Gentle Paperback – September 2, 2016

Mark Zubro's latest Gay Young Adult novel continues his great success in publishing. Zubro's characters are realistic High School students, due to his long teaching experience, and he completely nails their strengths and foibles, and those of the adults around them. The protagonists grew on me subtly so that by the end of the novel, I truly cared about them and their relationship. Of course, Zubro is a seasoned and superb author of engaging mysteries, including in the Police, Private Eye, and Amateur Sleuth genres, and he brings his "A" game here as the guys are caught up in a series of mysterious killings and conspiracies. The pace never lets up!This is an great read for Youth and Adult readers, and a very important work for Youth readers, especially LGBT Youth. Even though things are much better than when I was growing up in the 50s-60s-70s for LGBT people in many places in the U.S., our youth still face a lot of hurdles. This is an enjoyable, and important novel. I look forward to more in this and Zubro's other Series!

Mark Zubro is a great writer. Whether as reindeer, cop, teacher or now as a teenager he is spot on. He is Not a beach read author but doesn't get bogged down in the details either. The pace is normal and each detail comes like it'd come in a normal conversation. That this may be the first of a series is great.

I wasn't sure what to make of this book. It started out like entries from a diary. The acknowledgment of noticing outlines in clothing and "me" time had a good narrative of the MC. Then comes the mysterious Black SUV and a super violent brother, dad the contract killer. A love interest that needed an adult guardian with him at school. It all got to be a bit much. It only got more convoluted as the pages turned. This isn't how I would have expected the story to go... I didn't hate it, but was challenged to connect with the MC. 2.5 for a single red rose.

I've read a lot of Mark's books. This one by far has hit closet to home, I see a lot of myself in Shane, which surprised me. The teen years in high school & now that I significantly older his dreams for love & companionship.

I have read all of Mark Zubro's books and as far as I can remember enjoyed them. This is different, with its extremely dysfunctional families - both adults and children. Full of guns and violence. If it is indeed written for teenagers it provides a gloomy perspective on life. Not recommended.

I don’t quite know what to say about this book. Did I like it? Yes, and no.The book is written in first person perspective by a self-aware teenager who talks directly to the reader. To be fair, he does come across very much as a teenager and could resonate with other teens – maybe. Personally, I think the author tries too hard and I’m not sure that teens will be fooled.One thing I didn’t like was when the narrator tells us he can’t be bothered with proper grammar, hence giving the author a get-out-of-jail-free card. I’m not personally one for following rules, grammar or otherwise, but I think this went a bit too far. Saying that, the grammar wasn’t terrible.The story is hit-and-miss. There are some good elements, some not so much.I very much like the way Corey and Shaun come together. At first, they don’t seem to fit at all. Shaun is the quiet, geeky, worry-wort; Corey is the bad boy who doesn’t know why he is as he is. Their first steps together are clumsy and tentative then take off like a rocket. They go from zero to sixty in no time and that’s exactly how it should be with kids their age. They’re beyond cute together and I rooted for them from the start.I also love the way the author describes Shaun’s woodworking – how lovingly he carved such intricate and delicate things, under the watchful and patient gaze of his crush, Kurt. The scenes in the woodworking room are truly gentle and at counterpoint to the violence that abounds in the rest of the story.The school environment and the kids’ day-to-day lives are well drawn and believable, if somewhat brief and sketchy, and this is where my problem lies. There are so many elements to this book. Corey and Shaun. Shaun and his woodworking. Corey and his dance. Shaun’s relationship (or lack thereof) with his school and fellow students. Shaun’s relationship with his family. His father’s illicit dealings. His brother’s illicit dealings. The gangs. The murders. For me, there’s too much going on.I don’t like the way the book is written and that is very much a personal thing. It isn’t badly written, by any means, but it isn’t to my taste. That’s not to say there won’t be plenty of fans. On the whole, the story is gripping and interesting with a good core cast of characters who are – overall – well drawn.Where the book really falls down for me is that I feel the storyline is needlessly complex and there are so many threads it was impossible to keep them all in order. Furthermore, many of the threads are either never resolved, or not resolved in a way that Is readily understood. Why were the teens being killed? What was the big secret Jay was hiding – or was thought to have been hiding? What was the police involvement? And so much more.Overall, the book has an intriguing and interesting, if confusing, story with a strong cast of characters and an unique voice; one which isn’t personally to taste but is undeniably fresh and could be a selling point to other readers. I would strongly advise readers to read a sample of the work before buying the book to get a flavour for the narrative first.I would recommend this as a strictly young adult adventure with a touch of romance, although I definitely wouldn’t class it as a romance per se.*Reviewed by Cheryl for Sinfully Gay Book Review*

i have read almost all of Mark's work over the years and have thoroughly enjoyed them. Thank you Mark, for all the enjoyment you have given us throughout the years. Keep up the great work!

Nice gay themes - youth coming out, but no real plot engagement.