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The Battle for Jericho
A battle is brewing in the conservative little town of Webster’s Glen. Gay activist Dylan Cussler stirs up the establishment when he moves in with his boyfriend and sues the state over its gay adoption ban. Sixteen-year-old Jericho Jiles and his best friend, Mac Travis, decide to do their bit to convince Dylan and his boyfriend to leave town. But when Dylan turns up before they can finish trashing his house, Jericho panics, leaving Dylan unconscious and wounded.
Drowning in guilt, Jericho returns to Dylan’s home to make amends. He is surprised when Dylan forgives him and opens his eyes to the world around him. Soon Jericho comes to a life-changing realization: he is attracted to boys as well as girls. That’s a problem, considering Jericho has a girlfriend and very strict, very religious parents. Accepting his sexuality means he must question not only his identity and his place in the world but his relationship with his girlfriend, his parents, and with God.
And so begins the battle for Jericho’s soul.
Drowning in guilt, Jericho returns to Dylan’s home to make amends. He is surprised when Dylan forgives him and opens his eyes to the world around him. Soon Jericho comes to a life-changing realization: he is attracted to boys as well as girls. That’s a problem, considering Jericho has a girlfriend and very strict, very religious parents. Accepting his sexuality means he must question not only his identity and his place in the world but his relationship with his girlfriend, his parents, and with God.
And so begins the battle for Jericho’s soul.
240 pages, ebook
First published December 31, 2012
3 people are currently reading
293 people want to read
About the author
Gene Gant
17 books47 followersGene Gant lives with his family in a small, rural community in West Tennessee. He has been a ghost writer for many years and is looking forward to publishing more works under his own name.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
January 7, 2013
What a hilarious, poignant, awesome book. READ THIS! I enjoyed it so much. It's a gay young adult novel, written in first person, and the MC Jericho is a blast. I laughed throughout the book at his random asides, felt real affection for him and his friends, worried over him like a mother, and was relieved and thrilled with the ending.
It's just good stuff. Trust me.
There is a lot of religion in this book, which might put off some people. Personally, I could very much relate, because of how I was raised. I thought the subject was handled fairly and realistically, showing various point of views.
My only issue with this book is that cover. It's such a bummer! It needs a different cover, something that better conveys reader lovelovelovelovelove.
It's just good stuff. Trust me.
There is a lot of religion in this book, which might put off some people. Personally, I could very much relate, because of how I was raised. I thought the subject was handled fairly and realistically, showing various point of views.
My only issue with this book is that cover. It's such a bummer! It needs a different cover, something that better conveys reader lovelovelovelovelove.
January 7, 2013
The Battle for Jericho is surprisingly not a very hard read. It's more like a gentle, tender, emotional love song. A mixture of satisfying triumph after the struggle for one's true self despite of the resistance of his carved into heart beliefs in God; absolute happiness for a newly blossomed and hard-earned love; desperate longing for the acceptance of whom he cares about; and pain brought out by the bigoted attitude of everyone from friends to families.
One of the most extremely well done thing about this book is the characterizations. Everyone has their own distinct personalities. However, I felt like they all reflect a little bit of my thoughts and beliefs. I could identify with them and therefore, became sympathetic to them regardless of occasionally hateful behavior. Pathetically stupid, poorly realized and disgustingly narrow-minded, I was once prejudiced against everything I deemed immoral/degrading/repulsing. Even now, I feel embarrassed whenever I remember what I had thought when I was much younger. Not that now I'm very good, but with every person I've had pleasure to meet and get to know them, through real life or books or whatever it is takes people and their lives its main subjects, I think I'd become much more patient and understanding, and for that I'm eternally thankful.
The character developments are handled admiringly and masterfully too, especially with Jericho. For me, nothing is more interesting, considering that I mostly read books for that very thing.
Taken thoughtfully and seriously, religion is a major part of the book. Do you believe God loves us as we are made? Or are you going to Hell for being a so-called sin named homosexual? Can you stand not being yourself for the acceptance of others? Questions like that. It also presents some religious matters that have bothered me for a long time, morally and...religiously.
I really like the love scenes. They're surely intimate and passionate, yet somehow pure and innocent too. The most erotic scenes, to me, are the partly revealed, partly hidden, partly real, partly imaginative ones. For a while there hadn't been an actual book that made my heart race madly and excitingly like this one did.
I couldn't breathe for a completely unexpected moment closer to the end of the book, but don't worry, everything is going to be alright, eventually.
There are some laugh-out-loud moments, there are some bitingly poignant moments, all of them are mixed beautifully to create a book entirely about love: reverent love for God, unconditional love between family members, compassionate love between friends, intense love between lovers.
And, all I want to say is this is a book worth reading, and thinking about, and loving for a long long time.
One of the most extremely well done thing about this book is the characterizations. Everyone has their own distinct personalities. However, I felt like they all reflect a little bit of my thoughts and beliefs. I could identify with them and therefore, became sympathetic to them regardless of occasionally hateful behavior. Pathetically stupid, poorly realized and disgustingly narrow-minded, I was once prejudiced against everything I deemed immoral/degrading/repulsing. Even now, I feel embarrassed whenever I remember what I had thought when I was much younger. Not that now I'm very good, but with every person I've had pleasure to meet and get to know them, through real life or books or whatever it is takes people and their lives its main subjects, I think I'd become much more patient and understanding, and for that I'm eternally thankful.
The character developments are handled admiringly and masterfully too, especially with Jericho. For me, nothing is more interesting, considering that I mostly read books for that very thing.
Taken thoughtfully and seriously, religion is a major part of the book. Do you believe God loves us as we are made? Or are you going to Hell for being a so-called sin named homosexual? Can you stand not being yourself for the acceptance of others? Questions like that. It also presents some religious matters that have bothered me for a long time, morally and...religiously.
I really like the love scenes. They're surely intimate and passionate, yet somehow pure and innocent too. The most erotic scenes, to me, are the partly revealed, partly hidden, partly real, partly imaginative ones. For a while there hadn't been an actual book that made my heart race madly and excitingly like this one did.
I couldn't breathe for a completely unexpected moment closer to the end of the book, but don't worry, everything is going to be alright, eventually.
There are some laugh-out-loud moments, there are some bitingly poignant moments, all of them are mixed beautifully to create a book entirely about love: reverent love for God, unconditional love between family members, compassionate love between friends, intense love between lovers.
And, all I want to say is this is a book worth reading, and thinking about, and loving for a long long time.
maybe
November 13, 2018Freebie at amazon.com right now: https://www.amazon.com/Battle-Jericho...
November 22, 2018
This story of a black teenager coming to terms with being bisexual in a conservative town was an entertaining read, kept on the lighter side by Jericho's lack of introspection and general obliviousness.
Sixteen-year-old Jericho has a couple of best friends, a pretty girlfriend, religious but not fanatic parents, and a tendency to get into trouble by not thinking first. He's also more of a follower than a leader, and one who sees only the surface of most situations. When he and his best friend come up with the idea of vandalizing the home of the local gay couple, he sees it as a combination of a lark and a reasonable retribution to strangers who are flaunting their disregard for the religious rules his parents insist everyone should live by. Any deeper motivation is invisible to him. Then he almost gets caught, and ends up hurting a gay man to get away.
From there, guilt, naiveté, curiosity, and a kind of innocence drive Jericho to try to apologize and make amends, and by a slightly improbable mechanism, into pretending to be gay to make up for his crime. Clearly, he's also willing because it lets him explore his bi side that he has been pretending didn't exist. But at first that motivation is pretty invisible to him, partly because bisexual isn't in his mental vocabulary - you are either straight, or gay. And he really likes his girlfriend.
This story brings into play a fair bit of Christian religion, as Jericho tries to reconcile what he and others do and feel with the teachings he's been brought up with. But it didn't feel too heavy-handed, and I can imagine it being a meaningful struggle to others coming from that same kind of background. There is some humor and some poignancy, and sex as plot appropriate to a YA story. Most of the characters have a degree of nuance to them, and despite occasional moments that stretch credulance in how oblivious a teen boy could be, it feels realistic and well done. We urgently need more LGBTQ YA books with POC main characters, and it's fun to read a good one.
Sixteen-year-old Jericho has a couple of best friends, a pretty girlfriend, religious but not fanatic parents, and a tendency to get into trouble by not thinking first. He's also more of a follower than a leader, and one who sees only the surface of most situations. When he and his best friend come up with the idea of vandalizing the home of the local gay couple, he sees it as a combination of a lark and a reasonable retribution to strangers who are flaunting their disregard for the religious rules his parents insist everyone should live by. Any deeper motivation is invisible to him. Then he almost gets caught, and ends up hurting a gay man to get away.
From there, guilt, naiveté, curiosity, and a kind of innocence drive Jericho to try to apologize and make amends, and by a slightly improbable mechanism, into pretending to be gay to make up for his crime. Clearly, he's also willing because it lets him explore his bi side that he has been pretending didn't exist. But at first that motivation is pretty invisible to him, partly because bisexual isn't in his mental vocabulary - you are either straight, or gay. And he really likes his girlfriend.
This story brings into play a fair bit of Christian religion, as Jericho tries to reconcile what he and others do and feel with the teachings he's been brought up with. But it didn't feel too heavy-handed, and I can imagine it being a meaningful struggle to others coming from that same kind of background. There is some humor and some poignancy, and sex as plot appropriate to a YA story. Most of the characters have a degree of nuance to them, and despite occasional moments that stretch credulance in how oblivious a teen boy could be, it feels realistic and well done. We urgently need more LGBTQ YA books with POC main characters, and it's fun to read a good one.
January 16, 2013
A friend at Good reads recommended this book to me and I am very happy with the recommendation. I really liked Jericho's voice, his narration felt very believable to me as a voice of a sixteen year old teenager. But I always want to put a qualifier - I am not a sixteen year old teenager, have not been one for quite some time, so young people may react completely differently. I have read a lot of young adult coming of age novels in the last couple years where teenagers are struggling with their identities, where they struggle to find who they are, not just whom they are sexually attracted to, but that's a big part of figuring out who you are.
In that sense this story also has Jerricho work through his confusions and his feelings, but as blurb tells you, he finds out that he is attracted to both boys and girls and likely is a bisexual. I am not going to tell you at what stage his romantic life is at the end of the book, but it was a nice and refreshing change to read about a teenager who may be a bisexual.
And the love story was just so beautiful - even if a lot of it was showing how confused he was, but I just felt so much joy when I was reading these pages.
What pleased me even more about this story is how flawed Jerricho is and how much he changes from the beginning of the story to the end. Or maybe he is not changing that much, but just realises what his true feelings on the subject are and what kind of the person he truly is?
Supporting characters are wonderful, almost all of them feel real and despite smaller roles feel multidimensional enough.
Definitely recommended.
4.5 stars
In that sense this story also has Jerricho work through his confusions and his feelings, but as blurb tells you, he finds out that he is attracted to both boys and girls and likely is a bisexual. I am not going to tell you at what stage his romantic life is at the end of the book, but it was a nice and refreshing change to read about a teenager who may be a bisexual.
And the love story was just so beautiful - even if a lot of it was showing how confused he was, but I just felt so much joy when I was reading these pages.
What pleased me even more about this story is how flawed Jerricho is and how much he changes from the beginning of the story to the end. Or maybe he is not changing that much, but just realises what his true feelings on the subject are and what kind of the person he truly is?
Supporting characters are wonderful, almost all of them feel real and despite smaller roles feel multidimensional enough.
Definitely recommended.
4.5 stars
January 10, 2013
A Highly Recommended Book!
Gene Gant’s THE BATTLE FOR JERICHO is one of the most beautiful books I’ve read. There are many characters in this story, including God Almighty, but please don’t assume this is a paranormal book. It definitely is not. God assumes His place for each character based on their beliefs and depictions in the story.
This is a YA book. There is no graphic sex, no erotic moments, just realistic references and thoughts of teenaged boys learning who they are and who they love. The point is, though, that love wins, every time, for these good people.
This is a character-driven novel and Mr. Gant is an amazing developer of characters who live, breathe, believe, love, and make mistakes. I can’t tell you how much I loved THE BATTLE FOR JERICHO. It will resonate with me for a long time. I recommend this book for anyone who has ever loved a teenager, gay or straight, male or female. Beautiful. Enjoy.
Please see my complete review on January 14, 2013 at http://mrsconditreadsbooks.com/index....
Gene Gant’s THE BATTLE FOR JERICHO is one of the most beautiful books I’ve read. There are many characters in this story, including God Almighty, but please don’t assume this is a paranormal book. It definitely is not. God assumes His place for each character based on their beliefs and depictions in the story.
This is a YA book. There is no graphic sex, no erotic moments, just realistic references and thoughts of teenaged boys learning who they are and who they love. The point is, though, that love wins, every time, for these good people.
This is a character-driven novel and Mr. Gant is an amazing developer of characters who live, breathe, believe, love, and make mistakes. I can’t tell you how much I loved THE BATTLE FOR JERICHO. It will resonate with me for a long time. I recommend this book for anyone who has ever loved a teenager, gay or straight, male or female. Beautiful. Enjoy.
Please see my complete review on January 14, 2013 at http://mrsconditreadsbooks.com/index....
Currently reading
January 7, 2013Gant, Gene. “The Battle for Jericho”, Dreamspinner Press, 2013.
Making Amends
Amos Lassen
In the small town of Webster’s Glen, there is trouble. Dylan Cussler, a gay activist moves in with his boyfriend and then sues the state because of its ban on gay adoption. Two of the locals, Jericho Jiles and Mac Travis, his best friend decide to find a way to get Dylan and boyfriend to leave town but things do not work out as planned. Dylan shows up as the two are trashing his house making Jericho nervous and he flees leaving Dylan hurt and unconscious.
Jericho is not all bad and he is remorseful about what he did and returns to apologize and set things right. Dylan accepts his apology and forgives him to Dylan’s surprise and then Dylan begins to open Jericho’s eyes and mind. Jericho realizes that he is attracted to both boys and girls which does not make things easy for him because he has a girlfriend from a very strict religious family. If he is to accept the fact that his sexuality is divided then he must question just who he is and where does he stand with not just his girlfriend but with her religious parents and with God.
I really believe dealing with God in a gay romance is quite a difficult task for any writer and Gene Gant does just fine in the first book I have read by him. He is able to bring together a struggle to find out who someone is with the opposition being those in God’s army who want the world to be safe for salvation. We are all aware of the high price we sometimes have to pay for acceptance and many times that involves leaving religion aside. Bigotry causes pain and denies us the right to serve our maker as we want and no one has the right to take that from us. Couple that with the pain and rejection felt when a family chooses not to accept a child and a person is lost. It is a difficult subject to work with and Gant tackles it through his characters.
It is hard to draw characters that all readers will like or identify with and therefore there must be someone to dislike. That really does not happen here. Our opinions of the various characters changes as we read and since so many have characteristics that we can identify with, it is that much more difficult to dislike someone even if they behave in an abhorrent way. Many times we discover a lot about ourselves through characters created by others. But what we see is that with understanding, patience and an open mind, we can change. Gant has created a fascinating character in Jericho Jiles and I certainly hope that he hangs around gay literature for awhile.
As we read this novel, we come face to face with issues of religion and we begin to question our own feelings and this is what I consider to be the real beauty of this book. But it is not all religion here—this is a love story and there are love and sex scenes which are erotic yet tastefully written. There is also humor and poignancy but above all else, this is a novel about love. Gene Gant is a new writer for me but I have discovered that this is not his first book---I surely hope it is not his last.
September 5, 2013
Review can be found at Greedy Bug Book Reviews:
Greedy Bug Book Reviews
This book was provided by Harmony Ink Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Greedy Bug Book Reviews
This book was provided by Harmony Ink Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.
January 6, 2022
This book just wasn't what I expected and unfortunately not in a good way. It wasn't bad but Jericho was TSTL at times and I found myself rolling my eyes a lot. This is why I shouldn't read books with teens as the MC. Most the time YA doesn't work all that great for me and this wasn't an exception. Also at the end of the book I still felt so awful for Dylan who did not get a HFN/HEA also . That is one town I hope I never live in.
February 12, 2013
Coming to terms with being gay is difficult enough, particularly as a teenager. For sixteen-year-old Jericho Jiles, whose devoutly Christian parents have brought him up to believe the Bible’s word is law, it’s an even greater struggle. During the course of the novel, as his attraction to the same sex becomes harder to ignore, he is forced to question not only his sexuality, but everything his family stands for and the religion he has lived by all his life.
Things are going well for Jerry. He has loving parents, a sweet girlfriend, and a spot on the school basketball team. If he and his best friend Mac have a habit of getting into scrapes, it’s never anything too serious. Then Dylan Cussler moves to Webster’s Glenn with his boyfriend, stirring up the conservative neighborhood with his campaigns for gay rights, and Jerry and Mac’s trouble-making takes a darker turn. Dylan’s unchristian ways don’t belong in their community. He must be taught a lesson, and the two boys plan to trash Dylan’s house, a plan that goes horribly awry when Dylan catches them in the act.
After fleeing the scene, Jerry is terrified the police will arrest him at any moment. When nothing happens, however, his fear gives way to shame, until he is compelled to return to Dylan’s house and apologize. Jerry certainly doesn’t expect Dylan’s forgiveness, or that talking to him will open the floodgates to his own doubts about himself and his feelings for his friend Hutch. But he isn’t allowed to feel this way; the Bible says so. As he swings between his strengthening bond with Hutch and the security of his relationship with his girlfriend, Jerry is eaten up with guilt and confusion. Will he ever reconcile his religion with these new discoveries about his sexuality?
This is an authentic coming of age story following one boy’s journey to find himself. The author does a wonderful job of bringing across the opposing viewpoints, as well as showing Jerry’s hard-fought battle to reach his own conclusions. There’s no denying Jerry is a brilliant protagonist. He has his fair share of faults, and due to some of his actions, wasn’t always easy to like. Yet, for all that, he has a good heart that made it impossible for me not to identify with him and his turmoil.
If you enjoy realistic teen novels featuring true-to-life characters, and are interested in the conflict that exists between homosexuality and religion, I can recommend this book.
NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews and the Boys on the Brink Blog
Things are going well for Jerry. He has loving parents, a sweet girlfriend, and a spot on the school basketball team. If he and his best friend Mac have a habit of getting into scrapes, it’s never anything too serious. Then Dylan Cussler moves to Webster’s Glenn with his boyfriend, stirring up the conservative neighborhood with his campaigns for gay rights, and Jerry and Mac’s trouble-making takes a darker turn. Dylan’s unchristian ways don’t belong in their community. He must be taught a lesson, and the two boys plan to trash Dylan’s house, a plan that goes horribly awry when Dylan catches them in the act.
After fleeing the scene, Jerry is terrified the police will arrest him at any moment. When nothing happens, however, his fear gives way to shame, until he is compelled to return to Dylan’s house and apologize. Jerry certainly doesn’t expect Dylan’s forgiveness, or that talking to him will open the floodgates to his own doubts about himself and his feelings for his friend Hutch. But he isn’t allowed to feel this way; the Bible says so. As he swings between his strengthening bond with Hutch and the security of his relationship with his girlfriend, Jerry is eaten up with guilt and confusion. Will he ever reconcile his religion with these new discoveries about his sexuality?
This is an authentic coming of age story following one boy’s journey to find himself. The author does a wonderful job of bringing across the opposing viewpoints, as well as showing Jerry’s hard-fought battle to reach his own conclusions. There’s no denying Jerry is a brilliant protagonist. He has his fair share of faults, and due to some of his actions, wasn’t always easy to like. Yet, for all that, he has a good heart that made it impossible for me not to identify with him and his turmoil.
If you enjoy realistic teen novels featuring true-to-life characters, and are interested in the conflict that exists between homosexuality and religion, I can recommend this book.
NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews and the Boys on the Brink Blog
September 1, 2014
Interesting story of Jericho, a teenager from a strict, religious family in a small town in Tennessee. He's a typical teen, impulsive and self-involved at the beginning of the story, believing the words of his church and community about the evils of being gay. After unintentionally injuring a gay man during an ill-advised attack on his home, Jericho starts a journey of self-discovery that takes him down a path he never expected.
At turns funny, exasperating and moving, Jericho is a flawed but likable guy. His friends are as well, and his parents are wonderfully portrayed as strict but loving, fervent believers in a fundamentalist view of the Bible. The exploration of religious belief and its impact on being gay was handled in a nuanced way that made for interesting, thought provoking reading. Ultimately upbeat, this story explored Jericho's coming of age in a way that was engaging.
At turns funny, exasperating and moving, Jericho is a flawed but likable guy. His friends are as well, and his parents are wonderfully portrayed as strict but loving, fervent believers in a fundamentalist view of the Bible. The exploration of religious belief and its impact on being gay was handled in a nuanced way that made for interesting, thought provoking reading. Ultimately upbeat, this story explored Jericho's coming of age in a way that was engaging.
April 17, 2019
To be 16 and bi, somewhere east of Nashville, Tennessee, with phrases from the Bible riding free-range in your head is to be nowhere. At least, nowhere I'd want to be, ever.
And yet . . . Jericho makes me laugh and cry and feel what he feels for his friend Mac and his girlfriend Lissandra and his boyfriend Hutch and even his religious parents, who are convinced one's sexuality is a choice.
The messages are spelled out like words at a middle school spelling bee (in places), but maybe they need to be for the YA audience. The spelling doesn't take away from the plot or distract me from the accuracy with which these characters are drawn. For buried in the voice of Jericho, in his tone, is the assurance that Love will triumph. Even in the Bible Belt!
And yet . . . Jericho makes me laugh and cry and feel what he feels for his friend Mac and his girlfriend Lissandra and his boyfriend Hutch and even his religious parents, who are convinced one's sexuality is a choice.
The messages are spelled out like words at a middle school spelling bee (in places), but maybe they need to be for the YA audience. The spelling doesn't take away from the plot or distract me from the accuracy with which these characters are drawn. For buried in the voice of Jericho, in his tone, is the assurance that Love will triumph. Even in the Bible Belt!
July 14, 2025
For the first several chapters of this book, I wasn't sure if I would like it. When I finished chapter 6, I was like, "WTH?" But I kept reading anyway, because it would either be an interesting train wreck, or it would get better. I'm happy to report it got better, and I ended up loving this book. There are problems (mostly the WTFery with in chapter 6), but the story and first-person narrative sucked me in.
This wasn't the book I expected from reading the blurb. It was better. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys YA, especially those looking for strong, flawed, compelling bisexual characters (though I'd warn them first about ).
This wasn't the book I expected from reading the blurb. It was better. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys YA, especially those looking for strong, flawed, compelling bisexual characters (though I'd warn them first about ).
September 12, 2013
Great book! Funny, with characters who seem very real. Will write more later.
When I came back to finish my review of this book, I saw Trisha Harrington's review for Greedy Bug. I want to respond to her review, and there are going to be major spoilers here. So if you haven't read the book, you probably shouldn't read my review.
Trisha Harrington says this book is depressing because the characters experienced things like abuse, the death of younger siblings in their past, and a gay bashing. I read this book and found it anything but depressing. I laughed out loud in just about every chapter. The fact that negative things happened in some of the characters' lives didn't make the book depressing for me. There are multiple murders in the Harry Potter books, along with the emotional abuse of an 11-year-old, the teaching of evil to children and the deaths of the main character's parents when he was a baby. But those things didn't make the Harry Potter books depressing. Characters in young adult books face all kinds of challenges, from drug abuse to rape to bullying. Such things happen to kids in real life, and I think everyone can benefit from reading how a character overcomes the bad things in his or her life.
Jericho was never cruel, in my opinion. He was just a goofy kid who didn't understand himself and had a bad habit of making impulsive decisions. He was sorry every time he hurt someone, and he always tried to make it up to that person. Even Dylan, the gay man whose house he vandalized, said he was a decent kid and forgave him. That was one of the messages I got from this book, that people are flawed and we should be forgiving, because we all make mistakes. Jericho owned up to what he did to Dylan, even to the point of wanting Dylan to turn him over to the sheriff. He loved his parents and his friends, he hid Hutch in his bedroom after Hutch got kicked out, and he got choked half to death to protect Hutch from Hutch's dad. I admired Jericho for those things.
I did feel sorry for Lissandra, Jericho's girlfriend, because she really loved him. But when Jericho realized that he was bisexual and falling for Hutch, he told Lissandra he had feelings for someone else and let her go. That was the right thing for him to do, and I admired him for that, too.
Jericho thought being gay was a choice because that's what his parents and his church taught him. He doesn't believe that at the end of the book, because he comes to understand himself. In a good story, the main character develops, growing from point A to point B, and that happens with Jericho. The author uses Jericho as a stand-in for all the people in the world who believe being gay is a choice, and he shows how gay kids should look inside themselves to understand that what they feel is not a choice.
Jericho's parents have strong religious beliefs, but they are not evil people. They take Hutch into their house when they learn he has been kicked out of his home, even buying clothes for him, despite knowing that he is gay. They never kick Jericho out of their house, even after they learn he had sex with Hutch and committed crimes against Dylan. I hoped they would come around when they learned about their son's sexuality and I was disappointed when they didn't. But the reality is that some people hold onto their belief that being gay is a sin, even when they know a loved one is gay. Still, they love Jericho and realize he has to live his own life, despite what they believe, and that made me admire them (but I disagree with their beliefs.) This is what the book is ultimately about, that people are entitled to their religious beliefs but have no right to force others to live by those beliefs. We're all different, and we should be free to live our lives the way we want as long as we don't hurt others.
I'm a fan of this author because his books (so far) feature minority gay characters, and you don't get a lot of books about them. So that's another reason I liked this book so much. I think this would be a great book for any gay kid to read if he or she is trying to make sense of being gay while being part of a religious family.
When I came back to finish my review of this book, I saw Trisha Harrington's review for Greedy Bug. I want to respond to her review, and there are going to be major spoilers here. So if you haven't read the book, you probably shouldn't read my review.
Trisha Harrington says this book is depressing because the characters experienced things like abuse, the death of younger siblings in their past, and a gay bashing. I read this book and found it anything but depressing. I laughed out loud in just about every chapter. The fact that negative things happened in some of the characters' lives didn't make the book depressing for me. There are multiple murders in the Harry Potter books, along with the emotional abuse of an 11-year-old, the teaching of evil to children and the deaths of the main character's parents when he was a baby. But those things didn't make the Harry Potter books depressing. Characters in young adult books face all kinds of challenges, from drug abuse to rape to bullying. Such things happen to kids in real life, and I think everyone can benefit from reading how a character overcomes the bad things in his or her life.
Jericho was never cruel, in my opinion. He was just a goofy kid who didn't understand himself and had a bad habit of making impulsive decisions. He was sorry every time he hurt someone, and he always tried to make it up to that person. Even Dylan, the gay man whose house he vandalized, said he was a decent kid and forgave him. That was one of the messages I got from this book, that people are flawed and we should be forgiving, because we all make mistakes. Jericho owned up to what he did to Dylan, even to the point of wanting Dylan to turn him over to the sheriff. He loved his parents and his friends, he hid Hutch in his bedroom after Hutch got kicked out, and he got choked half to death to protect Hutch from Hutch's dad. I admired Jericho for those things.
I did feel sorry for Lissandra, Jericho's girlfriend, because she really loved him. But when Jericho realized that he was bisexual and falling for Hutch, he told Lissandra he had feelings for someone else and let her go. That was the right thing for him to do, and I admired him for that, too.
Jericho thought being gay was a choice because that's what his parents and his church taught him. He doesn't believe that at the end of the book, because he comes to understand himself. In a good story, the main character develops, growing from point A to point B, and that happens with Jericho. The author uses Jericho as a stand-in for all the people in the world who believe being gay is a choice, and he shows how gay kids should look inside themselves to understand that what they feel is not a choice.
Jericho's parents have strong religious beliefs, but they are not evil people. They take Hutch into their house when they learn he has been kicked out of his home, even buying clothes for him, despite knowing that he is gay. They never kick Jericho out of their house, even after they learn he had sex with Hutch and committed crimes against Dylan. I hoped they would come around when they learned about their son's sexuality and I was disappointed when they didn't. But the reality is that some people hold onto their belief that being gay is a sin, even when they know a loved one is gay. Still, they love Jericho and realize he has to live his own life, despite what they believe, and that made me admire them (but I disagree with their beliefs.) This is what the book is ultimately about, that people are entitled to their religious beliefs but have no right to force others to live by those beliefs. We're all different, and we should be free to live our lives the way we want as long as we don't hurt others.
I'm a fan of this author because his books (so far) feature minority gay characters, and you don't get a lot of books about them. So that's another reason I liked this book so much. I think this would be a great book for any gay kid to read if he or she is trying to make sense of being gay while being part of a religious family.
October 6, 2014
Jericho Jiles is your average everyday teenager with slightly over bearing and definitely strict, religious parents and a couple of best friends that are going to get him into more trouble than he realizes. When a gay man and his partner move into the neighborhood and petition the court to allow them to adopt, Jeri’s little town is in an uproar. Of course Jeri thinks it’s wrong, evil and disgusting. Because that is what he has been taught to think. But when a prank goes wrong and Jeri winds up hurting the man inadvertently, he starts to question what he’s been taught to think.
Dylan Cussler is an attorney and a gay advocate, helping at risk and confused LGBT youth through a local group. The stress and strain of moving to an extremely homophobic town and the disappointment of not being able to adopt sent his lover packing, and then someone breaks into Dylan’s home and trashes the place leaving Dylan with several stitches as a parting favor. The last thing Dylan expected was for the teenager that clocked him to show up on his door step, or show any type of remorse for what he did. But then the teenager really floors him when he tells Dylan he’s gay.
At first Dylan toys with Jericho, creating an elaborate gay agenda contract for Jeri to sign, giving him stupid and illogical rules he has to follow to be a good gay man. What started out as some sort of psychological penance for Jeri, turns into something more when he really attempts to do as Dylan suggests, actually act gay. In a random turn of events, Jeri finds out one of his best friends is gay and the two try to date. It is not without some absolutely hysterical bumps in the road, but practice makes perfect, and with time Jeri’s feelings for Hutch grow into something more than just friendship.
In a wildly original story the proverbial straight guy, would be homophobe becomes the bi-sexual spokesman of his own one man band. I liked the originality of this story, how Gant took a sixteen year old young man and opened the eyes he never realized were closed, to a world of possibilities. What I didn’t like about the story was Jericho’s conservative, uber religious parents. How they figuratively brow beat him with their beliefs and their bible and went way overboard with some of their punishments. NOT abusive, don’t get that impression, just over bearing and just too much.
It was interesting for me to follow along with Jericho as he struggled with what he had been taught and what he was starting to feel the more open he became to a relationship with Hutch. Now Hutch’s parents were the abusive assholes of this scenario, his father even going so far as to go after Jericho in an attempt to find Hutch when Jericho’s parent’s helped him escape his abusive home life. Which is why I didn’t hate Jiles in the end, they did go out of their way to help Hutch regardless of how they felt about he and their son being boyfriends.
Narrated by the man, Paul Morey, lord I just love his voice. This is the first book I’ve listened to from him with the level of vulnerability he brought to Jericho though, and it really added more depth to that character. His voice just flows like honey, so sexy and honest, I will buy an audiobook simply because he is reading it.
This story is not quite as dark as the synopsis leads you to believe, but there is still an element of darkness there. Mostly it’s a great coming of age story about the struggles of a young man coming to terms with his sexuality and his personality at the same time. I’d recommend this read if you are a fan of gay YA stories.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *
Dylan Cussler is an attorney and a gay advocate, helping at risk and confused LGBT youth through a local group. The stress and strain of moving to an extremely homophobic town and the disappointment of not being able to adopt sent his lover packing, and then someone breaks into Dylan’s home and trashes the place leaving Dylan with several stitches as a parting favor. The last thing Dylan expected was for the teenager that clocked him to show up on his door step, or show any type of remorse for what he did. But then the teenager really floors him when he tells Dylan he’s gay.
At first Dylan toys with Jericho, creating an elaborate gay agenda contract for Jeri to sign, giving him stupid and illogical rules he has to follow to be a good gay man. What started out as some sort of psychological penance for Jeri, turns into something more when he really attempts to do as Dylan suggests, actually act gay. In a random turn of events, Jeri finds out one of his best friends is gay and the two try to date. It is not without some absolutely hysterical bumps in the road, but practice makes perfect, and with time Jeri’s feelings for Hutch grow into something more than just friendship.
In a wildly original story the proverbial straight guy, would be homophobe becomes the bi-sexual spokesman of his own one man band. I liked the originality of this story, how Gant took a sixteen year old young man and opened the eyes he never realized were closed, to a world of possibilities. What I didn’t like about the story was Jericho’s conservative, uber religious parents. How they figuratively brow beat him with their beliefs and their bible and went way overboard with some of their punishments. NOT abusive, don’t get that impression, just over bearing and just too much.
It was interesting for me to follow along with Jericho as he struggled with what he had been taught and what he was starting to feel the more open he became to a relationship with Hutch. Now Hutch’s parents were the abusive assholes of this scenario, his father even going so far as to go after Jericho in an attempt to find Hutch when Jericho’s parent’s helped him escape his abusive home life. Which is why I didn’t hate Jiles in the end, they did go out of their way to help Hutch regardless of how they felt about he and their son being boyfriends.
Narrated by the man, Paul Morey, lord I just love his voice. This is the first book I’ve listened to from him with the level of vulnerability he brought to Jericho though, and it really added more depth to that character. His voice just flows like honey, so sexy and honest, I will buy an audiobook simply because he is reading it.
This story is not quite as dark as the synopsis leads you to believe, but there is still an element of darkness there. Mostly it’s a great coming of age story about the struggles of a young man coming to terms with his sexuality and his personality at the same time. I’d recommend this read if you are a fan of gay YA stories.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *
July 21, 2016
Title: The Battle for Jericho (Audiobook Version)
Author: Gene Gant
Narrator: Paul Morey
Cover Artist: Anne Cain
Publisher: Harmony Ink Press
Reviewer: Jay
Genre: Young Adult
Type: Romance
Pairing: Questioning, Undecided, Gay, & Heterosexual
Length: Novel (7 hours & 48 minutes)
Heat Rating: ♨♨
Book Rating: ★★★★☆
All I can say is read or listen to this story. The story is written from Jericho’s perspective and is for the young adult audience. There is no graphic sex but more of a fade to black depiction that is tender and sweet. Jerry is an amazing young man with a generous heart. He feels an attraction to both sexes and has to work through those feelings and come to an understanding about himself. The story presents the opposing sides realistically as is it does with Jerry’s own battle.
Complete Review at WoDF - The Battle for Jericho (Audiobook Version)
Author: Gene Gant
Narrator: Paul Morey
Cover Artist: Anne Cain
Publisher: Harmony Ink Press
Reviewer: Jay
Genre: Young Adult
Type: Romance
Pairing: Questioning, Undecided, Gay, & Heterosexual
Length: Novel (7 hours & 48 minutes)
Heat Rating: ♨♨
Book Rating: ★★★★☆
All I can say is read or listen to this story. The story is written from Jericho’s perspective and is for the young adult audience. There is no graphic sex but more of a fade to black depiction that is tender and sweet. Jerry is an amazing young man with a generous heart. He feels an attraction to both sexes and has to work through those feelings and come to an understanding about himself. The story presents the opposing sides realistically as is it does with Jerry’s own battle.
Complete Review at WoDF - The Battle for Jericho (Audiobook Version)
September 22, 2016
A pleasant surprise
I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book. How do you lose your best friend and get him back? How to figure out who you are? I found many surprises in the pages and some good laughs going over the WHO contract. Great read.
I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book. How do you lose your best friend and get him back? How to figure out who you are? I found many surprises in the pages and some good laughs going over the WHO contract. Great read.
lurking-in-kindleland
August 16, 2013Harmony Ink tweetaway freebie 16.8.13
Want to read
August 16, 2013Free for the next 5 minutes until 3:40!! 8/16/13
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/stor...
Sorry guys, I was with a patient and didn't get to this sooner :(
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/stor...
Sorry guys, I was with a patient and didn't get to this sooner :(
October 10, 2014
3.5 A wee bit heavy handed and dramatic but it was an entertaining read, I suppose.
November 1, 2015
2013 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention (5* from at least 1 judge)
April 25, 2014
Sweet and oddly funny.
Read
January 5, 2018Sorry, it's not that the book is bad. I actualy enjoyed reading it for a while and if you like the Young Adult / Coming-of-age genre, you'll have alot of fun with it. But thats the problem, I don't enjoy it at all. The blurb convinced me to give it a try. I had a feeling it would've been a more 'mature' sort of tone, thinking we'll get to see someone fight and stand up to himself. It sounded nice and I got what I wanted... for a while... but then the age showed and things went predictably 'Young adult'.
I did finish the book in the end, so why didnt I rate it? Well, it doesn't seem fair to give it a 2 star rating because I was hoping it wasn't actualy a Young Adult genre. It's like reading Game of Thrones and expecting a Happy Ever After. (Insane, right?) I knew what I might sign up for and I still went for it, in hope of getting something else. So thats not the author's fault that I assumed something else and it certainly doesn't reflect the value of the book properly if I rate it with that mindset.
So what I can say about the book is, that it got me curious enough to try and finish it. The characters were fun to read about and the overall feeling about the book was rather positive. If it wasn't for the wrong genre, I would've given it at least 4 stars. So im in a kind of dilemma where I want to rate the book with 2 stars, because I don't enjoy the genre but I also want to give it 4 stars since the book was well written and engaging.
It's like eating a pizza with the wrong toppings. Sure, it's still good but you just know that deep down, it would've been alot better if your buddy brought your favorite pizza. So that type of thought sours something you could've enjoyed if you didn't constantly think about how much better it would've been with the proper toppings.
So yeah, if you enjoy the genre, you'll enjoy the book. But for me, it was the right pizza with the wrong toppings.
I did finish the book in the end, so why didnt I rate it? Well, it doesn't seem fair to give it a 2 star rating because I was hoping it wasn't actualy a Young Adult genre. It's like reading Game of Thrones and expecting a Happy Ever After. (Insane, right?) I knew what I might sign up for and I still went for it, in hope of getting something else. So thats not the author's fault that I assumed something else and it certainly doesn't reflect the value of the book properly if I rate it with that mindset.
So what I can say about the book is, that it got me curious enough to try and finish it. The characters were fun to read about and the overall feeling about the book was rather positive. If it wasn't for the wrong genre, I would've given it at least 4 stars. So im in a kind of dilemma where I want to rate the book with 2 stars, because I don't enjoy the genre but I also want to give it 4 stars since the book was well written and engaging.
It's like eating a pizza with the wrong toppings. Sure, it's still good but you just know that deep down, it would've been alot better if your buddy brought your favorite pizza. So that type of thought sours something you could've enjoyed if you didn't constantly think about how much better it would've been with the proper toppings.
So yeah, if you enjoy the genre, you'll enjoy the book. But for me, it was the right pizza with the wrong toppings.
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