Review: Family Man by Heidi Cullinan & Marie Sexton
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 2, 2013
This book surprised me because, well, I was expecting a sexy, and yes, ordinary story, and instead what I got was the more satisfying sweet romance. 38 years old Vince, an Italo-American, trice divorced, is finally ready to admit that something is wrong in his life; like an epiphany, witnessing the love between a same-sex couple, he realizes that maybe those feelings he tried to suppress, are the reason why he is not able to build a permanent relationship with a woman. And when he is ready to see the dating pool with different eyes, he also sees family friend Trey, 25 years old and so cute. Trey is also perfect for Vince to experiment his feelings, because Trey is openly gay but also a virgin, he doesn't want to "waste" his body with insignificant relationships; Vince is not ready for the physical side of a gay relationship, and Trey wants to date a man without his date expecting him to put out just for a dinner or a movie night.The authors do play a lot with the stereotypes of the Italo-American community, but they do it with a playful streak. Trey is a "good boy", with strong family values, and he is a virgin, the most valuable asset for a prospective wife in the old fashioned Italian rules for a perfect marriage. Vince is from a big Italian family, and that means he is never alone, family comes first, especially when considering a future partner: there is no way Vince can renounce to his family to pursue his love; what Vince hasn't considered is that, family strings are stronger than prejudices.There is a simile I think the authors are using as input for this story that I kind of agree with: that between the Italian family and the gay community. In both you help each other, without questioning, just for the reason you are part of a whole. You help in good and bad health, when you have money and when you haven't.As a side note, I also liked the Chicago's setting: it's a city I visited only once in my life, but I remember it quite well, and with few expert touches, the authors managed to make it alive in their novel.