kaje_harper's review against another edition
5.0
This was light and nerdy and fun, and yet real. A group of four 16- and 17-year-old boys reach that moment when friends and hanging out and goofing off can't be enough, and they start seriously looking at dating and sex. Jordan is gay and out among his friend group, and they have his back. But still, finding a guy to date is different from finding a girl, and Jordan doesn't have a real clue how to go about it. He's also skipped all the early parts that het guys can have with open crushes and teasing girls and talking about girls and kind of easing into things. Jordan is diving off into the deep end.
He suggests going to a gay dance club, where he can expect most of the guys to be interested in gay relationships without having to worry about approaching a homophobic straight guy, and he promises his friends straight girl sidekicks they can meet there. It's a real-life adventure, for a guy who previously defined adventures by trash mobs of monsters on random pats (patrols) as he and his friends hunted for the main boss in a game. Real life turns out to be messier, more painful, more thrilling, and harder to figure out.
There is fun banter between the characters, and having Jordan break the fourth wall to talk to the reader (something that I usually don't like) worked well here, with his naive voice, his good nature, the nerd quotient, and the thread of coming of age pains and growth that never became angst.
Don't forget to read past the author notes to the after-credits scene too. A fun, warm story with real teen boys, and a sweet ending.
He suggests going to a gay dance club, where he can expect most of the guys to be interested in gay relationships without having to worry about approaching a homophobic straight guy, and he promises his friends straight girl sidekicks they can meet there. It's a real-life adventure, for a guy who previously defined adventures by trash mobs of monsters on random pats (patrols) as he and his friends hunted for the main boss in a game. Real life turns out to be messier, more painful, more thrilling, and harder to figure out.
There is fun banter between the characters, and having Jordan break the fourth wall to talk to the reader (something that I usually don't like) worked well here, with his naive voice, his good nature, the nerd quotient, and the thread of coming of age pains and growth that never became angst.
Don't forget to read past the author notes to the after-credits scene too. A fun, warm story with real teen boys, and a sweet ending.
paulp's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
amyaislin's review
4.0
Loved this! What an absolute gem of a story. It's full of teenage angst and drama, bad decisions and questionable choices, self-doubt and friendship. The heart of this story is really the relationship between the four boys: Jordan, Brandon, Ethan, and Dominic. They're the glue that hold this book together, from page one right until the end, even as Jordan tries to navigate his way through the teenage dating world.
It was funny, sad, poignant, and relevant. Highly recommended!
It was funny, sad, poignant, and relevant. Highly recommended!
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