| Title | : | Crossroads |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781640800861 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | ebook |
| Number of Pages | : | 139 |
| Publication | : | First published January 5, 2018 |
Ethan Yoder has toiled to escape his small-minded farming community, and he’s finally earned his degree and made it to Indianapolis—where he lands a job at a pharmaceutical company and meets handsome and successful Marcus. Marcus introduces Ethan to the fun-filled life of his dreams—fancy dinners, courtside seats at NBA games, even a trip to the Indianapolis 500. But Marcus’s happy-go-lucky veneer hides a man frustrated with a job he hates and his failure at romance due to factors he’s only beginning to understand. Ethan still has his eyes on the prize—a lucrative career—and he must figure out how to hold on to one opportunity without letting another slip away. If he and Marcus can come to a deeper understanding, their road might lead to a happily ever after.
Crossroads Reviews
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You know how, when selling your house, they always say you need to define every area or space in your home so the buyer doesn't have to guess a room's purpose? Imagine this book as a room - one that has camping gear in the corner, a yoga mat by the door, auto parts on a desk, a blender sitting atop a sewing machine, and a bike hanging from hooks from the ceiling. Confusing, right?
This book, in Dreamspinner's States of Love series, has a small-town boy finally moving to the "big city" of Indianapolis to explore his sexuality, a graysexual main character, a hint of gay bashing, an old flame now married to a woman, college friends and an epic miscommunication, a job crisis regarding the "LY1650 compound," a crazy mother, a death in the family and MORE in just under 140 pages.
Ethan Yoder is offered a lucrative temp job at a pharmaceutical company in Indianapolis shortly after graduating from college. He meet flirty Marcus at work and they start dating and eventually sleep together, after which Marcus explains:I don’t love sex. I mean, I do it willingly, so it’s not assault or anything like that. But normally it’s something I do when I like a guy—kind of an obligation.”
Marcus further explains that:“For me, having sex is like eating a meal when I’m not hungry. The meal might taste good, and sometimes I may even order a piece of chocolate cake because I saw it at another table and it looked delicious. But no matter how long it’s been since the last time I ate, I’m never hungry like everyone else.”
I liked the way in which the author framed the discussion of Marcus' graysexuality, but it almost got lost in the midst of the other crises and situations. I don't intend to bash the author here, but there are just so many things going on in this story it's difficult to concentrate. Any one or two of the plot points would have made a well-rounded story, but as it is, there isn't enough space in the story to do any of them justice.
I would definitely read more by Logan Meredith, but Crossroads did not work for me for the reasons above. 3 stars.
Visit my blog, Sinfully Good Gay Book Reviews
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Indiana is not a state I have visited, but this novella gave me a good feel for what it’s like. From Ethan’s small-town farming life to his venture in “the big city”, Indianapolis, where he meets Marcus, the setting felt very real to me. But setting is not all this book is about – at its center is the inner battle of two men between what they currently have and what they really want. It takes them a while to get to the point where they can open up and be honest – with themselves and each other – and their journey is as obstacle ridden as it is fascinating.
Please find my full review of the second edition on
Rainbow Book Reviews. -
“You are now at a crossroads....Don't think about who you have been…Who have you decided to become? Make this decision consciously. Make it carefully. Make it powerfully. Then act upon it.” ~ Anthony Robbins
Marcus Light, of ‘Crossroads’ by Logan Meredith, is not happy with his life. He hates his job, but needs the money that comes with it. He has obligations that keep him from doing what he wants to do, but doesn’t know how to move forward. Things begin to look up when Ethan Yoder comes to work for his company. Suddenly, Ethan doesn’t mind going to work at all. He even comes in early to the surprise of his coworkers, who aren’t used to Marcus spending even a second extra at work.
Having worked so hard to get away from his hometown, Ethan wants to make a good impression at work. He is determined to get a good job and make it on his own in the big city. It is not what he is hoping for, but he manages to obtain employment as an intern; Ethan is hoping it will lead to a full-time position. Ethan is assigned to work with Marcus, but finds him dismissive and difficult. Yet, at the same time, Marcus flirts with him incessantly. When Marcus finally convinces Ethan to go out with him, he fires Ethan by having him reassigned so they can date without fraternization being a problem.
Marcus has three very close friends from college whom he trusts with his secrets; one of the biggest has to do with his failures in the romance department. In the beginning, things go well, but inevitably, they fall apart. Marcus hasn’t been able to sort out what happens, but he does know that he craves romance and affection, but yet he is seldom, if ever, interested in the sexual part. When his friends learn that Marcus is seeing someone new, understandably, they are concerned. They have seen him hurt too many to not say anything. For this reason, Marcus delays telling his love interest as long as he can; usually, this omission leads to disastrous results, leaving him sad and brokenhearted. Marcus knows that he should explain how he feels, but he is so afraid that Ethan won’t understand that he delays the inevitable.
Ethan has never been on a real date with a man and can hardly wait for the time to arrive. When it does, they have a wonderful time. Over the next few weeks, they enjoy each other’s company doing a variety of activities. Yet, Ethan is a little disappointed that the physical relationship is not evolving the way he hoped. Ethan begins to wonder if he has misread Marcus’s intentions, or if his interest in him is waning. At the same time, Marcus is overly attentive, sending an overabundance of emails, texts, tweets, and is still flirting. In fact, Ethan can hardly get his work done! When Ethan asks him what’s going on, Marcus has to admit the truth; he loves the romance but that he very seldom feels physically aroused. With this revelation, the ball is in Ethan’s court. He loves being with Marcus and feels that their relationship is growing into something deeper, but can they find a way to accommodate both of their needs?
It was sad to me that Marcus had to pretend to feel something that he didn’t, that he felt he was somehow “wrong” for not feeling it. It’s difficult for me to imagine not feeling aroused, but I can appreciate the fact that it was his reality. Not everyone fits into the same cubby hol’; there is no right or wrong way. What’s best for you is what’s best, period, and if you are fortunate enough to find someone who loves you as you are, it’s a glorious thing. Thanks, Logan, for the reminder that we are all different, and that’s okay. -
A
Joyfully Jay review.
2.5 stars
Let me start by telling you I didn’t connect with Ethan or Marcus at all. I didn’t feel anything for them. I thought both men were cranky smart alecs. Perhaps the author was trying to emphasize their insecurities. You know, covering their issues with humor and sarcasm. It didn’t come off as that, and it only served to lower my opinion of Ethan and Marcus.
I do want to talk about Marcus for a bit. He was hard to like, but I did find myself having some feelings for him when he tried explaining his sexual identity to Ethan. Although he wasn’t sure of the word to describe himself, he eventually identifies as graysexual. This means romantic love is wonderful, but he doesn’t want to have sex. He enjoys kissing, cuddling, and well…romance. He doesn’t particularly like sex, however he can manifest sexual desire under certain circumstances. Marcus wants to snuggle under a blanket with Ethan, eat popcorn, and watch Golden Girls, but he did feel desire while he was in his apartment with Ethan. Marcus gave Ethan a blow job and enjoyed it, and the men did have sex (at least I think they did). The next morning, Ethan wants round two, but Marcus doesn’t. I became a little sad for Marcus because he was being honest with Ethan, but Ethan didn’t really understand until later.
Read Kenna’s review in its entirety
here. -
I liked Ethan, but I didn't really care for the story
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https://aspeccharactersoftheday.tumbl... -
Reviewed by Kelly
When Marcus and Ethan meet and the chemistry is there right from the start. Each have issues of their own that they each bring to the relationship. They realize their relationship is what they make it. It does not have to be what other people have, it can be uniquely theirs. I think that many of us can learn a very valuable lesson from that.
This is my first time reading a book by Logan Meredith and I am happy to say I came away very informed and impressed. Not only was I entertained by the book itself, I gained even more knowledge about the fluidity of sexuality. I knew about many under the umbrella but never new about Graysexual. I enjoyed the characterization and the way I learned a lot about gender fluidity.
Ethan and Marcus took me on this journey. I really enjoyed watching them learn so much not just about each other, but about themselves. I loved the group of friends they have that offer them support. It made me happy that they had someone to turn to when they were doubting their feelings or just doing something plain stupid and needed to be set straight!
I had no problem reading this book and I found it to be an easy read for me. One that both entertained and taught me something at the same time. My only complaint is that I do wish that the book had been longer.
I felt I could have spent more time learning about this couple and the lives they built beyond where the book ends -
3.5 stars, rounding up. This book is a bit of a grab bag—there’s a lot going on, some of it works, some of it needs work, but overall I enjoyed it. Some of the main things that worked for me are that we get to see a full relationship arc, the conflicts were somewhat unusual but very believable, and the two main characters, Marcus in particular, were flawed in relatable ways. The other thing about this book, is that it was written as part of this ‘States of Love’ thing and it’s about Indiana. My husband is from Indiana, so I was laughing at the accuracy of some of the references.
The main main thing I appreciated was Marcus’s struggle to figure out his sexuality. He’s definitely gay and loves the romance of love and relationships, but isn’t much bothered about the sex, and is very self-conscious about that, since boyfriends have left him because of that. So, he ends up acting uber-positive to compensate. Ethan is pretty smart, tho, and doesn’t really let him get away with that for long. The final conflict really needed a longer book to make it convincing, but I wasn’t super mad at it. This is a jumbled, imperfect book that had enough good in it to win me over. -
This was okay. I didn't love it, but I enjoyed it enough. Ethan intrigued me, and I would've like to see a little more of him and his viewpoint. Marcus was a little more immature (to me), and I felt like the big mix-up at the end didn't have enough build up for all the importance it seemed to have to the overall plot (kind of? ... I felt like the plot was a little convoluted, regardless, so I wasn't sure what the focus was supposed to be or how it should be resolved).
That was probably my main takeaway -- this book wasn't very straightforward, and I couldn't really pinpoint the climax or resolution. I did enjoy Ethan, though, and I was happy . -
Indiana is not a state I have visited, but this novella gave me a good feel for what it’s like. From Ethan’s small-town farming life to his venture in “the big city”, Indianapolis, where he meets Marcus, the setting felt very real to me. But setting is not all this book is about – at its center is the inner battle of two men between what they currently have and what they really want. It takes them a while to get to the point where they can open up and be honest – with themselves and each other – and their journey is as obstacle ridden as it is fascinating.
Please find my full review on
Rainbow Book Reviews. -
Review to come on Just Love Reviews
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3.5 Stars
