Sharp Edges

by Lenore Moreau

Giovanni Caruso is a fighter. You've got to be a fighter to live in Upper East and survive. So when he finds out someone beat his sister, he doesn't stop to get confirmation on who before he's in the street, ready to draw blood. After kicking in the wrong door, Gion ends up in a fight for his life with some guy he barely knows. But when the other guy wins, Gion is still alive. Alive and pinned beneath the guy, wondering why he wanted to win in the first place.

In the aftermath, Gion is left reeling. He's not gay. He's been straight all his life, and if he didn't start out that way, his dad beat any queerness out of him. But he can't get Oliver Kelly out of his head. And they keep meeting, keep ending up in bed together despite Gion's best intentions. Will Gion be able to overcome his upbringing and win Oliver over? Or is he too straight for anything besides sex to ever happen?

Warnings: This urban bad boy gay romance has themes of homophobia and violence. There are homophobic slurs used throughout the book.

An Urban Gay Romance.

Genres: LGBT

162 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 25, 2019

Reviews

[Raj · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that you never want to end with characters that you wish would return continuously.

[Malkhai · Rating 3 out of 5]

Original review: https://myshelfbooks.wordpress.com/20...

This book has drived me crazy. I have a love/hate relationship with it. Sometimes I enjoyed it a lot, but other times I just wanted to skip it all. I’m glad that I have finished it, but my opinion is still the same: as many shadows as bright spots. And I’m not sure if there is a winner between the two of them. It’s rather even matched. Being honest, this kind of stories are not my cup of tea… the summary of the backcover doesn’t help the reader to prepare for what is coming…

We are walked through the story from the point of view of Gio, a young guy living in a really poor neighbourhood where violence and drugs are the main source of income. He and his brothers are street thugs who get some bucks using their fists to collect debts from people. When Gio’s sister was beaten by a guy, the loyal brother saw red and started the hunt of the idiot who dared to hit her. Except he got the wrong number and ended getting his ass handled by Oliver. After throwing some light over the misunderstanding, Gio and Oliver stop denying the attraction between them. Too bad Gio is not gay… otherwise his father would kill him…

First of all, I have to say this book has several of my personal triggers that make a story less enjoyable. Honestly, I thought the final mark was going to be much lower, because the first chapters are just plain horrible. I hate characters who smoke. I can’t handle smoke in real life and I can’t handle it in fiction. It grosses me out big time and that makes me lose the focus on the story. This book has been one of my worst nightmares in that front. Every single character is a smoker, so we have displays of that disgusting vice in almost every chapter. I hate that with a passion. What was the need of having smokers everywhere? The story could have been exactly the same without that addiction…

But that is not the only annoying habit. There is also a pretty common consumption of drugs (I don’t fucking care if it is “just” weed) and the way it is displayed… as if it were something normal… More than half of the book they are either drunk or high and it seems it doens’t matter, because they can function without any problem. That is just plain absurd. With that kind of life and their really poor nutrition, they shouldn’t be more than walking corpses… I also can’t stomach the hypocrisy of Gio around this issue. He wisely comments once that drugs are not good for teens, but he doesn’t stop his 15-years-old brother to take some. He even facilitates the drugs to him!! That was too much for me.

I was so ready to put this book in the “never again, burn it all” pile when it showed me the other side of the coin, When they are not stupidly high, we have a story about a bunch of young guys that have to endure a rotten life and a society that has forgotten them (drugs are not the solution, though). And, in the case of Gio, he has also to deal with the truth about his sexual orientation in a home with a pathological homophobic as a father. It is truly emotional and has several soul-wrenching moments that made me realize how lucky I am. It is not a book for the faint of heart, though. The homophobic language employed and some of the situations could make the reader uncomfortable if they have problems handling that kind of things.

Due to the issues mentioned previously, I have not been able to enjoy the characters as much as they deserve. If they were not smokers, I can assure you they would have left a much better impression on me. You can tell that Gio is a good guy, even though he tries too hard to hide it. The journey to accept the truth about himself is the great asset of the book and one I have enjoyed quite a lot. The story is only told through the point of view of Gio, so I can’t say we get to know Oliver all that well. He is a strange balance between sweet and tough that fits perfectly in the story told. I have the feeling that we only get to know the parts of Oliver that are relevant for Gio’s story. Several details of the ex-soldier past are revealed, but never developed. And some of those looked like pretty big deals…

Do not expect a sweet romance. Don’t even expect a hot one. How could I define it? Scrappy romance? It is as bast as the main characters and their reality. So, I guess, it is a realistic romance for them. It suits them. As a reader, sometimes it made me feel awkward; but generally speaking I’m OK with it. Although unprotected sex… In a neigbourhood where sex is almost the official currency for transactions… That wasn’t clever at all, guys.

Even though I have hated half this book (give or take), I wouldn’t mind another glance at their world. I actually would like to know if the rest of the brothers and sisters are capable of getting free of that awful existence.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amusing, sad, steamy and entertaining. Oliver is serious, responsible, flirty and strong. Gio is beyond stubborn, cheeky, vulnerable and protective. They met at the bar that Gio works at, but they never talked. Oliver would come in and sit alone in a corner booth, and Gio would watch him. Then one night Gio goes looking for the boy who hit his sister, and Oliver answered the door. They get into a scuffle, then Oliver gets in Gio. But Gio is straight, he insists that just because he was with a guy it doesn't make him gay. And he tells himself that after every time they are together. There's a reason he insists he's straight, but he doesn't like to think about it. Their situations drawn them together also. Oliver is responsible for 6 siblings, and Gio is responsible for 4. It's a fascinating story that has one tragedy after another.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Booksprout. This is my honest and voluntary opinion of it.

[Ladycms · Rating 1 out of 5]

So...this was a complete rip off of the show Shameless. Literally the only difference is the names have been changed. The setting, the characters, even certain scenes are plagiarized from the show.
Gio and fam = Mickey Milkovich and fam
Oliver and fam = Ian Gallagher and fam
Oliver's dad = Frank G.
Gio's dad = Mickey's dad
Upper East = South Side of Chicago
etc, etc, etc...
The climactic scene in this book was the exact same scene from the show with Mickey.
I mean, come on. Write fanfiction instead of trying to pass off a story that's clearly plagiarized from the show. I don't know if I'm the only person who has recognized this, but I just want people to be aware what's been done here.
I don't like leaving negative reviews, because authors work hard writing these stories, but when I see something like this...I don't know...it just rubs me the wrong way.

[Courtney Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay I really enjoyed this book! I think the only thing i can say I didn’t like is the word f*g used way too much, I get its part of the story about someone coming into their own and stepping on all those stereotypes but ugh I truly hate the word.

Oliver and Gio are the most unlikely couple ever and they have to struggle so much to get their happy ending. But I think that struggle is what makes this book so much better. And I love that Gio thinks no one wild ever accept his sexuality and that’s why he fights it so much but it really isn’t something he need to hide.

Fall head over heels for Gio an Oliver

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cynthia Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

G cares for little in his life, only his brothers and sister. His dad is a drunk and addict, he doesn't care what happens to his kids. G works as a bartender. Oliver is responsible for his siblings. His mother is in prison and his dad is busy getting high. Oliver is gay and G thinks he's straight. They met and things get sexual but G still won't admit he's gay. I really enjoyed this book. It was romantic and funny.

[Jessey Yarbrough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah-May-zing!!!!!

Oh this was so amazing! I loved it! I was an Arc reader! And boy was I amazed! This story is not only well written but it grab you from the very beginning and pulls you in and it’s so amazing! I didn’t want to put it down! There was a part where I was bit confused I don’t want to give any spoilers away but it eventually worked itself out which I was glad that it did! This a definite must have! You will not be disappointed!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced. Wild ride. Clueless closeted gay man coming out in a bigoted atmosphere but listening to his inner being. Nice. Liked the easy acceptance of his siblings and friends.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/3.5 stars