stardustandrockets's reviews
362 reviews

I must not have read the same book as everyone else because I didn't find the sex scenes all that spicy. Explicit? Yes. Overly spicy? Not at all. Sheldon's dirty talk took me out of the moment and I tended to skip his dialog. Especially when he kept saying his hole was hungry for Theo... No thanks.

The constant comments about being a redhead were also incredibly annoying. Sheldon constantly mentioning that he's a redhead and "Oh, because I'm a redhead?" when he means, "Oh, because I'm gay?" was off-putting. And the constant references to his size vs Theo? We get it. You're an elf and you think Theo is a oafish ogre. How rude. And everything needing to be a "moment" or "fantasy" got old real fast. Also, Sheldon constantly assuming every new man he meets at work is straight wasn't right. Like he's the only one allowed to be gay? Ugh. I also didn't like Theo's nickname for Sheldon. I get that Theo was in the military and nicknames are a super common thing, but Booster? Really? It rubbed me the wrong way.

There were more things I found not great with this book, but I don't want to completely rip it to shreds. I'll probably still read the third book when it comes out (assuming I still have kindle unlimited), but these aren't at all books I'll be adding to my physical collection. Which is fine. I can read books for the hell of it and not have to own everything in physical form.

To end on a better note, I will say this book handled PTSD
and the fear of something happening to loved ones rather well. I'll give credit where it's due. But overall, this one was just okay.

I don't understand why people cried reading this book. I will say that I relate a lot to Sabrina's want to not get married because she didn't have good views on it growing up. And I relate a whole heck of a lot to Harriet and her family. My parents got pregnant with my sister before they got married and they were incredibly poor for a long time. Then my brother happened. Six years after that I came along and 3 years after that, my younger sibling. There's a 12 year age gap from oldest to youngest and all that time my dad worked two jobs just to barely make ends meet. My parents fought all the time and I used to wish they'd just get divorced. Though, as a kid, I didn't realize what that would mean for either of them. My dad would be fine (probably), but my mom would have nowhere to go and no job to fall back on. It seemed they were in a marriage of convenience with no real way out. Did they love each other? I'm not sure. I think things started out under shit circumstances and they made the best of what they had. So yeah, I relate a lot to Harriet and what she was going through. Not asking for help when she very much had several people in her corner. Wyn also hit home a bit because of his undiagnosed depression. He didn't realize anything was wrong until it was really wrong. Functioning at less than optimum your whole life, you don't realize that that's not how everyone goes through life. That was me. Being undiagnosed AuDHD and thinking I was just lazy at school work and not realizing I was actually struggling. But I didn't have the words to say "Hey, I really want to do these things, but I can't make my brain do these things."

I think it was a good thing that Harriet and Wyn called things quits for a bit. Wyn was able to find out what makes him happy on his own, Harriet discovered that she wasn't happy on her own and that her job was making her incredibly miserable. But the whole time she wanted Wyn because he was her happy place. That's how I feel about my partner. It doesn't really matter what we're doing, as long as we're together.

So while I may not understand what made people cry, I think I relate the most to this book. Even if it's still not my favorite. On a personal level, this is the one that hits home the most.

I found Nora rather insufferable. Charlie needs to be protected at all costs!

I kind of hated Wes at the very beginning of this book. The first glimpse we get of him he's literally bullying a kid and gets sent to the counselor's office. He's angry. So very angry. The author did a great job of showing, rather than telling, us why he was angry and that he didn't want to stay that way. Wes has big emotions that he wasn't taught how to handle so he lashes out at those around him and himself.

With the help  of his new friend and crush, Tristan, Wes finds himself doing things he never thought he'd do (like joining the photography club). Over the course of the book we see Wes come out of his shell a bit all the while hiding things from his best friends because 1.) he's closeted, and 2.) he didn't think they'd understand.

This is a book about self-discovery when others have already labeled you, found family, unpacking trauma, and not letting the anger win. 

I was given an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Skater Boy reminds me a lot of A Little Bit Country by Brian D. Kennedy and that was one of my favorite reads from 2022. This one is out on February 6, 2024 and I hope you'll pre-order or pick it up from your local bookstore.