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A review by hissingpotatoes
Their Troublesome Crush by Xan West
3.5
As a romance story, it felt over before it even began, as did the plotline of the birthday party. The text needed a proofreader.
However, the daily realities of the characters living in the intersection of their identities felt very real, genuine, and down-to-earth with nuance and experiences I, at least, haven't seen much in fiction. The relationships varied all along the split attraction model with the main one being a combination of romance and non-sexual kink.
It was so refreshing and validating to read from the perspective of an autistic character, the familiarity of his thought processes, his comfort with and knowledge of himself, his found family creating space for him to be himself. The author allowed the characters to be themselves fully, to communicate clearly and without judgment.
I appreciated the details that set the timeline in 2011, specifically the Livejournal/Dreamwidth references which I lived through myself. I loved all the inclusion of food; this novella would be a great candidate for a companion recipe booklet.
This is a sweet romance with characters whose identities need more representation in fiction.
However, the daily realities of the characters living in the intersection of their identities felt very real, genuine, and down-to-earth with nuance and experiences I, at least, haven't seen much in fiction. The relationships varied all along the split attraction model with the main one being a combination of romance and non-sexual kink.
It was so refreshing and validating to read from the perspective of an autistic character, the familiarity of his thought processes, his comfort with and knowledge of himself, his found family creating space for him to be himself. The author allowed the characters to be themselves fully, to communicate clearly and without judgment.
I appreciated the details that set the timeline in 2011, specifically the Livejournal/Dreamwidth references which I lived through myself. I loved all the inclusion of food; this novella would be a great candidate for a companion recipe booklet.
This is a sweet romance with characters whose identities need more representation in fiction.