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All the Wrong Places
I'm familiar with Ann Gallagher's writings as erotica writer L. A. Witt, so I was kind of wondering whether she could pull off an asexual romance without falling into the usual gross acephobic pitfalls. I'm happy to say in this case I was proven completely wrong.
First, I want to get the cons out of the way. The climax felt somewhat rushed, and the book seemed primed to make a powerful statement about acephobia, but ultimately glossed over it. I don't expect or necessarily want books about asexuality to always deal with acephobia, but given that right now, a vocal subset of people still believes asexuals aren't "oppressed" enough to be part of the LGBTQ community, it would have been nice to have a discussion of the insidious ways asexuals face prejudice.
(*Also, it occurred to me upon a reread that the definition of graysexual in the book seems not entirely accurate—if I read correctly, the author explains graysexual as being sex-neutral, but the standard definition (although graysexual is sometimes used as a catch-all term) is that graysexual refers to someone who experiences sexual attraction rarely.)
However.
I've been waiting a long time to read about explicitly asexual characters in fiction.
I've been waiting a long time to read a book about asexuality that acknowledges the diversity of the asexual spectrum.
And I'd basically given up hope that I would ever be able to read a romance between asexual characters that wouldn't portray the romance as inferior just because the characters don't have sex.
So hats off to Ann Gallagher for writing a book about asexual characters that was so well-researched and relatable, I was nodding and grinning the whole time I was reading the book. I can't recommend this book enough to anyone looking for a book about asexual characters with a sweet asexual romance, or even anyone who doesn't know much about asexuality but wants to learn. (And hats off as well for writing an interracial homoromantic asexual relationship!)
Lead Me Not
An interesting story about an antigay preacher (who turns out to be so deeply closeted he doesn't even realize it) who ends up developing a relationship with a religious gay bartender with a troubled past. Though I finished the book thinking it was just okay, I do think the romance was sweet and the book was a nice, feel-good read.
I'm familiar with Ann Gallagher's writings as erotica writer L. A. Witt, so I was kind of wondering whether she could pull off an asexual romance without falling into the usual gross acephobic pitfalls. I'm happy to say in this case I was proven completely wrong.
First, I want to get the cons out of the way. The climax felt somewhat rushed, and the book seemed primed to make a powerful statement about acephobia, but ultimately glossed over it. I don't expect or necessarily want books about asexuality to always deal with acephobia, but given that right now, a vocal subset of people still believes asexuals aren't "oppressed" enough to be part of the LGBTQ community, it would have been nice to have a discussion of the insidious ways asexuals face prejudice.
(*Also, it occurred to me upon a reread that the definition of graysexual in the book seems not entirely accurate—if I read correctly, the author explains graysexual as being sex-neutral, but the standard definition (although graysexual is sometimes used as a catch-all term) is that graysexual refers to someone who experiences sexual attraction rarely.)
However.
I've been waiting a long time to read about explicitly asexual characters in fiction.
I've been waiting a long time to read a book about asexuality that acknowledges the diversity of the asexual spectrum.
And I'd basically given up hope that I would ever be able to read a romance between asexual characters that wouldn't portray the romance as inferior just because the characters don't have sex.
So hats off to Ann Gallagher for writing a book about asexual characters that was so well-researched and relatable, I was nodding and grinning the whole time I was reading the book. I can't recommend this book enough to anyone looking for a book about asexual characters with a sweet asexual romance, or even anyone who doesn't know much about asexuality but wants to learn. (And hats off as well for writing an interracial homoromantic asexual relationship!)
Lead Me Not
An interesting story about an antigay preacher (who turns out to be so deeply closeted he doesn't even realize it) who ends up developing a relationship with a religious gay bartender with a troubled past. Though I finished the book thinking it was just okay, I do think the romance was sweet and the book was a nice, feel-good read.
