All I Want for Christmas

Rating:
Summary: "If You Believe"
Review: "All I Want For Christmas" is not as strong as "Summer Share". However I am rating it 5 stars because of "If You Believe" by Mann, which is one of his best efforts to date. Mann is one of my favorite writers and "If You Believe" is a treasure. Hauntingly beautiful, it is written with a poignancy and honesty which just tugs at my heart. Yes Mann, I wish I have my own merman too. "An Extra Large Christmas" is fun and Kenry does not disappoint. I was least impressed with Jeffrey's and Tyler's efforts as I never like stories with "Hollywood" influence. Yet "All I Want For Christmas" still shines because of one gem, "If You Believe"

Rating:
Summary: "If You Believe"
Review: "All I Want For Christmas" is not as strong as "Summer Share". However I am rating it 5 stars because of "If You Believe" by Mann, which is one of his best efforts to date. Mann is one of my favorite writers and "If You Believe" is a treasure. Hauntingly beautiful, it is written with a poignancy and honesty which just tugs at my heart. Yes Mann, I wish I have my own merman too. "An Extra Large Christmas" is fun and Kenry does not disappoint. I was least impressed with Jeffrey's and Tyler's efforts as I never like stories with "Hollywood" influence. Yet "All I Want For Christmas" still shines because of one gem, "If You Believe"

Rating:
Summary: Great light reading by four of the best in gay fiction
Review: This was an easy selection for me, since it features short stories by four of my favorite authors of light/comic gay fiction. The four stories (averaging about 75 pages each) are set during the holiday season, in accordance with the title.

In the opener, Jon ("Boyfriend Material") Jeffrey features his character Carson St. John, who is the wickedly-biting editor of a gay mens magazine. Carson is offered a better job on a famous men's magazine, with the added bonus that he'll be working with a charming, very handsome (and single) Brit who expressed an interest in him. Loaded with catty criticism of the NYC "A list" gay community.

Chris ("Can't Buy Me Love", "Uncle Max") Kenry has a cute story with an interesting twist: Frank Malloy is a well-known photographer, best known for his "coffee table" books of male nudes, primarily young smooth twinks, surfers, etc. He is regularly approached by cute young men looking to model for him, but the irony is that Frank is only attracted to chubby men ... like the UPS man Al, who Frank keeps coming to his door daily by ordering things through mail order he really doesn't want or need. Frank also meets up with a Czech former porn star, who wants to be Frank's apprentice, but Al thinks Frank is having an affair with.

My favorite of the four is by William J ("The Men From The Boys", "Where The Boys Are") Mann, who explores the emotional dynamics between four diverse gay 20-something men who have been friends since their early teens. At the age when they start to favor "settling down", they struggle with relationships as well as each other's perceptions of their chosen boyfriends.

Last but not least, Ben ("Gay Blades", "Hunk House", "Tricks of the Trade") Tyler brings us a fun look at the home of an aging, overbearing rich Hollywood icon, Polly Pepper, and her gay son, Tim, who functions more like her personal assistant. Tim realizes Mom holds the pursestrings, and is generally happy with his status as "Polly Pepper's gay son", except that he resents that any guys he meets seem to be more excited about having access to Polly than to him.

Rating:
Summary: Great light reading by four of the best in gay fiction
Review: This was an easy selection for me, since it features short stories by four of my favorite authors of light/comic gay fiction. The four stories (averaging about 75 pages each) are set during the holiday season, in accordance with the title.

In the opener, Jon ("Boyfriend Material") Jeffrey features his character Carson St. John, who is the wickedly-biting editor of a gay mens magazine. Carson is offered a better job on a famous men's magazine, with the added bonus that he'll be working with a charming, very handsome (and single) Brit who expressed an interest in him. Loaded with catty criticism of the NYC "A list" gay community.

Chris ("Can't Buy Me Love", "Uncle Max") Kenry has a cute story with an interesting twist: Frank Malloy is a well-known photographer, best known for his "coffee table" books of male nudes, primarily young smooth twinks, surfers, etc. He is regularly approached by cute young men looking to model for him, but the irony is that Frank is only attracted to chubby men ... like the UPS man Al, who Frank keeps coming to his door daily by ordering things through mail order he really doesn't want or need. Frank also meets up with a Czech former porn star, who wants to be Frank's apprentice, but Al thinks Frank is having an affair with.

My favorite of the four is by William J ("The Men From The Boys", "Where The Boys Are") Mann, who explores the emotional dynamics between four diverse gay 20-something men who have been friends since their early teens. At the age when they start to favor "settling down", they struggle with relationships as well as each other's perceptions of their chosen boyfriends.

Last but not least, Ben ("Gay Blades", "Hunk House", "Tricks of the Trade") Tyler brings us a fun look at the home of an aging, overbearing rich Hollywood icon, Polly Pepper, and her gay son, Tim, who functions more like her personal assistant. Tim realizes Mom holds the pursestrings, and is generally happy with his status as "Polly Pepper's gay son", except that he resents that any guys he meets seem to be more excited about having access to Polly than to him.