[ARC] Love Language by Jax Calder

Title: Love Language

Author: Jax Calder

Formats:  Reviewed on eBook

Rating:  4 Stars

Acknowledgment: Thanks to Gay Romance Reviews for providing an ARC

There’s times when you just want a quick easy novella to read and as always Jax Calder gives all one wants in such a short amount of pages- in this case 63.

Love Language is essentially a work place meet cute, except Ashton and Dominic have shared an office for four years or so, with Ashton pining for Dominic for most of that time period.

The novella opens with Dominic doing being spotted by Ashton doing New Zealand Sign Language, which somehow is the catalyst for Ashton to do a bit of anaylising of his feelings for Dominic.

The “problem” for any novella is to grab your attention, be believable and give a satisfactory ending in such a short amount of pages. Thankfully this is Jax Calder we’re talking about and she is adapt in no matter which length of writing she tackles- I usually find myself thinking what the hell in novellas, but in this particular novella it was more the opposite- I kept wanting more, more more!

If you’re looking for a quick short read- whether it for a palate cleanser or an easy read- you can’t go past Jax Calder and I highly recommend this novella!

[ARC} Where There's a Wil, There's a Way by P.T Ambler

Title: Where There’s a Wil, There’s a Way

Author: P.T. Ambler

Formats:  Reviewed on eBook

Rating:  3.5 stars

Acknowledgment: Thanks to Gay Romance Reviews for providing an ARC

Usually, when someone says they’re unsure about a book, that normally would indicate alarm bells to me. Having said that, that’s the complete opposite for this book!

While the plot itself is nothing new- a upstairs/downstairs relationship set in the modern world- the writing is like a breath of fresh air- Ambler is a unique writer but in a way that actually actively engages the reader- for example look out for the word “butling”.

Ambler is superb at understanding her characters and fully developing them; in lesser writers the feelings of the characters could be seen as superficial, whereas Ambler writers in a way that you simultaneously want to smack heads together while also totally understanding the characters!

A good way to describe this novel is “quirky”- while normal a domain of badly written prose, in this novel it’s the opposite- it’s quirky and enjoyable and you tend to develop feelings for the characters.

[ARC] D.B. and Me by Rob Rosen

Title: D.B and Me

Author: Rob Rosen

Formats:  Reviewed on eBook

Rating:  3.5 stars

Acknowledgment: Thanks to Gay Romance Reviews for providing an ARC

Prior to my review I must provide some background/context to this book- the bare facts one needs to know is that on the 24th November 1971, a man who has since been known by the pseudonym “D.B. Cooper” hijacked a Boeing 727 in the United States, obtained a then US $200,000 ransom and then parachuted out of the plane mid-flight, never to be seen again.

With these facts in mind, one can imagine that this is a historical speculative fiction (spec fic) type of read; indeed as this novel opens with a man named “Tim” (a.k.a D.B Cooper, aka Dan Cooper) still in a tree attached to his parachute, and found by a man named Adam.

Adam himself is a product of the times, having recently been discharged by the US Army after the Vietnam War and as one can imagine, has devils in his mind due to what he has encountered while over in Vietnam.

Initially, the novel tends to drag a bit as the first third novel is essentially one big sex scene, as the characters shag like bunnies. When the sexy times finally go in the background is when the novel for me shines.

Rob Rosen attempts to create a novel where it attempts to paint a psychological picture of both Tim and Adam- Tim having just jumped from a plane and Adam having just served in Vietnam and also suffering from a terrible terrible secret. The jury is out on the fact as if it was successful- after all D.B. Cooper has literally disappeared from the world after the hijacking, so Rosen has a rich tapestry he can play with in attempting a characterisation of this infamous person. Rosen’s attempt does fit in with the basic facts of the case so it’s not as far fetched as one would seem.

Where the novel is let down, at least for me, is the fact that the first third is essentially a piece of erotica, the next third is a mostly enjoyable historical spec fic, and the last third (that is the ending) is shoe horned in a short piece of time that the ending made me go “what the actual ??@?@?@”

Overall, D.B and Me is a mostly enjoyable read, but probably more worth of a loan then an outright purchase

[Advanced Review Copy] Unfinished Business at Crofton Hall

Title: Unfinished Business at Crofton Hall: Robin & Simon (Modern Crofton)

Series: Modern Crofton

Author: Rebecca Cohen

Publisher: 

Pages:  186

Formats:  Reviewed on eBook

Rating:  5 stars

Acknowledgment: Thanks to Gay Romance Reviews for providing an ARC

As mentioned in the blurb, this particular book in the Modern Crofton series MUST be read in the order that the author has mentioned; to do so otherwise will leave you with a WTF feeling.

In Unfinished Business, we revisit Simon and Robin; Simon is a character that is such a joy to read whereas with more readings Robin is… well I shall say I’m not a fan of his- this isn’t a fault of the author as Rebecca Cohen is a fantastic reader and an authors success is to feel something, indeed ANYTHING for their characters and this she achieves as to her normal high standard.

In the novel immediately proceeding Unfinished Business, we see some of the events that directly impact Simon and Robin on the periphery, whereas here we see the full fallout and development of both their relationship and event and people impacting on their relationships.

I found this an interesting read because even though I enjoy all of her Modern Crofton series, this book “felt” differently if that makes sense; maybe it’s because I’m indifferent to Robin but this book felt slightly different to all others in the series, and that’s ok.

Thankfully, we also see more developments of Ben and Ashley’s relationship, along with snippets of the other fabulous and loveable residents of Crofton Hall.

The Modern Crofton series excels because while you’re getting to know new members of the Redbourne and extended family, you also get tantalising glimpses into already existing characters. This is where Rebecca Cohen exceeds; she knows her characters inside and out like a well worn glove, and any development she gives them is well deserved- though she likes to certainly put hem through the wars before their happy endings!

Prudish Nation by Paul Dalgarno

Author: Paul Dalgarno

Format: E-book

Pages: 252

Publisher: Upswell

So I brought this book because of a thread on Twitter-  one of my favourite authors posted that he had been interviewed for it and recommended it- so I decided to go “why the hell not” and purchased it straight away and started it almost straight away- I had to finish another book first )only took me about twenty minutes). 

What can I say about this intriguing book? 

The premise is that it’s a book about how prudish Australia really is when it comes to sex, with a lens based in the authors’ own experience of being in a poly relationship. 

That’s the simple way to describe this book- and that’s a good thing! 

The long version is that this is a treatise on poly relationships which soon expands to explore how, essentially, that despite Australia being a happy go lucky country that if you “deviate” from the “sexual norm” ie- anything other than hetero- then Australia is more repressed than America and (somewhat ironically) Britain- which both countries have a reputation of being prude beyond believe. 

I didn’t think I would like this novel- poly relationships are really not my thing(PRUDE!!!)- but I continued to devour this novel because it’s simply enjoyable. 

The authors’ writing style is superb- it’s like having a conversation with someone over a cup of tea with no strings attached- and while dealing with things I don’t have much to do with, it challenged my own levels of prudishness. 

A piece of writing- if it’s good- is meant to make you thing and pause on the objects it’s raising and Pude Nation certainly did- it made me question myself and how on the one hand I can be extremely prudish (conditioned prudishness much?)- but by the same token we have a friendship based on no judgment and we talk about things of a sexual nature. 

The great thing about this treatise is the author has taken his time to research the hell out of it- there’s a wide range of interviews that are Australian based- authors, poets, academics- that help ensure that this book should hopefully be held in high regards in terms of Australian sexuality studies.

A Man and His Pride

A debut novel from Rutledge, A Man and His Pride opens in Brisbane in 2017; with the same sex marriage plebiscite as it’s constant shadow in the background.

Just from reading that you can sort of get where this is going can’t you?

Yet, this is an enjoyable read that is extremally multi faceted.

The book is told from the perspective from twenty seven year old Sean Preston, who we soon come to realise is a narrator that is just a wee bit unreliable.

He is a social media moderator for a major Australian bank (LOL at the barely hidden reference to who the bank actually is), and you can tell he barely likes the job- hell even saying he tolerates it is a slight exaggeration. When the novel opens you get the strong impression that Sean is a typical lazy gay- only caring about looks and the next shag.

But as the book develops, Sean becomes more nuanced; there’s secrets in his past and while it’s not drawn out too much, you are eager to find out what they are.

Along the way, Sean has a “relationship” breakup, moves out, confronts some demons and has an unexpected friendship develop.

All the while the same sex marriage plebiscite is brewing in the background, providing a steady undercurrent of background noise of distrust and unease which bubbles over in the discussions had between different characters.

An unusual read I must admit as I found Sean on a whole to be totally unlikeable, this debut novel is well worth a read as it’s another talented Australian writer I’m looking forward to supporting in the future.

Rating- 4 out of 5 stars.

The Lido by Libby Page [updated]

As previously mentioned, I’ve started to immerse myself in the up lit genre at the moment- at this point I have just under 30 books in the dedicated collection on my Kindle (yay go me!)

Anyway, the first book I’ve decided to crack open to explore this genre is The Lido by Libby Page. Maybe because it’s set in London, a city that I totally LOVE, but so far I have to say I’m very pleased I’ve chosen to this book as my next read.

In a nutshell, The Lido is a story about a lido (basically an outdoor community pool) that is on the chop blocking and it’s a race against time to save it from the development block.

Even though I’m only 100 pages in, the read is really gripping. The prose is very well done and Page creates such a vivid and well drawn out world, you can’t help but fall in love with it. Speaking of prose, what is also enjoyable is the fact that the way of how calming the water is as you swim- it’s very hard to put into words but Page gets pretty damn close to achieving how I (as a swimmer) would articulate it.

So far so good!

UPDATE

So I finished this novel and it’s certainly an enjoyable read!

It’s an emotional rollercoaster that you wouldn’t expect, but also such a moving love story as well.

And the ending- while you sort of can see it coming, the journey to get there is amazing and I found myself in tears at the end of it- and I promptly went out and brought a few more of Page’s oeuvre.

Rating- 4 stars!

Up Lit

So the other day I discovered a new to me genre of literature- the aforementioned up lit a.k.a uplifting literature.

Basically from what I can understand, it basically encompasses a story that is essentially a “feel good” thing with a happy ending- which sounds exactly what I need for now.

It’s funny, but one of the novels I’ve seen mentioned as an example of up lit is the novel Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine- I’m sorry but I’ve tried to read this book and every attempt it has left me depressed and wanting to cry my eyes open.

But I’ve also seen mentioned the book The Lido which I shall mention in another post.

Spare By Prince Harry- An Update

So as you know, I’ve started reading Spare and I’m taking my time on it as to protect my mental health.

In an update, I’ve read another fifty pages of it today and I’m still enjoying it, though I can’t shake the feelings of heartbreak and sorry I have towards Prince Harry- as I said yesterday he’s a a very traumatised individual .

I was reading it today and I was also pondering on it- which is good. I am sure we’re all aware of the fact the the media are sensationalising the book by taking quotes out of context and use for the “shock” factor- I mean look at how they mentioned his loss of virginity etc.

But what they don’t say or provide is the context of the quotes taken- reading the large part of where the quotes are it makes me realise that there’s nothing all that salacious really- I mean yes him mentioning his loss of virginity could be considered vulgar, but in the context of the paragraph and his narrative people aren’t looking at the bigger picture.

Which is you may ask?

In my view, Harry is dealing with serious life long trauma and he’s trying his best to cope with it. So far his story is telling me he’s had to put up wit ha way of life that is more about “The Fir,” then the fact that Harry et al are people and humans; instead The Firm insist that their way of life is better then any one individual and that’s how it was and how it should be, people and their nasty emotions should just go away.

Anyway, it’s still a good read.

Spare by Prince Harry- Initial Thoughts

So I’m currently reading Spare by Prince Harry and so far it’s a very moving read.

I’m only fifty pages in but you can already get the impression that Harry is a very traumatised individual. I get the feeling that this book is going to be very heavy going- so seems like I’ll have to take precautions not to get too affected by it.

The Greatest Hit by Will Kostakis

This is a hard short story to review not because it’s a bad read- it’s the complete opposite! - but it’s hard to put into words how moving this book actually is.

But I’ll try anyway :P

I won’t lie- if you look at the cover, it essentially tells you the story of the novella! But DO NOT let that put you off- because this story will hit you in the feels!

It revolves around Tess and her pondering “what if”- the pandemic provided her with both an opportunity and also an impediment to her falling in love with Charlie, who before the world fell to shit with covid lockdowns, were friends at a school in Melbourne. But alas, Tessa ends up going viral but with a major difference to her song that she originally performed and written for Charlie and Charlie ends up relocating to Brisbane.

In the space of around 71 pages, Will Kostakis takes us on a journey that not only explores ones true self and sexuality, but also the aspect of internet viral sensations and the aftermath, as well as providing us another opportunity to see if Tessa gets the girl.

I’m sure we’ve all been there with our own love lives- the passion and the confusion, especially if you were an LGTBQIA teen trying to come to terms with yourself. Kostakis is a nuanced writer who writes so well, it’s not just the things that’s written on the page that moves you, it’s also the things that are implied.

I solidly recommending this short story to you- it’s a heart-warming read by the end that’s for certain.

Hockey Romance Universe Book 4- Poke Check

Poke Check

Series- Harrisburg Railers Book 4

Universe- Hockey Romance Universe Book 4

Author: RJ Scott and V.L. Locey

Publisher:  Love Lane Book Limited

Pages: 186

Formats:  Kindle

Rating:  5 stars

Up until now, goalie Stanislav “Stan” Lyamin has always been in the background, his lack of English a source of comedic relief, however at the same time coming across as a gentle giant that you know you want to get to know more.

At this point in the series, it could be said that authors could get tired or rest on their laurels but this wouldn’t apply here- after all how does one write a character that speaks little English without coming across as condescending or as a caricature?

That’s why on face value you would think that Poke Check could be either really good or really bad- the fourth book in a series to keep the reader engaged without being hockey.

There is a reason why this novel is- so far- my favourite in the series and I absolutely love Stan as one of my favourite all time characters in a novel.

We find Stan still in his goalie position, living life as a good goalie and best fiend to Tennant Rowe. As in any sport, trade of players and movements happen and soon we see Erik Gunnarsson arrive as a new linemate for the Railers- a huge shock to San as not too long go, they had a relationship at a hockey camp, but not for long as soon as the camp was over Erik “ghosted” Stan.

Not too surprisingly, Stan plays the role of a stoic Russian goalie; talking to his pipes and straight out refusing to speak to Erik or even give him the time of day. This position soon becomes untenable. for soon the team (lead by Tenannt of course!) stages an intervention!

Shortly after, the thawing of relations begins in more ways the none- and I guess it’s fair to say that little Noah, son of Erik, helps with that- we soon see Stan falling heads over heals in love again with Erik and Noah, wanting nothing but the best for them.

While this reads as yet another insta love or insta relove story, it doesn’t detract from the fact that the characterisation of Stan and Erik are amazing- Stan’s’ English doesn’t become magically perfect overnight, frankly if you ask me it becomes sort of worse!- but never in a bad way; its a trait of his and his inner monologue is in that same broken English that you come to expect. Instead Stan is developed as a genuinely good giant of a goalie, who cares both passionately and deeply. As for Erik- the Swede is another brilliant character with both flaws and other traits that you cant’ help but love him and little Noah.

I think i have to admit that this is one book that’s one of my all time favourite reads.

Hockey Romance Universe Book 3- Deep Edge

Deep Edge

Series- Harrisburg Railers Book 3

Universe- Hockey Romance Universe Book 3

Author: RJ Scott and V.L. Locey

Publisher:  Love Lane Book Limited

Pages: 198

Formats:  Kindle

Rating:  4.5 stars

Towards the end of First Season we are introduced to Dieter Lehmann; a player for the Railers who approaches Layton Foxx with some “issues” that I can’t say lest they spoil it, however they will make you go OMG and hope that you see Dieter’s story and never fear, Dieter is the next in line.

Deep Edge opens not on Dieter but on Trent Hanson, an Olympic level figure skating who not only has been usurped by another kid, but due to actions of certain people has fallen onto hard times.

The solution?

A reality show focusing on Trent assisting the Railers in honing their skating skills and trying to find an edge to improve themselves. A show that would mean Trent’s ice hockey rink and his program for LGBTQI kids would continue to survive despite the knock knock knock of the bank on his door.

It’s this situation we find Trent and Dieter falling “insta in love” with each other, but not before we see sparks of both lust and hate flying between the two- Trent isn’t afraid to be as sassy as he needs towards Dieter which doesn’t deter him, in fact it’s one thing that Dieter appears to enjoy.

While the romance is happening, we see both Trent addressing his fears with his lola and mum, while Dieter addresses some serious issues both expected and unexpected. What is nice is that when Trent figures out the situation, he continues to help Dieter and challenge him to grow and not just drop him like a hot bag of potatoes!

This is another enjoyable read in the Hockey Romance universe, and i devoured it easily and I hope you do too!

Hockey Romance Universe Book 2- First Season

First Season

Series- Harrisburg Railers Book 2

Universe- Hockey Romance Universe Book 2

Author: RJ Scott and V.L. Locey

Publisher:  Love Lane Book Limited

Pages: 219

Formats:  Kindle

Rating:  5 stars

Now that Changing Lines has introduced us to the world, we come to the second novel in the series First Season.

Picking up on threads from Changing, First Season introduces to the social media guru Layton Foxx as the Harrisburg Railers deal with the process of Tennant Rowe coming out as both gay and in a relationship with a coach of all people! (Thankfully a defensive coach, opposed to Tennant who’s a forward). While Layton has to deal with it, he also has to deal with the “affections” of one Adler Lockhart; who on face value is a reach spoiled brat who doesn’t know the meaning of the word no!

Despite it being only book two of the series, First Season does what you expect it to by delving deep into the characters psyche while also continuing on with arcs from previous novels- for while we see Layton dealing with all kinds of PR hell (both in regards to Tennant as well as other members of the team), we also see him both thaw out and deal with the advances of Adler- you know Layton has some trauma in his past bet you never know what until it slowly gets revealed piece by piece.

As the “fallout” from the coming out plays out, we see both Layton and Adler growing as individuals, with Layton revealing his trauma, while Adler grows and is shown that money can’t be everything. As to be expected, both characters are more than that as they’re richly fleshed out while also showing how when things go right, humanity can surprise you.

Another good book in the series

[Hockey Romance Universe Book 1] Changing Lanes

Changing Lanes

Series- Harrisburg Railers 1

Universe- Hockey Romance Universe Book 1

Author: RJ Scott and V.L. Locey

Publisher:  Love Lane Book Limited

Pages: 205

Formats:  Kindle

Rating:  5 stars

As the first in the series, Changing Lanes has a lot to do. It has to introduce the world that we’re playing in as well as characters that you want the reader to identify and fall in love with; especially if you create such a rich world that this novel sits in.

The short version is that this is easily achieved and blown out of the rink!

In Changing Lanes we are introduced to Tennant Rowe and the basic premise of most sports books in this particular genre- what happens when a player comes out and the aftermath of such a move. While it is such a massive trope, I have to admit it’s one of my favourites and therefore am very particular with how the storyline is handled .

The great thing about Changing Lanes is that it is literally the first novel in a massive world- as of writing this review there are 27 books (both novels and novellas) over 4 series of interconnected world building! As you can image, that’s a lot of output but the question remains of is that a rich world?

Therefore, as started earlier, Changing Lanes has a lot of pressure on it- for you have to willingly fall in love with both Tennant Rowe and Jared Madsen as well as other characters because you never know what’s going to happen to whom and when!

And it works- I devoured this novel and the rest in the Harrisburg Railers series, and I’m re-reading the series again while attempting to read the other books in the universe; thankfully there’s a PDF on the authors website with the suggested reading order thank fuck!

The magnificent thing about Changing Lanes is that thankfully I’ve fallen in love with all the “right” characters in the sense they are the ones we see explored in further novels and are all richly developed.

You’ll loose track of time, but it’s highly worth a read!

The Boy from Boomerang Crescent

The Boy from Boomerang Crescent

Author: Eddie Betts

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Australia

Pages: 304

Format: Kindle

Rating: 5 stars

As you are probably are all aware of by know, I am very fussy when it comes to my reading so anytime there’s a new auto biography out that interests me, I have high standards for both the content itself and how it’s written. On the other hand there’s a few people that I know will produce a ripper of a yarn and Eddie Betts was/is one of them- as soon as I saw his book had dropped, I instantly brought it and was waiting for the right time to read it.

The right time turned out to be the Sunday just gone and it went the way I thought it would; i read it in two sessions in the arvo/evening only pausing for the evening meal.

The question that has to be poised is how do I start reviewing this?

I guess the first/best way is from the beginning- it’s hard to describe the feeling, but settling down to read it was a lot like a soft blanket coming to rest over my shoulders; Betts has always come across as a genuine bloke who likes a yarn and that is essentially what this memoir is.

This is a yarn where you feel Eddie is speaking to you one one one- from the beginning of hearing about his families heritage, he uses the language of his people in lieu of some English words- for example if the sentence is “we washed our bums”, the word bum would be one from his language. It comes across as a man proud of his heritage which he rightly admits to.

What is unusual about this memoir- and I use the term unusual loosely- is that in terms of timeline structure, there are moments you will get occasional whiplash Only minor whiplash mind you as this is a fairly traditionally structured memoir, but there are moments when he’s discussing his AFL playing career where he will skip forward to another point in time. This isn’t bad because when you are reading it, it gives you an overall picture of Betts as a person- he brings together the impact of what he was talking about with the benefit of hindsight and time.

To me, this memoir reminds of an oral history- and that is a great thing. Instead of it being cut and dry, it’s a yarn from one person to another and its easily accessible to most people with a grasp of the English language.

I have left this next point to the last in my review because while it as been covered in the media, I don’t want it to distract with how much of a bloody ripper this memoir is and that is the infamous Adelaide Crows pre-season camp. I’m sure we’ve all heard about it and yes it’s covered in some detail by Betts. All I will say is that when you read about it, your jaws will drop with how truly horrific it is.

Enjoy the read!

When to DNF a Book

As a reader, the above image is for me so very very accurate- I hestiate to DNF a book under ANY circumstances.

The problem is how long do you give a book before you DNF it?

I was reading a novel the other day on my Kindle using my Kindle Unlimited program- thankfully it means I didn’t waste any more purchasing the book! At the star tthe book seemed like it was going to be up my alley but then I got hints of small (or what iassume would grow to be major) things in the novel that didn’t sit quite right with me.

I try to read new things- after all we all have our own prefered genres and sometimes it’s good to shake things up (otherwise how do you find new things?). But conversley how do you know when it doesn’t sit with you?

For me, this novel and the things I felt uncomfortable with were very odd- on the one hand I did feel uncomfortable which is good because you need to shake things up, but on the other hand I could feel myself being drawn in and feeling strong emotions towards the character.

In the end I DNF it; could possibly say with a heavy heart. But when do YOU know it’s time to DNF a book, an article, a show etc?

The Orville: Sympathy for the Devil

Author: Seth MacFarlane

Publisher: Hyperion Avenue

Pages: 108

Formats: Kindle

Rating:  5 stars

As a fan of The Orville, I must say their season three is the it’s reached it’s apex in terms of reaching its mark- while it started off as a “comedic” sci fi, instead it’s in the annals of classic sci fi as a well written and performed piece of artistic work, pondering questions in a way that only science fiction can do. 

When I saw that there was a novella being written I eagerly pre ordered it- I had already read the comic books which were both brilliantly written and drawn, so I had high expectations of the novella. 

Waiting to read it in the correct order- it is advertised as being based after the eighth episode of season three- when I saw the eighth episode I eagerly devoured the novella. 

Full disclosure I am a massive book worm, so within a few pages I got a bit of a feeling of where this novella was heading and even said something out loud, but while I was proven right, it didn’t detract from the journey to the end. 

An easy novella to read, I’m hesitant to give too many details of the plot away lest I ruin the enjoyment for a fellow reader. Admittedly I did wonder one big question, but that question was soon put to rest within the next chapter, which in my opinion shows you that Seth MacFarlane knows how to plot out a storyline. 

What I can tell is that this novella does what classic science fiction does best- it ponders humanity both in the past and the future, in this case using the future as a frame to explore humanity’s past [spoiler redacted] (sorry not sorry!). 

While only a short read this novella will make you engage and think of the ideas that it raises- which is what good science fiction do (for other examples look at both the novel and the 1997 adaptation of Heinlein’s Starship Troopers [despite massive differences both hold up extremely well though don’t try comparing to each other as you’ll go insane] and Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five).

If you’re on the fence about reading this novella I recommend it- it will stay with you and make you ponder a lot of things.

Holding by Graham Norton- initial impressions

So I’m currently working my way though the novel Holding by Graham Norton and I must say I’m very impressed.

While it could be described as tedious that’s not the word I would use- so far Norton is a writer I’m enjoying as he’s a world builder. He focuses on the minor details to create a rich word which for me is a great thing.

I can’t wait to see how this novel ends- it’s already hitting me in the feels so that’s always a plus!

Anything But Fine by Tobias Madden

Author: Tobias Madden

Publisher: Penguin

Pages: 287

Formats: Kindle

Rating:  5 stars

There’s quite a lot I can say about this delightful YA book, but I will start by saying it really hit me in the feels. 

I knew I was going to be in for something different in the first few pages when I discovered it was set in Ballarat- a semi major country town in Victoria, Australia. The fact that it’s set away from the capital is great if you ask me, always good to see different places represented in fiction. 

The story opens and is based around Luca, a 16 year old openly gay ballet dancer, whose on the cusp of auditioning for the Australian Ballet School when a major accident shatters his dreams. 

This book explores the themes of loss and acceptance while you’re just a teenager; after all who could rightly handle their dream being taken away at any stage in such a cruel and heartbreaking manner?

Tobias Madden handles this in a tender and sensitive way; while the themes explored  in this novel aren’t anything revolutionary, Madden has a writing style that draws you in and makes you feel for each character- all of the major  characters are richly drawn out and you feel invested in them and their journeys.