Skipper has just arrived at college on a football scholarship. The year kicks off with a costume party. Skipper ends up going as Tarzan, in an all too brief costume. At the party he meets Lake, but can Lake and Skipper ever be more than friends?
Todd Young writes books that sit on the borderline between gay erotica and m/m romance.
Generally, I aim to write erotica that goes a little further than the average. I spend a lot of time on my characters, trying to make them as believable as possible. While my stories are sexual fantasies, I want them to have a deeper meaning, and a quality of unexpectedness. To some extent, I am attempting to write literature, but I want my stories to be genuinely engaging. I want them to be easy to read, while at the same time leaving the reader with the feeling that they have read something meaningful.
I hope both men and women will find my stories satisfying. They revolve around romance, though there is often much more going on in the texts.
Todd Young can actually write. There's a lot of completely unmemorable cookie-cutter m/m fiction out there, but Young has given thought to crafting characters that have lives, personalities, motivations, and flaws. I found the story quite challenging, and in several places I wanted to stop reading, because I like the light and floofy, and this was getting fairly dark. I mean, I'm all for dark in terms of dungeons, slaves, and some harsh BDSM, but show me a college boy feeling ostracised for his sexuality and I'm keening on the carpet. The thing is, I had to keep going: I HAD to know what happened. Young made me care.
Like Young's previous work, Corrupted, this is gay erotica, not m/m romance.
I think Young will get better; there's still some flaws in the conclusion, as if too many loose ends tried to get wrapped up together. For a first full-length book it's great.
P.S. I paid full price for my copy: it's wasn't a freebie for review purposes.
The writing was great and detailed, maybe a little too detailed at parts but I won’t complain about since most MM books I read feel so rushed you’re lucky to get any details or development.
Honestly this book does not fit into what I normally read. I usually prefer Lighter books and I probably would have quit after a few scenes made me uncomfortable but the writing and character development where so good I had to read on to know what happens to Skipper.
The start was a little slow for me and I was under the impression Skipper was just another dumb Jock and I did not like him at all at first because he seemed so stupid. I really felt bad for judging Skipper as I read on and realized that everyone in the book judges Skipper the way I did and I got all offended and then realized well I misjudged him too. What I am saying is don’t judge skipper and read on if you’re not getting into it right away because it takes a little bit to get to know Skipper.
I love Skipper and I don’t know how many times I cried for him in this book but I loved him so much and everyone was so mean to him and took advantage of him it was hard reading some of the scenes.
There were some sweet moments but I wish there would have been more romance between Skipper and Lake or maybe some scenes in Lake’s POV just to know what he was thinking.
It is hard to write a review without spoiling anything, but I would recommend the book just to get to know Skipper because he is just so sweet and a great character.
Skipper is no hero. He is damaged, partly broken. He is naive, a bit dumb. He is a good guy and he is different.
Skipper just realised he is gay. He is in his freshman year at college, his first time away from home.
It’s not an easy time for him. He is made fun of, he is blackmailed. People are mean and homophobe.
Skipper has his first sexual encounters with men, and he has a crush on his roommate, Lake.
Yes, that is about all I will give away of the story ;-) It’s best to read this if you don’t know what’s happening and where this book is gonna take you.
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Skipper’s story is told from his perspective, in a third person POV. We are in his head and we get to know him intimately.
The author has a thing for detail, which is great, because it makes his protagonists so real. Although, come to think of it, the book isn’t what I would call realistic. It has this out-of-the-world feeling to it. That is actually an intriguing combination, that works really well for me.
I’m usually a romance slut, and this book isn’t a traditional romance book, but I couldn’t put the book down. It was captivating!
The end felt a bit rushed to me. I loved the slow pace of this book, so I was a tiny bit disappointed. Maybe it’s just me, but I din’t get the last scene with Skipper’s granddad making a sudden appearance.
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Content warnings:
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Interesting quirks. Only read if you’ve read one or more books by Todd Young:
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This is a great book. I enjoyed reading it a lot. I love the author’s writing style and recommend the book if you want to read something special, out of the norm.
In Dressing Up, Todd Young tells the story of Skipper, a college athlete who must come to terms with his sexuality in an environment where being gay is not accepted. Beyond that, Skipper suffers the pain of unrequited love, made worse by the fact that the boy, who insists he's not gay, constantly flaunts his goods in front of Skipper.
Todd Young does a remarkable job of pulling the reader into Skip’s head. I felt Skip's pain and anguish right along with him. I was worried and frustrated and confused and angry and sad and sorry with him too.
Somehow Todd Young manages to deliver these emotionally intense scenes with an edge of humor. Poor Skip keeps finding himself in positions where his clothes are either too tight or too small. The man is just fated to have his junk on display! The hospital scene, where he discovers he’s wearing a catheter, and then the too-small hospital gown was just brilliant.
I love Hurt/Comfort, and this story was "hurt" at its best: a long, slow burn that intensifies until you feel like your heart will just break for this beautiful boy. At one point I feared there wouldn't be a happy ending for Skip, but thankfully he did find his comfort in the end. The ending isn't what I would call "sweet" but it was real and satisfying and yes, happy.
As he did in Jumbo, Todd Young manages to deliver a very emotional character without being sappy or overly sentimental. His boys are such boys.
This is my second Todd Young book and I have to say the 'erotica' doesn't really dominate his stories for me. The characters are so alive and sympathetically portrayed that the sex scenes - giant cocks included - just flow right into it like they belong there. Hell, I get so absorbed in the internal ramblings and my own empathy for these boys that it doesn't occur to me until after the fact that gee, maybe I should have been appalled or shocked or at least somewhat morally offended at some point in time, but no. I am shocked and appalled and morally offended FOR them, though.
Jumbo delivers a bit more of a punch, but I still devoured every word of this.
I knew what I was reading, but I wanted to jump outside my box a little and this book had great reviews from people who’s tastes I have in common. I was expecting sex, and it usually doesn’t bother me but that’s not what I got. So......
Beginning of the book
I want to be two people all at once. Myself , so I can befriend him and take care of him and one very big and scary guy that can beat the shit out of all of the jerks that were abusing Skipper.
It’s not only that he’s dumb, he’s also innocent and only wants to see the best in people. He also really wants to fit in so badly, to belong somewhere that he lets himself get in a lot of horrible situations.
"No one likes me. All they want to do is make fun of me, like I'm some sideshow freak. The big dumb ass jock with the stupid name”
50 % of the book
All in all, I really cannot go further, but maybe that’s just me ……………
The second Todd Young book I've read and this one has definitely made me a fan. He knows how to hook a reader (this reader, anyway) with unique and fascinating characters. The undercurrent of ongoing eroticism in this book stems completely from the way he's drawn the MC. He's dumb, gullible, naive, well hung and gorgeous. (The mind boggles at the thought of meeting someone like him on a rainy afternoon.) Whatever will someone do to him next that he'll just go along with without thinking? The answer to that is exactly what makes this such a delicious read.
I stayed up all night reading this on the day before I start my first day at my new job. That's how much I loved it. Skipper was just so damn sweet and every time someone made fun of him or took advantage if him my feelings were hurt. I loved the slow burn of this one. Absolutely loved it. And it was so hot! Best free book I've ever read I think! I'd pay for this. Not what I was expecting at all.
Poor Skipper, you couldn't help but feel bad for him. People were mean to him, made fun of his because he wasn't as smart as everyone else. And all he wanted was to be loved.
Book was a little silly at times & some of the things that happened to Skipper were ridiculous, but i still enjoyed it. Glad Skipper got a HEA!
A unique story of two college guys coming to terms with being gay. Todd Young doesn't disappoint with choosing unique characters and scenarios for his stories. The writing wasn't as strong as some of his other books, but it made me feel like it was written this way to emphasize the "dumb jock" character of Skipper. And who wouldn't love a book that features a hot, blond Canadian stud! :-)
2.5 This book isn't bad. Grammatically, it's totally okay. But it is BEYOND frustrating.
The book is 230 pages long, but they don't get together - or fuck, until page 227?!?!?!
That is waaay too late. In the end I was just reading on, because I was mad at myself, why the hell did I keep reading so long, when nothing really ever happened. It just went around and around, tease and denial, like 500 times, in mostly the same exact pattern.
I should have stopped reading, and usually I would have, but I'm in a horrible slump, and don't really save anything else to read, and all that god damn teasing, kept, well.. Litterally teasing me, that soon there just had to be a hot sex scene. But it just never fucking materialized?!
I guess because the storytelling wasn't bad, I just kept reading like a sheep, hoping for something to god damn happen?!
And there are small plot points along the way, but nothing ever really gets resolved?!
I mean he gets bullied, drugged, and raped in the binning of the book.. But nothing comes of that?! He actually befriends his rapist, like it's no big deal?!
His so-called friends totally bullies and humiliates him, but he's kind of too stupid to realise it's happening, and then he gets hit by a car.. So nothing comes of that either?!
He gets blackmailed, and technically raped by his blackmailer, but nothing really comes of that either, no comeuppance, the blackmailer doesn't get punished, humiliated, dealt with, or even really talked harshly to?!
The last we see of the blackmailer, he makes a cruel Gay-phobic joke, at the main characters expense, and everyone laughs, including the main character and his fucking boyfriend?! What the fuck?!
And even with all these irritating things.. It still wasn't too bad. Which must mean the overall writing is okay, to make me overlook everything I didn't like. (Which was alot, apparently.)
I didn't hate this book, but I also didn't really like it. Beyond all the stupid dropped plot points, the worst part was the frustration of the main character constantly pining over his "straight" roomate.
Skipper jerking of to the sight of Lakes naked ass while he's "asleep" then pretending it didn't happen, swearing to himself to never do it again, and then I had to read about it ten more times, until finally, magically they actually fucking talked to eachother?!
And then everything was solved, just like that, within the last three pages.. Talk about a fast wrap up. No real build-up, as everything was done in the dark, and then was pretended to have never actually happened.
And all the feelings where one sided, until the third to last page. That doesn't really build great chemistry.
Ahhrg. I guess I'm just really frustrated. Both because I think this author is capable of writing a better book, and also because this was a little directionless.
It felt like one of them really should've D/s'd the other character, but instead they where both like two sad submissives, just begging for direction, craving for their partner to deliver stability and direction, and when not getting it, just totally flailing around alone in the dark.
It was setup PERFECTLY for a such scenario, but it just never happened, and I find it hard to believe they are going to be happy together in the long run.
If you are a sexually active, romantically seeking person, and you are as submissive, chaotic, and unstable, as both of these characters where, to be happy, you really need a strong guiding hand to rely on, or you'll never feel truly fulfilled, it's just biology.
Also the main character either has dyslexia, some kind of learning disability, some kind of alphabet soup syndrome, or he's just classically a little thick. Either way, this is never really dealt with either. Does he need some kind of help? I seriously suspect he does.
Why make it such a big part of the story, if it's never really resolved?! Clearly he's barely functional in public, going out to a party with his dick and balls knowingly hanging out?! And then he's kind of suprised to be bullied? No one deserves that, but it's very frustrating to watch. Make better choices, dude.
But that's the thing, I don't think he is capable of that. Shouldn't that be addressed? God, I wish he had a daddy to take care him, he sorely needs it! And the fact that this is set up like he is going to get one, but then he never does.. That's probably what grinds my gears the most.
Huh. I thought this was gonna be a short review. I obviously had more to say than I thought!
But despite ALL my many complaints, I might one day give this author one more chance. One day.. But probably not in a while.
Over and Out!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Skipper is a college student with a lot to learn yourself school, life, family, friends, roommates, costumes, parties, love, loneliness, hiking trails, waterfalls, clothes, locks, cars, girls, and being gay. But college is the best place to learn about yourself. It is how you package yourself that impressed others and let's you get close enough to feel how hard your love can be.
I don’t know why I keep trying to read these horrible books when time after time Todd Young attempts to pass off ABUSE as romance. I’m so done after this one. Absolutely done.
At first I wasn't really sure if this book was my thing. Skipper seemed pretty dumb and I spent most of the book feeling sorry for him and how nearly everyone around him took advantage of him in some way.
In the end, I have to say that this was an entertaining read. I mostly focus on sci-fi and fantasy, so this was a little outside of my purview, but I did end up liking Skipper. I'm not sure whether I really liked Lake though. And there's about a dozen other people whose asses I would happily kick, but I'm just not as forgiving as Skipper seems to be.
This is a book about a young man going to college and being invited to a costume party. The lady at the costume shop is kind of a jerk and he ends up in a Tarzan costume that doesn't really cover a whole lot. This leads to a bit of humiliation.
It's a quick read and fairly entertaining. There are some points where you might want to slap Skipper for being that gullible, but that's the whole point of the story. He's not the smartest guy around and everyone knows it, including himself. Because of this, he is taken advantage of and most of the time doesn't even realize that that's what's happening. But once he does realize it... Skipper has a bit of a temper. Slow to get going, but scary because he's such a big guy.
This is my first Todd Young book, and it probably won't be my last. I didn't exactly enjoy some of it, but I felt Skipper was very well written. He is mentally challenged, and this is not an easy character to write. Mr. Young did a very good job giving us a believable character. Life is messy, not everyone is an angel, and not everything everyone does is proper. Just because a person makes mistakes, or has really poor judgement, that does not make them a bad person. Although in Ash's case...GRRR...Enough said.
Yes, there were some plot issues, but the flow was very good. It did read like a YA with college age characters, but I was okay with that.
What I didn't like? The repetitiveness, the lack of character building (everyone sounded the same), and even though this was set in California, the grammer was off for the region. I also felt the ending would have benefitted from another paragraph or two.
I found this awful, eveyone took advantage of Skipper and abused him in some way. We got hints of his background but much of the book was him cleaning himself, lusting about Lake or being bullied. This was just awful, badly written, bad plot, bad characters. I really regret buying this and the time I took to read it, I had to make myself finish just to see if there was a redeeming ending or anything that might make me like it - nothing. I have read so many books and this is the worst I have ever come across. I urge everyone not to waste their time or money. I really don't get how some people have five starred this even with differing tastes - baffling.