Audiobook:
This one pulled me in before I even realized it. It held me (happily) in its clutches until the end. It kept going deeper and deeper and maintained its authenticity...two persons who have no clue about relationships somehow created a love story that kept me "all in" through the journey.

Cliches are born out of truth, so...
Trip and Silas were everything I didn't expect and became everything I hope for in a relationship because of what these two found together....theirselves. Creating with your SO falls into that ideal, as well. ( )

A deliberate choppiness to the spoken lines, especially in the throes of sexual passion or creative inspiration, is obviously a stylistic choice but not always successful. I read "Horn Gate" first, and this was a good companion. Annoying that both this and "Horn Gate" are called labeled (___ Series Book 1)." ( )

Hm. So. For this one I have to do star math. Not sure where we're gonna land.

Plot: 3.5 stars, because more than half the plot is unusual and good and gorgeous, but parts were teeth-grindingly annoying and this is how I protest. Maybe there are people who learn a thing and instantly discard it to wallow and whine. Maybe two of them are in a relationship, the fools. These two do this thing more than once, and that's too many for me. Too plot-device-y.

The characters: See, because of the plot, this is tough. But Silas is my favorite, so he gets 5 stars even so. Trip? I want to make him equal, but he is more of a putz. Way more. I don't care about reasons, he slacked big-time on the learning curve. 3 stars. So, mushed together and divided out, that's 4.

The...tidbits. Messages, funny lines, the kid, the wisdom and the joy and the kindness, the loving couple and sharp friend and the man who loves him, all the bits and pieces that sent me up out of the book with a smile or a tear or a sigh, 10 stars. I don't care if that's too many. Ultimately, it's what I come out absolutely adoring about this story.

3.5 4 10 = 17.5. Divided by 3 is more than 5. But now you know why, even though it annoyed me, it earned highest marks. ( )

Brilliant.
( )

This book wasn't for me. I liked Hot Head well enough, but he author's writing style here was very choppy and disorganized and it was quite difficult to follow the narrative. Additionally, there were SO MANY really bizarre euphemisms for genitalia and sex. Don't get me wrong, I fully believe that there should be more actual gay men writing gay male erotica, but I'm half convinced this is a parody and the author is laughing at us all for falling for it. ( )