This book is about losing one's footing then getting back on one's feet, family acceptance and abandonment, becoming worthy of someone's love and not settling for less than what you deserve. This is a beautiful read despite all its shortcomings. It's well-written and has interesting and relatable characters. Although the romance is unremarkable and the plot mediocre, the theme is effective and relevant. Recommended if you want to be entertained while killing time, but not if you're looking for something more profound.

Writing

The writing style is neat and precise, a pleasant respite from the long and winding sentences from my last read. There's little to no nuisance and redundancy in details, but I struggle with some ambiguous conversational phrases, although that's on my non-native English speaking ass. The narration is well-paced and the dialogues are engaging.

Characters

We have Wes, a half closeted spy who doesn't exactly know himself and whose life is in shambles. Then we have Tom, a survivor who knows exactly what is best for himself and what he wants in life. Wes, I can relate to as a gay man but can't help but be annoyed with for not manning up. Then Tom, I completely admire for settling only for what he is worth and nothing less.

Romance

Wes and Tom have conflicting dispositions and are in opposite situations in life. They also struggle and fight for dominance in their relationship, especially in bed. These, for me, are not the ingredients for a good romance. I also disliked that during sex, whenever one comes the other follows right after. This might be romantic, but it's cliche and I'm not buying. What's wrong with not coming simultaneously?

Plot

I don't think much thought is put into plotting the story. The sequence of events is uninteresting, bland, and unremarkable. I don't like that the spy and military sides of Wes and the other characters are not utilized to make the plot more exciting, despite having prologue and the first three chapters show those sides of the characters. What I'm trying to say is, if the author doesn't intend to use those sides of the characters for the bigger picture, then she shouldn't waste three parts of the book showing them.

Theme

The book talks about family acceptance being contingent upon sexual preference, gender identity, body shape, political views, etc; of parents not loving their children for having failed in these categories. Many LGBTQ people have experienced, are experiencing, and will experience this, and I love how this issue is presented and thankful for how the book stands against those behaviors.


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