There was a huge storm last evening which helped cool it down, but it is our Blues Festival has outdoor stages, and the main stage collapsed in the wind while Cheap Trick was performing (I know, I know - Cheap Trick at the Blues Fest? - go figure). 3 people were hurt, a couple badly. I guess it was pretty scary. The band was unscathed. It's humid again today and rainy off and on, not quite 40 though. Whew. We don't do heat well. Why did I think India would be a great place for my next foreign posting? I got a fair bit of reading done because I was unmoving most of the weekend.
So some of what I read:
Torquere Press
So I didn't think this was really my kind of book, I'm not much on the fantasy grim-ish future worlds genre, but I read so many good reviews, I decided to give it a whirl. I'm glad I did because once I started reading I didn't want to stop. The alternate world is interesting if a tad confusing. Boys appear to live in the wild from about age 11-18 or 19, surviving by their wits, when they are captured by men and essentially become their mates/servants. Tarin is the main boy who is captured and he is hilarious. He's not about to give up his plan to escape, he doesn't believe all the bull about mothers/ladies (deities of a sort to the men/boys), he's not going to be civilized if it kills him, and he's not going to become attached to the man who has claimed him. Ooops. Maybe the last one. LOL Just seeing Tarin's reaction to civilization is hilarious and it just goes against the grain for him. Wearing socks, keeping chickens captive and not hunting them, clothing, all of it just rubs him the wrong way. However he's all about blow jobs. LOL There is political intrigue with a rather "by the book" highly ranked official and his mis-treatment of one of the boys, and then Tarin's man is injured and the bad guy who hates Tarin is trying to tear them apart and .... wait for the sequel. Sigh. My only "issue" was so little is given of how the boys get there (although you get some) because I'm thinking if you are raised normally for 11 years, you aren't going to forget how to speak (they speak a bit like cave-men until civilized) or the word for spoon or something. Part of that is explained but I still don't know where the breeding men are since all the men in this story are gay gay gay. However perhaps I must be patient, not one of my strong points, and more will be revealed in the next book. It's worth a read just to get in Tarin's head and I'm glad he wasn't a push-over for being "civilized" because that wouldn't have been half as much fun. Oh and his new shoes made me laugh but I won't tell you about them.
Lulu
This is the sequel to Fun with Dick and Shane which I adored. Gillibran is the houseboy for Dick and Shane, his Daddies. However there is a hierarchy, Shane at the top, Dick in the middle and Gilly definitely at the bottom. In all ways. Gilli is only 25 to Shane's 44 and Dick somewhere in the middle. He's very immature in some ways. He can't help being jealous of other people and situation (and even Dick or Shane on occassion), he acts out, is impulsive and spontaneous and ends up getting his ass warmed on an almost daily basis it feels like. He's also shriekingly hysterically funny. My only issue was by the end of the book it seemed to be more the same old same old. Gilly does something stupid, Shane gets pissed off and spanks him and they start over. There were things I wanted to know more about. Like Shane and Dick's civil union and how Gilly reacts (he says not well), but I have to remember, this is the diary of a real(?) person and he goes days between posts so I miss all the boring non-spanking days, he only reports in when he has something interesting to talk about, usually him getting in trouble. While he could be a brat to be sure, his men were sometimes freaking clueless and I didn't blame him for getting in a snit, as especially Shane could come across as a stick-in-the-mud grump, but on the whole it's a very entertaining read;and I hope there is more because I'd like to know more about his mother's illness and the Christmas visit of Shane's sister (the bitch from hell - according to Gilly).
Prove It by Chris Owen (178 pages)Torquere Press
Warren and Silas have been friends since pre-school. They are opposites, Warren likes calm and order, Silas is a charmed whirlwind of activity, a few years later Tal moves in and they become a tight threesome all through Jr. High and high school, even all going off to college together. Silas came out as gay in high school, and although Warren is gay he never really says it,except to his mother. Finally when he turns 21, his friends demand to know and if he's seeing someone. Warren is all about school though, he has friends with benefits but has no intention of starting a relationship with anyone. Finally it comes out that Silas wants him and vice-versa, but he refuses as he's finishing up university a semester early and heading off to California for grad school and doesn't want a relationship until after he's done his Ph.D. He want Silas to prove he loves him, which means no pressure. The story is interesting as you follow them for a large part of the story through their childhood, and you get to know them all. Warren is the main lead, but you find out about Silas and Tal and their boyfriends/girlfriends. I found Warren a bit annoying. Millions of people graduate college and have relationships. It's not like they are mutually exclusive. Also "prove it" but he didn't say "how" exactly. It's a no-win situation when you are vague like that. Although it all worked out in the end. There wasn't much conflict per se, everyone accepted them as gay, their families were fine, Tal didn't care, friends didn't shun them, it wasn't until near the end when Silas and Warren finally admitted feelings, that things go a bit more angsty. A fun read though when you're in the mood for something lighter and with a lot of emphasis on the main characters' histories together.
16 comments:
Ugh! Heat! It will be in the 90's here today, but I can't complain because it was oddly cool this weekend.
Brown has a third book chronicling his story: Achilles and the Houseboy
Plus, his journals are posted on his website. I love the stories. Sometimes Gilli needs to be swatted, but I think Daddy Shane needs a good smack too.
Heat, not good for what ails you. LOL
Oooooh, thanks, I'll have to check that out then. I agree, Shane could be a real curmudgeon, you'd think he was in his 80's not his 40's.
That's a hilarious photo of the poor overheated puppy! He must be a shar-pei or something like that. One of those little wrinkly dogs. :)
As for the books, that McGinley one sounds interesting. I might have to pick that one up.
He does look hot doesn't he Val? :-)
It's a very interesting story with a lot of humour, for instance Tarin is completely freaked by his first kiss as he's sure Garrick is trying to eat him alive. His thought process is hilarious at times. I was left with a lot of questions but was glad to hear there is a book coming this fall, so hopefully that will clear up some of the mysteries.
I love Gilly, even when he's a complete brat :).
I'm also looking forward to the sequel to Out of the Woods. I'm hoping it will tie up some of those loose ends.
I have Prove It on my TBR. I'm looking forward to it now. Hmmmmm, I'm nearly up to P so that might be it :).
Poor you with the heat. The weather is crappy here and I long for some sunshine.
If Gilly wasn't so amusing he could be annoying. :-)
Yes, I'm hoping the questions are answered because some of it didn't make much sense to me (logic kicking in) but I'm willing to wait.
This is actually more typical weather for us, well, not 42C, but hot at this time of year. I suppose I shouldn't complain.
The heat index is 113F here right now. Minnesotans don't do heat any better than Canadians!! My air conditioner is working hard today.
I really need to read the first Dick & Shane book...
Eeek. That's nasty Chris. Just don't move, it helps. :-) You should read them, they are a lot of fun.
Ooo, Syd's book intrigues me. I like her writing -- full of quirks rather than genre cliches. I am SO sick of genre cliches.
It was interesting and definitely some quirks in there KZ. You'll probably enjoy it then, and as I keep saying, Tarin and his reactions are just priceless.
Must read Gilli's books - I keep seeing them recced everywhere. He sounds hysterical :)
It's been cold here today - cold and dark and rainy and windy. Ugh - I envy your hot and humid weather. You're not meant to need your coat on in July.
Gilli is such fun Jo and he's very British, which means the books aren't dumbed down (much) for us on the other side of the pond.
I'm sure if we didn't have heat I'd be bitching about the cold. But really, what's wrong with sun and 23C? Someone arrange that for me.
I feel your pain. It's been absurdly hot here as well.
I've got More Fun and Achilles plus Prove It on my TBR. Looking forward to reading them.
I must get the Achilles one Lily. It's hot EVERYWHERE in North America almost. We definitely need a break.
Let me start by telling you how much I love the hotness with the long hair on your side bar. I think I must have lost about an hour of work time this morning just gazing at him. lol
I really loved the the first Fun with Dick and Shane book, I'll have to read this second one. And now a 3rd I see from the comments. Wow, I'm behind. lol
Out of the Woods sounds interesting. That's not normally my type of book either but sometimes they work for me. I'll have to check this one out.
It's been really hot here as well. We seem to go a week where we're melting and then have a week off with milder temps. Then back to "hot like the sun" temps. This week is the latter. lol Try to stay cool.
Isn't he pretty Tracy? Sigh.
I try to keep an open mind because sometimes things I don't usually like work, but it's hard to say. Out of the Woods worked for me this time.
Everyone is just melting everywhere it seems these days. It's far too hot to be healthy.
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