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I think you should aim for the stars – and hopefully avoid ending up in the clouds!
Roxanne McKee -
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Shuuden Elegy – Muno
Reversed Escape (Ch1) “I like you, Senpai.” “Ah, but I’m not gay.” One day, Ryou received a confession from his kouhai, Miki. Despite receiving a blunt answer, Miki did not give up but rather, insisted on following around Ryou everyday, thus starting a game of tag between the two of them. But who is actually chasing who? Alone Again (Ch2) Bright and cheerful, Ayase always finds himself surrounded by people, yet he constantly shows a sad expression. Gloomy and quiet, Tooyama is the only person in the class who noticed this, and is attracted to that side of Ayase. The day Tooyama finally found a chance to talk to Ayase, was when he asked Ayase what he’s so afraid of, leaving Ayase dumbfounded. There’s no way we can be friends after that, Tooyama thought. However, during the following day, Ayase, who has always turned down everyone’s invitation, invited him to go home together. Boundary of Atmosphere (Ch3) After being apart for a few years, Kyousuke was surprised to run into his old friend, Yuu, in town. Just like it had been in the past, Yuu has always been a good friend; kind and calm, his presence feels just as natural as the air. But how could Yuu kiss and invite Kyousuke’s lover to his house so calmly, even after Kyousuke directly confronted him? Red and Blue (Ch4) Since high school is ending anyway, I should just tell him even though I’ve got no shot at having a relationship with him, is what I thought when I confessed to my friend, Aoi. To my surprise, Aoi said “Okay”. Wait, this means Aoi likes me, right? You don’t know?! I’ve always known that Aoi is slow but I didn’t expect him to be this slow about his feelings too… Last Train Elegy (Ch5) I’m meeting you at the terminal station Kenji and Tama first met on a station platform. Tama’s eyes were red from crying after being dumped by his boyfriend and he was curled up like a ball, just like a cat. Under his watchful glare, Kenji actually thought that “love at first sight" really does exist. Even though Kenji falls more and more in love with him every time they meet, Tama still laughs and cries whenever he talks about his ex-boyfriend. Yet, suddenly, he kisses him… “It’s because I like you that I want you to cheer you on.“ "I want you to know that such kindness exists, too.”
Chapter rankings from best to worst: 4, 2, 1, 5, 3
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REVIEW: Babycakes by Armistead Maupin
Tales of the City: Babycakes – Armistead Maupin
The characters that filled the pages of the three earlier Tales of the City books with love and laughter are at it again, as an ordinary house-husband and his ambitious wife discover there’s more to making a baby than meets the eye. Unexpected help arrives in the form of a British monarch, a grieving gay neighbour, and an international ring of mail-order brides. Armistead Maupin has written a comedy of manners for our times.
Maybe I was too young when I read this or I was just too bored to care but I couldn’t recall or understand what was going on in this book.
Rating:
2 Stars – it’s a struggle to finish the damn book
(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/660955.Babycakes)
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In some neighborhoods, if you want to walk down the streets, you’ve got two choices – look down, or look hard.
Anthony Vachss -
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First Bite – Kakine
A story about two friends who always eat together during lunch. One of them was about to get married.
That ending!
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First Bite – Kakine
A story about two friends who always eat together during lunch. One of them was about to get married.
That ending!
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Sano Ichiro: The Concubine’s Tattoo – Laura Joh Rowland
Twenty months spent as the shogun’s sosakan-sama–most honorable investigator of events, situations, and people–has left Sano Ichiro weary. He looks forward to the comforts that his arranged marriage promises: a private life with a sweet, submissive wife and a month’s holiday to celebrate their union. However, the death of the shogun’s favorite concubine interrupts the couple’s wedding ceremony and shatters any hopes the samurai detective had about enjoying a little peace with his new wife.
After Sano traces the cause of Lady Harume’s death to a self-inflicted tattoo, he must travel into the cloistered, forbidden world of the shogun’s women to untangle the complicated web of Harume’s lovers, rivals, and troubled past, and identify her killer. To make matters worse, Reiko, his beautiful young bride, reveals herself to be not a traditional, obedient wife, but instead, a headstrong, intelligent, aspiring detective bent on helping Sano with his new case. Sano is horrified at her unladylike behavior, and the resulting sparks make their budding love as exciting as they mystery surrounding Lady Harume’s death. Amid the heightened tensions and political machinations of feudal Japan, Sano faces a daunting complex investigation.
As subtle as the finest lacquered screen, as powerful as the slash of a sword, Laura Joh Rowland’s The Concubine’s Tattoo vividly brings to life a story of murder, jealousy, sexual intrigue, and political storms that keeps is in its spell until the final, shattering scene.
It’s one of those books where I couldn’t care less about the main characters and was rooting hard for the antagonist. Not a gay book per se but it features a gay couple that broke up (not the most accurate of words) because of the detective’s wife. Boy, I had never been pissed at a meddling wife before as I was with her. So angry that I vowed never to read this series or this author’s books again.
Biased reaction aside, I liked the story. It was never boring. The setting was interesting too. It was refreshing to read about detectives that are not from the western part of the world.
Rating:
3 Stars – not exactly setting my world on fire but I liked it
(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/310804.The_Concubine_s_Tattoo)
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Sano Ichiro: The Concubine’s Tattoo – Laura Joh Rowland
Twenty months spent as the shogun’s sosakan-sama–most honorable investigator of events, situations, and people–has left Sano Ichiro weary. He looks forward to the comforts that his arranged marriage promises: a private life with a sweet, submissive wife and a month’s holiday to celebrate their union. However, the death of the shogun’s favorite concubine interrupts the couple’s wedding ceremony and shatters any hopes the samurai detective had about enjoying a little peace with his new wife.
After Sano traces the cause of Lady Harume’s death to a self-inflicted tattoo, he must travel into the cloistered, forbidden world of the shogun’s women to untangle the complicated web of Harume’s lovers, rivals, and troubled past, and identify her killer. To make matters worse, Reiko, his beautiful young bride, reveals herself to be not a traditional, obedient wife, but instead, a headstrong, intelligent, aspiring detective bent on helping Sano with his new case. Sano is horrified at her unladylike behavior, and the resulting sparks make their budding love as exciting as they mystery surrounding Lady Harume’s death. Amid the heightened tensions and political machinations of feudal Japan, Sano faces a daunting complex investigation.
As subtle as the finest lacquered screen, as powerful as the slash of a sword, Laura Joh Rowland’s The Concubine’s Tattoo vividly brings to life a story of murder, jealousy, sexual intrigue, and political storms that keeps is in its spell until the final, shattering scene.
It’s one of those books where I couldn’t care less about the main characters and was rooting hard for the antagonist. Not a gay book per se but it features a gay couple that broke up (not the most accurate of words) because of the detective’s wife. Boy, I had never been pissed at a meddling wife before as I was with her. So angry that I vowed never to read this series or this author’s books again.
Biased reaction aside, I liked the story. It was never boring. The setting was interesting too. It was refreshing to read about detectives that are not from the western part of the world.
Rating:
3 Stars – not exactly setting my world on fire but I liked it
(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/310804.The_Concubine_s_Tattoo)
