Daddy Issues by Seth King

 

Eliot Prince is falling hard for someone…
His former stepfather.

Their bond is forbidden. Their relationship could upend lives. But their love? It’s a force of nature…

Ten years ago, a desperate and confused Robert Glazer briefly married a woman before confronting his sexuality and starting his life as an out gay man. They divorced and lost contact – until now.

Today, a sudden family death throws Robert and his ex-wife back together for the first time. That’s where Robert meets her son Eliot, who was raised with his own father and is now a gorgeous – and openly gay – adult. And to Robert and Eliot’s surprise, sparks fly.

Passion ignites, then threatens to explode. Soon Eliot knows three things. One: Robert is not his father figure, and never was – in fact, he barely remembers him. Two: news of their union would still rock his whole world. And three: he craves Robert more than anything he has ever wanted. And as suspicions arise, their attraction only grows…



  Daddy Issues by Seth King
My rating: 1 of 5 stars


*Don't read this review. I mean it.*

Seth King is a new to me author. This is my first book of his, I heard nothing but great praise for his first novel, Honesty. But alas, I started with this, because I read the glowing flourish reviews . I thought, well, this probably good enough to eat, and I’m a sucker for May December romances. So I dig in, I went blind.

And I was disappointed. The story is repetitive, the writing’s NOT my liking, and I was bored easily. And on top of that, I felt like I read a bad version of CMBYN in a parallel universe, with some ‘creative’ addition. Good for the creative part.

As a Call Me by Your Name hardcore fan, I know by heart every words in the book (I read it five times already, and counting). So when someone mentioned that this book is having an Elio elements inside, I was intrigue and started to read. Curiosity kills the cat is a true thing, you know. I was reading this book with lots and lots of frowning and I’m already old and this makes me even older.

Thing is, the author posted on his page that that CMBYN is his ever loving favorite book weeks ago, and liked it or not, my curious mind thought, oh no, the next book would be Elio Perlman inside, and ooh…the boy’s name is Eliot Prince!. Ring any bells? Of course there’s nothing wrong when you inspired by some books or some events that really stayed in your heart, but put Elio Perlman’s thought in your story, tell me what does it means?

There’s also one weird thing with this daddy’s wife for two years. He NEVER slept with her (for two f* years? Oh, come on, get real here!), and she accused him cheated on her, and then he revealed that he was gay. After two years of not telling her anything. No agreement on their sex-less marriage or whatever. Nope. Zero. Nada. I assume if she accused him cheated on him, that means, he showed ‘some love’, right?

Fast forward ten years later after the weird marriage ended.
Elio, I mean Eliot met his former step-father and lusting after him all of a sudden (put an eye-rolling here). And don’t let me mentioned the ‘villa’ called a cabin mountain, where everybody’s welcome, party and dancing, the separation, the reunion and whatever and so on and so on.
There’s also one important part I notice, the dual POV didn’t ‘sound’ like a dual POV at all, it sounds like, one POV, there’s no differences between Eliot and Robert, the way they ‘talk’ and ‘thinking’.

And there’s that ‘daydream’ scene. OMG. Can’t it be more obvious?
And so many more, including the dividing the story in parts, the swimming, the lake, the waiting on dinner, sunbathing, the long separation, and I can go on forever explaining this. I’m tired.

And one more thing, about what society tells you about you can’t be with him, Eliot. What society? There’s nothing’s wrong with having relationship with your stepfather, unless, your head said that to you.

Okay, so let me wrap it up. All in all, IMHO, this a bad version of Call Me by Your Name. Don’t waste your time.
I don’t think I’ll read this author’s book again in the future. That’s fine.
This one only, wasted two days of my precious life.
I’m out.




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