Rating: 
Summary: Nice story but a little heavy on the sex
Review: This book was clearly a labor of love for its author. Mark Kendrick understands the kind of people and locales that he writes about here. It's nice, too, that he takes his time in getting the two main characters, Scott and Ryan, together. Their cautious circling of one another lasts for over a hundred pages before it finally culminates in their accepting themselves as a couple. Kendrick does a fine job with Ryan's character in particular -- his moodiness, the way his troubled past affects his sense of self, his mistrust of the world.I just wish I liked this book more. For me one of the biggest problems is the author's apparent preoccupation with sex. While it is true that teenaged boys think about sex about a million times per day, once this book starts going on the sex scenes it just never lets up. Ultimately it all starts to get a bit repetitive and, yes, boring. Toward the end of the book I found myself skimming over the horny bits whenever I realized the boys were about to go at it yet again. (At one point I think I even muttered "Sheesh, give me a break!" outloud.) It is one thing when a sexual escapade has a context within the story and somehow serves to develop character or drive the plot. It is quite another when it seems that the scenes have been included mainly to titillate the reader (or perhaps the author.) My own disbelief began to dawn early on, when, after those first hundred pages of comparatively realistic caution and doubt, Scott and Ryan are suddenly masturbating together on a camping trip. In this scene and the others that soon follow, bodily positions and discharges are rendered in detailed, heavy-duty prose. (It is curious, though, that when it comes to the boys' most particular feature of male anatomy, the author turns coy, declining to offer anything except that Ryan is "thicker".) The storytelling in the non-sexual scenes is often just as descriptive, but here it is mostly in a way that furthers the story. The writing itself really isn't that bad. It is not especially poetic or rhapsodic, but it communicates the story effectively and keeps those pages turning. I have to note, however, that the worst thing about the author's prose style is the way he constantly shifts points of view, frequently within the same paragraph. (The first chapter -- the one I sampled on Amazon before buying -- happens to be entirely from Ryan's point of view, so it is non-representative.) One sentence will describe a thought on Ryan's part, then the next will suddenly come from Scott's point of view, with little or no transitional writing to guide the reader along. In my confusion I often had to stop and re-read a passage to decipher who had been thinking what. This problem gets especially bad when there are more than two people in a scene. What results is something like a traffic jam in prose. The flow of the story comes to a halt and you are snapped out of world that the author has worked so hard to create. It is really too bad that Kendrick did not have a skilled editor to help him whip his book into better shape. Kendrick has created a memorable character in Ryan St. Charles, and he does a good job with many of the secondary characters too. I must admit, though, that the other main character, Scott Faraday, began to wear on me by the end of the novel, and for that reason I will not be reading the sequel. If you don't mind the constant sex (and I can understand where for some the sex will indeed be a plus) then this is might be the book for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Could not turn the pages fast enough!!!!
Review: This book was incrediable! I was quickly pulled into this novel about Scott and Ryan, two boys from different backgrounds. From the very beginning I was dying to know more about Ryan's past. I was also eager to see how, and if, Scott and Ryan would get together. I won't ruin the story for you, but wow! The story is so real it doesn't seem like fiction. It is very well written and flows excellent! I would Highly recommend this book!
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Coming Out Book
Review: This is a very-well crafted coming-out book. The author has a fine ear for teenage dialogue and writes with a style that owes no apology to the best "literary" gay novels. Kendrick makes the reader care very much about his two young protagonists, even though one of them (Ryan) is a "troubled" youth. His boyfriend, Scott, is the most likeable character I've ever encountered in fiction. Kendrick also works in a number of very explicitly erotic scenes that never feel gratuitous. I've read many gay coming-out books; this is one of the very best.
Rating: 
Summary: The hope and promise of young (gay) love
Review: This novel about two gay teens and their start-up relationship is tenderly written. It brings the reader back to his/her own awkward dating days, when one look or incorrectly chosen word could change the course of one's life. Minute details are of paramount importance, and the author accurately portrays the angst universal to all teens as they try and impress (or at least survive) their peers. The uncertainties in these boys' lives made me cringe at times and laugh out loud at times, and I frequently feared a tragic ending as they grappled with who they were and who they wanted to be. It really is a tender love story (with some steamy sex scenes -- gripping reading for even heterosexuals) and the evidence of familial support is heartening. Also, the wonderful settings (desert and coastline) make this read like a mini-vacation. This, Mark Kendrick's first effort, is impressive, his attention to detail is remarkable, and his memory of his own youth (I'll assume) is impeccable. A job well done.
Rating:
Summary: Read with caution
Review: Ultimately, Desert Sons was a sweet coming out story. I didn't feel cheated of the time I spent reading the book, but I when I was finished reading this book...I really was finished reading it. Unlike such coming out stories as "Leave Myself Behind" and "Common Sons", this book doesn't escape the confines of teen romance and will inspire very few second and third reads. The dialogue and story plays out as would a teen's stream-of-conciousness, lacking the depth that an enduring story would require...to endure. The majority of the sex in this book was gratuitous and added nothing to the plot...the sex, at times, also interrupted moments of good storytelling. I understand that a teen boy's world is very much about his libido...or lack thereof, but the complexity of "coming-out" and loving someone at such a young age, in the midst of turmoil and struggle, involves a poignant complexity that this book touched upon...but didn't succeed in addressing. Mark Kendrick may have created a book that embodies the teen mindset quite well, but he fails to include all of us who have already been through this experience and who now look back upon it through different eyes. It's simply not written on our level. I would recommend this novel wholeheartedly to teenage boys who are gay or struggling with their sexuality...because Desert Sons is uplifting and sweet and promising of something that many gay teen boys have yet to experience. But, for us adults, it offers much less.
Rating:
Summary: Read with caution
Review: Ultimately, Desert Sons was a sweet coming out story. I didn't feel cheated of the time I spent reading the book, but I when I was finished reading this book...I really was finished reading it. Unlike such coming out stories as "Leave Myself Behind" and "Common Sons", this book doesn't escape the confines of teen romance and will inspire very few second and third reads. The dialogue and story plays out as would a teen's stream-of-conciousness, lacking the depth that an enduring story would require...to endure. The majority of the sex in this book was gratuitous and added nothing to the plot...the sex, at times, also interrupted moments of good storytelling. I understand that a teen boy's world is very much about his libido...or lack thereof, but the complexity of "coming-out" and loving someone at such a young age, in the midst of turmoil and struggle, involves a poignant complexity that this book touched upon...but didn't succeed in addressing. Mark Kendrick may have created a book that embodies the teen mindset quite well, but he fails to include all of us who have already been through this experience and who now look back upon it through different eyes. It's simply not written on our level. I would recommend this novel wholeheartedly to teenage boys who are gay or struggling with their sexuality...because Desert Sons is uplifting and sweet and promising of something that many gay teen boys have yet to experience. But, for us adults, it offers much less.
Rating: 
Summary: Not what the other reviewers have said
Review: Usually I agree with the reviews at amazon.com, but I cannot believe that I am the only one who did not particularly like Desert Sons. I am a fan of the gay teen/coming out genre. Books like the recent Rainbow Boys, Someone is Watching, and Do You Know That I Love You have all been outstanding unputdownable emotional reading experiences for me. But Desert Sons never gripped me. I knew that the two boys liked each other, but it seemed mostly about sex and sexual attraction. I never felt the romantic passion and need to be together that I did in the other three books I mentioned. The book is overlong; with major pruning,it would have been a more compelling read. I was impatient for the boys to get together (it took almost 200 pages), but it was just that, impatience. And when they did, the relationship was mostly based on very graphic sex. Most distubing is the author's message that oral sex (including the frequent swallowing of semen) is riskfree. This message, if believed by gay teen readers, could lead to dangerous health consequences on the shoulders of the author.
Rating:
Summary: Sequel Please!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Very good reading. About 150 pages into the book, I was up all night finishing it - then disappointed that I had. Can't wait to read the follow-up book.
Rating:
Summary: Sequel Please!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Very good reading. About 150 pages into the book, I was up all night finishing it - then disappointed that I had. Can't wait to read the follow-up book.
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