Shining in the Sun by Alex Beecroft

I love the old fashioned romances, the type where a prince charming is coming to save the virgin damsel, I have even a tag for them, only that, being this a gay romance, it’s a “cinderfella” and not a “cinderella” story; and well, here the damsel is not even virgin, far from it, but the prince charming is perfect, with his slightly resemblance with a notorious English actor of romantic comedies (is this the moment where I confess my secret passion for Hugh Grant? Between him and Colin Firth I don’t know why I didn’t move in England to find one prince charming myself…)

Shining in the Sun respects all the rules of the cinderfellas stories, but it manages to be original thanks to its characters, that don’t play along the rules. Prince Charming is Ptolemy Alexander St. John-Goodchilde, Alec for short, who is a very wealthy, very shy, mommy boy City of London businessman; a perfect fiancee on the side, an ordinary life for 11 out of 12 months per year, his only rebellion is to take the month of August all for himself, and sailing without purpose on his yacth, the Lady Jane. This year though there was an impediment, and he is waiting for his car to be repaired in some Cornwall tourist trap seaside village when he meets cindefella Darren.

Darren is the neglected son, the one his father left with his grandmother when their mother fled, the one who is now taking care of the ailing woman in the only way he knows, selling his body to rich men. But at least he fouls everyone, and himself, telling that he is in love with those men, that if they hurt him it’s only because it’s their way to express that love, that he is capable of taking care of himself and his grandmother, at least since the day he awakes in an hospital. Like Alec, also Darren has the month of August out, out of his obligations, out of his fears, and if in that month he really sells himself for money, well, then he can always say that it’s only for a month, that he is not really a whore.

Alec doesn’t cruise Darren for sex, and when he sees him, the educated man that is in him makes all sort of classical comparison to prove to himself that is interest for Darren is something ethereal and pure, but he is also quick to use his money to chain Darren to him for at least one afternoon, that then become a night. And even when he is shown the reality, he is quick to find a reason, Darren after all came back, if he has stolen his money, it wasn’t for himself, Darren is proud and sincere, he is the same perfection he saw surfing like some mythical creature.

And Darren is all wounded pride, he is jumping like a spring, or like someone pocked in a place that hurts, because you know that what they said it’s true. Darren is not like those old fashioned heroines who would prefer to die rather than losing their innocence to the hand of a villain, Darren is more like those soiled doves, working in some brothel, but only to maintain an aging mother, or an helpless baby, or some other innocent creature.

Of course Alec is naïve, of course he knows that if not for his money he would have not met Darren; and of course Darren is far from being innocent, and he is interested, and weak, right until the last chapter. Does this make them less perfect characters? I think that indead this makes them the most interesting thing of the novel. Personally I have always found those virgin heroines quite boring, and the perfect hero a bit presumptuous. Who cares that Alec and Darren’s happily ever after depends on Alec’s money? If this means that Darren will have to care not more for money and that Alec has bought his perfect future, well, it will mean also that for once money bought happiness.

http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/shining-in-the-sun

Amazon: Shining in the Sun

Amazon Kindle: Shining in the Sun

Reading List:

 

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading_list&view=elisa.rolle

Shining in the Sun by Alex Beecroft

I love the old fashioned romances, the type where a prince charming is coming to save the virgin damsel, I have even a tag for them, only that, being this a gay romance, it’s a “cinderfella” and not a “cinderella” story; and well, here the damsel is not even virgin, far from it, but the prince charming is perfect, with his slightly resemblance with a notorious English actor of romantic comedies (is this the moment where I confess my secret passion for Hugh Grant? Between him and Colin Firth I don’t know why I didn’t move in England to find one prince charming myself…)

Shining in the Sun respects all the rules of the cinderfellas stories, but it manages to be original thanks to its characters, that don’t play along the rules. Prince Charming is Ptolemy Alexander St. John-Goodchilde, Alec for short, who is a very wealthy, very shy, mommy boy City of London businessman; a perfect fiancee on the side, an ordinary life for 11 out of 12 months per year, his only rebellion is to take the month of August all for himself, and sailing without purpose on his yacth, the Lady Jane. This year though there was an impediment, and he is waiting for his car to be repaired in some Cornwall tourist trap seaside village when he meets cindefella Darren.

Darren is the neglected son, the one his father left with his grandmother when their mother fled, the one who is now taking care of the ailing woman in the only way he knows, selling his body to rich men. But at least he fouls everyone, and himself, telling that he is in love with those men, that if they hurt him it’s only because it’s their way to express that love, that he is capable of taking care of himself and his grandmother, at least since the day he awakes in an hospital. Like Alec, also Darren has the month of August out, out of his obligations, out of his fears, and if in that month he really sells himself for money, well, then he can always say that it’s only for a month, that he is not really a whore.

Alec doesn’t cruise Darren for sex, and when he sees him, the educated man that is in him makes all sort of classical comparison to prove to himself that is interest for Darren is something ethereal and pure, but he is also quick to use his money to chain Darren to him for at least one afternoon, that then become a night. And even when he is shown the reality, he is quick to find a reason, Darren after all came back, if he has stolen his money, it wasn’t for himself, Darren is proud and sincere, he is the same perfection he saw surfing like some mythical creature.

And Darren is all wounded pride, he is jumping like a spring, or like someone pocked in a place that hurts, because you know that what they said it’s true. Darren is not like those old fashioned heroines who would prefer to die rather than losing their innocence to the hand of a villain, Darren is more like those soiled doves, working in some brothel, but only to maintain an aging mother, or an helpless baby, or some other innocent creature.

Of course Alec is naïve, of course he knows that if not for his money he would have not met Darren; and of course Darren is far from being innocent, and he is interested, and weak, right until the last chapter. Does this make them less perfect characters? I think that indead this makes them the most interesting thing of the novel. Personally I have always found those virgin heroines quite boring, and the perfect hero a bit presumptuous. Who cares that Alec and Darren’s happily ever after depends on Alec’s money? If this means that Darren will have to care not more for money and that Alec has bought his perfect future, well, it will mean also that for once money bought happiness.

http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/shining-in-the-sun

Amazon: Shining in the Sun

Amazon Kindle: Shining in the Sun

Reading List:

 

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading_list&view=elisa.rolle

My Summer of Wes by Missy Welsh

My Summer of Wes is a sweet and tender coming of age story and the best thing of all is that it has not angst at all. I really love stories with teenagers at their first love experience, but most time than not I’m there waiting for the next drama to happen, and most time than not that drama strikes; true, a good share of these stories have an happily ever after, but sometime I wonder why the reality has to ruin the sweet memory of your first love.

And so, sorry if this is a spoiler, but I loved My Summer of Wes since it was sweet, and maybe naïve, but so romantic and pink glasses perspective. All the little angst you can find was already in Mal’s past; the reader has been told that he didn’t have a good experience in high school, he was bullied since he was smaller than other guys, and a little nerdy, and most of all, pretty like a girl. They told him he was gay, but Mal has never once kissed a boy or a girl, and so he doesn’t know what being gay means. Above all Mal is a late bloomer, and so he hasn’t really had any sexual desire, at least until the day Wes and his family move next door.

Wes is gay, out and proud, and he is beautiful; he is confident and cool, and he courts Mal from the beginning, at first in a flirty and lighty way, and then with more convintion. Mal seeks him out as a friend and little by little he realizes that his feelings are deeper than friendship, and Wes is there, ready to teach him.

There are some points why I tagged this romance as naïve: how Mal mistakes Wes as a guy his same age while Wes is 26 years old (and there all the self-confidence and experience Wes has more than Mal); as the author explains Wes living with his parents at that age simply saying that he was not comfortable living along in his previous neighboorhood since he was gay; how I felt like there was a story behind, maybe a broken heart, by some tidbit here and there, but the author chose not to fully explain it; the unresolved issues of Mal with his parents. But as I said, I probably preferred for the story to be naïve, rather than making a drama out of all the above details: Mal and Wes were living a summer loving, Mal is experiencing his first love, I loved that he was able to be cuddled, courted and well loved without reality introduing in the story.

Mal said his life was a vanilla pudding and that Wes and his family were a colorful little sprinkle; but Wes likes vanilla and there is little drama in a vanilla pudding, but it’s comfortable and sweet. Maybe Wes’s family is a little more liberal than Mal, but I don’t think they were bad; maybe not so caring, and very much distracted, but I can see them sitting around a table discussing about Mal’s future, and basically accepting what he is, and what he wants from life, at the only condition that he is safe and good, creating another vanilla pudding, only this time with a chocolate sprinkle in it.

http://www.loose-id.com/My-Summer-of-Wes.aspx

Amazon Kindle: My Summer of Wes

Reading List:

 

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading_list&view=elisa.rolle


Cover Art by P.L. Nunn

My Summer of Wes by Missy Welsh

My Summer of Wes is a sweet and tender coming of age story and the best thing of all is that it has not angst at all. I really love stories with teenagers at their first love experience, but most time than not I’m there waiting for the next drama to happen, and most time than not that drama strikes; true, a good share of these stories have an happily ever after, but sometime I wonder why the reality has to ruin the sweet memory of your first love.

And so, sorry if this is a spoiler, but I loved My Summer of Wes since it was sweet, and maybe naïve, but so romantic and pink glasses perspective. All the little angst you can find was already in Mal’s past; the reader has been told that he didn’t have a good experience in high school, he was bullied since he was smaller than other guys, and a little nerdy, and most of all, pretty like a girl. They told him he was gay, but Mal has never once kissed a boy or a girl, and so he doesn’t know what being gay means. Above all Mal is a late bloomer, and so he hasn’t really had any sexual desire, at least until the day Wes and his family move next door.

Wes is gay, out and proud, and he is beautiful; he is confident and cool, and he courts Mal from the beginning, at first in a flirty and lighty way, and then with more convintion. Mal seeks him out as a friend and little by little he realizes that his feelings are deeper than friendship, and Wes is there, ready to teach him.

There are some points why I tagged this romance as naïve: how Mal mistakes Wes as a guy his same age while Wes is 26 years old (and there all the self-confidence and experience Wes has more than Mal); as the author explains Wes living with his parents at that age simply saying that he was not comfortable living along in his previous neighboorhood since he was gay; how I felt like there was a story behind, maybe a broken heart, by some tidbit here and there, but the author chose not to fully explain it; the unresolved issues of Mal with his parents. But as I said, I probably preferred for the story to be naïve, rather than making a drama out of all the above details: Mal and Wes were living a summer loving, Mal is experiencing his first love, I loved that he was able to be cuddled, courted and well loved without reality introduing in the story.

Mal said his life was a vanilla pudding and that Wes and his family were a colorful little sprinkle; but Wes likes vanilla and there is little drama in a vanilla pudding, but it’s comfortable and sweet. Maybe Wes’s family is a little more liberal than Mal, but I don’t think they were bad; maybe not so caring, and very much distracted, but I can see them sitting around a table discussing about Mal’s future, and basically accepting what he is, and what he wants from life, at the only condition that he is safe and good, creating another vanilla pudding, only this time with a chocolate sprinkle in it.

http://www.loose-id.com/My-Summer-of-Wes.aspx

Amazon Kindle: My Summer of Wes

Reading List:

 

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading_list&view=elisa.rolle


Cover Art by P.L. Nunn