The Value of X ( 2003 ) (A book in the John Rickey and Gary 'G-man' Stubbs series) A novel by Poppy Z Brite New Orleans native Brite has a number of horror novels to her credit and is a minor cult figure in goth kid circles (she is also the author of Courtney Love: The Real Story). Her latest novel is a rose-tinted gay coming-of-age story set on the mean streets of New Orleans' rundown Lower Ninth Ward. The son of hardworking blue-collar Catholic parents, 16-year-old Gary Stubbs is growing increasingly troubled by his sexual feelings for John Rickey, his best friend since childhood. Rickey, living with his divorced mom, takes the realization that he himself is gay in stride, but he is afraid his feelings are not reciprocated by Gary... Brite's novel is clumsy feel-good pulp, but its artless sweetness is a welcome respite from more jaded gay genre fiction.