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Before We Were Ready - The Complete "A Time Before Me" Collection
Spanning from 1990 to 2010, Before We Were Ready brings together the complete A Time Before Me trilogy, a deeply moving gay romance series spanning youth, adulthood, and the quiet reckoning that comes with finally choosing yourself.
In A Time Before Me, a shy gay teenager grows up in rural Mississippi in the early 1990s, torn between a first, devastating crush and the promise of a freer life waiting for him in New Orleans’ vibrant French Quarter.
In Falling Into Me, years later, a successful photographer in San Francisco is forced to confront old wounds when the boy he never forgot reenters his life—sending him back to New Orleans, where unfinished love and long-buried truths await.
In A Time Before Us, a chosen family faces adulthood’s hardest questions. As a beloved drag cabaret struggles to survive post-Katrina New Orleans, friends and lovers must decide whether love, forgiveness, and home are worth fighting for—especially when the past refuses to stay buried.
Set against the lush backdrop of New Orleans and filled with unforgettable characters, Before We Were Ready is a heartfelt exploration of identity, second chances, chosen family, and the courage it takes to listen to your heart—no matter how long it takes to get there.
✨ Includes all three novels in the complete series.
✨ A story of growing up, coming home, and learning that love is worth the wait.
Perfect for readers who enjoy gay coming-of-age stories, second-chance romance, LGBTQ+ literary fiction, and emotionally driven love stories.
This total collection is approximately 150,000 words.
Praise for the novel "A Time Before Me" -
"For anyone who remembers what it was like to fall in love for the first time--both the heartbreak and the joy. A sheer pleasure to read." -- Steve Kluger, author of "Almost Like Being In Love"
"sweet and imaginative...A Time Before Me laces its sentimentality with enough jagged reality to give it an interesting edge." -- Books to Watch Out For, Edition 15
Debut novelist Perronne presents a believeable and engaging cast of characters in this quiet tale of self-realization. -- Kirkus Discoveries Reviews
Also by Michael Holloway Perronne...
Gardens of Hope
On the surface, Jack appears to have all a man in World War II era 1941 could want with his solid middle-class background, upcoming college graduation, and the perfect, devoted fiancee. But one night when he accidentally stumbles upon a shadow life of men who desire other men in a Downtown Los Angeles park, he begins to realize exactly what has always left him with a feeling of emptiness.
Despite the constant danger of being arrested by vice cops, Jack continues to visit the park every chance he has to feel a connection, no matter how fleeting, with another man. One night he meets a handsome and charismatic Japanese-American, Hiro, who appears to want more than a quick encounter, and Jack surprises himself by starting to truly fall in love for the first time.
However, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt issues Executive Order 9066 and orders the mandatory relocation of over 100,000 Japanese-Americans, who have never been charged with a crime, to far flung internment camps sites. Jack and Hiro suddenly find themselves torn apart before their secret, fledgling romance can blossom.
In A Time Before Me, a shy gay teenager grows up in rural Mississippi in the early 1990s, torn between a first, devastating crush and the promise of a freer life waiting for him in New Orleans’ vibrant French Quarter.
In Falling Into Me, years later, a successful photographer in San Francisco is forced to confront old wounds when the boy he never forgot reenters his life—sending him back to New Orleans, where unfinished love and long-buried truths await.
In A Time Before Us, a chosen family faces adulthood’s hardest questions. As a beloved drag cabaret struggles to survive post-Katrina New Orleans, friends and lovers must decide whether love, forgiveness, and home are worth fighting for—especially when the past refuses to stay buried.
Set against the lush backdrop of New Orleans and filled with unforgettable characters, Before We Were Ready is a heartfelt exploration of identity, second chances, chosen family, and the courage it takes to listen to your heart—no matter how long it takes to get there.
✨ Includes all three novels in the complete series.
✨ A story of growing up, coming home, and learning that love is worth the wait.
Perfect for readers who enjoy gay coming-of-age stories, second-chance romance, LGBTQ+ literary fiction, and emotionally driven love stories.
This total collection is approximately 150,000 words.
Praise for the novel "A Time Before Me" -
"For anyone who remembers what it was like to fall in love for the first time--both the heartbreak and the joy. A sheer pleasure to read." -- Steve Kluger, author of "Almost Like Being In Love"
"sweet and imaginative...A Time Before Me laces its sentimentality with enough jagged reality to give it an interesting edge." -- Books to Watch Out For, Edition 15
Debut novelist Perronne presents a believeable and engaging cast of characters in this quiet tale of self-realization. -- Kirkus Discoveries Reviews
Also by Michael Holloway Perronne...
Gardens of Hope
On the surface, Jack appears to have all a man in World War II era 1941 could want with his solid middle-class background, upcoming college graduation, and the perfect, devoted fiancee. But one night when he accidentally stumbles upon a shadow life of men who desire other men in a Downtown Los Angeles park, he begins to realize exactly what has always left him with a feeling of emptiness.
Despite the constant danger of being arrested by vice cops, Jack continues to visit the park every chance he has to feel a connection, no matter how fleeting, with another man. One night he meets a handsome and charismatic Japanese-American, Hiro, who appears to want more than a quick encounter, and Jack surprises himself by starting to truly fall in love for the first time.
However, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt issues Executive Order 9066 and orders the mandatory relocation of over 100,000 Japanese-Americans, who have never been charged with a crime, to far flung internment camps sites. Jack and Hiro suddenly find themselves torn apart before their secret, fledgling romance can blossom.
548 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 21, 2025
11 people are currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
Michael Holloway Perronne
10 books21 followersMichael Holloway Perronne is the author of five novels: "A Time Before Me",
"Starstruck: A Hollywood Saga", "Falling Into Me", "A Time Before Us" and
"Embrace the Rain." His debut novel, "A Time Before Me" won the Bronze
Award, Foreword Magazine's 2006 Book of the Year Award in the Gay/Lesbian
fiction category. In addition, Michael recently released his first travel guide,
"The Quickie Gay Guide to Cape Town, South Africa."
Michael was born and raised in Mississippi. He received a BA in Film from
the University of Southern Mississippi and a MFA in Drama and
Communications from the University of New Orleans.
For a few years he worked as a production assistant in television and film, in
both New Orleans and Los Angeles, on such projects as the television series
The Big Easy and the television movies Rag and Bone, Blue Moon, and
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. Following that, he worked as the Conference
Services Coordinator for the National Association of Television Program
Executives. He has also done script reading and analysis for the Los Angeles
Independent Film Festival and the Los Angeles Film Collaborative.
He currently lives in Los Angeles. His next book, "A Time Before Us", is
scheduled to be released in April 2011.
"Starstruck: A Hollywood Saga", "Falling Into Me", "A Time Before Us" and
"Embrace the Rain." His debut novel, "A Time Before Me" won the Bronze
Award, Foreword Magazine's 2006 Book of the Year Award in the Gay/Lesbian
fiction category. In addition, Michael recently released his first travel guide,
"The Quickie Gay Guide to Cape Town, South Africa."
Michael was born and raised in Mississippi. He received a BA in Film from
the University of Southern Mississippi and a MFA in Drama and
Communications from the University of New Orleans.
For a few years he worked as a production assistant in television and film, in
both New Orleans and Los Angeles, on such projects as the television series
The Big Easy and the television movies Rag and Bone, Blue Moon, and
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. Following that, he worked as the Conference
Services Coordinator for the National Association of Television Program
Executives. He has also done script reading and analysis for the Los Angeles
Independent Film Festival and the Los Angeles Film Collaborative.
He currently lives in Los Angeles. His next book, "A Time Before Us", is
scheduled to be released in April 2011.
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