Rating: 3.25 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Short Story
Blake is the Director of Photography at the adult film studio, Wild Card Studios. He loves his job, and even though heâs asexual, he certainly appreciates a beautiful body. For Blake, itâs all about the artistic aspect, and heâs good at what he does. Blake had a rough time in high school and doesnât want to go to his ten-year reunion. But since heâs in town for his cousins wedding, he canât say no.
At the wedding, Blake meets Felix, the brideâs friend. Felix is at loose ends in his life at the moment and he often gets misjudged when he lets it be know heâs pansexual. But the two men hit it off, first because itâs nice to meet another person with non-binary attraction, and then a friendship starts to build. They connect on a deep level, and Felix agrees to rescue Blake if the reunion goes south.
Fortunately for Blake, when things do go sideways, Felix is right there to save him. And then put his drunk ass to bed. In the morning, Felix is still there and Blake not only knows heâs found someone special, but he also might solve Felixâs current situation.
Looking for something diverse led me to this book, and I thought the premise sounded intriguing. An ace guy who is homoromantic, a pan guy who sees the beauty in people, it sounded like the perfect read for Diverse Books Week in our Reading Challenge Month here on the blog. And we definitely get two types of characters that we donât see a lot in the genre. Blake is now comfortable in his asexuality, and he knows exactly what it means it him. The same goes for Felix. And while I had a few issues with the plot, I really liked the MCs.
This story is told from Blakeâs POV and we find out right from the start that heâs not hiding his sexuality in the least. Felix is also quick to explain that heâs pan, and what that means. And as much as I liked these two guysâthey are both likeable, friendly, and caring, and their humor matches up so they fit well together, my first problem was in the presentation of this information. Both guys explained their sexualities as if they were quoting a definition. It felt wooden and by rote, and slightly out of place. I would have preferred a more natural conversation where these things were concerned. As engaging as the characters were, it seemed unnatural for them just to spout out their sexualities by definition. So while that didnât work well for me, I liked that they were both open about it front the start. It showed their ease with who they are, and that visibility is vitally important.
My other issue with this story is that there was quite a lot going on, some of which felt unresolved, and then the story just ended. When Blake goes to his high school reunion, things go sour, and then itâs justâŠleft. The author made it into a big deal, and then there was no resolution. So it almost felt like a needless scene to me. On top of that, when the story ends, I felt like we didnât get enough information about where Felix and Blake were in their relationship. Just friends? Romantic partners if not sexual ones? The story feel short for me here, as I would really have like to see this explored, especially considering the nature of their sexualities. It would have been great to see the compromises or dynamic they settled into, and we just didnât get that.
Even still, the MCs were great and well written, so I enjoyed reading the story for that. The plot fell a little short, but it definitely hit the mark on bringing visibility to sexualities that are often dismissed, ignored, or glossed over. For that reason, itâs a good pick for Diverse Books Week.
This review is part of our Reading Challenge Month for Diverse Books Week! Leave a relevant comment below and you will be entered to win one of our amazing diverse books prize packs. Commenters will also be entered to win our amazing grand prize sponsored by Dreamspinner Press (a Kindle Fire filled with Dreamspun Desires/Beyond books, plus a 3-month subscription!). You can get more information on our Challenge Month here, and more details on Diverse Books Week here, including a list of all the books in this week’s prize.Â
Kris, thank you for your review. It seems that too many issues are left unresolved, maybe the author is planning a series.
At the time, not really, but eventually I did write a sequel! It is called “Pair of Kings, Ace High” and it is also available through JMS Books.
Thanks for the review, Kris. I can appreciate that definitions are given even if they don’t quite fit in the story since I, for one, still have a lot to learn. Admittedly, as you say. there are more natural/light handed ways to do so.
Thank you for an interesting review. I think it’s difficult to write a complete story in a short form. I admire every author wo is able to do this.
Yeah, it does seem like most books portraying ace characters in particular sound like an encyclopedia sometimes. The characters here appeal to me, though!
>> It felt wooden and by rote, and slightly out of place. I would have preferred a more natural conversation where these things were concerned <<
This is one that tend to annoy me when I read characters from different side of the spectrum. Ace, Pan, even sometimes Bi. Thanks for the review
Thank you for the review, Kris. The book sounds interesting, too bad it did not fully work for you
I read this one back when it came out because I was really excited by the idea of these two guys, and I couldn’t agree more with you, Kris.
Thanks for the review. I like DJ Jamison’s novella My Anti-Valentine, which has an ace main character.
I like books where people actually communicate about their sexuality rather than their lack of communication being the source of conflict, so that is a plus.
Thank you for the post. I think it sounds like an interesting read but like you I don’t think I would be totally satisfied with it.
This book was a little too short for me. It seems like it might have been better if it was a little longer, but I think it’s just the first installment in a longer storyline.
Only one sequel (that I could think of?) called “Pair of Kings, Ace High”, if you want to check it out.
Half the time I have issues with short stories because I feel them incomplete. I don’t think this one is for me.
I think i will skip this book seeing that in your review you mentioned that there are some unresolved issues and also making some big deal out of something and then not delivering a solution this is something that i don’t like in a book. But thank you for your review.
Thanks for the review. I usually don’t like shorter stories because I always want more. I will have to think about this one.