Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: Rabi and Matthew by L.A. Witt

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Rabi and Matthew

"This was fantastic! The story emphasizes on the idea that no matter who you are, no matter your status, race, financial, or otherwise, the heart wants what the heart wants. In this case, two young men from two political rival families. They feel an attraction before they realize who the other one is and they fight against the current to remain friends, then lovers. They fight for their freedom to love one another, in spite of the hatred and rivalry amongst siblings and parents. This was well written and quite enjoyable."

A queer retelling of Romeo & Juliet, except no one has to bury their gays.

A decades-old family rivalry is reaching a boiling point as the patriarchs vie for a seat in Congress. Democrat vs Republican, Muslim vs Christian, Hashmi vs Swain — the Midwestern town of Arbor Hills is one spark away from an explosion of violence. So when two men find themselves irresistibly drawn together at a party, only to discover they were born on opposite sides of a bloody battle line, Matthew Swain and Rabi Hashmi know they should leave well enough alone.

The pull between them is magnetic, though, and it's too strong to ignore. Unable to resist, they meet again in secret. Generations of hatred can't temper the passionate love growing between them, but two men falling for each other in the middle of a war zone can't hold back the inevitable clash.

And when decades of political, religious, and personal strife finally come to a head, there will be blood.