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Dreaming of You
by Ethan Day
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$10.99 |
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$9.89 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. |
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$1.10 (10%) |
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Paperback
Publisher: Loose Id, LLC
Restaurateur Aden Ingle has been in love with the perfect man since his fourteenth birthday. Unfortunately, his perfect boyfriend only exists in his dreams. But Aden's always believed it was his destiny to meet his dream man, and he's perfectly content to wait around for him to walk into his real life.
When he meets Logan Price at a Hotel/Restaurant Trade Show, he finds himself drawn to this man who shakes him out of his dream world. Pretty soon, the flesh and blood reality is becoming more appealing than the fantasy. The only problem is Logan lives half way across the country in California.
Aden's going to have to choose whether to give up everything he's built for himself professionally and uproot his whole life for Logan, or wait for the man from his dreams to become a reality.
Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: anal play/intercourse, male/male sexual practices.
| Customer Reviews: |
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| A Really Good Book ! |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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I liked this book. Though it's written in 1st person and I usually don't enjoy those books as well, but once I started reading this book, I didn't stop until I was finished.
You can read all the details in the other reviews. I just wanted to thank Ethan Day. I chuckled through some of the book but on page 81 I started to loose it. I was laughing so hard on page 82 I had to put the book down for a moment. Only to have to put it down again on the next page so I could get my breath back. GREAT!
I enjoyed the characters, especially Aden. Maybe that's because we're almost alike in the behavior/accident area.
This book will be staying on my keeper shelf.
Please Ethan!!! Write more and more and be quick about it! ;-)
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| Dreaming of You by Ethan Day |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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This is the second book I read by Ethan Day, and as before, it left me with the idea that probably, a) Ethan Day is a young guy with a positive and friendly attitude b) he likes very much the romantic comedy (both books but above all movies). In this new book he winks the eye to "Only You" a 1994 movie with Marisa Tomei: in the movie Faith was getting married with the perfect boyfriend, but she has only a regret, she has never met her "dream man", a man who frequents her night and day dreams since she was a teenager.
Same here, Aden is a nice young man, he co-owns a restaurant in Missouri and he has a quite happy life, if not for the thing that he has not a boyfriend. But Aden manages well all the same, he is a friendly guy and he has no problem to get laid, if he wants, and when he has no real man with him, he has his dream man, the perfect fantasy he built when he was a lonely teenager. In the last 15 years he married, built an house, adopted a son, went on holiday, all the time with his dream man.
Then to a convention in Atlanta he meets Logan, a restaurant owner from Los Angeles. Logan is not exactly his dream man (Adan has clear in mind how his dream man looks), but he is not far from the perfect boyfriend material: Logan is sexy, funny, friendly. Maybe he is a bit too much on the playboy side, but it's not that Aden is a virgin maid waiting for the knight in shining armor... so what is Aden waiting? probably the trouble is that, even if near perfect, Logan is not 100% perfect as Aden imagined his dream man, to build something with Logan, Aden has to compromise, maybe even move and change his life (Missouri is not exactly near to California). And it would mean take a risk, since even if Logan behaves like a man in love, from what Aden understood, Logan is not exactly a celibate man, and instead Aden, even if sometime he enjoys himself, is more the commitment and exclusive type.
And then there is the big open point: Aden knows, deep inside, that his dream man is out there waiting for him... what will happen if he commits with Logan to then find his dream man?
I like the feeling of the book, since it's very romantic without forgetting that we are speaking of men; an example? first date between Aden and Logan, Aden is in his room waiting for the night and the dinner with Logan; what would a woman do? take care of herself, maybe go to an hairdress, at least spend hour in front of the closet choosing the perfect dress... what does Aden do? he masturbates! and then, after taking care of himself in his own way, he spends some minute in front of the closet choosing the perfect dress... this is the difference between a "female perspective" on romantic comedy and "male perspective". But this is also the reason why I like it, since, even if obviously a pink glass perspective on love and life, I felt like the characters were real, with all their quirks and faults, and perfect shiny life.
The world where Logan and Aden live and love is an upper-class privileged world; Aden's trouble is to decide or not to move to Los Angeles to live in a poshy apartment with his new boyfriend Logan... all right, the poshy apartment is a bit too "anal" and Logan maybe is a playboy, and his dream man is somewhere in the world waiting for him, but Aden has not to worry about rent or bills or money... and THIS is what makes great a romantic comedy, the light and easy feeling that permeate all the story, we read and see a romantic comedy to dream not to think. Dreaming of You, even from the title, is the perfect example of a romantic comedy.
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| Fun and lively romantic comedy |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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Ever since he was fourteen years old, Aden has been having dreams that feature the same man. Sometimes they're married, sometimes they're not; the scenarios change, but they are always lovers. He is Aden's "Mr. Right." For the past fifteen years, Aden has been looking for his dream lover, convinced that the man is out there somewhere and that they are destined to meet and spend their eternities with each other. Consequently, none of his real life relationships last very long, because no one can measure up to a fantasy. That is, until he meets Logan Price while at a conference in Atlanta.
Logan is the direct opposite of Aden's dream guy, but something about him attracts Aden. Maybe it's because the man is funny, maybe because he finds Aden's various quirks to be cute and even endearing, but something between them clicks and feels comfortable and "right." After a week in each other's company and several months of a long-distance relationship that involves a lot of phone sex and a huge long-distance bill, both Logan and Aden believe that it may be time to take the next step and for Aden to move to California to be with his lover.
Everything would seem to be perfect, if only for one thing: Aden hasn't stopped dreaming about his mystery man. Even as he falls in love with Logan, he feels as if he's somehow betraying the man in his dreams, and the "what ifs" continue to niggle in the back of his mind. What if his dream man really is out there looking for him? There is no doubt that Logan loves Aden unreservedly and that they are perfectly matched for each other. Will Aden toss over his chance for real, true love for a dream?
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Ethan Day's novel Dreaming of You is an entertaining trip into the world of one man who is so caught up in his dream world that he nearly misses out on a chance for real happiness. This story is whimsical and well-written, with characters who will capture your affection while at the same time spurring your laughter.
The story structure of Dreaming of You is unique but quite well done. The story begins "in medias res," and while this narrative method can be awkward (at least in my opinion), Mr. Day makes it work. It teases us with just enough information to make us wonder what on earth is going on, and that makes us eager to delve into the story.
Because this story is told by Aden, we are immediately drawn into his character. And what a character he is, too. Comically clumsy, foot stuck perpetually in his mouth, Aden generates equal parts affection and exasperation in the reader. This man exhibits one surprising quirk after another. He is self-deprecating, comically dramatic, and focused to an extreme on making people like him. He argues with himself and even answers himself occasionally. Yet take a ride in his car ride with him, and he switches personalities. It's hair-raising and terrifying and absolutely hilarious to watch him zip through traffic, turn erratically, shout at clueless and innocent drivers, and give everyone the finger. This man is definitely his own worst enemy. We wonder sometimes if he can go five minutes without making an [...] out of himself, but rather than being annoying, this is a strangely charming characteristic.
The secondary characters in Dreaming of You are perfect foils for Aden, especially Logan and Aden's slightly obnoxious and overtly sexual female friend Finn. She's the perfect "fag hag" sidekick and is mouthy and funny and absolutely devoted to Aden. Logan is almost Mr. Perfect, and although he is not developed as fully as Aden is, he fills his role perfectly, giving Aden a reality to contrast with his dreams.
The comic element in Dreaming of You is first-rate. The repartee between the characters is clever, lively, and pointed as it zings through the air looking for a target. And the physical comedy, as we watch the wonderfully clumsy Aden embarrass himself numerous times, triggers hilarity. I found myself grinning throughout the entire story and laughing out loud a number of times.
Readers looking for an engaging romantic comedy with characters who will make you laugh as well as win your affections will want to give Dreaming of You a shot. A little laughter plus a little romance equals a story that is simply a whole lot of fun.
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| Pleasant but predictable |
| Customer Rating: 3 out of 5 |
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WARNING: SOME PEOPLE MIGHT SEE THIS REVIEW AS A "SPOILER."
A confession: I didn't buy this book; I only read the free sample. Now, I very much depend on those samples to see how an author begins a story, what kind of editing the e-publisher gave the book (often a disappointment) and whether or not the characters interest me and/or endear themselves to me. The sample isn't really supposed to clearly anticipate the denouement.
In this case, however, because the author couldn't wait to insert lust and sex into the novel (albeit in the backstory), the ending is completely predictable and I felt little need to complete what I had started. Don't get me wrong: I value lust and sex; but I like it introduced and "balanced" in such a way that it does not detract from the "romance." (In fact - perhaps ironically - the DREAMING OF YOU cover art PERFECTLY balances romance, love and sex.)
Truth be told, I suppose the ending of most "gay romance" books is easily predicted but, with this book, I somehow just felt a bit cheated and disappointed. In fact, I think if the author had not been in such a rush to bring up the past sexual relationship, I probably would have bought and finished the book even knowing the plot was headed in the direction of the not-so-subtle foreshadowing. (By the way, a big part of the foreshadowing was provided by the so-called "editorial reviews" on Amazon).
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