Roger Hyttinen

Review of Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda

February 6, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

“White shouldn’t be the default any more than straight should be the default. There shouldn’t even be a default.” Simon Spier

I’ve been hearing a lot about Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda over the past several months and it’s been on my wishlist for a while now. After learning that it’s going to be made into a movie called “Love, Simon”, I moved it to the top of my TBR list.

This is an excellent story about a teenage boy who has to deal with the aftermath of coming out to everyone at his high school when another student finds out his secret and threatens to blackmail him. Here is the blurb:

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

Incredibly funny and poignant, this twenty-first-century coming-of-age, coming out story — wrapped in a geek romance—is a knockout of a debut novel by Becky Albertalli.

Never walk away from your computer

Simon learned this the hard way. He walks away from his computer for just a moment, forgetting to close down his email program, which, unfortunately, gets into the wrong hands. Another student, Martin Addison, walks by Simon’s abandoned computer and discovers that Simon has been anonymously corresponding with a boy named “Blue” and the two have been discussing their lives, including being gay. Up to this point, Blue is the only one who knows that Simon is gay.

Simon and Blue met via an anonymous Tumblr post and since then, have been emailing each other on almost a daily basis. Though Blue goes to the same school as Simon, neither of them know the other’s identity, thus creating a safe atmosphere to discuss those serious issues that they can’t so easily talk about with anyone else.

Martin takes a screenshot of the emails and then blackmails Simon into getting his friend, Abby, to date him.

The Blackmail Begins

Holding up his end of the bargain, Simon invites Martin (who is seriously annoying, by the way) to hang out with him and Abby on several occasions, fearful that Martin will reveal Simon’s secret to the entire school. At this point of the book, even Simon’s best friend Leah doesn’t know that he’s gay and he wants to keep it that way — at least for the time being. Fearful that Blue would terminate his friendship with Simon if he found out that someone had taken a screenshot of their email, Simon keeps this new secret to himself as well.

What worked for me in this book was that Simon didn’t struggle with being gay. He knew he was gay and fully accepted himself. He never tried to deny who he was. What he did struggle with was how his loved ones might potential react to the news.

The Emails

I loved reading the email exchanges between Simon and Blue, especially once they began to become more flirtatious. There was a teasing yet caring tone to their emails, leading to an amazing build-up between the two of them that wasn’t rushed or forced. It was obvious that has the days and weeks past, the connection between the two of the deepened as their friendship moved organically into something bigger. These two characters really came to life for me as their relationship blossomed and I quickly became enamored with the both of them, wishing and hoping for a happy ending for the both of them.

As with any online relationship, there are the fears that crop up before we meet the person: Will they like us? What if they don’t find me attractive? What if I don’t find him/her attractive? All of these things run through Simon’s mind, making the situation all the more realistic, and I found myself having the same fears as Simon. As a ready, I wanted Simon and Blue to have their HEA.

Coming Out Slowly

As their relationship deepened (though it was still anonymous), they both decided that perhaps it was time to come out. First Blue to his family and then Simon to his friend Abby, leading them to discuss the fear and uncertainty they felt before finally letting the cat out of the bag. It’s apparent that it’s their feelings for each that gives them the courage to take the first steps in the coming out process.

Luckily for the both of them, Blue’s parents were supportive as was Abby. Simon still not quite ready to tell anyone else though. He wants to come out on his terms at his own pace, though he does plan on telling his own parents soon.

A Forced Coming Out

Of course, Simon’s secret gets out (I’m not giving out any spoilers here – we learn this fact in the blurb), and everything changes for Simon. Within one day, everyone at school learns that Simon Spier is gay — and given that we know Blue is a student at Simon’s High School, it’s not too hard to figure out that he’s learned Simon’s identity as well. In fact, during an email exchange, Blue states “I think I know who you are”.

Simon still doesn’t know the mysterious Blue’s identity, however, and it’s amusing to observe Simon as he studies the boys at his school, trying to guess which one of them could be Blue. He finally thinks he narrows it down to two boys. Now he just needs to figure out which one it is.

Now I will say that there are some clues as to Blue’s identity sprinkled throughout the book through the author does a great job of throwing us off track and making it difficult to guess. I didn’t quite guess the identity of Blue as much as hoped.

The Fallout

Coming out is never easy, especially when it wasn’t your decision. We see this in the aftermath: friendships are strained (possibly lost) for good and relationships are threatened. The author did a fine job of portraying the possible fallout for a high school student being forced out of the closet. It was also cringe-worthy seeing that someone could be as cruel as Martin (though not surprising — he was a right jerk).

Of course, Simon is devastated. Not only is he upset because his friendships are on shaky grounds, he feels robbed, resentful and violated. Coming out was something he wanted to do on his own terms, and because of his blackmailer, that decision was taken away from him . . .and then there’s Blue.

The Big Reveal

So do we eventually learn Blue’s identity? If we didn’t, it certainly would have been a frustrating book – the kind you’d throw across the room. Luckily, it didn’t come to that, and we do learn Blue’s identity — and wow! What a sweet scene!

I’m guessing that it’d be difficult for many people to read this scene without tearing up. I know I was reaching for the tissues (but it a good way!).

The Verdict

I loved this book on so many levels, and it completely stole my heart. This book expertly showed the struggles that not just a gay teenager but that most teenagers go through on a daily basis. The book is told from Simon’s first-person point of view, and I found him lovable, funny, witty, intelligent, likable and brave; and though somewhat flawed (as we all are), he’s an all-around great kid. But most of all, I found him true to himself.

I could relate to so much of what he was going through, and in this way, it felt that his character was genuine and believable. In fact, all of the characters in the book were well-rounded and realistic, and I enjoyed the dynamic between them.

Simon vs the Home Sapiens Agenda is a sweet, tender and heartwarming coming-of-age story about friendship, first love, coming out and the power of friendship and family that has an appeal to everyone, both teens, and adults. I can tell you that this particular adult loved it. Though the book does deal with some tougher issues such as bullying, betrayal, and misunderstandings, the positive aspects well outweigh the negative.

This book has definitely made my top reads list and is one of those books that gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling at the end. A truly satisfying read. I definitely give this book 5 stars!

You can check out Simon vs The Homo Spiens Agenda HERE

Review of Being Henry David by Cal Armistead

February 4, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

I stumbled across Being Henry David on book lover’s blog (Peter Likes Books, who also has a fun Book Tube channel) and the concept sounded intriguing, especially since I’ve always enjoyed reading Thoreau. I picked it up and loved it! Here’s the blurb:

Seventeen-year-old “Hank” has found himself at Penn Station in New York City with no memory of anything—who he is, where he came from, why he’s running away. His only possession is a worn copy of Walden by Henry David Thoreau. And so he becomes Henry David—or “Hank”—and takes first to the streets, and then to the only destination he can think of—Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. Cal Armistead’s remarkable debut novel about a teen in search of himself. As Hank begins to piece together recollections from his past, he realizes that the only way he can discover his present is to face up to the realities of his grievous memories. He must come to terms with the tragedy of his past to stop running and find his way home.

Who am I?

The story begins when a teenage boy finds himself in Penn Station in New York with no recollection of who he is and a nasty bump on his head. His only possession is a beat-up paperback copy of Walden by Henry David Thoreau. Shortly thereafter, he comes into contact with two homeless kids, and when they ask his name he tells them that it’s Henry David, which they shorten to Hank. At this point, he wasn’t comfortable telling anyone about his amnesia. Of course, we wonder right from the beginning: What could have happened to him to have caused his injuries and amnesia?

I liked the fact that the story is told from the first person point of view, so we get constantly know what’s going on in our hero’s head; we feel his stress, his fear and his confusion as the realization dawns on him that the only thing he remembers is now.

Off to Walden Pond

After a dangerous encounter with a drug dealer, Hank is on the run. We follow him to Concord, Massachusetts where he heads almost immediately to Walden Pond, embarking upon on a literal search for his identity. One of Hanks’ biggest fears through all of this is discovering that could be a monster – a terrible person who’s done horrible things to others. Because of this, he attempts to keep the new people in his new life at arm’s length, not daring to get too close to anyone.

This is a lot more difficult than it seems as the new people slowly become integrated into his life and his heart.

The Mystery Slowly Unravels

The entire plot of Being Henry David revolves around the mystery of Hank finding out who is really is. Bit by bit, the pieces begin to return, as snapshots of information flash in his mind. Through all of this, I found it fascinating how our hero reconciles his new life and the person he’s become (Hank) with the person he was.

I also love how the author adeptly intertwines the stressful and violent life stories of the two street kids into Hank’s new, somewhat privileged life in Concord, and how they become an integral part of the story in Hank’s search for self.

Bad Decisions Were Made

But it’s not all smooth sailing for Hank, especially when some especially painful memories begin to resurface. This leads Hank to make some extremely rash decisions that are not particularly in his best interest.

It is at this point where his old world and new world collide.

Verdict

I thought that the author did an excellent job of capturing the voice of this troubled, scared teenage boy who slowly recalls the events leading up to his memory loss. Right from the first page, the story grabs hold of you and doesn’t let go until the end. I felt that the pacing was perfect and the story heartfelt; so much that I found myself tearing up on more than a few occasions (but in a good way!). The story finishes on a positive note with a resolved and satisfying ending.

Being Henry David is a captivating coming-of-age adventure story with a brave, intelligent and at time reckless main character. The secondary characters were also well-developed, and you couldn’t help but love them by the end of the book. In this way, all the characters were believable for me as well as engaging.

Even if you’re not interested in Thoreau, there’s a lot in this story to enjoy — and you just may feel a desire to read some of his work by the end of this novel. After I turned the last page, I couldn’t help to wander over to my bookshelves and search for my old copy of Walden.

From what I understand, this is a debut novel for this author, and I can’t wait to see what she come up with next. Recommended for teens and adults!

You can check out Being Henry David HERE

Review of Out of Bounds by A.R. Barley

February 3, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

I just finished a very sweet gay romance entitled Out of Bounds by A.R. Barley, a completely new author to me. The was a feel-good story with likable main characters. The blurb is as follows:

Beaten and heartbroken, Jesse Cole is placed in a new dorm room after his last roommate attacked him. Just wanting to be left alone to heal in peace, he’s shocked when tall, dark and dangerous-looking Nick Moretti walks in.

Nick doesn’t have time to tiptoe around his new roommate—he’s too busy working in order to pay for school. But something about Jesse brings out his protective instincts. As their cautious friendship grows and becomes loaded with sexual tension, he wants to make Jesse comfortable.

Enter the perfect plan: a line of tape down the center of the room. Boundaries established.

But as innocent movie nights become hours-long temptation marathons, and whispered chats from across the room delve into straight-up dirty territory, crossing the line has never been so satisfying.

Jesse is Broken

It’s the middle of the semester, and Jesse is reassigned in a new college dorm room in the senior dorm even though he’s only a sophomore. He’s what one would call “broken” after having gone through a vicious homophobic attack at the hands of his roommate — someone he trusted — which resulted in a visit to the ER. As the story progresses, we learn that Jesse had misread the signals his former roommate was giving him (or did he?) and when Jesse leaned in to kiss him, the roommate turned on Jesse with his fists, beating him pretty badly. Luckily, we don’t see the violence first hand – we only hear it from Jesse’s mouth as the story progresses. Oh, and by the way, Jesse is a virgin; that disastrous kiss is the closest he’s come to sex with anyone.

Enter Nick

It’s pretty apparent that Jesse is suffering from PTSD, and it doesn’t help matters that his new roommate, Nick, is built, handsome and well over 6 feet tall – the kind of person who could break Jess in half if he so chose. Nick also works as a bouncer at a local pub and because of unfortunate events in his past, thinks of himself as a “thug”. But once we move past his dangerous-looking exterior, we see that Nick is actually a very sweet man who goes out of his way to make Jesse feel safe.

In the beginning, practically any movement Nick makes causes Jesse to flinch. So in order to make Jesse feel safe in the room and less skittish around him, Nick puts a line of tape down the middle of the room which neither of them can cross. Nick promises he’ll never go into Jesse’s space nor is Jesse to go into Nick’s. In other words, no going “out of bounds”, hence the title of the book.

But there’s something about Jesse…

Not only does Jesse bring out Nick’s protective instincts, but soon Nick finds himself thinking about Jesse in ways that surprise him, given that he claims he not into “twinks”. Soon he finds himself daydreaming about kissing Jesse – and more. But Nick doesn’t act on his feelings, fearful of doing anything that could jeopardize the progress Jesse’s made. Finally, they both figure out that there’s a mutual attraction between them, but even then, Nick still respects the boundary, fearful of doing anything that could end in disaster

And they take things slow

Nick is the perfect gentleman and moves slowly — perhaps a bit too slowly, once Jesse’s realizes his own feelings for Nick. The romance between the two of them is slow and tender, starting out with pizza and movie nights (but no touching!), working their way to holding hands when they’re out in public. It’s lovely to watch these two as their friendship slowly evolves into love. This is definitely a slow-burner, as they build up trust between them and slowly get to know one another.

The boundary gets pushed

Of course, the boundary is eventually going to get pushed; otherwise, we wouldn’t have much of a tale, now would we? Without giving too much away, I will say that this book has a HEA – an excellent friends- to-lovers ending as they both learn to let go of the past.

The Verdict

Out of Bounds is a heartfelt yet sexy friends-to-lovers story about two guys with a troubled past finding one another. Both characters were charming and sweet, and I loved watching Nick and Jesse interact as their feelings for each other deepened. I found both characters realistic and extremely likable. What especially worked for me was the slow build-up between Nick and Jesse as their evolving friendship moved toward a deeper connection. I also liked that the angst in the novel was kept to a minimum (I’m not much for overly angsty stories and tend to shy away from them as a rule).

Though this story dealt with some heavy issues such as assault, homophobia, lack of self-confidence and fear of rejection, the story didn’t feel overly heavy or depressing. What the author did end up giving us was a lovely feel-good story about friendship, loyalty, love, pride, and happiness — a story about falling in love and discovering who you are really are during the process. I definitely plan on reading more by this author. Recommended!

You can check out Out of Bounds HERE

Review of The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

February 1, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

One of the reasons I belong to my book club (called “The Book Bags”) is that I get to read a lot of books that normally would not cross my path. Our latest read, The Paris Wife by Paula McLain was one of them.

Introducing – Hadley

The genre of this book is historical fiction, told from the point of view of Hadley Richardson, who became the first wife of Ernest Hemingway. It’s worth noting, however, that the author did an incredible amount of research while writing this story and had access to correspondence between Hadley and Ernest along with other historical source materials.

The Roaring 20’s & The Elite

The book recounts their time in Paris during the 20’s as they hung out with folks such as Gertrude Stein and Alice Tolkias, Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald, Erza Pound and many more interesting and zany characters of high society. The book takes us to fashionable Paris cafes, violet bullfighting in Spain and calm villas in Italy. The Paris scenes were my favorite though (perhaps being a former French teacher may have something to do with that) and I love reading what felt like a first-hand account of Paris life during the Roaring 20’s.

The book was evocative of the time period and while reading, I felt at times as though I were really there. It made me think of the movie “Midnight in Paris” when Owen Wilson time-travels back to the 20’s and ends up partying with the Fitzgerald’s among others. But I digress.

The Betrayal

The Paris Wife is told from Hadley’s first-person point of view as she struggles to fit in with a crowd that has little in common with her traditional values, while at the same time trying to remain supportive of Ernest’s work and dark moods. This is an intimate novel and by the end of the book, I felt that I knew Hadley so well I almost considered her a dear friend by the end of the book —— and when Ernest and Hadley’s friend Pauline betray her and heartlessly flaunt their affair in front of her, we can’t help feeling devastated right along with her.

The Verdict

Like I said, this isn’t normally the type of book I’d pick up on my own but I’m so glad I did. The author did a masterful job of telling Hadley and Ernest’s story. It’s a riveting emotional character-driven tale of passion, intense love, uncertainty, regret, heartbreak and ultimately, self-discovery. Ms. McLain has crafted a riveting novel with an exquisite amount of atmosphere yet with a steady mounting sense of impending doom. But Hadley comes out of it empowered, realizing finally who she really is once she steps out of Ernest Hemingway’s shadow.

This was a moving story and well worth a read, especially if you’re familiar with Hemingway’s work or enjoy novels set during this time period. But even if you’re not a Hemingway fan, The Paris Wife has plenty to offer and it kept me interested until the end. The author did a commendable job of portraying the larger-than-life Hemingway through the eyes of his wife. Recommended!

You can check out The Paris Wife HERE.

Review of The Finder by J.E. Lorin

January 29, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

I just finished a book the other day called The Finder by J.E. Lorin and wow! What a great read! This is a brand new author for me and the book description sound like something I’d enjoy so I bought it. It’s kind of a gay romance with a serial killer twist. The blurb is as follows:

At the age of sixteen, August Goodson developed a strange and mysterious power overnight: he can find people. Victims of murder, suicide, kidnapping, accidents, and rape; August can find them all, usually dead, but sometimes still alive. Nine years later finds August volunteering his services to the police. He’s still smarting from the loss of his long-time love Dante, who cheated on him with his best friend, and harbors a deep crush on the incredibly handsome, and oh-so-straight, Detective Luke Williams. But there are bigger concerns on August’s mind: a serial killer is loose in the city, one whose victims are a little too much like him for comfort. When August finds a living victim who may be one of the serial killer’s, he’s drawn even deeper into the case. Will he make it out alive, or will he soon be the one in need of finding?

In Augie’s Head

Our main character, August (but everyone calls him “Augie”) can hear voices of victims who call to him, often begging him to find them. The kicker is that the victims can be dead or alive. In this way, Augie is able to find the bodies of murder victims, so he’s become a valuable asset to the local police department.

The story is told from Augie’s point of view, so I found it especially fascinating to be in his head when the victim’s call out to him and to experience first hand what he undergoes when he finds the body he’s looking for.

It’s also worth mentioning that Augie is somewhat broken because of a bad breakup. Because of this, he comes across as rather bristly and never allows anyone to get truly close to him. Given that we are privy to this thoughts and feelings, we can understand his reluctance to let anyone it. August certainly comes with a lot of baggage. But even so, he is a strong and brave character — someone just needs to break down the impenetrable barriers that surround him.

Enter Luke

Luke, the of the police officers whom Augie works with (and who’s also quite hunky) is determined to bring Augie out of his shell. Luke, along with Augie’s best friend Cherry, slowly help to break down his barriers. In the process, Luke and Augie’s friendship deepens and slowly turns into a romance. Their romance is slow, tender and sweet — definitely a slow-burn situation as Augie is still unsure if he’s ready to move their relationship to the next level and able to overcome his past. But lucky for him, Luke is patient, tenacious but gentle. He’s the ultimate perfect boyfriend.

Enter the Serial Killer

Many of the recent bodies that Augie has “found” are the victims of a recent serial killer who is targeting young gay men who resemble August. As bodies begin to pile up, Augie feels increasingly responsible and retreats even further into himself, especially once his friends come under attack. Augie becomes drawn even more deeply into the case when he finds a living victim who Augie suspects is one the serial killer’s. Then, things become especially dire for August once he becomes the main focus of our killer.

Now I will say that there are some hints peppered throughout the story as to the identity of the serial killer, making it possible to figure it out early on. But this in no way takes away anything from the story. Even though we might suspect the killer’s identity, we have no idea how it will all unfold. I found it fascinating to learn why he murdered all those young men and how their murder is connected to our hero.

The Verdict

As I mentioned above, I loved this book. The characters were strong and excellently developed, and I liked that the secondary characters were just as vivid as our main character. They really came alive in this story. The book also had perfect pace and a gripping storyline, with a lot of compelling twists and plenty of surprises which kept me turning the page.

And even though there was a romance between Luke and Augie, I appreciated the fact that the book wasn’t filled with one sex scene after another. The Finder was more about the story than about the sex. The book definitely has it’s creepy parts, but the author kept the gruesome and vivid descriptions of the murder scenes to a minimum.

All in all, it was an enjoyable well-written book, and I am so glad that I read it. This was one of those stories that I kept thinking about several days after I completed the book. Recommended!

You can check out The Finder HERE

Review of Anna Dressed in Blood

January 28, 2018 by Roger Hyttinen Leave a Comment

I’m a sucker for a good ghost story, so I recently read a book entitled “Anna Dressed in Blood” by Kendare Blake, which was quite different from the ghost stories you typically read.

The Story

Our hero is Cas Lowood, a loner teenager who kills ghosts with his deadly ghost-hunting knife. Cas doesn’t kill all ghosts he comes across — only those ghosts who harm people. We learn that he inherited his profession and the knife from his father who was killed under mysterious circumstances by an especially nasty ghost. Cas works on building up his ghost-hunting skills, and once they’re good enough, he plans on avenging his father’s death by destroying the ghost that murdered him.

Since his father’s murder, Cas and his mother, who is a white witch, travel the country following rumors of murderous ghosts. Cas makes a point of never making friends or connections because he knows he never stays long in one place; there’s always a new ghost to hunt in a new city.

Following a local legend about an especially vicious ghost named Anna, Cas and his mom end up in Thunder Bay. Anna was brutally murdered in 1958, and since then, numerous disappearances have been blamed on her. But Anna is not like any ghost that Cas has ever encountered before. She is extremely powerful, tormented and full of rage — and she wears the same dress she did the day she was murdered: stained red with blood (hence the book’s title).

Anna also kills anyone who dares to enter her old Victorian homestead by tearing them apart, so the story was rather frightening and bloody at times. Anna was definitely one scary girl! She is also the most fearsome ghost Cass has ever encountered. But…all is not as it seems with Anna.

The Characters

The story is told from Cas’s point of view, and I loved his character. He was cocky (perhaps a tad arrogant), self-assured and brave but had a sensitive side as well and turns out to be quite a likable character. The author did an excellent job of portraying what it is that makes our young protagonist tick. His deadpan humor really added a nice touch to this character. I loved how his character evolved from a closed-off loner to a more open, caring person with actual friends.

Equally impressive were the vivid secondary characters Thomas (a mind-reading nerd), Caramel (a high school Queen Bee), his mother (a lovable kitchen-witch) and of course our ghost, tortured Anna, who is at first ultimately terrifying but there is a lot more to her than meets the eye.

All in all, the characters were complex, well-developed and humorous, and each had an important role to play in the book. By the end of the story, you had a feeling as though you knew each of them well.

The Verdict

Anna Dressed in Blood is a suspenseful, well-told compelling tale with an unexpected twist at the end. The action was fast-paced and exciting, and the numerous twists and turns definitely keep the reader guessing. The ending and the plot were not predictable (at least I didn’t think so) and were refreshingly original. While it’s certainly a horror story filled with action, gore and mystery, it’s also a story of redemption with a touch of romance.

This is a story that pulls you right in and keeps you interested until the very end — or at least it did for me. I really loved this story and all of the characters. I usually have a niggle or two with most books I read but there were none for me in this book. It was amazing.

I was also happy to learn that there’s a sequel entitled “The Girl of Nightmares” which I’ll definitely be reading (note: there was no cliffhanger at the end of Anna Dressed in Blood – the storyline was completely resolved at the end). I am so happy I discovered this author and will happily read her other books. Recommended!

You can check out Anna Dressed in Blood HERE