simple, straightforward character building.
Kept on Kindle...probably for a good long time....more
Why did I love this story so much? Why? I'm kind of at a loss here because there's just something about this story thHoly shit, holy shit, Ho.Ly.Shit.
Why did I love this story so much? Why? I'm kind of at a loss here because there's just something about this story that spoke to me. Maybe it was the lack of melodrama. I liked that there was a little bit of possessiveness, but it never went over the top. Thomas and Cooper respect and trust each other through everything, and that is truly something special to witness. I loved both of them separately, and as a couple, they were a force to be reckoned with. The age dynamic was done so well that not only was it accepted, it was almost necessary. It made sense in a way it doesn't often make sense in stories revolving around the older man/younger man dynamic. Thomas and Cooper just fit, and the reader is made aware of that pretty early on, not with flowery declarations or melodramatic angst, but with simple, straightforward character building.
Kept on Kindle...probably for a good long time....more
Love. I love this book. Everything about it. The characters, the dialogue, the humor, the romance, the sex, the conflict, the prose...absolutely everyLove. I love this book. Everything about it. The characters, the dialogue, the humor, the romance, the sex, the conflict, the prose...absolutely everything. And while some disliked the meandering nature of the plot, I found it refreshing. I wasn't shoved along to some half-formed, unsubstantial climax, but was instead taken by the hand and shown the inner workings of the characters, their emotions, their interactions, their insecurities, and their strengths. Watching Daniel and Rex grow as people, both individually and as a couple, was amazing. They teach each other and learn from each other, support and protect and nurture, and they're the kind of literary couple that I absolutely adore. Their romance doesn't dominate the story, but is more a complement to it while still taking center stage. It's amazingly well-crafted.
The peripheral characters are equally amazing. The eccentric citizens of Holiday, Daniel's asshole brothers, Rex's ex, Daniel's mini-me, and Ginger, Daniel's best friend, are all unique and engaging in their own ways, not stereotypical or wooden. I absolutely adored Ginger. She was, in a way, Daniel's common sense. Whenever Daniel started acting like an idiot, Ginger was there to stick her boot up his ass, and pretty much every scene with her in it had me laughing.
Daniel: "Jesus fucking Christ, Ginger, have you been fighting with the pro-lifers again? They're gonna bomb your shop."
Ginger: "They make me want to get pregnant just so I can get an abortion and make a Youtube video of it to send to them."
On the same token, Daniel is just as hilarious. His observations about Michigan are fantastic.
"Fuck me, Ginge - this place is ridiculous. I'm probably the only queer within a hundred miles. There's a park near here called Gaylord, and I bet no one even thinks it's funny."
The best thing about this book is that it seamlessly blends humor with drama and grand romance with playful sexiness.
"There's something about Rex that makes me feel calm. As if I'm scattered until the moment I see him and when he touches me I fly back together in a configuration that makes sense."
"Maybe the point of I love you is that it is a tether. A connection so you can find your way back to someone even when shit seems huge and unmanageable on your own. A promise to help just because you care about someone, a promise to help that doesn't mean pulling away."
Daniel: "Like, you know that feeling...when it's Sunday night and you have school or work the next morning but then it's a snow day and you don't have to go in? You feel like that."
Rex: "I feel like a natural disaster?"
Daniel: "No. A relief. You feel like a huge relief."
Sweet baby Jesus, it's like Cullinan was trying to make me choke on my feels. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Manipulated? Hell, yeah, but in the Sweet baby Jesus, it's like Cullinan was trying to make me choke on my feels. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Manipulated? Hell, yeah, but in the best way.
I fucking love this book. Can't really make it any plainer that that. Fucking love it. And it's weird because there were parts that should have made me hate it, but somehow they just made it all bizarrely better, and I kinda hate Cullinan for that, but I also love her so much for letting me live this story. Mitch and Sam are just so unbelievably screwed up and adorable and perversely perfect for each other. I'm not even sure what more to say. There's so much emotion here without crossing that line into Melodrama Valley, and the romance was perfectly sweet while not tipping over into saccharine.
The sex was pretty hot, too. Not boring. Um... Definitely not for pearl clutchers, but I doubt any of them are reading m/m romance, anyway.
I've always respected Cullinan's work even when I didn't particularly like the story. This book and Nowhere Ranch both blew me away....more
This book is just so amazingly good. So few authors are capable of writing characters with such depth, and being able to craft an autistic character lThis book is just so amazingly good. So few authors are capable of writing characters with such depth, and being able to craft an autistic character like Morgan is damn near impossible. Wilder writes characters with such intense emotional constructs that it's actually difficult at times to continue reading. It's painful to watch their struggles, but also profoundly satisfying to share in their triumphs. This is the mark of a truly well-characterized book; when the reader is capable of daydreaming of the characters as if they were real people they could run into at the supermarket. And while I can't say enough good things about Morgan, Wilder paid just as much attention to detail in her characterization of Grant. Grant is just an amazing person in that he's real. When he first sees Morgan, he assumes Morgan is limited. Damaged, mentally disabled, possessing the mind of a child. And while it takes him a little while to reconcile his immediate beliefs with the reality of Morgan, once he does learn to accept that he was wrong, his understanding and compassion for the amazing man he's coming to know are beautiful things to witness. Grant learns to love Morgan while still struggling to come to terms with deeply held prejudices regarding those who are a bit different. There's no moment where Grant goes from being an ignorant, condescending tool to an instantly understanding and accepting person. That would be completely unrealistic. Instead, Grant struggles with his changing perceptions and the reader is treated to his setbacks, his epiphanies, and his growing understanding of a subject he freely admits he'll never be able to fully comprehend. Grant loves Morgan while fully understanding that their relationship will never be easy. Conversely, Morgan comes to the realization that he can trust Grant, and that love is a fluid, changing thing, but solid in its purest form. I really felt like Morgan and Grant both learned from each other while simultaneously holding each other up.
The other aspects of the story were also really well done. Grant's background as a criminal, his three year relationship with Jeff, the undercover FBI agent sent to infiltrate Grant's operation, and Morgan's own painful and complicated past are richly detailed and intricately woven into the story. The interactions between Grant and Jeff were alternately hilarious and infuriating. Jeff was a character I both liked and disliked, and I never really quite came to terms with how I felt about him, and I think it's saying something when a supporting character can elicit such an emotional response.
The humor in this book surprised me. Morgan is caustic in a way only someone who's been underestimated their entire life can be. The "pranks" he pulls on Grant are hilarious. When he screws with Jeff, it's even better.
All told, a wonderfully emotional, sweet, funny, romantic heartache of a book.
"'The light is a funny thing, Grant. We think it shows us what we need to see, but in reality, it blinds us. That's why I brought you here. I wanted you to see me.'
He was right. The light did blind people. I knew firsthand just how misleading it could be...
In Morgan's case, the light had let me see the tics, his muscle spasms, and his strange movements, and I'd been distracted by them. The dark took it all away and left me sitting next to a person, not a behavior, a human being, not perceived defects. Someone insightful, quick-witted, determined, generous, kind, and armed with a wicked sense of humor.
I can't say enough about this book. It's not a happy one, so don't go into it thinking you're going to get a sweet happily ever after. No, that's not I can't say enough about this book. It's not a happy one, so don't go into it thinking you're going to get a sweet happily ever after. No, that's not really Kate Morton's style. But beautifully lyrical prose and an almost unnerving talent for atmosphere makes this, on the surface a beautiful read.
What's not so obvious is that Morton's talent for crafting intricately layered, interesting characters is superb. She presents you with a certain set of traits for each character that cause you to draw a hasty conclusion about their personality only to pull the rug out from under you later and completely destroy your preconceived notions. Each character shifts, grows, becomes more three-dimensional as you delve further into the story, and that's just what characters in a story should do.
The story itself is sad. A love affair whose reverberations continue fifty years into the future and affect quite a few people. But it's also a reminder to live your life for yourself, to let go of fear and the machinations of others, to love those around you, but not to allow that love to suffocate you. It's a reminder that love isn't always a grand thing, but sometimes it's all we've got. ...more
I attacked this book and read it like it was the last thing I was ever going to do in my life. I couldn't put it down. I had to keep going. I had to know that there would be good things for Will and Elly. And the trip to their HEA was so unbelievably...GAH!
Will and Elly are so tragically lonely and starved for affection that I just wanted to pick them both up, put them in a warm, padded room for a month, and let them commence with the healing. I loved them both. They're so believably flawed, but still good people even after everything they've been through. The romance aspect of this book is so understated and sweet that I kept getting that punch-to-the-gut feeling just below my diaphragm. I spent at least half of this book in physical pain because I just wanted to weep for these two constantly. And I'm not much of a crier. I was actually sobbing at one point. When I read Spencer's The Endearment, I had no idea she was this talented a writer. I love this book. Love it. So much so that once I was finished with it, I immediately started over. The tension building between Will and Elly is so fraught with frustration because they both want physical affection, but neither of them has the confidence to feel it's deserved or will be granted by the other, so they just keep studiously not touching. So when they finally give in, the rest of the book is filled with
Anyway, this book really has everything a romance reader could possibly want: a brooding, reluctant hero, an insecure but strong heroine, sex, affection, tenderness, war, happiness, sadness, yearning, intrigue, farewells and homecomings, and poignant emotions. This is not a light, fluffy read, but one of the most emotionally jarring stories I've ever read. It's more than earned its place on my favorites shelf.
When I first read Rainbow Rowell's Attachments, I was sure it was going to be one of those books that I loved, but never got to follow up. I'm sure soWhen I first read Rainbow Rowell's Attachments, I was sure it was going to be one of those books that I loved, but never got to follow up. I'm sure some of you understand what I'm talking about. I thought to myself, I really love Rainbow Rowell for this book, but what are the odds she'll hit another homerun for me?
How wrong I was.
Fangirl is, in a word, amazing. Lyrical, poignant, funny, engaging, heartbreaking, heartwarming, and connected. I just felt so much sympathy for every single character even though some of them I had very little in common with. They were fleshed-out and endearing, and not once did I ever get fed up with any of them, even when they were making dumb decisions. They were like real people to me in the best way fictional characters can be; I knew they weren't real, but kept wishing they were so I could be friends with them. Cath and Wren both broke my heart with their insecurities and their determination to live despite those insecurities. Levi was a swoony little slice of awesome, and Reagan was hilarious. I feel like an ass trying to put into words how good this damn book is because it's really hard for me at times to praise things. I just sit around with a dumbstruck look on my face, thinking Awesome over and over again. My brother once told me that it's impossible to say why you like something, but almost hilariously easy to say why you don't. This is definitely true for me, as I have very little problem pointing out why something is below my standards. This book far surpasses those expectations, however, so all I can say is; read it. If you don't like it at least a little bit, I have no clue what could possibly be wrong with you....more
If you've experienced that first love - that heart-wringing, soul-squeezing, crush-the-air-out-of-your-lungs-whenever
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If you've experienced that first love - that heart-wringing, soul-squeezing, crush-the-air-out-of-your-lungs-whenever-you're-apart first love - this book will bitch slap your feels all to hell.
I love it. I love its warmth and its vibrancy, its heartache and its pain, its humor, its meanness, the ugliness, the beauty, the crying, the laughter, the sarcasm. I love Eleanor and I love Park, and I love that there's still a tiny chance for them...and for everyone whose first love was torn away. Even if you never see that person again, they change you in ways that no one else will ever understand. They will always, always hold that little piece of your heart that no one else will ever be able to touch.
I love you, Rainbow Rowell, for giving me this. Thank you....more
Finally! Twenty days and seventeen books into 2012 and I've finally, finally found something I can honestly say I loved. I knew it was going to be gooFinally! Twenty days and seventeen books into 2012 and I've finally, finally found something I can honestly say I loved. I knew it was going to be good from the very first chapter (which I promptly read to my mother while we both laughed). Giving it five stars might be a bit much, but I can't help it. This was funny, engaging, sweet, and, more importantly, smart. None of the characters were perfect, but they were written so realistically that their flaws added to their appeal. It felt like reading about real people, not the cliche's of people one normally gets in a piece of modern fiction.
The premise is pretty basic; Lincoln is a shy and socially awkward individual who never quite got over the heartbreak caused by his high school sweetheart. Having recently moved back to his hometown (and back into his overindulgent mother's house), he gets an IT security job at the local paper. His job involves reading through flagged email and sending out warnings to anyone in the office who breaks company rules regarding internet use. When he starts getting flagged emails between Beth and Jennifer, he knows he should send them a warning and move on, but he can't seem to bring himself to do it. Before he knows it, he's read so many of their conversations that he feels like a total creep, but he still can't bring himself to stop. It's when he begins to fall for Beth, however, that Lincoln's torture truly begins.
Told from a third-person perspective with Lincoln at center stage, we only get to know Beth and Jennifer through their emails to each other. While this is often a difficult method for an author to use to truly portray a character (especially since people only project a certain amount of themselves to others, especially through emails), Rainbow Rowell managed to really make it work. I felt like I really got to know Beth and Jennifer through their emails, and for the first time in too long, I can actually understand why the male protagonist fell in love with the female. Beth and Jennifer are genuinely good people, devoted friends, and beautifully flawed individuals. We see Jennifer's fears about becoming a mother are caused by her rocky relationship with her own mother. We see Beth's ignorance regarding the myriad ways love can manifest and exist. We see Lincoln's insecurities unfold as he attempts to struggle out from beneath his mother's apron and live his own life. While the underlying theme is romance, the story also focuses on family, friends, and personal growth.
I know this makes Attachments sound paralyzingly dull, so you'll just have to trust me when I say it's really quite funny. It's probably the funniest book I've read in the last few years. I understand it's probably not for everyone. The pop culture quotes and nerdly references to things like Dungeons & Dragons and The Lord of the Rings might put some readers off, but they were right up my alley. I read the entire book in one sitting, neither needing nor wanting a break. I can't wait to read more from Rainbow Rowell....more
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