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Splinters
Inspired by true events, Splinters is an American family tragedy infused with love and hope. After witnessing a horrific murder by their own mother in rural West Virginia, brilliant young Gerald and his baby sister Stephanie become orphans and find very different fates. Stephanie is quickly adopted, while Gerald languishes in a series of schools for boys. Eventually Gerald joins the Army and is recruited for intelligence work in a secret facility, where he becomes addicted to stimulants. When he gets thrown out of the Army for sexual impropriety, Gerald makes his way to Los Angeles, where he finds work as a go-go dancer and meets Aziah.Young, gay, and Black, Aziah identifies with Gerald’s loneliness and difficulty fitting in. The two fall in love. Then Gerald’s addiction and the ghosts of his past begin to surface, and he vanishes. When Stephanie shows up in Los Angeles, she and Aziah must confront the question of whether Gerald is so far gone that he can’t recover.
- GenresM M RomanceContemporary
200 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 24, 2015
2 people are currently reading
46 people want to read
About the author
Ben Patrick Johnson
6 books5 followersBen Patrick Johnson began writing at the age of five. His first essays were printed on a mimeograph machine in a church basement in St. Paul, MN and performed for his parents and whichever neighbor children he could get to sit still and listen for a few minutes. Johnson went on to pursue a career in media (after barely finishing high school) and fooled enough people in the business that, at 22, he was named Director of Production for ABC Talkradio in Los Angeles. In 1994, a difficult year as a correspondent for the TV show EXTRA cured him of any further ambitions in entertainment journalism.
Following EXTRA, Johnson self-soothed by eating lots of sheet cake late at night, sometimes in supermarket parking lots. He became a full time voice-over actor and started writing more seriously. Today, he has five novels to his credit and is the leading trailer and promo voice in Hollywood. Concurrently, Johnson has emerged as a noted social media LGBT and Human Rights activist with 300,000 followers on Twitter and Facebook. He lives with his husband Mariano and arguably too many pets on a hillside overlooking Los Angeles.
Following EXTRA, Johnson self-soothed by eating lots of sheet cake late at night, sometimes in supermarket parking lots. He became a full time voice-over actor and started writing more seriously. Today, he has five novels to his credit and is the leading trailer and promo voice in Hollywood. Concurrently, Johnson has emerged as a noted social media LGBT and Human Rights activist with 300,000 followers on Twitter and Facebook. He lives with his husband Mariano and arguably too many pets on a hillside overlooking Los Angeles.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 10, 2015
3.5 stars
This was an honest slice of reality, so if you are looking for a sweet bow tied romance, don't look here. But for all that I really liked the honesty and how Aziah is able to look at himself and see what he is. He does not hide behind politically correct concepts, he is. The author describes so well the tug and pull of needing who you logically know is bad for you but you still continue, accepting, hoping, anxiously waiting.
I like the ending, it felt real.
August 27, 2015
Although marketed as a romance, this is actually a searing and realistic portrait of addiction and codependency. It's very well-done, with flawed characters whom you will either love or hate, but never feel ambivalent about.
September 5, 2015
This was a first for me my this author. It's actually marked as romance, but I felt like I read an addiction story and co-dependency story. It was written very real, and sadly true when dealing with most addicts. As the person who is in love with the addict we saw Azaiah deal with situations that are accurately true. Dealing with the no-shows, paranoia, rage, complacency, lies and the symptoms to a Meth Addict. It was fricking hard for me to finish this book. I literally hate reading co-dependency stories, it doesn't feel good for me. I'm a general all around lover, and when someone is in a relationship and is getting used, I feel like I'm getting used reading this story. I have a hard time giving sympathy to people who make excuses for why they are on drugs. I might be mean on saying that just because you had a excruciating childhood does not give you the go ahead for drug addiction. It might be flawed for me to say that, but I come from a parent who is an addict, and everything she did, I did the complete opposite. I know everyone isn't the same. I understand Gerald's addiction. I don't know if it was truth's to Gerald's rants on his time in the military. I don't know if the drug use had any truth to it as well.
It was very insta-love. Moving in together after a few weeks, the telling of their life history in a few hours. Another issue I had was with Aziah. I don't know if the author purposefully did this, but intellectually he seemed on the mental disability side. I didn't like his voice. I did not like how the author portrayed him. I felt like he was voiced ignorantly and I did not care for it. The little plot that was here, was unbelievable to me. Gerald's sister showing up after all this time apart and Azaiah magically finding her out of the entire L.A was ridiculous. With all these things against the story somehow I managed to finish it. This story wasn’t for me, even though it’s left with a cliff-hanger I don’t think I’ll be able to continue with their story.
It was very insta-love. Moving in together after a few weeks, the telling of their life history in a few hours. Another issue I had was with Aziah. I don't know if the author purposefully did this, but intellectually he seemed on the mental disability side. I didn't like his voice. I did not like how the author portrayed him. I felt like he was voiced ignorantly and I did not care for it. The little plot that was here, was unbelievable to me. Gerald's sister showing up after all this time apart and Azaiah magically finding her out of the entire L.A was ridiculous. With all these things against the story somehow I managed to finish it. This story wasn’t for me, even though it’s left with a cliff-hanger I don’t think I’ll be able to continue with their story.
October 8, 2015
visceral, real, and in fact, splintered. Ben Patrick Johnson holds back no punches in this gut wrenching tale of a darker side of love and addiction.
This is not fairy tale, based upon true life events, Johnson takes the reader on a journey through the life of a man who, for better or worse, finds love. And hopefully, stress hopefully, the reader walks away knowing that being gay is not the first step in liberating one's self. That just because you find love, you find immediate joy. Real life doesn't work that way, sadly. And even sadder, is there is a great gulf fixed between what is and what should be.
If you want a dose of the real world, give this book a chance. If not, the saccharine sweet, literary diabetes section, is down the hall and to the right
This is not fairy tale, based upon true life events, Johnson takes the reader on a journey through the life of a man who, for better or worse, finds love. And hopefully, stress hopefully, the reader walks away knowing that being gay is not the first step in liberating one's self. That just because you find love, you find immediate joy. Real life doesn't work that way, sadly. And even sadder, is there is a great gulf fixed between what is and what should be.
If you want a dose of the real world, give this book a chance. If not, the saccharine sweet, literary diabetes section, is down the hall and to the right
October 14, 2015
This was one tough roller coaster of a story to read. Told from Aziah's POV we are given a look at life from the tough side. Aziah has been a loner most of his life, living in near poverty and working at a nowhere job. Gerald is a meth addict and still not recovered from an abominable youth. Somehow these two misfits are thrown together in the wash cycle of life and are expected to sort it all out. Toss in Gerald's messed up sister, Stephanie and the reader has a family of three that nothing but love can keep together.
March 30, 2016
What immediately drew me to this book is that it's a true story. I haven't read a true story in a while, so I thought I would read this. I think if you're wondering whether or not you want to read this book, what's on the second page will be a major factor: "I should warn you up front that the story’s not done yet, and I don’t know how it’s going to end. So if you’re expecting to finish with the hero heading off on horseback into the sunset, well, that’s just not going to happen. Because that’s not real life. This story is about the beauty and awfulness of life, Gerald’s and mine."
The story begins with Aziah, who is a twenty-nine year old African-American living in Los Angeles. The story is from his perspective. He meets Gerald, a white, formerly in the Army, and new to the area, at the gym. Gerald approaches him and asks him if he wants to go somewhere and talk. Aziah leaves with him and later that night Gerald goes back to Aziah's place.
I will warn you, if you like sex scenes,.
The title describes Gerald perfectly. We learn why he is splintered. He tells Aziah that "it’s the scars and splinters we collect that define us. They show the world how we got to be who we are...And those splinters, they ain’t just a record of what’s happened, they’re a compass for where you’re headed."
This is my first book by Ben Patric Johnson. If their story is ever revisited, I would read it and hopefully "with love, anything is possible."
The story begins with Aziah, who is a twenty-nine year old African-American living in Los Angeles. The story is from his perspective. He meets Gerald, a white, formerly in the Army, and new to the area, at the gym. Gerald approaches him and asks him if he wants to go somewhere and talk. Aziah leaves with him and later that night Gerald goes back to Aziah's place.
I will warn you, if you like sex scenes,.
The title describes Gerald perfectly. We learn why he is splintered. He tells Aziah that "it’s the scars and splinters we collect that define us. They show the world how we got to be who we are...And those splinters, they ain’t just a record of what’s happened, they’re a compass for where you’re headed."
This is my first book by Ben Patric Johnson. If their story is ever revisited, I would read it and hopefully "with love, anything is possible."
September 29, 2015
This book is based on a true story, or at least that is the information we are given. Due to this fact then I guess it isn’t a true fictional romance either. Real life is usually harder and not as schmaltzy as some of the novels I usually read. So no skipping off into a wonderful HEA but one with a realistic outcome.
I got the feeling that it is also somewhat autobiographical in style from the narration, at least that’s the way it read for me personally. Like reading someone’s diary or memoirs. I really liked this aspect a lot as you get to see, feel and experience what Aziah is going through.
Aziah is black, lives in Los Angeles and works for a company that stages house sales. I loved Aziah, he is no high flyer, just your honest kind of guy, doing a honest days work for a moderate wage and is satisfied with his life. Maybe not the brightest spark in the world academically after never being given the chance, but the kind of guy who has a huge heart, a distinct sense of justice, someone who just wants to love and be loved. All he wants is to find the one person to settle down with.
Well, one evening in his gym where he goes to work out he gets picked up by a mysterious stranger, who at least gives him his name, Gerald, and they end up going back to Aziah’s. All I can say is that these two must have been horny and desperate, because for me this was the quickest pick up in the world. But what follows after they are lying on the floor in Aziah’s flat in post-coital bliss Aziah would never have guessed in million years. Gerald opens up to Aziah and tells him of his childhood.
No child should experience what Gerald and his sister experienced as children. It was horrific, especially if as stated this is based on a true story. However, for me to be really emotionally invested by this, which I’m sure I would have been, it just happened all too quickly and too soon in the story. It was like out there before you even had a chance to weigh up what this Gerald guy is all about. But Aziah seems to be head over heels, although he does try to rationalise it at first as a one night stand.
Well, Gerald starts to become more than a casual one off and Aziah’s feelings start to deepen way beyond anything that he had anticipated. Gerald is also deeply invested emotionally in Azaiah too. Aziah tries not to appear to be to clingy but in my opinion the clingy tendencies were definitely there. But even after all this you somehow get the feeling that the relationship between these two is somewhat off kilter. Gerald comes and goes, disappears for days and then turns up as he likes. Aziah on the other hand starts to obsess a little at where Gerald is or what he is doing. Well, to be honest if you are falling in love for someone then you care for them. So for me worrying about where your boyfriend is when he just takes off without a trace, doesn’t answer messages or calls, I think this is pretty normal. Maybe a little too early in the relationship for Aziah to completely freak out, but understandable. But when Gerald moves in with Aziah and does another disappearing act than this would drive me nuts too. I know I wouldn’t put up wth this kind of behaviour for sure. I know he tries to keep the mantra, “with love, anything is possible!” and this is quite admirable but will it be enough. Aziah in my opinion must have had it bad combined the patience of a saint.
Aziah obviously is affected by his childhood with his father walking out on his mother which may answer for some of the clinginess, but Gerald didn’t make things easy for him. Gerald opens up and tells him his whole story, from his days in the army right through to the current day where his sister has now written to him after not hearing from her for years. However, we discover that Gerald has more serious problems, and that is one of drug addiction, crystal meth to be precise, which accounts for most of his rash behaviour.
So maybe I’m a little cynical here but if someone has been lying to me about using then I would start to wonder about whether or not everything that they told me before is also true or not. Well, this is where Aziah and his “big ol’ heart” comes into play I guess. He is besotted with Gerald and I must admit the guy is pretty cool when he has a clear head, so I guess patience and understanding is a virtue and Aziah seems to have this in abundance, even though he drives himself nuts in the process. Especially sitting around waiting for Gerald to show after not knowing where he is. I know I would have drawn a line and told Gerald to sling his hook a lot earlier just out of a dire need of self-preservation. Obviously, Aziah is made of better stuff
This for me is a story of broken characters, alone they are extremely vulnerable but together they have the potential to be something a lot more. More than the sum of its parts. It is a story about addiction and coping with its side effects as a user and also as a partner grappling with its perturbing effects on a relationship. This story shows how to be understanding, patient and passionate. It shows us how with love and support we can all be a lot stronger. Even this happens in real life too.
This story is raw, nothing is powdered over for the sake of making it a Harlequin / Mill & Boon style romance. There is no skipping off into a bright and rosy sunset. The have found their HFN, but the book ends where you could say that hard work now really begins for them all. This trio, this little band of three; Aziah, Gerald, Gerald’s sister Stephanie have a long way to go to find their ultimate happiness. Life is hard, life is not fair, but I feel these three together will be strong and will be able make a brighter and happier future for themselves. Will there be a continuation? I have no idea but I would definitely read a second book to find out where their journey takes them.
I got the feeling that it is also somewhat autobiographical in style from the narration, at least that’s the way it read for me personally. Like reading someone’s diary or memoirs. I really liked this aspect a lot as you get to see, feel and experience what Aziah is going through.
Aziah is black, lives in Los Angeles and works for a company that stages house sales. I loved Aziah, he is no high flyer, just your honest kind of guy, doing a honest days work for a moderate wage and is satisfied with his life. Maybe not the brightest spark in the world academically after never being given the chance, but the kind of guy who has a huge heart, a distinct sense of justice, someone who just wants to love and be loved. All he wants is to find the one person to settle down with.
Well, one evening in his gym where he goes to work out he gets picked up by a mysterious stranger, who at least gives him his name, Gerald, and they end up going back to Aziah’s. All I can say is that these two must have been horny and desperate, because for me this was the quickest pick up in the world. But what follows after they are lying on the floor in Aziah’s flat in post-coital bliss Aziah would never have guessed in million years. Gerald opens up to Aziah and tells him of his childhood.
No child should experience what Gerald and his sister experienced as children. It was horrific, especially if as stated this is based on a true story. However, for me to be really emotionally invested by this, which I’m sure I would have been, it just happened all too quickly and too soon in the story. It was like out there before you even had a chance to weigh up what this Gerald guy is all about. But Aziah seems to be head over heels, although he does try to rationalise it at first as a one night stand.
Well, Gerald starts to become more than a casual one off and Aziah’s feelings start to deepen way beyond anything that he had anticipated. Gerald is also deeply invested emotionally in Azaiah too. Aziah tries not to appear to be to clingy but in my opinion the clingy tendencies were definitely there. But even after all this you somehow get the feeling that the relationship between these two is somewhat off kilter. Gerald comes and goes, disappears for days and then turns up as he likes. Aziah on the other hand starts to obsess a little at where Gerald is or what he is doing. Well, to be honest if you are falling in love for someone then you care for them. So for me worrying about where your boyfriend is when he just takes off without a trace, doesn’t answer messages or calls, I think this is pretty normal. Maybe a little too early in the relationship for Aziah to completely freak out, but understandable. But when Gerald moves in with Aziah and does another disappearing act than this would drive me nuts too. I know I wouldn’t put up wth this kind of behaviour for sure. I know he tries to keep the mantra, “with love, anything is possible!” and this is quite admirable but will it be enough. Aziah in my opinion must have had it bad combined the patience of a saint.
Aziah obviously is affected by his childhood with his father walking out on his mother which may answer for some of the clinginess, but Gerald didn’t make things easy for him. Gerald opens up and tells him his whole story, from his days in the army right through to the current day where his sister has now written to him after not hearing from her for years. However, we discover that Gerald has more serious problems, and that is one of drug addiction, crystal meth to be precise, which accounts for most of his rash behaviour.
So maybe I’m a little cynical here but if someone has been lying to me about using then I would start to wonder about whether or not everything that they told me before is also true or not. Well, this is where Aziah and his “big ol’ heart” comes into play I guess. He is besotted with Gerald and I must admit the guy is pretty cool when he has a clear head, so I guess patience and understanding is a virtue and Aziah seems to have this in abundance, even though he drives himself nuts in the process. Especially sitting around waiting for Gerald to show after not knowing where he is. I know I would have drawn a line and told Gerald to sling his hook a lot earlier just out of a dire need of self-preservation. Obviously, Aziah is made of better stuff
This for me is a story of broken characters, alone they are extremely vulnerable but together they have the potential to be something a lot more. More than the sum of its parts. It is a story about addiction and coping with its side effects as a user and also as a partner grappling with its perturbing effects on a relationship. This story shows how to be understanding, patient and passionate. It shows us how with love and support we can all be a lot stronger. Even this happens in real life too.
This story is raw, nothing is powdered over for the sake of making it a Harlequin / Mill & Boon style romance. There is no skipping off into a bright and rosy sunset. The have found their HFN, but the book ends where you could say that hard work now really begins for them all. This trio, this little band of three; Aziah, Gerald, Gerald’s sister Stephanie have a long way to go to find their ultimate happiness. Life is hard, life is not fair, but I feel these three together will be strong and will be able make a brighter and happier future for themselves. Will there be a continuation? I have no idea but I would definitely read a second book to find out where their journey takes them.
October 23, 2015
Gerald found a way to overcome the shadows of his past by joining the military; but an addiction and his sexuality garner him a dishonorable discharge and Gerald finds himself in Los Angeles working as a dancer. He meets Aziah at a local gym and stakes a claim to the tall, dark skinned man before they even hit the showers. Gerald’s co-dependent personality latches on to Aziah, and far too quickly the two are living together. But his addiction and the lasting effects of a lifetime of tragedies threaten to destroy not only their new found romance, but Gerald’s entire being.
While this book is marketed as a romance, there really is very little of that within the story. It was very insta-love in the sense that Gerald and Aziah know each other all of five minutes, and they are going at it on Aziah’s living room floor. The entire story hinged on that opening and everything felt rushed and chaotic from there. The introduction of Gerald’s long, lost sister was absolutely absurd in the way it was portrayed and pulled me so far out of the story, I almost didn’t finish it.
I will say that I really enjoyed the aspects of the story that dealt with Gerald’s addiction. That feeling of hopelessness and the urgency to score. Feeling like you are literally splintering off, having no control over yourself, your emotions. I live with a recovering addict and I’ve seen a lot of the traits and characteristics I saw in Gerald in my sister. I think that if Johnson would have fine-tuned the relationship aspect of the story and perhaps introduced the sister in a more believable way, this would have garnered a more positive review from me.
Sadly, I didn’t care for this one at all as a romance, more of a loose biography or possibly true story of an addict. It makes me sad because I really wanted to like this book. The cover is amazing and it is a true representation of Gerald that much I agree with.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *
While this book is marketed as a romance, there really is very little of that within the story. It was very insta-love in the sense that Gerald and Aziah know each other all of five minutes, and they are going at it on Aziah’s living room floor. The entire story hinged on that opening and everything felt rushed and chaotic from there. The introduction of Gerald’s long, lost sister was absolutely absurd in the way it was portrayed and pulled me so far out of the story, I almost didn’t finish it.
I will say that I really enjoyed the aspects of the story that dealt with Gerald’s addiction. That feeling of hopelessness and the urgency to score. Feeling like you are literally splintering off, having no control over yourself, your emotions. I live with a recovering addict and I’ve seen a lot of the traits and characteristics I saw in Gerald in my sister. I think that if Johnson would have fine-tuned the relationship aspect of the story and perhaps introduced the sister in a more believable way, this would have garnered a more positive review from me.
Sadly, I didn’t care for this one at all as a romance, more of a loose biography or possibly true story of an addict. It makes me sad because I really wanted to like this book. The cover is amazing and it is a true representation of Gerald that much I agree with.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *
September 16, 2015
A Joyfully Jay review.
2.75 stars
The published blurb for this book states that this story is inspired by true events and that is what immediately drew me to this one. After reading it, I cannot tell you for sure if that is in fact true or if the statement just fits in well with the style of the story.
Aziah is the narrator throughout the book and he talks out of the page often, as if he is having a conversation with us. That style when done well can be both an enjoyable and unique read. My main issue here is that I did not care for Aziah, Gerald, or the story Aziah was telling. Now both guys have had rough issues in their lives, Gerald of course more so, but the author did not grab my empathy for either character. Also, this book is marketed as a romance and it doesn’t exhibit many signs of a being romance and even walks a fine line for me to be classified as a love story. Oh Aziah will tell you he is in love with Gerald, but it did not have the makings of a love story and any love seen was definitely one sided.
Read Michelle's review in its entirety here.
2.75 stars
The published blurb for this book states that this story is inspired by true events and that is what immediately drew me to this one. After reading it, I cannot tell you for sure if that is in fact true or if the statement just fits in well with the style of the story.
Aziah is the narrator throughout the book and he talks out of the page often, as if he is having a conversation with us. That style when done well can be both an enjoyable and unique read. My main issue here is that I did not care for Aziah, Gerald, or the story Aziah was telling. Now both guys have had rough issues in their lives, Gerald of course more so, but the author did not grab my empathy for either character. Also, this book is marketed as a romance and it doesn’t exhibit many signs of a being romance and even walks a fine line for me to be classified as a love story. Oh Aziah will tell you he is in love with Gerald, but it did not have the makings of a love story and any love seen was definitely one sided.
Read Michelle's review in its entirety here.
November 22, 2015
I love how the characters are brought to life. Ben has such a way of placing you in the story that the emotions so very real.
I am so in love with the characters of Gerald and Aziah. Gerald reminds me of a friend I had growing up and the heart-break that comes with loving someone who suffers so. I am hoping for a sequel...I NEED to know what happens to these amazing people
I am so in love with the characters of Gerald and Aziah. Gerald reminds me of a friend I had growing up and the heart-break that comes with loving someone who suffers so. I am hoping for a sequel...I NEED to know what happens to these amazing people
October 25, 2015
I don't know how I feel after reading that story. A little bit sad, maybe.
Story was pulling and reading went fast. Both main characters are very complex and story plot has more problems in it then happy moments.
So, reading was okay.
Story was pulling and reading went fast. Both main characters are very complex and story plot has more problems in it then happy moments.
So, reading was okay.
probably-not-for-me
December 19, 2016Hmmm...
Too heavy? Probably.
That blurb gives me the feeling I don't need to read the book. Too much information. I know that is not the case. Probably.
Too heavy? Probably.
That blurb gives me the feeling I don't need to read the book. Too much information. I know that is not the case. Probably.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews