Review: That's Who He Is and I Adore HIm
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 29, 2014
I love debut authors. I love debut stories. And I loved THIS debut author and her story.I'll be honest. Sometimes I cringe upon seeing the subject matter of misunderstood-gay-kid-getting-kicked-to-the-street. No, not because it's not a crucial, relevant subject but because so many I've read seem to blur together into a kind of cookie cutter character. When, in reality, kids---gay kids, straight kids---are so uniquely individual and they are NOT cookie cutter. None of them.Then along comes Jared Winters. He was a change from the usual abused young man. First of all, he was the twin to the popular jock type brother (okay, yes, so that maybe is a little routine).But...but...the wonderful twist to this MC was that---at first---his issues that caused the violence toward him in his home life were unusual. He was just a little to simple for his father's tolerance level. Poor Jared, always saying the wrong thing at the wrong time, never thought before he spoke. Well, he finally said one wrong thing too many and sent the lid blowing off his already-high-strung father's pressure cooker.I won't tell you what happens, but it was unique. For one thing, it was handled with---believe it or not---humor. Jared WAS just simple enough to have the edge smoothed on what would have been a justifiable resentment. He loathed himself, but even this he did with sweetness and a tinge of humor that endeared me to him. I found that so unusual.His crush, Donovan, is a cutie. Protective, understanding and the gentle haven that Jared always needed but never had. And, having had a visual in mind (a photo that the author had openly shared) of this Donovan, made him even more delightful. And so damn sexy.A surprisingly delightful story for such a serious, heart-wrenching subject. For some reason---maybe because Jared simply didn't allow me to---I didn't angst-out with the story. I just rode along with Jared and his simplicity and saw his experience to a happy end with him.Anxious to see what else Ms. Brooks has in sore for us!