Review: I Really Loved This One
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 1, 2014
This book may be too much for some readers. It's about two men, Creed and Eli, both damaged and broken from abuse of various kinds, Creed, sexual and physical, Eli, physical and psychological. For a decade, they've been attracted to each other, and for a decade, hated each other. Every encounter between the two ended in a fistfight.They're both on the pro rodeo circuit. They used to compete, head-to-head in horse events, until Eli got tired of losing to the more delicate and beautiful Creed and switched to bulls. Creed is, virtually, a horse-whisperer - he can not only talk to and attract horses, he can tame the wild ones, and ride them bareback as though he were part of the horse, rather than a rider.Their last fistfight landed them in jail. The judge sentenced them to six months' house-arrest on Eli's Florida ranch - together. He figured they would either kill each other or become best friends. Either way, the endless violence would end.As it turns out, both boys' abuser was the same man, Eli's uncle. No spoilers, though, it's pretty dramatic how they confront him in the high point of the book.As always, Ms. Celeste's writing is impeccable and the editing virtually perfect. What particularly impressed me is how realistically she treated the legacy of abuse, the lack of self-respect, the anger, the constant mood changes, the "dead" eyes. The interaction between the two, as they fall in love, is really the core of the book, much more than the actual plot is. And the characters are so rich, so engaging, that you root for them every step of the way.The ending is perfect.This is not Shakespeare. It is a wonderful, heartwarming M/M romance. And it was exactly what I was looking for. Thank you Ms. Celeste, for a wonderful book!