Grif's Toy

This is going straight to the “why was this sitting on my Kindle for so long?” list.Without preamble I'll say that I loved this book.I don't read books to find characters that I identify with. I read for good stories. I read for authors who can make me believe in the truth of their characters, in the rightness of the relationships and that said relationships make them happy independent of social or moral conventions or my own personal preferences and [a:Joseph Lance Tonlet 8344230 Joseph Lance Tonlet https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1450456865p2/8344230.jpg] delivers with a bang.If you read the blurb you kind of get the gist of the story but it's really just the bones or structure that holds up an epically romantic story but not in a “love story” kind of way but rather in the late 1800's style of literature, think [b:Sentimental Education 2183 Sentimental Education Gustave Flaubert https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327788473s/2183.jpg 314156], where our hero goes through the stages of life and learns and grows along the way. The story is told in alternating chapters that jump back and forth in Grif's history, the earliest being when he's entering junior high and the latest when he's 29 and in a relationship with a man called Wes. At first I thought it was odd narrative choice but I later felt that it was the exact right way to tell the story as each episode bolsters or explains events and relationships in Grif's life. Mr. Tonlet does a fantastic job of getting us into Grif's head, how and why he thinks how he thinks and what makes him tick. The issue of Grif's “size” is something that has wreaked havoc on every aspect of Grif's life for good and bad but rest assured that Mr. Tonlet doesn't let our hero suffer unaided or without a due recompense. In fact Grif is almost a Cinderella character and I mean that in a non-derogatory way. I mean that whenever he's at a low point or in need of support he finds it. First he has a wonderful father, later the best friend anyone can ask for, Tate, and later he meets his perfect match in Wes.Wes has a very hard test to pass with me he's a bit of a sadist or a lot, of course with Grif's consent and I breathed a happy sigh of relief to know that I could at least be happy that he's in Grif's life even if I'll never love him. Grif I love. He's honest, loyal, hard working, afraid but infinitely brave and that's where the Cinderella factor comes in again. Save for his “flaw” Grif is perfect: physically beautiful, smart, generous etc. and yet though I'm not usually up for syrupy sweetness I liked him. His goodness didn't seem contrived or forced but rather the product of a good and loving upbringing and some good genes that perhaps got a little messed up along the way. How well will the relationship between Wes and Grif fare? Without spoiling anything, because that's where the book starts, I'll say they're firmly on the HEA road and besides that's another fairytale aspect of the story, the almost predestination of these two as couple, the instant, almost electrical connection. The notion that Grif has been half living or living in a suspended state until his prince, Wes, comes along to wake him. he's a virgin at 28! though thanks to Tate he has plenty of "other" experienceThere are many areas left to explore when this book ends and that has mainly to do with Wes' story.I will follow with the next book but having read reviews for it I'll wait a bit and enjoy the mellow note this one ended on. It seems things are a little rougher in part 2, maybe not for Grif but as pertains to Wes.ps. As an aside I wanted to add that I really enjoy reading MM books written by male authors. It's not a matter of better or worse (not usually LOL) but rather of perspective and what a male writer highlights or dwells on as opposed to a female (body hair, a little roughness or a lot, body scents etc.). It's reading Joan Didion as opposed to Philip Roth. Different POV's. And it's a good thing. Especially so in a genre that's all about male relationships it can only be a good thing. Yes Tolstoy wrote [b:Anna Karenina 15823480 Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1352422904s/15823480.jpg 2507928] but [a:Charlotte Brontë 1036615 Charlotte Brontë https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1335001351p2/1036615.jpg] gave us [b:Jane Eyre 29927134 Jane Eyre (Illustrated) Charlotte Brontë https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1460815781s/29927134.jpg 2977639]. Just a thought I've been having lately. ;-)pps. It really sucks that Tate isn't around for there to be a story about him because he was a seriously great character. *sniff*