Jordan O’Neill isn’t a fan of labels, considering he has a few. Gay, geek, a librarian, socially awkward, a nervous rambler, an introvert, an outsider. The last thing he needs is one more. But he when he realises adding the label ‘asexual’ might explain a lot, it turns his world upside down.
Hennessy Lang moved to Surry Hills after splitting with his boyfriend. His being asexual had seen the end of a lot of his romances, but he’s determined to stay true to himself. Leaving his North Shore support group behind, he starts his own in Surry Hills, where he meets first-time-attendee Jordan.
A little bewildered and scared, but completely adorable, Hennessy is struck by this guy who’s trying to find where he belongs. Maybe Hennessy can convince Jordan that his world hasn’t been turned upside down at all, but maybe it’s now—for the first time in his life—the right way up.
Amazon – Kindle Unlimited
I LOVED THIS BOOK! Loved it. So much.
N.R. Walker continues to amaze me in her ability to write completely different stories all of the time. This time we get two asexual main characters. And it is hilarious. HILARIOUS. Laugh out loud in bed funny.
Ok, let’s back it on up for a sec. First of all, one of the main characters is a librarian. Which is awesome. And his best friend is also a librarian. Also awesome. Underlying everything in the book there is a quiet theme of telling us how awesome libraries are and that they aren’t just for checking out the latest best seller for free. YAY! Libraries!
Jordan, the librarian, is adorable. And so, so funny. His funny isn’t forced at all. It is just totally natural and it sucks you right in. But he is also grappling with the fact that he may be asexual. Grappling only because he doesn’t want another label. Even though that label could very well help him understand himself and his complete disinterest in sex. But he is still gay. And he still likes men. In fact, he has a bit of a crush on a guy on the bus he takes home from work everyday. He just doesn’t want to have sex with him.
Hennesey is a great character in his own right. He isn’t just there to listen to Jordan be funny. If that makes sense. You can picture him smiling and watching Jordan as he goes on one of his rambles. Besides being the “headphones guy” on the bus that Jordan crushes on, he also runs the Asexual support group that Jordan’s best friend convinces him to go to.
Because both Jordan and Hennesey are asexual, there is no sex in this book. None. Zero, zip, zilch. Instead of dealing with the “sexual tension” while a couple gets to know each other, they get to know each other. There is nothing in the way. No finish line as it were. They are there to know each other, to see how they are as a couple. And the way they do it is just adorable.
Because Jordan is coming to terms with being asexual, there is a lot of explanation of what exactly asexual is. And how it is different for everyone.
I could go on and on. I stayed up past my bed time to finish this book. I could seriously go back to the first page and read it again immediately. It is going in my “read again” folder on my kindle.
So, ya. Read it. Love it.
4.75 Pieces of Candy
