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By Degrees
by JB McDonald
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Paperback
Publisher: Torquere Press
Orphaned at eleven and bounced around the foster system, Tim learned young that the only thing he could control in life was himself. It was a lesson he took seriously, and it's the only thing that keeps him safe from more heartbreak. He wants to keep his world well-ordered, but he can't seem to keep his friend Conner neatly pigeon-holed. Conner doesn't understand this desire to control things, but he doesn't need to. He loves everything about his control-freak friend, from Tim's black hair and blue eyes to the way he quirks just one eyebrow. Con has loved all these things for years, and now he's learned that it's a short step from loving to falling in love. With Con's arrival, everything starts unraveling in Tim's life. He finds himself questioning his sexual orientation, wrangling with emotions dragged up from his past, and fending off questions from Con's well-meaning family. Drowning in a world out of his control, his one hope is to let go and trust that love will save him. But after so many years of burying his feelings, he's not sure it's possible.
| Customer Reviews: |
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| Well worth the Time to relax and read. |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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There haven't been many books in this genre that I have really, really enjoyed, one being Faith & Fidelity by Tere Michaels, and another is this book. I can honestly say that I really got into these well written characters and they completely captured me from the first chapter. I am a stickler for the technical aspects of writing and will be turned off by poor editing and poor writing skills. The characters in the volume are well constructed and completely beliveable. I look for romance in a romance novel and I was not disappointed in this book. The romance is palpable and empathetic. It was so easy to fall in love with the protagonists. If a writer cannot capture my attention from the first paragraph then I will struggle to get involved with the characters and the writing style. I give high marks to JB McDonald for a well written and well developed story. I highly recommend this book and the writer. I look forward to the next work from this writer.
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| By Degrees by J.B. MacDonald |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Even if he now would never admit it, Tim knows that when he met Con for the first time, he found his true love. Problem is that Tim at that time was 10 years old and Con only 12; they still hadn't reached the phase in which someone wonders about being straight or gay, and they had only an year to be together. They were both in boarding school, but then Tim's parents died in a car accident, and Con's father had financial trouble and he went to live with his grandparents. Still they remained in touch, first with letters and then with emails; Con became Tim's internet friend, someone always present, but far enough for Tim to not feel threatened.
Probably Tim was already a troubled boy, being sent in a boarding school at a so young age didn't allow him to form the first important emotional bond in life, the one with your parents. And the the accident and the various foster homes didn't help either. Tim repressed all the feelings of abandonment and sadness and became a control freak. He has to have control in everything, above all in his own feelings; as I said, Tim just met the only person in the world who can find a breach in the walls he built around him, and that person is far from him, he even controls that weak side of him, knowing in every moment where Con is and what he is doing. Tim starts to date women, since it's expected from society, but he knows that a woman has no chance to pull down his barriers and so he is safe with them. This is not a "gay for you" romance, first of all since Tim, deep down him, knows that he is in love with Con, and second since Tim is a full-figured virgin, in any meanings of the word: he has never allowed anyone near him enough to tolerate a physical touch.
But now Con has invaded his space and started to work on that breach. He is in Tim's apartment, in Tim's life again, and he is too huge: not only in the physical meaning of the word, but also to an emotional level. Tim freaks out, he feels his control slip out for his hands. What I like of Tim is that he seems unable to be nasty with Con; he is sharp and edging, but he always tries to do the right thing with the man. True, when Con has to go away for a period, Tim tries to rebuild his walls, but at the same time he tries also to understand himself better and his feelings for Con; when everyone around him already knows that Tim is gay, Tim has still some hope that this is not true, since if he is gay, he is in love with Con and he is in big big trouble.
The book is not so simple that the "little" realization of being gay allows to our hero to happily walk hand in hand toward the sunset (don't get mislead by the cover...). That is only the first step and maybe the simpler, it's only stating the obvious; if till this point the book was almost funny (with sentence like "after a month he was always sure to be more gay than not"...), now it turns in something more complex and moving. Even if Tim is a doctor, he has still huge mental barriers that don't allow him to admit that he needs the help of a specialist; on the other hand Con, even if a real good man, is a firefighter, not a therapist; but he tries to help the man he loves, he tries to be supporting and sympathetic. I really like as he comes out as character, since the reader can really understand that he is not like that, he is not for real an always careful and cautious man, but he knows that he has to be like that for the good of Tim, the man he loves... and when he momentarily forgot, the real Con comes out, with his requests of a puppy (when they are both men with eclectic working hours) or for Tim's to take cooking classes (when the man has already his days full with his job and other bigger problems).
Both characters are wonderfully rendered, but Tim comes out in full force. I was really taken by this man that apparently is aloof and detached, but instead has so much to give: I was almost regretting that it was not allowed to these two men to live their childish love, to grew together and being always happy since that tender age... but probably they would have been not able to realize the beautiful love story that now they are living. By Degrees is a very good novel, that mix romance, eroticism and a bit of drama, but that has also a funny core that always warms even the more angst scenes.
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| Humorous, engrossing and heart felt. |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Humorous, heart warming, at times sad, this well written gay romance of two close friends is one engrossing read. All the characters are well rounded, their interaction and the entertaining and seamless dialogue keeps me glued to the pages.
Tim is one interesting character. A fostered child since 11, he manages to beat the system and become a doctor. But at the cost of keeping his emotions so bottled up that those who care for him are wary for him. Tim may be diminutive but far from defenseless as he is well versed in martial arts. And here we have another interesting character, Rick who is owner of the martial art practice. Rick is Tim's adopted "big brother" and takes his role seriously especially when Tim admits he may have gay tendencies, which leads to hilarious moments.
Then there is Connors who is Tim's childhood friend. Even if they have not seen each other for close to 10 years, they manage to remain close. Brought up by a pair of adoring grand parents, Connors is such a hunk and a really nice guy with a sweet temperament and is comfortable in his skin as a gay man. When Connors declares his love, Tim's well controlled life starts to unravel. Faced with the possibility that he could be gay, Tim embarks on some soul searching, including trying to hook up with a gay colleague with near disaster consequences. But as Tim's feelings for Connors grow so does his inability to embrace these same emotions threatening to bury him. The writer has done a wonderful job delving into his guys' roller coaster emotional rides.
As for the supporting characters they certainly spice up the plot be it the guys' close fiends, Rick and Jay, or Connor's endearing grandparents. This is one engrossing read and I am pleased that there is a follow-up on Rick and Jay.
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