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A Strong and Sudden Thaw R W Day 9780978753115 Books

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A Strong and Sudden Thaw R W Day 9780978753115 Books

Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.

Rating: 8/10

PROS:
- Sweet, heartbreaking, romantic, selfless, beautiful relationship between David and Callan. It's left me a bit speechless, to tell the truth. And yet this isn't solely a romance (see cons below). It's also a coming-of-age story in which love plays a large part in moulding the main character into the man he's meant to be. The sex scenes are suggestive, no more, and fit the tone of the story perfectly. Sensual without being at all graphic.
- The world of the story. The setting is a clever (though at times, confusing) mix of historical and futuristic elements: the characters have read about (and a few remember) our 21st-century world and ponder in awe various small conveniences that we take for granted in modern times, yet they live in a setting similar to that of the 18th or 19th century.
- Much more "literary" writing than I have encountered in this genre thus far. Day has an excellent sense of language rhythm; there were times when I stopped and read sentences or paragraphs out loud in order to listen more closely to the combinations of words she used.

CONS:
- Plot that had so much going for it that I wasn't sure what the main point was supposed to be. The conflicts are also layered one upon another, so that the characters (and I) never had just one problem to deal with or worry about. That makes for interesting reading, sure, but as one other reviewer remarked, the book tries to be many different things--romance, coming-of-age, fantasy, dystopian science fiction, political commentary--and doesn't quite succeed at being any one of them.
- Ending that might purposefully have been left open, but that with no definite word of a sequel (that I could find anywhere, anyway), seems unresolved and slightly dissatisfying.
- Some editorial inconsistencies. There are missing words, sloppy and/or misplaced paragraph breaks, punctuation errors, etc. They aren't as pervasive in this work as in others I've read recently, but they do at times stop the flow of the reading.

Overall comments: This is a great book; I ate it up quickly and eagerly, and Day truly has a gift for beautiful prose. In spite of the plot holes/inconsistencies and the unexplained elements at the story's close, I recommend it. But this is not erotica; if you're looking for sex that is detailed or frequent, you'll be disappointed here.


Tags : A Strong and Sudden Thaw [R. W. Day] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Dragons terrorize a Virginia town, and one young man finds friendship--and love--in unlikely places in this near-future post-apocalyptic romance from Lambda award finalist R.W. Day. 'A Strong and Sudden Thaw' is a current finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards.,R. W. Day,A Strong and Sudden Thaw,Iris Print,0978753119,2150668100,General,American First Novelists,Fiction,Fiction - General,Fiction General

A Strong and Sudden Thaw R W Day 9780978753115 Books Reviews

I liked this book. It's well written, well paced and entertaining. It's definitely more complex than the average m/m romance book. In fact, much of the plot has little to do with two guys and a blossoming romance. This is set in a frozen post-apocalyptic Virginia where dragons have started terrorizing a small town. There is corruption and cover-ups, assassins and close-minded townfolk. I'm a big fan of apocalyptic fiction and of science fiction in general, so those parts just made it more fun.

The book ends with only about half the questions answered and appears to be the first in a series. (well, I certainly hope there's more - I want to know how the story ends).

The only thing that bothered me about the story are the ages of Callan and David. Callan's 23 and David is 16. It just didn't sit right with me. That's an age range where 7 years difference is a pretty big deal. It didn't kill the story for me, just made me think.

The formatting is a little sketchy with double spacing between paragraphs and 2 or 3 blank screens between chapters.

But, the storyline itself made up for the formatting and my discomfort. This is a book worth getting.
When I initially purchased A Strong and Sudden Thaw for my , I was not expecting a great story -- merely an okay one. And while the first few chapters took some patience, both the writing and the story quickly improved.

It's far from a perfect book, mind you, but it held my interest. In fact, I was so engrossed in the tale that I read the book in pretty much one sitting. (Two chapters last night before bed and the rest today over two pots of coffee). Surprising, R. W. Day is a female author -- the "R" is for Rebecca -- and she did an rather good job writing from a gay male's point of view. I assumed the book had been penned by a male author until I did online research looking for a sequel.

And the sequel, Out of the Ashes, has been written but it's currently unavailable. In fact, it's so unavailable that it's not even listed on the publisher's website (Lethe Press). I'm a tad disappointed, as I'm rather eager to read the continuing tale of Callan and David. (The sequel was published September 1, 2010 -- three days ago -- so I have some faith it will be available for the masses soon. And the .)

Alas, I will have to make do with other books for the time being.
If I have to be completely honest, I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did. I'm something of a snob when it comes to my books. While I highly admire Iris Print and the work they're doing in publishing boy's love for the Western world... I have a tendency (unfounded, I know) to think of "professional" and "amateur" publications. I expected this book to be one of the amateur works, written well enough and entertaining, but no more than that.

What I found was an excellent book, written quite well, a book that made me forget it was supposedly an "amateur" work. I got to know these characters so well, especially the narrator, David Anderson. David is someone I'd like to know in real life, I felt for him in all his situations, for him and Callan. I came very close to crying at several points of the book, holding myself back only because I was reading in public. This is very important to me; I want to be moved by what I'm reading, and I hope that my own writing moves others.

In conclusion, I applaud R.W. Day for a well-told story, with characters who are easily known and loved. Thank you.
Warning This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.

Rating 8/10

PROS
- Sweet, heartbreaking, romantic, selfless, beautiful relationship between David and Callan. It's left me a bit speechless, to tell the truth. And yet this isn't solely a romance (see cons below). It's also a coming-of-age story in which love plays a large part in moulding the main character into the man he's meant to be. The sex scenes are suggestive, no more, and fit the tone of the story perfectly. Sensual without being at all graphic.
- The world of the story. The setting is a clever (though at times, confusing) mix of historical and futuristic elements the characters have read about (and a few remember) our 21st-century world and ponder in awe various small conveniences that we take for granted in modern times, yet they live in a setting similar to that of the 18th or 19th century.
- Much more "literary" writing than I have encountered in this genre thus far. Day has an excellent sense of language rhythm; there were times when I stopped and read sentences or paragraphs out loud in order to listen more closely to the combinations of words she used.

CONS
- Plot that had so much going for it that I wasn't sure what the main point was supposed to be. The conflicts are also layered one upon another, so that the characters (and I) never had just one problem to deal with or worry about. That makes for interesting reading, sure, but as one other reviewer remarked, the book tries to be many different things--romance, coming-of-age, fantasy, dystopian science fiction, political commentary--and doesn't quite succeed at being any one of them.
- Ending that might purposefully have been left open, but that with no definite word of a sequel (that I could find anywhere, anyway), seems unresolved and slightly dissatisfying.
- Some editorial inconsistencies. There are missing words, sloppy and/or misplaced paragraph breaks, punctuation errors, etc. They aren't as pervasive in this work as in others I've read recently, but they do at times stop the flow of the reading.

Overall comments This is a great book; I ate it up quickly and eagerly, and Day truly has a gift for beautiful prose. In spite of the plot holes/inconsistencies and the unexplained elements at the story's close, I recommend it. But this is not erotica; if you're looking for sex that is detailed or frequent, you'll be disappointed here.