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BOOK REVIEW: Smoke and Water- Tai Le Grice

December 22, 2019

Smoke and Water

Tai Le Grice

This is gem of exploration into the world of love across class and barriers, of a working class lad who kisses above his station and the unflinchingly violent reactions of his lover’s family to these presumed sexual, social and class transgressions.  Le Grice takes us on a real adventure, into the tender development of this sensual love between the two main characters and then the personal changes induced in one of them, following the appalling aggressive violent assaults, instigated by a homophobic wealthy gangster father that splits them apart.  Le Grice writes well, his sex scenes are sensual but with little anatomical detail, a curious but engaging way of writing. The development of his main protagonist from beaten, almost broken, battered hospitalised wreck to defined, champion of martial arts and mentally disciplined is a tour de force of reclaiming. The refusal to let violence  define your life, and the power of hope and hard work.  All these themes are folded into a boy meets boy American college love story.

The book shows us the struggles of a gay couple against their own social conditioning and familial rejection but also gives us a strong narrative of people not being victims, but learning, focusing and fighting back; reclaiming their dignity and power and grabbing love by the balls and decking anyone who dares get in the way.  A fierce imagining of merciless Queer revenge.

Paperback £8.99

For more info or to buy this books see the publishers website here. 

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