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Open: A Tale of Love, Mermaids, Bassists, & Creepy Dudes
Amy Evans. Bisexual. Millenial. Montrealer.
Amy and David are in an open relationship and it’s going great. She navigates the ups – dating gorgeous people – and downs – trying to avoid creeps – of the dating scene, when she meets a hot bassist and falls in love.
This was not part of the plan.
Amy must figure out how to deal with these unexpected feelings without neglecting her primary relationship, even as she keeps meeting new potential hook-ups.
Surrounded by her quirky group of queer friends and the support of her boyfriend, she might find there’s a simple answer: polyamory.
Well, not so simple. But y’know.
Spice Level: Light open door. There are several smut scenes but we fade to black halfway through. Equivalent to M on Ao3.
Amy and David are in an open relationship and it’s going great. She navigates the ups – dating gorgeous people – and downs – trying to avoid creeps – of the dating scene, when she meets a hot bassist and falls in love.
This was not part of the plan.
Amy must figure out how to deal with these unexpected feelings without neglecting her primary relationship, even as she keeps meeting new potential hook-ups.
Surrounded by her quirky group of queer friends and the support of her boyfriend, she might find there’s a simple answer: polyamory.
Well, not so simple. But y’know.
Spice Level: Light open door. There are several smut scenes but we fade to black halfway through. Equivalent to M on Ao3.
326 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 15, 2019
3 people are currently reading
211 people want to read
About the author
Emilie Nantel
2 books8 followersEmilie Nantel is a queer fiction writer driven by the need to break the allocishet, monogamous mold and lend her voice to underrepresented communities.
Emilie developed her casual, witty voice writing fanfiction, always seeking the different, the underground, and she still carries that in her original fiction.
As a bilingual Montrealer, it’s important to her to showcase the heart and soul of this vibrant and diverse city and its people in her writing.
You can usually find her curled up with a good queer book, or dreaming of the day she owns a cabin in the woods with her husband.
OPEN: A Tale of Love, Mermaids, Bassists, & Creepy Dudes is her first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 30, 2020
In many ways this is a wobbly debut with a fair amount of common issues in need of editorial help, like awkwardly inserting dialogue or situations to make a political / social justice argument, telling / explaining instead of showing, and including scenes that don't propel the narrative forward or do any character work. Sometimes the vocabulary was a bit repetitive, with the same phrases used too close together.
But there were some things I found refreshing about this book:
- honestly, just an open portrayal of queer polyamory in a contemporary context, especially with attention to the practicalities and everydayness. There is not nearly enough in fiction in general, and there seems to be a tendency to feature polyamory in speculative fiction only as if it's not something that exists in the real world.
- bilingual Montreal! I would love to see more English language books that really feature Montreal's unique linguistic culture(s).
- a sexually assertive bisexual protagonist! I was honestly a bit squeamish when I first started this, reading about Amy's hookups. I soon realized that was my own internalized sexism (and maybe biphobia?). So I'm thankful for that reminder.
- this super cool cover! Love the neon, the bi flag colours, and the play on the open sign.
I hope this author writes more with some editorial support!
But there were some things I found refreshing about this book:
- honestly, just an open portrayal of queer polyamory in a contemporary context, especially with attention to the practicalities and everydayness. There is not nearly enough in fiction in general, and there seems to be a tendency to feature polyamory in speculative fiction only as if it's not something that exists in the real world.
- bilingual Montreal! I would love to see more English language books that really feature Montreal's unique linguistic culture(s).
- a sexually assertive bisexual protagonist! I was honestly a bit squeamish when I first started this, reading about Amy's hookups. I soon realized that was my own internalized sexism (and maybe biphobia?). So I'm thankful for that reminder.
- this super cool cover! Love the neon, the bi flag colours, and the play on the open sign.
I hope this author writes more with some editorial support!
December 21, 2019
While this book wasn’t for me, I found it very promising nevertheless. It’s nicely written, especially for a debut novel, and asks interesting questions about love, polyamory and open relationships.
Amy is young and in an open relationship with David, a situation she’s determined to take full advantage of. Her partners’ gender doesn’t matter to her, as long as she fancies them.
There is not much of a story at first, more a string of encounters with various people, some Amy likes more than others. I get that the point is to set the scene for the way the character will grow but it gets a little repetitive. Anyways, as long as it’s just sex, everything works perfectly. Then feelings get involved and Amy realises she’s not so good at balancing everything anymore.
The way Amy and David navigate the changes in their relationship is inspiring and obviously, communication is key, even more than in more traditional relationships. I also thought it was interesting how two of the most significant relationships (besides the main one, with David) stem from mistakes Amy makes: the first one she forgets to tell the guy she already has a boyfriend and the second one is with her best friend, with whom she has sex one time when they’re both drunk, effectively ending their friendship. Then, when she’s ready to give up dating altogether, she meets Emma.
Among the things I really liked is the gallery of secondary characters, especially Amy’s group of friends and how diverse they are, in ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation… There’s also a nice relationship between Amy and her younger sister Charlotte, who turns eighteen at the beginning of the story, and who Amy is getting to know as an adult.
The story is set in Montreal, which is a nice change, and (that shouldn’t surprise anyone) I love the bilingual feel.
All in all, despite not completely holding my attention all the way, this was an interesting read, and I’ll keep an eye out for Emilie Nantel’s next book.
I received a copy from the author and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
Amy is young and in an open relationship with David, a situation she’s determined to take full advantage of. Her partners’ gender doesn’t matter to her, as long as she fancies them.
There is not much of a story at first, more a string of encounters with various people, some Amy likes more than others. I get that the point is to set the scene for the way the character will grow but it gets a little repetitive. Anyways, as long as it’s just sex, everything works perfectly. Then feelings get involved and Amy realises she’s not so good at balancing everything anymore.
The way Amy and David navigate the changes in their relationship is inspiring and obviously, communication is key, even more than in more traditional relationships. I also thought it was interesting how two of the most significant relationships (besides the main one, with David) stem from mistakes Amy makes: the first one she forgets to tell the guy she already has a boyfriend and the second one is with her best friend, with whom she has sex one time when they’re both drunk, effectively ending their friendship. Then, when she’s ready to give up dating altogether, she meets Emma.
Among the things I really liked is the gallery of secondary characters, especially Amy’s group of friends and how diverse they are, in ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation… There’s also a nice relationship between Amy and her younger sister Charlotte, who turns eighteen at the beginning of the story, and who Amy is getting to know as an adult.
The story is set in Montreal, which is a nice change, and (that shouldn’t surprise anyone) I love the bilingual feel.
All in all, despite not completely holding my attention all the way, this was an interesting read, and I’ll keep an eye out for Emilie Nantel’s next book.
I received a copy from the author and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 25, 2019
For the sake of transparency, I’m the lucky husband of the author, and I had the privilege to be part of my wife’s marvellous creative process. So I’m probably a bit biased, but also not really.
The strength of the book is in its rich and diverse cast of characters. They are relatable, easy to love (and sometimes to hate). Personally, I love the character of Hugo, casual, suave, Hufflepuff, geek.
The writing style makes it an easy read and leaves you wanting to read more.
It’s got comedy, it’s got drama, it’s got love (the tender kind and the hot steamy kind) and so much more!
The strength of the book is in its rich and diverse cast of characters. They are relatable, easy to love (and sometimes to hate). Personally, I love the character of Hugo, casual, suave, Hufflepuff, geek.
The writing style makes it an easy read and leaves you wanting to read more.
It’s got comedy, it’s got drama, it’s got love (the tender kind and the hot steamy kind) and so much more!
September 16, 2020
Amy Evans is bisexual and in an open relationship with her long-time boyfriend, David. They have rules and as time progresses, their relationship must evolve to keep up with each of their wants and needs. Amy is sexually empowered and pursues adventures with whoever strikes her fancy. I loved that she doesn’t care what anyone else thinks about it. Like, fist bumps to her, because she was herself one hundred percent.
What I enjoyed was the diversity featured with the characters, main and secondary. Ethnicities and orientation wise. There was a character for every reader to relate to. I felt like I was able to learn a lot about the community that I didn’t know. I also like how polyamory and open relationships were represented throughout this book. It was honest and fresh. Anyone Amy approached, she informed them of her relationship status and moved forward or didn’t from there. There was no trickery, which I was so glad to see, but as a con there were so many relationships both long and short term for Amy. It got difficult to keep track of.
When I really enjoyed Amy’s story, was when Emma walked into her and David’s life. I was so excited for their relationship. Sure, it was the biggest coincidence ever, but I was ALL about it! They balanced each other out in a way only a triad relationship could have. I liked getting to see them navigate wedding invites, meeting the parents and deciding on their home life. It was sweet.
While there was a lot going on, I did enjoy reading this novel. It was fun, at times funny, and honest. Give this one a try, you might like it more than you thought you originally thought.
What I enjoyed was the diversity featured with the characters, main and secondary. Ethnicities and orientation wise. There was a character for every reader to relate to. I felt like I was able to learn a lot about the community that I didn’t know. I also like how polyamory and open relationships were represented throughout this book. It was honest and fresh. Anyone Amy approached, she informed them of her relationship status and moved forward or didn’t from there. There was no trickery, which I was so glad to see, but as a con there were so many relationships both long and short term for Amy. It got difficult to keep track of.
When I really enjoyed Amy’s story, was when Emma walked into her and David’s life. I was so excited for their relationship. Sure, it was the biggest coincidence ever, but I was ALL about it! They balanced each other out in a way only a triad relationship could have. I liked getting to see them navigate wedding invites, meeting the parents and deciding on their home life. It was sweet.
While there was a lot going on, I did enjoy reading this novel. It was fun, at times funny, and honest. Give this one a try, you might like it more than you thought you originally thought.
April 18, 2020
This books is so great in terms of representation! Really, an exemplary work. I wish more writers would include as much diversity as Nantel. That, to me, is the biggest strength of the book: it feels so good to see otherwise invisibilized characters just... be! :) It's also such an accurate portrayal of the queer community in MTL, from what I can tell (as a white cisgender person).
Thank you to the author for having the guts to self-publish this. I did wish "Open" would have been picked by a publisher, if only to polish its rough edges; for instance, it does feel a bit like an enumeration of hook-ups at first--an editor would have no doubt cut a certain number of encounters. But you know what? It's worth sticking through, because the book does pick up some speed later on.
I look forward to seeing this writer evolve :)
Thank you to the author for having the guts to self-publish this. I did wish "Open" would have been picked by a publisher, if only to polish its rough edges; for instance, it does feel a bit like an enumeration of hook-ups at first--an editor would have no doubt cut a certain number of encounters. But you know what? It's worth sticking through, because the book does pick up some speed later on.
I look forward to seeing this writer evolve :)
August 26, 2019
A really fun and exciting book to read. An original storyline and the characters are great. Good job!
I received a free copy of this book. This review was posted voluntarily.
I received a free copy of this book. This review was posted voluntarily.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews