Review: A charming romantic comedy, but with a little streak of mean...
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 23, 2013
I am always envious of a writer who can make me laugh, and John Inman is such an author. I laughed and giggled all the way through "Loving Hector," and was particularly pleased to see the main characters - Dillard and Hector - laugh together, even during sex.  Laughing during sex is pretty awesome.There is indeed an insta-love sort of thing in this book - but I found that, in this case, the set-up for it is classic romantic comedy, and given Dill's age and career (he's a writer, presumably of romances), he's more than ready to fall for "the one." So I bought into it, at least.Both Hector and Dill are nicely drawn young men - physically, emotionally, and in terms of how they relate to each other.  Inman makes them a living, breathing, laughing couple.The other characters all all very vividly drawn as well, but this is where the little bit of mean comes in.  I surely don't mind wacky parents (for example, in Tj Klune's "Tell me it's Real," Paul's parents are hilarious and embarrassing - but they're attractive and totally appealing as people); Dill is a pretty well-adjusted young man, and he clearly loves his parents, but they are not portrayed in a way that makes them remotely appealing. They have their quirks, but they deserve better, I think.And even the parents are not described in quite the way that Dill's grandfather is. Gramps is a really important character in this book. He's over eighty, eccentric, and (so it happens) horny. But Inman describes him with such side-show freakishness, that it's hard to not be bothered by it.  The notion that an old man is so physically repulsive that the idea of him having sex can only be barf-worthy is sort of insulting to all of us men who have passed fifty and feel very deeply the loss of our youthful allure (such as it was).  Given that Gramps is possibly Dill's most supportive and loving relative, it seems a shame that he couldn't have been offered a little dignity and elderly good looks.But Inman is a charming writer - and I like the way he does romance.  I will state, as I am wont to do these days, that I could do with a little less sex, since that's not really why I buy these books (any more, at least). When you've got a good story and interesting characters and fine writing, you don't need quite so much hot sauce to enjoy the flavor.