Scan barcode
josy's review
3.0
I won this book in the MM Romance Group's Seven Year Anniversary Celebration (2016). Many thanks to the author/publisher for their generosity!
The author promised a feel-good novel about love, overcoming obstacles, and finding happiness.
Sadly, this didn't work so well for me.
I really liked the setting in Carmel and Monterey but would have liked more details. I had the chance to visit Carmel for a day a few years back and I fell in love with this idyllic small town. I also would have liked to read about the, sometimes easy to forget, challenges day-to-day life brings when you are dependent on a wheelchair - simple things like living arrangements, driving a car, choosing a school and so on.
The beginning of the story was very good and had me smiling a lot. Chris was the sweetest guy ever and Neil came across as very strong.
But it quickly went from realistic into fantastical territory for me.
Honestly, there is sooo much happening in this book, so many obstacles to overcome, that I stopped believing it pretty quickly. What grated even more on me were the instant solutions to each and every problem. It almost felt like you say abracadabra and the problems are solved.
Because there is so much happening in this book, it felt rushed although the entire story spans about 12 years. I felt like this was a timeline of their obstacles, like I was reading a list of hurdles that life threw at them. Instead of so many problems, I would have like more focus on just a few of them - more working through them, more struggles.
For example: In addition to having no experience whatsoever when it comes to sex, Neil is ashamed of his "spindly, bony, crippled legs" to the point where nobody other than Neil himself has seen or touched them in years. Still, it seemed to be no issue at all when Neil and Chris have sex for the first time. This may be because it wasn't on-page (there isn't on-page sex in the whole book) but for me, it felt glossed over. I really liked that Chris saw Neil and not the wheelchair but I still expected more (internal) struggle from Neil.
Another example: There is a bully at school who sent "Neil to the nurse at least once a week and to the hospital twice." Shocking, right? But "Neil had endured it" - end of story. Literally. This whole bullying over years was dealt with in only a few sentences.
And that's pretty much how each and every obstacle is dealt with.
Also, this book was very heavy on the insta-love. A few days after their first meeting, they want to be with each other 24-7 and are planning their future.
Overall, I liked that Neils's and Chris' love was never in question and that they stood up for themselves and for their families when they were in need. But the sheer amount of obstacles took away from the character and relationship development. Sometimes less is more and I think that fewer obstacles and more working through them would have made this book a lot better.
Read as part of my EuroPrideCon reading challenge: to read new-to-me-authors before the convention (https://europridecon.jimdo.com/).
The author promised a feel-good novel about love, overcoming obstacles, and finding happiness.
Sadly, this didn't work so well for me.
I really liked the setting in Carmel and Monterey but would have liked more details. I had the chance to visit Carmel for a day a few years back and I fell in love with this idyllic small town. I also would have liked to read about the, sometimes easy to forget, challenges day-to-day life brings when you are dependent on a wheelchair - simple things like living arrangements, driving a car, choosing a school and so on.
The beginning of the story was very good and had me smiling a lot. Chris was the sweetest guy ever and Neil came across as very strong.
But it quickly went from realistic into fantastical territory for me.
Honestly, there is sooo much happening in this book, so many obstacles to overcome, that I stopped believing it pretty quickly. What grated even more on me were the instant solutions to each and every problem. It almost felt like you say abracadabra and the problems are solved.
Because there is so much happening in this book, it felt rushed although the entire story spans about 12 years. I felt like this was a timeline of their obstacles, like I was reading a list of hurdles that life threw at them. Instead of so many problems, I would have like more focus on just a few of them - more working through them, more struggles.
For example: In addition to having no experience whatsoever when it comes to sex, Neil is ashamed of his "spindly, bony, crippled legs" to the point where nobody other than Neil himself has seen or touched them in years. Still, it seemed to be no issue at all when Neil and Chris have sex for the first time. This may be because it wasn't on-page (there isn't on-page sex in the whole book) but for me, it felt glossed over. I really liked that Chris saw Neil and not the wheelchair but I still expected more (internal) struggle from Neil.
Another example: There is a bully at school who sent "Neil to the nurse at least once a week and to the hospital twice." Shocking, right? But "Neil had endured it" - end of story. Literally. This whole bullying over years was dealt with in only a few sentences.
And that's pretty much how each and every obstacle is dealt with.
Also, this book was very heavy on the insta-love. A few days after their first meeting, they want to be with each other 24-7 and are planning their future.
Overall, I liked that Neils's and Chris' love was never in question and that they stood up for themselves and for their families when they were in need. But the sheer amount of obstacles took away from the character and relationship development. Sometimes less is more and I think that fewer obstacles and more working through them would have made this book a lot better.
Read as part of my EuroPrideCon reading challenge: to read new-to-me-authors before the convention (https://europridecon.jimdo.com/).
foxclouds's review
2.0
I received this book in exchange of an honest review.
Personal rating: 2 stars
Summary: Chris and Neil are two young men that are brought together by a chance meeting and fall in love.
So, I had very high hopes for this book and I was disappointed. The narrative is too juvenile and simple. There is no character development whatsoever. The actions of the characters seem illogical at times.
For example, the very first meeting of the characters, which is a huge thing for both of them, barely takes a couple of pages. Even though I would love to believe in them falling in love at first sight the whole meeting wasn't dealt with the way it would have happened in real life and ever since then my whole perception of the book went downhill as the same thing kept happening over and over again.
The book overuses deus ex machina plot device and even though I appreciate the author's intention to bring the characters to the happy ever after, most of the time it all felt too forced and too lucky and unbelievable to be.
The book cover is gorgeous though.
Even though I didn't enjoy the book due to its narration style, I am still grateful to the author for giving me an opportunity to read and review it.
Personal rating: 2 stars
Summary: Chris and Neil are two young men that are brought together by a chance meeting and fall in love.
So, I had very high hopes for this book and I was disappointed. The narrative is too juvenile and simple. There is no character development whatsoever. The actions of the characters seem illogical at times.
For example, the very first meeting of the characters, which is a huge thing for both of them, barely takes a couple of pages. Even though I would love to believe in them falling in love at first sight the whole meeting wasn't dealt with the way it would have happened in real life and ever since then my whole perception of the book went downhill as the same thing kept happening over and over again.
The book overuses deus ex machina plot device and even though I appreciate the author's intention to bring the characters to the happy ever after, most of the time it all felt too forced and too lucky and unbelievable to be.
The book cover is gorgeous though.
Even though I didn't enjoy the book due to its narration style, I am still grateful to the author for giving me an opportunity to read and review it.
More...