Mirrors of Narcissus

Rating:
Summary: It's Like a continuing story of my life!!!
Review: Guy Willard, again, does a fabulous job telling the story of his life. Unlike Foolish Fire (The first in the series) where Guy was in High School, ` Mirrors' occurs during Guy's first year in College.

Guy, so determined to prove to himself that he is not gay, gets a girlfriend, Christine. She is a wonderful, open person. However, Guy quickly finds that simply having a girlfriend does not make him straight. He cannot seem to squelch the feelings he keeps having for other guys. It is like another chapter in my life.

His feelings come to a head when three things happen. First, he gets a new Dorm roommate, Scott, that he finds himself falling in love with, then he meets Mr. Golden, a very openly gay teacher on campus that seems to tell Guy's story without ever knowing Guy. Third, he discovers the `gay underground' on campus.
The question is `Is Scott Gay?' or is he not? Will Guy get the guy, or stay with the girl. And what roll does Mr. Golden play in keeping Guy in the closet or helping to bring him out?

I thoroughly enjoyed the book as much as I did `Foolish Fire'. I completely hope there is a continuation of Guy's story (in hopefully another book). Although this book (`Mirrors') can stand on it's own, I highly recommend reading `Foolish Fire' first to get the full background on Guy, as a few events from the first book reappear in this book as references.

Rating:
Summary: It's Like a continuing story of my life!!!
Review: Guy Willard, again, does a fabulous job telling the story of his life. Unlike Foolish Fire (The first in the series) where Guy was in High School, ' Mirrors' occurs during Guy's first year in College.

Guy, so determined to prove to himself that he is not gay, gets a girlfriend, Christine. She is a wonderful, open person. However, Guy quickly finds that simply having a girlfriend does not make him straight. He cannot seem to squelch the feelings he keeps having for other guys. It is like another chapter in my life.

His feelings come to a head when three things happen. First, he gets a new Dorm roommate, Scott, that he finds himself falling in love with, then he meets Mr. Golden, a very openly gay teacher on campus that seems to tell Guy's story without ever knowing Guy. Third, he discovers the 'gay underground' on campus.
The question is 'Is Scott Gay?' or is he not? Will Guy get the guy, or stay with the girl. And what roll does Mr. Golden play in keeping Guy in the closet or helping to bring him out?

I thoroughly enjoyed the book as much as I did 'Foolish Fire'. I completely hope there is a continuation of Guy's story (in hopefully another book). Although this book ('Mirrors') can stand on it's own, I highly recommend reading 'Foolish Fire' first to get the full background on Guy, as a few events from the first book reappear in this book as references.

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Follow-up to Foolish Fire
Review: In 'Mirrors of Narcissus', we follow Guy Willard through part of his freshman year of college. He's got a girlfriend now, a convenient cover for his continued denial that he's gay. In this continuation of 'Foolish Fire', we watch the machinations of our anti-hero as he works his magic on those around him: his girlfriend Christine, his roommate Scott (there's a scene with him toward the end that is amazing), the men he meets anonymously to have sex with, and the professor who's in love with him. Gripped by his fear that he'll never be 'normal', Guy continues to flirt with disaster at every step of the way. Guy is still athletic, straight-acting, good looking and turns everyone's heads even more. For all practical purposes, he's as straight as they come. Yet, he's not. He's totally gay, but continues to push the inevitable back further and further.

Why do I like this odd dark tale? It's hard to say, really. Perhaps I find it fascinating that such a strong-willed character willingly continues to push love away. Perhaps it's because I loved watching how Guy pulls off his strange acts of trying to get close to the boys he can't have by being with the girls who have-to somehow draw the essence of the boys from the girls who've had them. Actually, it's most likely because I find that the author has such a presence to his writing that it's impossible to stop reading! Tom Boggs (the author) is incredibly skilled at his craft. He's a true expert at creating a train wreck of a main character who's totally believable!

I found this installment of the series (there is another one coming very soon!) to be highly sexually charged, beautiful in its imagery, and with a passionate depth of characterization that kept my attention at every page-especially toward the end, as the climax of the story built toward a crescendo.

I'm generally a slow reader, but I read this 193-page tome in two days. It was my companion at every spare moment for those two days, too. I wish it hadn't ended so fast!

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Follow-up to Foolish Fire
Review: In `Mirrors of Narcissus', we follow Guy Willard through part of his freshman year of college. He's got a girlfriend now, a convenient cover for his continued denial that he's gay. In this continuation of `Foolish Fire', we watch the machinations of our anti-hero as he works his magic on those around him: his girlfriend Christine, his roommate Scott (there's a scene with him toward the end that is amazing), the men he meets anonymously to have sex with, and the professor who's in love with him. Gripped by his fear that he'll never be `normal', Guy continues to flirt with disaster at every step of the way. Guy is still athletic, straight-acting, good looking and turns everyone's heads even more. For all practical purposes, he's as straight as they come. Yet, he's not. He's totally gay, but continues to push the inevitable back further and further.

Why do I like this odd dark tale? It's hard to say, really. Perhaps I find it fascinating that such a strong-willed character willingly continues to push love away. Perhaps it's because I loved watching how Guy pulls off his strange acts of trying to get close to the boys he can't have by being with the girls who have-to somehow draw the essence of the boys from the girls who've had them. Actually, it's most likely because I find that the author has such a presence to his writing that it's impossible to stop reading! Tom Boggs (the author) is incredibly skilled at his craft. He's a true expert at creating a train wreck of a main character who's totally believable!

I found this installment of the series (there is another one coming very soon!) to be highly sexually charged, beautiful in its imagery, and with a passionate depth of characterization that kept my attention at every page-especially toward the end, as the climax of the story built toward a crescendo.

I'm generally a slow reader, but I read this 193-page tome in two days. It was my companion at every spare moment for those two days, too. I wish it hadn't ended so fast!

Rating:
Summary: BRILLIANT, EROTIC, & TORRID
Review: This book is brilliant! Willard has captured the essence of what it means to be gay and seeking social, as well as self-validation. Very real, very touching, and very familiar. DON'T MISS THIS ONE!

Rating:
Summary: BRILLIANT, EROTIC, & TORRID
Review: This book is brilliant! Willard has captured the essence of what it means to be gay and seeking social, as well as self-validation. Very real, very touching, and very familiar. DON'T MISS THIS ONE!