Review: Too Short
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 29, 2013
I have to give kudos to the author, Anastasia Reeves, and encourage her to write more.She has a great way with words and creates engaging and attractive characters. Her heart is in the right place, too. This short book (more accurately, novella) tells the story of Derek and his rock band, "Sacred Tigre". In a highly-compressed narrative, they go from a just-recognized Minneapolis local band to national stardom. In the process, Derek has to come face-to-face with his sexuality and his lifelong efforts to suppress and hide it - even to the point of having a long-term girlfriend, Shannon, whom he really does love, but...The problem with this well-written book (and the only reason I didn't give it five stars) is that it's just too darned short. There are just not enough pages to develop characters fully or to show their changes evolving. There is no space for subtlety.I note that the only works of Ms. Reeves available for the Kindle are this, and a collection of short stories, so it seems that Ms. Reeves has yet had the opportunity (or confidence) to attempt the daunting project of a full-blown novel.Personally, I hope she does, and just view "The Boys In The Band" as an appetizer. I'm waiting, anxiously, for the full course.P.S. One note to the author: it's probably not a good idea to use another author's title. Especially when "The Boys In The Band", by Mart Crowley (play and movie) is an iconic work in gay history. Looks like you're piggybacking on a more successful author's brand, whether that's the true intention, or not. Just my $.02.