Genre: Contemporary
LGBTQ+ Category: Bi, Gay
Reviewer: Jay
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About The Book
Jamie
Thanksgiving weekend at home seemed like more of a chore than a celebration since my wife had died, but I would never begrudge my daughter the love and attention of our big crazy family just to wallow in self pity. I could always return to that next week.
Devon
Thanks to the fact that my best friend’s family literally lives five feet away from campus, I have a home to go to for Thanksgiving that doesn’t involve traveling clear across the county for a few short days. It’s an easy choice, since I’ll see my family in less than a month for winter break anyway.
When two strangers, one the older brother and the other the best friend, unexpectedly end up sharing the same bedroom, will a holiday they were both just looking to get through end up being the most important event of their lives?
The Review
When Devon, a student, meets the large family of his best friend and roommate Josh, he feels a kind of culture shock; he’s from a small and quiet family. The reader, especially the non-American reader (like me) might also suffer from culture shock, with all the interesting details about American ways of celebrating Thanksgiving and New Year. This world building makes sure that even the minor characters are very well developed.
Devon also meets Jamie, the oldest brother, who is bringing up his daughter, Vera, another well developed and delightful character, after the death of his wife. Romance ensues, but there are problems to overcome, including the age gap, the fact that Devon thinks Josh will not approve, and Devon’s ambitions in terms of further study and career.
Not to mention that Jamie has never looked at anyone other than his wife, having met her when they were children. Jamie’s bisexual awakening is sensitively handled, with some very well-written, explicit scenes of sexual exploration.
The problems do not involve any external drama but it’s interesting to follow Jamie’s self-analysis, since he is a therapist.
The book has a happy ending, and the author is planning a sequel about another family member. A straightforward romance novel with no crime, mystery or paranormal elements. Recommended.
5 Stars.
The Reviewer
I’ve been doing book reviews on my website, crossposted or linked to various social media, for a few years. I read a number of genres but I really enjoy all kinds of speculative fiction so thought I’d like to share my views with you. I love sci fi and other speculative fiction because of the way it can, at its best, make us see ourselves in a new light. Quite apart from the exciting stories, of course! I used to be an English teacher, and I’m a writer (fantasy) so I can be quite critical about style etc. but I hope I can also appreciate properly some books that don’t appeal to me personally but might be simply perfect for others. I have, obviously, read widely, and continue to do so.
