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Like the Taste of Summer
Jack managed to get a scholarship to a small-town college in the middle of the Iowa cornfields, September 1981. It wasn't New York, or California, but he figured it would be better than being home. College would be be a new start in a new place, maybe somewhere he could be himself.
Sean was local, born and bred, on the opposite side of the town-and-gown divide, but attraction knows no boundaries. When personal tragedy brought them together, it was the beginning of something extraordinary.
~~~~~
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
Dear Author,
I realize I'm late to the party, but it took me a bit to find just the perfect photo! This:
The first time is so beautiful, if the one you're with cares enough to make it that way. These two are so young: barely out of high-school, but college is all about finding out who you really are.
Photo Description: The place is secluded; leaves filter the sun. The men are so young, shirtless, smooth skin and sleek light muscle. The dark boy tentatively holds his lover, head tilted to bring their mouths together. There is nothing tentative about the blond. He leans in, driving the kiss. 1980's sweet summertime.
Word Count: 15,288
Sean was local, born and bred, on the opposite side of the town-and-gown divide, but attraction knows no boundaries. When personal tragedy brought them together, it was the beginning of something extraordinary.
~~~~~
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
Dear Author,
I realize I'm late to the party, but it took me a bit to find just the perfect photo! This:
The first time is so beautiful, if the one you're with cares enough to make it that way. These two are so young: barely out of high-school, but college is all about finding out who you really are.
Photo Description: The place is secluded; leaves filter the sun. The men are so young, shirtless, smooth skin and sleek light muscle. The dark boy tentatively holds his lover, head tilted to bring their mouths together. There is nothing tentative about the blond. He leans in, driving the kiss. 1980's sweet summertime.
Word Count: 15,288
46 pages, ebook
First published July 11, 2011
56 people are currently reading
749 people want to read
About the author
Kaje Harper
91 books2,729 followersI get asked about my name a lot. It's not something exotic, though. “Kaje” is pronounced just like “cage” – it’s an old nickname, and my pronouns are she/her/hers.
I was born in Montreal but have lived for 30 years in Minnesota, where the two seasons are Snow-removal and Road-repair, where the mosquito is the state bird, and where winter can be breathtakingly beautiful. Minnesota’s a kind, quiet (if sometimes chilly) place and it’s home.
I’ve been writing far longer than I care to admit (*whispers – fifty years*), mostly for my own entertainment, usually M/M romance (with added mystery, fantasy, historical, SciFi…) I also have a few Young Adult stories (some released under the pen name Kira Harp.)
My husband finally convinced me that after all the years of writing for fun, I really should submit something, somewhere. My first professionally published book, Life Lessons, came out from MLR Press in May 2011. I have a weakness for closeted cops with honest hearts, and teachers who speak their minds, and I had fun writing four novels and three freebie short stories in that series. I was delighted and encouraged by the reception Mac and Tony received.
I now have a good-sized backlist in ebooks and print, both free and professionally published. A complete list with links can be found on my website "Books" page at https://kajeharper.com/.
You can find me and my book reviews on my author page here on Goodreads - I hang out on Goodreads a lot because I moderate the Goodreads YA LGBT Books group. I also post free short YA stories on that group, more than 50 of them so far.
You can also find me on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/KajeHarper
I was born in Montreal but have lived for 30 years in Minnesota, where the two seasons are Snow-removal and Road-repair, where the mosquito is the state bird, and where winter can be breathtakingly beautiful. Minnesota’s a kind, quiet (if sometimes chilly) place and it’s home.
I’ve been writing far longer than I care to admit (*whispers – fifty years*), mostly for my own entertainment, usually M/M romance (with added mystery, fantasy, historical, SciFi…) I also have a few Young Adult stories (some released under the pen name Kira Harp.)
My husband finally convinced me that after all the years of writing for fun, I really should submit something, somewhere. My first professionally published book, Life Lessons, came out from MLR Press in May 2011. I have a weakness for closeted cops with honest hearts, and teachers who speak their minds, and I had fun writing four novels and three freebie short stories in that series. I was delighted and encouraged by the reception Mac and Tony received.
I now have a good-sized backlist in ebooks and print, both free and professionally published. A complete list with links can be found on my website "Books" page at https://kajeharper.com/.
You can find me and my book reviews on my author page here on Goodreads - I hang out on Goodreads a lot because I moderate the Goodreads YA LGBT Books group. I also post free short YA stories on that group, more than 50 of them so far.
You can also find me on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/KajeHarper
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 206 reviews
August 6, 2024
A love story from the 80’s, told in retrospect.
The Romance
Characters
Writing style
Captivating
Erotica
Mild.
Ending
Recommended?
YES!
Appears in Don't Read in the Closet: Volume Two.
The Romance
Characters
Writing style
Captivating
Erotica
Mild.
Ending
Recommended?
YES!
I meant to say sorry again but he reached out a hand and put a finger on my lips. I could feel him trembling, just a little. Nothing compared to how shaky I was, down inside. I had grief and hope and fear and bone-deep want all mixed up together.
Appears in Don't Read in the Closet: Volume Two.
September 22, 2019
I felt scared and sick, and yet in an odd way eager, like a balloon cut loose from its string. All that familiar routine was lost, but maybe there would be something good in the open sky we were suddenly forced into.
My fingers keep wanting to call this a "sweet little story," despite the fact that the MCs definitely faced some not-sweet business. There was nothing here that I hadn't read before, but it still generated some feels.
I was recently blown away by a short from Kaje, so I know she's capable of making characters and their story jump off the page very quickly. This one didn't do that, but I still liked it.
My fingers keep wanting to call this a "sweet little story," despite the fact that the MCs definitely faced some not-sweet business. There was nothing here that I hadn't read before, but it still generated some feels.
I was recently blown away by a short from Kaje, so I know she's capable of making characters and their story jump off the page very quickly. This one didn't do that, but I still liked it.
March 4, 2019
3.5 Stars
A circa 1980’s love story about two young men from different sides of the track and how they eke out a hard fought win to have their well deserved happy ending.
Angsty, anxiety inducing, but a satisfying conclusion.
A circa 1980’s love story about two young men from different sides of the track and how they eke out a hard fought win to have their well deserved happy ending.
Angsty, anxiety inducing, but a satisfying conclusion.
February 8, 2024
Oh!
This was an amazing short.
Full of feels. Vividly realistic.
And the ending was everything.
Love Kaje.
Loved this.
*4.5 stars*
This was an amazing short.
Full of feels. Vividly realistic.
And the ending was everything.
Love Kaje.
Loved this.
*4.5 stars*
September 14, 2013
For a free short story this was completely satisfying. Great storyline, lovable characters and absolutely believable!
This is only my second Kaje Harper read but I'm definitely adding my name to the fan club list!!
Highly recommended!
This is only my second Kaje Harper read but I'm definitely adding my name to the fan club list!!
Highly recommended!
September 18, 2015
Beautiful.
I loved the feel of the current relationship; easy familiarity, warm habit but still a strong bond, a sense of fun and a lot of love.
Then there's the getting together. Young love and believably awkward fumblings as they find themsleves and explore each other. It's sweet and feels real. A setting of rivalry and coming out to hostility.
I'd have liked to know how Jack's parents reacted but get the feeling it was mostly indifference.
What stands out is the bravery, the being there and standing up for each other; being prepared to drop everything or face everything in order to be together. Integrity and love. Heart-warming.
I loved the feel of the current relationship; easy familiarity, warm habit but still a strong bond, a sense of fun and a lot of love.
Then there's the getting together. Young love and believably awkward fumblings as they find themsleves and explore each other. It's sweet and feels real. A setting of rivalry and coming out to hostility.
I'd have liked to know how Jack's parents reacted but get the feeling it was mostly indifference.
What stands out is the bravery, the being there and standing up for each other; being prepared to drop everything or face everything in order to be together. Integrity and love. Heart-warming.
November 23, 2011
Really well developed and well written m/m short story that had me crying at the subtly moving epilogue. It's pretty amazing that a ~45 page story could pull me in as a reader to such an extent that I was tearing up by the ending.
This story is bookended with a prologue and epilogue in "real time" by the first person POV narrator, Jack. The bulk of this story is a flashback/reminiscence that takes place in small town Iowa in the early 1980s and tells the story of Jack and Sean. Jack is a Pittsburgh native who finds himself in Iowa after he receives a full scholarship to the university in that state. Sean is a "townie" - that is, he's grown up there in the small town - and works as a mechanic there.
This is such a short story that I don't want to go into too much detail about any of the plot points and would rather just urge you to give it a try. It's only ~45 pages, and it reads very quickly. The story, generally, follows them in their discovery of each other and the complexities and difficulties involved in being gay in a small Midwestern town in the 1980s.
I can't emphasize enough how much I think this one merits a read, even if you're not into short stories or m/m or the 1980s or Iowa or college-aged protagonists or blue space aliens landing in Area 51 (j/k - just threw that last one in there to see if you were still paying attention :D). While there are sexytimes as part of their mutual discovery of physical love, it's not explicit and quite emotionally and tastefully done. The true draw of this story is the emotional pull you can feel coming from these characters, even if technically it's only written from first person POV narrator Jack's perspective.
Like the Taste of Summer is a really sweet story and makes me want to seek out more of this author's work. You can download this story free as part of the m/m short story anthology Don't Read in the Closet: Volume Two, published by the GoodReads M/M Group - just click on the green "download ebook" button below the publishing information.
Happy reading!
This story is bookended with a prologue and epilogue in "real time" by the first person POV narrator, Jack. The bulk of this story is a flashback/reminiscence that takes place in small town Iowa in the early 1980s and tells the story of Jack and Sean. Jack is a Pittsburgh native who finds himself in Iowa after he receives a full scholarship to the university in that state. Sean is a "townie" - that is, he's grown up there in the small town - and works as a mechanic there.
This is such a short story that I don't want to go into too much detail about any of the plot points and would rather just urge you to give it a try. It's only ~45 pages, and it reads very quickly. The story, generally, follows them in their discovery of each other and the complexities and difficulties involved in being gay in a small Midwestern town in the 1980s.
I can't emphasize enough how much I think this one merits a read, even if you're not into short stories or m/m or the 1980s or Iowa or college-aged protagonists or blue space aliens landing in Area 51 (j/k - just threw that last one in there to see if you were still paying attention :D). While there are sexytimes as part of their mutual discovery of physical love, it's not explicit and quite emotionally and tastefully done. The true draw of this story is the emotional pull you can feel coming from these characters, even if technically it's only written from first person POV narrator Jack's perspective.
Like the Taste of Summer is a really sweet story and makes me want to seek out more of this author's work. You can download this story free as part of the m/m short story anthology Don't Read in the Closet: Volume Two, published by the GoodReads M/M Group - just click on the green "download ebook" button below the publishing information.
Happy reading!
July 13, 2017
4 Stars
This story is so short, yet so damn sweet.
Like the Taste of Summer is a story of first love lasting.
Set in 1981, the story follows Jack, a big city kid who moves to small-town Iowa for college, where he meets and falls for townie, Sean.
Jack and Sean’s relationship isn’t without its setbacks, especially considering the time and place of their secret love affair, but never fear, the story is ultimately sweet and romantic, and it has a happy ending that will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy.
In my opinion, this was another epic win from the M/M Romance Groups ‘Don’t Read in the Closet’ events. I cease to be amazed at the talent and quality of the stories produced for these various DRitC events and will continue to work my way through each year’s offerings until I’m all out of options!
This story is so short, yet so damn sweet.
Like the Taste of Summer is a story of first love lasting.
Set in 1981, the story follows Jack, a big city kid who moves to small-town Iowa for college, where he meets and falls for townie, Sean.
Jack and Sean’s relationship isn’t without its setbacks, especially considering the time and place of their secret love affair, but never fear, the story is ultimately sweet and romantic, and it has a happy ending that will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy.
In my opinion, this was another epic win from the M/M Romance Groups ‘Don’t Read in the Closet’ events. I cease to be amazed at the talent and quality of the stories produced for these various DRitC events and will continue to work my way through each year’s offerings until I’m all out of options!
February 22, 2016
Like the Taste of Summer is a beautiful short story about first love!
It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Kaje Harper; I usually fall in love with her characters within the first few pages and this story wasn't an exception. The story is told in retrospective and the prompt was wonderfully transformed into a memorable short story. Considering the shortness of the story, Kaje Harper did a great job in creating interesting characters with enough of a background story to make them stay in my mind for a long time.
To keep it short: Emotional and very sweet story with great young adult characters!. I can only recommend it to all fans of first love!
5 stars!
It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Kaje Harper; I usually fall in love with her characters within the first few pages and this story wasn't an exception. The story is told in retrospective and the prompt was wonderfully transformed into a memorable short story. Considering the shortness of the story, Kaje Harper did a great job in creating interesting characters with enough of a background story to make them stay in my mind for a long time.
To keep it short: Emotional and very sweet story with great young adult characters!. I can only recommend it to all fans of first love!
5 stars!
October 26, 2016
Aaaaawwwwww... All the heart eyes!!!
Sean y Jack <3 <3 <3 <3
Qué monos, por favor... Pena que es una historia corta, me hubiera encantado leer más sobre ellos dos.
Y está muy bien escrito!
Sean y Jack <3 <3 <3 <3
Qué monos, por favor... Pena que es una historia corta, me hubiera encantado leer más sobre ellos dos.
Y está muy bien escrito!
August 16, 2011
I have no idea why I miss this during the "Hot Summer Days" event. Probably because there were too many titles to count *lol*. Better late than never, because this is simply ONE OF THE BEST stories from the event.
The beginning is so thoughtful, how sometimes we forget to appreciate our loved ones because of the small details on your day-to-day life. Then when Jack first met Sean all those decades ago, it was a shot full of adrenaline. Continued with the wonderful days of the two boys learning about their attraction and falling in love. And OMG, the crazy thing that Jack did to show Sean how much he loved Sean. And the beautiful, wonderful little epilogue, that warms my heart and make me go awwwww.
Such an eloquent short story. It makes me believe in true love that lasts forever. I can read this again and again. And THAT makes this story deserves MY 5-star rating :)
The beginning is so thoughtful, how sometimes we forget to appreciate our loved ones because of the small details on your day-to-day life. Then when Jack first met Sean all those decades ago, it was a shot full of adrenaline. Continued with the wonderful days of the two boys learning about their attraction and falling in love. And OMG, the crazy thing that Jack did to show Sean how much he loved Sean. And the beautiful, wonderful little epilogue, that warms my heart and make me go awwwww.
Such an eloquent short story. It makes me believe in true love that lasts forever. I can read this again and again. And THAT makes this story deserves MY 5-star rating :)
November 29, 2012
This is my second Kaje Harper (the first one was Into Deep Waters) and I can safely say I'm officially a fan. The woman knows how to write. And I love the bittersweet yet hopeful, fairytale quality of her stories.
January 12, 2017
**** 4 summer taste stars ****
Beautiful! Just beautiful! Young first love persevered!
Highly recommended!
-------------------------------------------------
Beautiful! Just beautiful! Young first love persevered!
Highly recommended!
-------------------------------------------------
January 6, 2016
***Read as part of the free Don't Read in the Closet: Volume Two anthology. Story #13***
Wow! Was this really just a short?
Kaje Harper managed to write a wonderful, romantic, and completely satisfying love story in these few pages.
Definetly one of my favorites! Highly recommended.
September 23, 2019
Short and very sweet. The ideal read for a nighttime train journey.
July 3, 2012
Review posted at Brief Encounters Reviews, as part of the celebration of Canadian Authors. Here's the interview with Kaje Harper for BER.
You know, more than any other story from last year's Hot Summer Days event put on by the GoodReads M/M Romance Group, I've heard amazing things about this one. I've always wanted to read it, but you know how things go, certain stories, no matter how wonderful they may be, end up getting pushed back to read shiny, newer books or stories. I was so happy that Kaje Harper was taking part in our Canadian Authors event, because the chance to finally read this story ended up being one of the best things that could have happened. Who knows how long it might have been before I had time to read this story? A lot of you have probably read this by now as well -- it certainly has an amazing overall rating at GoodReads and was probably one of the most well known stories to come out of that event last summer. If you haven't though, I'm here to tell you that it is up there with the best shorts I've read in this genre, and for me, not only did Kaje seem to make all the right choices in telling this story, but those choices together transcended the sum of it's parts, having a really solid and touching message of love overcoming obstacles.
The story is told as one long memory, bracketed in the beginning and end by the couple, Jack and Sean, as a committed partnership in the present. One look in Sean's eyes over a morning bowl of cereal brings back the memory of how they met and how their floundering, socially challenged relationship came to be during the 80's. It is peppered throughout with liberal references to music and pop culture, grounding the story in the time and told through the lens of a star-crossed, college and townie, West Side Story pairing. Jack is a scholarship kid to a liberal arts college in the middle of nowhere, corn maze Iowa, and Sean is a local mechanic, running with the townies and secretly gay. They first meet during a clash of the two groups involving paint, vandalism and almost bruised knuckles and proceed to form a unique and private relationship away from the town's judgmental eyes. But the fear is always there, that their secret will come out and they'll have nowhere to go, trapped in a situation that seems to have no salvation, the only choice to fight or flee.
I think what is so successful about this story is the balance that Kaje Harper uses to bring the pieces of this story together. There are the cultural references that automatically stand out to anyone who lived through the 80's, which is going to be most readers. There is also the balance of choosing which scenes are most important when writing a story that has enough there to fill a novel. Then, there is the balance of scene to narration. Narration is such a great vehicle to bring forward a character's voice, but it can be so often overly used, in which case we feel cheated out of experiencing the story along with the characters. Of course, showing vs. telling is a basic lesson for authors to learn, but it can also be difficult to balance properly when you are employing narration with the use of memory or flashbacks, especially when the story covers years. I think that it is a difficult thing to pull off well, but Kaje Harper seems to really have a handle on that -- I've read several works of hers that she's done this very well. Still, I think this story showcases the talents of her writing the best.
This really is a powerful story. If I didn't have to worry about spoiling anyone's enjoyment, there is a lot more I would talk about, especially the character's decisions in the end of the story, which surprised me with their bravery and was a bit humbling to read. I respected the hell out of these characters and I thought they were genuine in the way they came across to me.
I think that this is also a story that we can all really enjoy because it is about a time that everyone (hopefully) has in their lives. A memory of a summer, or any time in your youth where the world opened up and there were choices before you and your life seemed full of endless possibility and joy. Through that, we connect with the story and characters and understand what it is then like when that idealism is tempered with reality and we inevitably become a bit jaded. Those memories never go away, and pulling them out, dusting them off, and revisiting them gives us a little hope. To read a story like this, for me, was a different way of connecting with that endless spirit of adventure.
You know, more than any other story from last year's Hot Summer Days event put on by the GoodReads M/M Romance Group, I've heard amazing things about this one. I've always wanted to read it, but you know how things go, certain stories, no matter how wonderful they may be, end up getting pushed back to read shiny, newer books or stories. I was so happy that Kaje Harper was taking part in our Canadian Authors event, because the chance to finally read this story ended up being one of the best things that could have happened. Who knows how long it might have been before I had time to read this story? A lot of you have probably read this by now as well -- it certainly has an amazing overall rating at GoodReads and was probably one of the most well known stories to come out of that event last summer. If you haven't though, I'm here to tell you that it is up there with the best shorts I've read in this genre, and for me, not only did Kaje seem to make all the right choices in telling this story, but those choices together transcended the sum of it's parts, having a really solid and touching message of love overcoming obstacles.
The story is told as one long memory, bracketed in the beginning and end by the couple, Jack and Sean, as a committed partnership in the present. One look in Sean's eyes over a morning bowl of cereal brings back the memory of how they met and how their floundering, socially challenged relationship came to be during the 80's. It is peppered throughout with liberal references to music and pop culture, grounding the story in the time and told through the lens of a star-crossed, college and townie, West Side Story pairing. Jack is a scholarship kid to a liberal arts college in the middle of nowhere, corn maze Iowa, and Sean is a local mechanic, running with the townies and secretly gay. They first meet during a clash of the two groups involving paint, vandalism and almost bruised knuckles and proceed to form a unique and private relationship away from the town's judgmental eyes. But the fear is always there, that their secret will come out and they'll have nowhere to go, trapped in a situation that seems to have no salvation, the only choice to fight or flee.
I think what is so successful about this story is the balance that Kaje Harper uses to bring the pieces of this story together. There are the cultural references that automatically stand out to anyone who lived through the 80's, which is going to be most readers. There is also the balance of choosing which scenes are most important when writing a story that has enough there to fill a novel. Then, there is the balance of scene to narration. Narration is such a great vehicle to bring forward a character's voice, but it can be so often overly used, in which case we feel cheated out of experiencing the story along with the characters. Of course, showing vs. telling is a basic lesson for authors to learn, but it can also be difficult to balance properly when you are employing narration with the use of memory or flashbacks, especially when the story covers years. I think that it is a difficult thing to pull off well, but Kaje Harper seems to really have a handle on that -- I've read several works of hers that she's done this very well. Still, I think this story showcases the talents of her writing the best.
This really is a powerful story. If I didn't have to worry about spoiling anyone's enjoyment, there is a lot more I would talk about, especially the character's decisions in the end of the story, which surprised me with their bravery and was a bit humbling to read. I respected the hell out of these characters and I thought they were genuine in the way they came across to me.
I think that this is also a story that we can all really enjoy because it is about a time that everyone (hopefully) has in their lives. A memory of a summer, or any time in your youth where the world opened up and there were choices before you and your life seemed full of endless possibility and joy. Through that, we connect with the story and characters and understand what it is then like when that idealism is tempered with reality and we inevitably become a bit jaded. Those memories never go away, and pulling them out, dusting them off, and revisiting them gives us a little hope. To read a story like this, for me, was a different way of connecting with that endless spirit of adventure.
March 22, 2025
Just as good as the first time I read it, at least going off the rating, lol. I actually thought this was a different story when I started it than it turned out to be. I didn't remember this one at all, as it turned out.
It was hard to read at times with how bigoted and small-minded the townspeople were, even before Shane was outed. The townies being hostile and jealous of the college students, especially the male students if they dared to make eyes at the town women, was both aggravating and sadly typical. Never mind that college is probably the only thing keeping their town on the map, but that both sides fall into the trap of separating themselves from each other made me want to mash heads together.
I liked how Jack and Shane stuck their necks out for each other, especially when it really mattered. This is classic Kaje, poignant but understated.
It was hard to read at times with how bigoted and small-minded the townspeople were, even before Shane was outed. The townies being hostile and jealous of the college students, especially the male students if they dared to make eyes at the town women, was both aggravating and sadly typical. Never mind that college is probably the only thing keeping their town on the map, but that both sides fall into the trap of separating themselves from each other made me want to mash heads together.
I liked how Jack and Shane stuck their necks out for each other, especially when it really mattered. This is classic Kaje, poignant but understated.
September 14, 2013
Like everything Kaje Harper writes this is a beautiful book. I adored how it began, with Jack remembers first falling in love with Sean. I like the reminder that falling in love is sometimes the easy bit, maintaining it over the years can be tricky though. That reminder to look at what's close to home and remember.
Of course the story itself is lovely. Jack and Sean don't have it easy getting the relationship off the ground, but they do and it's sweet and lovely and all those things Kaje Harper does so well. She really writes wonderful relationships.
It's a fabulous short read so check it out.
Of course the story itself is lovely. Jack and Sean don't have it easy getting the relationship off the ground, but they do and it's sweet and lovely and all those things Kaje Harper does so well. She really writes wonderful relationships.
It's a fabulous short read so check it out.
June 1, 2021
Sweet, satisfying short story that’s free on Amazon at the moment, 5/31/2021.
January 22, 2014
HOLY. SHIT. FUCK. DAMN. SHIT AND DAMN AGAIN!
This book blew my mind! I am right now a blabbering idiot, smiling ear to ear, with warm fluffy fuzzies on top! Goddamn! This is my first *gasp* book by Kaje Harper. *ducks to avoid rotten veggies*
Not only am I late to the party, I arrived the next damn day after the clean up was done and everyone was sober. Pathetic! But, there is hope for me yet people!
First, never did I ever think a 46 page book would make it to my "not enough stars to rate this" shelf. The only book on it is Klune's Into this river I drown and that's a long book. Kaje Harper has written an amazing love story between a freshman in college and a young mechanic sometime in the early 80s. Homophobia say you? They meet under unconventional circumstances and they develop this sweet, romantic relationship that of course no one could know about or else their lives were literally in danger down there in bumfuck Iowa were they lived. Every description was so real, so goddamn authentic, I was there, right fucking there with them. I can't even remember the last time a book grabbed me like this and I felt for characters so much. Oh wait, I know. Dan and Vadim, for completely different reasons and with a completely different writing style, but yes, Sean and Jack were that real to me. I felt my heartbeat increase and the only thing saving me from hyperventilating was that this was a short and there was no warning of utter emotional devastation so I thought ok, I'll get through this and it'll get to the HEA. And it did, thank goodness. I have now successfully stalked Kaje Harper's booklist and even though I really don't care for romantic mysteries, there is no freaking way I am not following up on this author's works. Please please please read this short. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
This book blew my mind! I am right now a blabbering idiot, smiling ear to ear, with warm fluffy fuzzies on top! Goddamn! This is my first *gasp* book by Kaje Harper. *ducks to avoid rotten veggies*
Not only am I late to the party, I arrived the next damn day after the clean up was done and everyone was sober. Pathetic! But, there is hope for me yet people!
First, never did I ever think a 46 page book would make it to my "not enough stars to rate this" shelf. The only book on it is Klune's Into this river I drown and that's a long book. Kaje Harper has written an amazing love story between a freshman in college and a young mechanic sometime in the early 80s. Homophobia say you? They meet under unconventional circumstances and they develop this sweet, romantic relationship that of course no one could know about or else their lives were literally in danger down there in bumfuck Iowa were they lived. Every description was so real, so goddamn authentic, I was there, right fucking there with them. I can't even remember the last time a book grabbed me like this and I felt for characters so much. Oh wait, I know. Dan and Vadim, for completely different reasons and with a completely different writing style, but yes, Sean and Jack were that real to me. I felt my heartbeat increase and the only thing saving me from hyperventilating was that this was a short and there was no warning of utter emotional devastation so I thought ok, I'll get through this and it'll get to the HEA. And it did, thank goodness. I have now successfully stalked Kaje Harper's booklist and even though I really don't care for romantic mysteries, there is no freaking way I am not following up on this author's works. Please please please read this short. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
July 14, 2011
A very beautiful story of Jack and Sean, a couple who met each other in a small college town in Iowa. Jack, originally from Pittsburgh, went to college as a virgin. He dated a girl before, but it didn't really work out. In a violent incident, he met Sean. Sean was not a student. He was a mechanic, and part of the 'Townies', a group of locals who didn't go to college as Jack and his friends did. The Townies and the college boys hated each other. Yet, Jack and Sean found themselves attracted to each other.
The rest of the story chronicles their experiences being gays in small Iowa town in the early 1980s. It is really a heartwarming story. One interesting note: the two really wanted to go out of Iowa and move to New York so they could be together. As it turns out, Iowa legalized gay marriage years before New York did.
The rest of the story chronicles their experiences being gays in small Iowa town in the early 1980s. It is really a heartwarming story. One interesting note: the two really wanted to go out of Iowa and move to New York so they could be together. As it turns out, Iowa legalized gay marriage years before New York did.
February 15, 2015
Sigh... This was a lovely coming-of-age story.
Kaje Harper can really write a love story in 46 pages!!!
"Sometimes when you live with one man for more than half your life, you stop really seeing him.
Not stop loving him. That center-of-my-heart, need-him-to-breathe kind of love doesn't go away.
But really paying attention gets submerged in the stupid details of day to day life."
"Until Sean looks up at me. And he smiles at me, just like he did the day we finally got it right.
And I remember...
This story is a free story from Goodreads M/M Romance Group
(Hot Summer Days, volume 2)!!
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
January 25, 2014
I adored this story so much. I could have read a full length novel about these two, but the short was really satisfying. Definitely one I will read again some day.
July 20, 2011
Kaje,
The opening paragraph of this story is quite possibly one of the most eloquent and beautiful I have ever had the pleasure to experience. With those words alone, I was THERE, connected and moved to tears, and that is such an amazing gift. Like Jack, I was lost in the memories... caught up in the journey through the past and finding myself full circle, moved to tears once more as I felt yet again the depth of emotion expressed in those opening thoughts and impressions, all the more powerful at journey's end.
And this:
So this morning when I look at that man across the breakfast table from me, and he smiles, I see all those years, layered on one another like echoes in time.
Pure poetry.
Thanks SO much for sharing. I will NEVER forget this one.
The opening paragraph of this story is quite possibly one of the most eloquent and beautiful I have ever had the pleasure to experience. With those words alone, I was THERE, connected and moved to tears, and that is such an amazing gift. Like Jack, I was lost in the memories... caught up in the journey through the past and finding myself full circle, moved to tears once more as I felt yet again the depth of emotion expressed in those opening thoughts and impressions, all the more powerful at journey's end.
And this:
So this morning when I look at that man across the breakfast table from me, and he smiles, I see all those years, layered on one another like echoes in time.
Pure poetry.
Thanks SO much for sharing. I will NEVER forget this one.
July 19, 2011
What a fantastic story, so, so, wonderful. Beautifully written and a romantic gem.
Read
August 22, 2013A billion and a half stars for the writer herself!
June 21, 2020
There is only one thing wrong with Kaje Harper’s short, town v gown short story, ’Like the Taste of Summer’. It’s just too short.
Harper's main characters, Jack Korbel, a college freshman who is in Carterville IA on a full scholarship and Sean Brennan, a local teen aged mechanic who works at a gas station changing tires and doing auto repairs, truly deserve to be featured in a full length novel.
Their meeting is masterfully described, as is much of their time together, but the sudden major turn of events occurs so quickly that it isn’t quite believable. And there are missing decades of their lives only briefly hinted at in the epilogue.
We can only hope we’ll have a chance to see both Jack and Sean return soon in a full length novel of their own.
Harper's main characters, Jack Korbel, a college freshman who is in Carterville IA on a full scholarship and Sean Brennan, a local teen aged mechanic who works at a gas station changing tires and doing auto repairs, truly deserve to be featured in a full length novel.
Their meeting is masterfully described, as is much of their time together, but the sudden major turn of events occurs so quickly that it isn’t quite believable. And there are missing decades of their lives only briefly hinted at in the epilogue.
We can only hope we’ll have a chance to see both Jack and Sean return soon in a full length novel of their own.
February 27, 2021
4.5 Stars on this second reading.
The only problem with Kaje Harper’s nearly perfect short story, ‘Like the Taste of Summer’, is the same problem that so many other excellently written short stories have - it’s simply too short.
Harper’s wonderful main charters in ‘Like the Taste of Summer’ are Jack Korbel, a first year scholarship student at a small-town Iowa college, and Sean Brennan, a mechanic born and raised in that same small town - a town in which there is a very strong town/gown divide.
The read no sooner falls in love with Sean and Jack than the action quickly speeds up to reach a more than satisfying conclusion. But I wanted more. There is so much more to be learned about these two young men and their respective backgrounds.
But please don’t let these comments dissuade you from reading this heart-felt and moving novella. It is a beautiful story.
The only problem with Kaje Harper’s nearly perfect short story, ‘Like the Taste of Summer’, is the same problem that so many other excellently written short stories have - it’s simply too short.
Harper’s wonderful main charters in ‘Like the Taste of Summer’ are Jack Korbel, a first year scholarship student at a small-town Iowa college, and Sean Brennan, a mechanic born and raised in that same small town - a town in which there is a very strong town/gown divide.
The read no sooner falls in love with Sean and Jack than the action quickly speeds up to reach a more than satisfying conclusion. But I wanted more. There is so much more to be learned about these two young men and their respective backgrounds.
But please don’t let these comments dissuade you from reading this heart-felt and moving novella. It is a beautiful story.
September 30, 2013
This is a wonderful, sweet and romantic tale of first love, will all the complications that can arrise for to boys who fall in love. Like in many short stories, several events have to be skipped to keep the focus where the author wants it. While this had the effect of always thinking I missed something and being unable to connect with the characters in some stories, Kaje Harper manages to leave everthing that is important to understand the romantic connection between the two boys and feel the emotions of the story. In few pages, she manages you make the reader fall in love and care about her characters. Such an amazing story! Did I mention it is free?
Why are you guys still here? You should be getting your fingers on a copy to read it yourselves! :D
Why are you guys still here? You should be getting your fingers on a copy to read it yourselves! :D
July 16, 2013
What a beautifully told little story with a great big impact. Small town 80's. The setting is Iowa but it could be one of number of small towns back then. It is important to remember this is a flashback story. The MCs are so strongly written and so human. They meet. They love. They grow. I am becoming a strong fan of Kaje Harper. She writes with such feeling and truth. This story is so short but so filled with emotion. It is well written. I loved it even if I had tears in my eyes.
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