Genre: Contemporary
LGBTQ+ Category: Ace, Bi, Gay, Gender Fluid, Lesbian, Non-Binary, Trans FTM
Reviewer: Lucy
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About The Book
Is a LGBTQ+ friendly dating app the answer to all of Penelope’s dating woes? Her ex-girlfriend turned asexual best friend and roommate sure thinks so.
Within a few minutes of swiping, Penelope matches with the mysterious, yet charming Riley, who identifies as queer, but is slow to open up about his sexuality… and everything else.
As Penelope explores dating again, she gets the opportunity to MC a drag brunch, in full drag king regalia. For a long time, Penelope has had suspected she might be nonbinary, but that feels like something she’ll sort out on her own eventually… right?
The drag brunch is a smashing success, and she meets a beautiful woman in the audience named Taylor. They begin forming a deep connection in their queerness and Taylor supports Penelope as she finally begins to explore her gender identity.
Penelope begins to notice similarities between Riley and Taylor, in the way they think, the way they talk, and most importantly in the way they make her feel. What if the two people she’s falling for are more than just amazing, what if they’re her soul mate?
Follow Penelope’s journey as she navigates the ups and downs of dating, self-discovery, and the search for love and acceptance in a hilariously complicated and ultimately satisfying, queer love story.
The Review
This story is a riotous combination of hilarity and poignancy. An Epic Construct takes us along Penelope’s dating journey as she has (once again) decided she’s ready for a mature, adult relationship. Using an LGBTQ+ app feels right, as if she’s more likely to find someone accepting, not only of herself but her family, both found and biological. But Penelope, like so many before her, learns that you really must love yourself before you’re able to fully love others.
This is a lovely story filled with angst-ridden characters who just want what most of us do: to be seen and accepted for who we are and not to be made to feel as if we’re ‘too much.’ But what happens when both people in the relationship are having those same existential crises?
Cutler-Tran expertly guides us through the rollercoaster of modern relationship hunting, using humor to smooth the rough edges of an often brutal process of swiping, texting, meeting, dating. Penelope has to navigate the tempest of attraction and emotion, all while dealing with self-realization about her own gender identity and sexuality. She quickly learns that it may be easier to be accepting of others than it is to be accepting of herself.
The writing is excellent, and the author gives us a cast of beautifully diverse, realistic characters that fall into my “Contact Category”—these are the characters that are so realistic, you feel as if you know them and could find them in your contact list. I was fully engaged in their story, their lives, and their relationships. The story includes the full spectrum of relationships, from biological family to found family, roommates, lovers, and coworkers. None felt superfluous, all of them threads in the beautifully woven tapestry of this sweet story.
I thoroughly enjoyed An Epic Construct, and I was very excited to learn that there will be more of Penelope and Riley in other stories. I’m looking forward to finding out how their lives develop, both together and individually.
The Reviewer
I’m an avid reader who loves pretty much all genres except math textbooks. As a kid, my parents exposed me to everything from fairies, hobbits, and dragons to the biographies of interesting people around the world, interspersed with poetry, plays, and music. Into adulthood, I spent a lot of years with my nose buried in various textbooks. Now, I read whatever grabs my fancy.
