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A review by pam_h
Playing Around by Suzanne Clay
4.0
First: This book is CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FOR FREE at NineStar Press. (No longer free, but still on sale) I had never heard of it or the author, but the reviews were positive and That Cover, yes please :) And I am now obsessed. Freebie for the win!!!! I have already purchased and devoured the sequel (also on sale, though not free) and eagerly anticipate the third book. I highly recommend it if you can handle:
>An explicit-ish m/f sex scene
>Girlfriends that stick around for longer than expected
>"Ethical non-monogamy" (AKA no cheating, even though there are multiple sexual partners)
I have recently discovered a love of romances with ethical non-monogamy (although I didn't know the all-encompassing term for it; thank you, book -- and Charlotte the most kick-ass GF you will ever read about in an m/m romance!) but I had no idea that's what I was getting coming into this story.
Ironically, I picked it up because I was in need of my comfort trope, which for me means the reliable formula of College Boys + Bisexual Discovery/Exploration = Unexpected True Love Forever. But there is nothing formulaic about this. If you need the tried and true traditional romance formula, this is not for you. At one point, I genuinely had NO IDEA where this story was going, and I'm so glad I went into it with zero expectations.
The writing's pretty raw, but so are the MCs. They are so specific and real, and I think it was a great idea to make this a trilogy. Both MCs are hiding a lot of insecurity under false bravado due to their strange hometown situation -- they were the only two black kids in their small, rural Georgia town and were both raised by white parents -- but being literal teenagers, they aren't really self-aware of how much this has affected their behavioral patterns.
They don't have the best communication skills, but I think it's a fantastically realistic representation of what that environment would breed. And that just doesn't get fixed in one semester, no matter how liberal and welcoming your new environment.
I also appreciated the accuracy of their long-term friendship not being able to turn on a dime just because they discovered a sexual attraction. There are lifelong patterns at work there that don't disappear overnight. The unhealthy communication patterns don't really get addressed until the sequel, but don't worry, it's coming :)
There's also a secondary trans character who gets a much bigger role in Book 2. There's just great representation all over the place with this series.
You may want to read the spoiler-y blurb for Book 2 if the "ethical non-monogamy" has you worried. But if it doesn't, I highly recommend just going along for the ride. And also ignoring this:
>An explicit-ish m/f sex scene
>Girlfriends that stick around for longer than expected
>"Ethical non-monogamy" (AKA no cheating, even though there are multiple sexual partners)
I have recently discovered a love of romances with ethical non-monogamy (although I didn't know the all-encompassing term for it; thank you, book -- and Charlotte the most kick-ass GF you will ever read about in an m/m romance!) but I had no idea that's what I was getting coming into this story.
Ironically, I picked it up because I was in need of my comfort trope, which for me means the reliable formula of College Boys + Bisexual Discovery/Exploration = Unexpected True Love Forever. But there is nothing formulaic about this. If you need the tried and true traditional romance formula, this is not for you. At one point, I genuinely had NO IDEA where this story was going, and I'm so glad I went into it with zero expectations.
The writing's pretty raw, but so are the MCs. They are so specific and real, and I think it was a great idea to make this a trilogy. Both MCs are hiding a lot of insecurity under false bravado due to their strange hometown situation -- they were the only two black kids in their small, rural Georgia town and were both raised by white parents -- but being literal teenagers, they aren't really self-aware of how much this has affected their behavioral patterns.
They don't have the best communication skills, but I think it's a fantastically realistic representation of what that environment would breed. And that just doesn't get fixed in one semester, no matter how liberal and welcoming your new environment.
I also appreciated the accuracy of their long-term friendship not being able to turn on a dime just because they discovered a sexual attraction. There are lifelong patterns at work there that don't disappear overnight. The unhealthy communication patterns don't really get addressed until the sequel, but don't worry, it's coming :)
There's also a secondary trans character who gets a much bigger role in Book 2. There's just great representation all over the place with this series.
You may want to read the spoiler-y blurb for Book 2 if the "ethical non-monogamy" has you worried. But if it doesn't, I highly recommend just going along for the ride. And also ignoring this: