kaa's review
3.0
A free copy of the book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
This was miles better than the prequel in terms of writing style - switching from first to third person narration was a good decision. There were still a few bits of dialogue that I couldn't believe someone would actually say, but overall this is a pretty well-written book.
This book also didn't make me nearly so uncomfortable in the way it addressed Mal being Pakistani. I appreciated seeing a character who was both gay and a practicing Muslim, and I think it's important to acknowledge the reality of racism, as this book does. I can't really comment further on the accuracy or quality of this representation, though, being both white and American.
The storyline, for me, was a bit frustrating. I really enjoyed the bits about the development of Mal and Rick's relationship and life in the village, and fortunately this was a lot of the book. I had more trouble with the parts, especially at the end, relating to coming out to the village, because I felt this element was rushed and didn't have the emotional impact for me that I would have wanted. It didn't feel like Rick had to do nearly enough of his own work to earn a happy ending.
This was miles better than the prequel in terms of writing style - switching from first to third person narration was a good decision. There were still a few bits of dialogue that I couldn't believe someone would actually say, but overall this is a pretty well-written book.
This book also didn't make me nearly so uncomfortable in the way it addressed Mal being Pakistani. I appreciated seeing a character who was both gay and a practicing Muslim, and I think it's important to acknowledge the reality of racism, as this book does. I can't really comment further on the accuracy or quality of this representation, though, being both white and American.
The storyline, for me, was a bit frustrating. I really enjoyed the bits about the development of Mal and Rick's relationship and life in the village, and fortunately this was a lot of the book. I had more trouble with the parts, especially at the end, relating to coming out to the village, because I felt this element was rushed and didn't have the emotional impact for me that I would have wanted. It didn't feel like Rick had to do nearly enough of his own work to earn a happy ending.
comicsandbookdragon's review
3.0
Book provided by Signal Boost Promotion and read on behalf of Thorns & Ink
This was interesting in the modern sensibility. It takes a lot of balls to bring casual racism front and center and force the characters to deal with their ignorance. I give Ms. Francis props for that. She handles this subject matter well. There were funny moments and poignant moments that are satisfying.
The village of Sloppy Bottom reminds of the many sleepy Midwestern towns I have been too. Sweet, enduring, and just a little ignorant in some ways. I like the image she presented. Made me want to visit. I love reading books set in the UK because of the change in English. It is so pleasant to try to figure out the accents and the speech rhythms.
The characters are believable; each with redeeming qualities in the end. Rick and Mal (Malik) are interesting character studies. Rick is closeted living in this sleepy town. Mal lives out loud even being Muslim. He lives happily and I like that. He wants to love Rick (He does. You can see it in his actions). He wants to love Rick out loud. Rick wastes a lot of time resisting and hiding. Mal, given his upbringing would be the more likely candidate for being closeted. Smudge was interesting. A jerk, but his actions were often (in my opinion) arseholey.
This is a book that was hard for me to get into. There were parts that I liked more than others. I often found myself rereading parts to make sure things were clear. For a book with such well written characters and well thought out plot lines, the story itself was not as entertaining. The complexity of Mal and Rick’s relationship is what keeps the story going.
This was interesting in the modern sensibility. It takes a lot of balls to bring casual racism front and center and force the characters to deal with their ignorance. I give Ms. Francis props for that. She handles this subject matter well. There were funny moments and poignant moments that are satisfying.
The village of Sloppy Bottom reminds of the many sleepy Midwestern towns I have been too. Sweet, enduring, and just a little ignorant in some ways. I like the image she presented. Made me want to visit. I love reading books set in the UK because of the change in English. It is so pleasant to try to figure out the accents and the speech rhythms.
The characters are believable; each with redeeming qualities in the end. Rick and Mal (Malik) are interesting character studies. Rick is closeted living in this sleepy town. Mal lives out loud even being Muslim. He lives happily and I like that. He wants to love Rick (He does. You can see it in his actions). He wants to love Rick out loud. Rick wastes a lot of time resisting and hiding. Mal, given his upbringing would be the more likely candidate for being closeted. Smudge was interesting. A jerk, but his actions were often (in my opinion) arseholey.
This is a book that was hard for me to get into. There were parts that I liked more than others. I often found myself rereading parts to make sure things were clear. For a book with such well written characters and well thought out plot lines, the story itself was not as entertaining. The complexity of Mal and Rick’s relationship is what keeps the story going.
lillian_francis's review
There's a short ficlet catch up with the boys here
https://lillianfrancis.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/rainbow-advent-calendar-day-23.html
The sequel to Resonance. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27237341-resonance
https://lillianfrancis.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/rainbow-advent-calendar-day-23.html
The sequel to Resonance. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27237341-resonance
calila's review
4.0
*A free copy was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review*
A little bit of a slow read, but it is deeply intimate. The relationship is very well developed. I accidentally read this first, instead of Resonance. But I didn't feel lost, all that was missing was how they met, not having read it doesn't detract from Resistance. I will say, I feel like it could've been shorter. It dragged in spots for me. I struggled with Rick's reluctance to be public. I struggled with Mal's refusal to be honest (though at the same time I appreciated his desire to give Rick time.) I do like how it's resolved. So it kind of ends up worth it. I really liked all the side characters, I'm excited to read Smudge and Raleigh's story. Hoping Adam gets his own.
A little bit of a slow read, but it is deeply intimate. The relationship is very well developed. I accidentally read this first, instead of Resonance. But I didn't feel lost, all that was missing was how they met, not having read it doesn't detract from Resistance. I will say, I feel like it could've been shorter. It dragged in spots for me. I struggled with Rick's reluctance to be public. I struggled with Mal's refusal to be honest (though at the same time I appreciated his desire to give Rick time.) I do like how it's resolved. So it kind of ends up worth it. I really liked all the side characters, I'm excited to read Smudge and Raleigh's story. Hoping Adam gets his own.
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