My Ride, I Love You

by Patrick Rangimant

This is a love story of Mork, who is a motorcycle taxi driver in Bangkok, and Tawan, a junior internal medicine resident doctor in the university hospital. Seems like they both have a small chance to meet, let alone the falling in love, but it did happen.

Genres: Romance, M M Romance, LGBT, Queer, Contemporary, Friends To Lovers

337 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 20, 2020

Reviews

[Agne · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's not often we get an official English translation of Thai novels. So, I was really excited to read it. Also, there is a drama series coming out really really soon, so I wanted to finish novel before it's out. And I am so glad I did. I loved it. It was so cute and I just loved main characters. The story felt so fresh and heartwarming. I think it's the novel, that can give so much to think about to anyone. It shows a unselfish way of loving someone and just making that person happy, it shows that right person next to you can be a kick you need to make more of your life and dream of a better future, and it shows that even a simple question "Are you exhausted?" can make even the worse day better.

[Freya**Secret SIn** · Rating 4 out of 5]

Proper disclosure- I don't know the author personally. But sometime we chat on twitter. I mean, I talked with him MORE than I talked to other authors that I encountered in my career as novels reader.

so..
I stumbled in the world of BL and LGBTQ+ only the in the past year, and the books that I found were written by women, to women and included alpha/omega shifters, Men pregnancy, a very steamy sexy scenes and basically women state of mind of what they perceive as gay relationships.
So, I started to look for male authors and refuse to accept the fact that there no men that write about M/M, relationships and god forbid sex. The last one I'm still looking. Ill elaborate later.

That's how I got to Dr. Patrick.
Let me tell you guys the man is brilliant. First of all he is Thai (and Thai are my main love in the last months). Second of all, he is a Neurologist doctor who work long hours in a hospital. third, he is fluent in English (a rare creature in Asia continent), kind, sensitive and all an all, pretty funny guy.
Doc, did I disclosure too much? Khud khud.

My ride is the first book I have read of the doc, I know about it because its about to be a bl show that I'm anticipating to see. After harassing the good doc about the English version of the book, I finally received it.

Damn, that's a long as hell exposition.

Did you know that In Thailand they have a Motorbike Taxi service? I didn't know that before I started to watch those bl shows. "My ride, I love you" is about exactly that. The book talks about 2 guys that meet under unusual circumscriptions. Tawan is a doctor in a hospital, who work long shifts. Mork is a bike driver with a barely high school diploma who takes Tawan to meet his boyfriend to a condo in Bangkok. Both guys been cheated by their significant others and those incidents bring the two heroes together.
Mork is tall and with dark complication. Tawan is tiny white guy.

When I come to review the book I stop and ask my self- Is this kind of book that I enjoy normally? Did he speak to me?
The answer for that is probably no. I hate books that the Hs don't share even a little one kiss. Not to speak of a glimpse to sexy shmexy times. I really hate when the Hs have a different partners in the story and the MC takes FOREVER to be with each other.

However, I didn't hate this story at all. It was so refreshing to read MM from a male P.O.V and not what women think about gay ship (clue, dirty and kinky stuff). The story is so real and the relationship doesn't base on fatal attraction, but creeps on you. Just like in real life.
I wouldn't call that story a romance, more like a journey-
A journey for one average guy, in his own eyes, to self discovery and importance.
A journey for other guy for self worth and importance.
A journey for both gays to finding their true loves and true understanding.
The love part comes in last couple of chapters.

I especially loved the side stories of Tawan's uncle and his long time male partners. And his friend Nadia, who is a BIG bulky and sturdy male with a beard, who cant find love because all his lovers say he is too... feminine.

In conclusion, I, personally would have reduce the amount of the inner monologues and add more interaction time between MCs. further more, the most angsty part- the confrontation between Tawan and his loser ex, was not existent. nada...I didn't get to read it, not even in a flash back. Nothing!
some kiss or two wouldn't hurt either. :)

I give this book 4/5 stars for the fluidity, unique subject and a sassy side characters.
If you had time, go talk with the doc on Twitter. He is cute and post awesome pictures from casting calls. :)

[Nastassia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Good Read

I really enjoyed this book , it was my first time reading a Thai-to-English translated book . I enjoyed the addition of the footnotes, because I learned some more about Thai culture as I read the story . This really made me want to eat some Thai food though .

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I realized I was like a rocket, a rocket without fuel, even. It's been left lying around somewhere on the ground, staring up at the sky thinking the sky is so beautiful. Yet, I keep telling myself the sky wasn't my place.

[Pratibha Pandey · Rating 4 out of 5]

MRILY is not a love story, but more a journey to reach the beginnings of the love story for all characters in the book. Since it was majorly set in a hospital, It was quite interesting to know of the personal life of the doctors/staff and appreciation for their efforts. It takes inspiration from author's own profession and life as a neurologist and made for a unique setting for me. All characters are fleshed out and have their own role in the story without any unnecessary drama. The progression from strangers to friends for Tawan and Mork are quite relatable and sweet. Their conversations with their respective best friends about love and their doubts give a lot of positive thoughts.

Kudos to the translator for the book to keep all the essence of setting, the casual banter, the cultural references intact throughout the book. The language is simple, the flow of the story is smooth throughout and even with an open ending ( or not ), this book is quite satisfying to read. Even though this is BL/ LGBT story, please be assured that there are no explicit scenes and the book can be read simply as a story on friendship and love and family. I can not wait to see this as a live-action show now.

[Diogo Dias · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was AMAZING, absolutely my kind of book!
Mork and Tawan were super cute and I was always rooting for them to be together. I loved the insight it gives to Thai culture and all the characters were lovable, except for that one 🔪🔪 (if you read the book you know who it is).
I wish we got more pages about Mork and Tawan as an actual couple. I decided to call their ship #MoTa (it's also pretty funny that "Mota" means motorbike in Portuguese). The ending leaves it pretty open for a sequel (I don't think it has been released though 😭). I would sell a kidney for a sequel.

#MoTa

[Ren · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up to 4
"Tawan, it's 2018 already. Gender is something we should unattach and leave at home before going out, isn't it? Gender is fluid! And so what?"

This was such a cute, feel-good story. In terms of overall vibes, it kind of reminds me of 'What You Are Looking For is in the Library' by Michiko Aoyama despite being ostensibly completely different genres. I think it's the focus on everyday life, the laid-back pacing, and a kind of permeating 'self-help' undercurrent.

Romance isn't really my typical genre, but when I was looking for Thai translated fiction, this was on a few lists of recommendations, and I'm really glad it was and that I gave it a chance, because Patrick Rangimant avoided many of the pitfalls that seem to plague the romance genre.

This is a quiet story about very ordinary people, a doctor and a motorcycle taxi driver, and follows the development of a somewhat unlikely friendship that they strike up, focussing on how that friendship is nurtured and then over time evolves into something romantic.

There's very little drama, no 'insta-love', no 'liar revealed' plot point that so many find cliched and tedious. And at its heart, it's about communication and the desire to uplift the people in your life. One of the protagonists, Mork, has to navigate a one-sided love situation, and Rangimant handles it so beautifully. Although at first, Mork has a hard time reconciling that he may forever exist in the 'friendzone', he comes to the realization that being someone's friend isn't losing, and that romantic love isn't a prize for being nice. And once he realizes this, their relationship really flourishes because instead of getting caught up in jealousy of Tawan's boyfriend, he decides the important thing is getting to spend time with his friend and doing things that will make Tawan happy. This results in them spending more time together, having fun. And this in turn actually makes Mork happier and puts him in a better position to be the best version of himself.

Because this is, for the most part, Mork's story, and there's a heavy focus on him falling in love with Tawan, this is also about him discovering a queer identity he hadn't been aware of in himself. Sometimes, that type of plot-line can feel tired, but although he does initially feel a sort of 'gay panic' and is like 'no, that can't be me,' this isn't something we dwell on for too, too long. However, this is a real part of a lot of people's (maybe especially for men) coming out experience, and I actually thought Rangimant handled it with a lot of nuance. We don't land on 'I'm straight except for you -- you're just special'; instead, it's more like 'this is something about myself that you led me to discover' which I think is both healthier and more realistic.

Sometimes, Rangimant goes a little overboard in the other direction, though which does make the characters feel, at times, a lot younger than they're supposed to be (mid to late 20s). For instance, it's one thing for Mork to be, say, 25 and just having this realization about himself, but it's another for someone in their 20s to be so sheltered that they've never heard of the concept of being a 'top' or a 'bottom.' Like, no, sorry. Maybe you could not know that language, but I don't buy that that concept would be a mind-blowing 'the more you know' revelation.

On the other side is Tawan's story. Tawan doesn't actually get as much of a character arc as Mork does because the plot mostly just happens to him rather than him driving it in any particular direction, but that's fine even if I do think there were a few missed opportunities as a result of this.

And that leads me to my biggest quibble with 'My Ride, I Love You.' Now, this may just be somewhat coming from a place of not knowing enough about the social dynamics in Thailand to fully 'get' the context of this, but the way Rangimant handled class in this novel made me a little uncomfortable.

Tawan is a doctor at the beginning of his career while Mork is a motorcycle taxi driver. Their 'meet cute' is when Tawan hires Mork to drive him to his boyfriend's condo. And that dynamic of Mork being a service worker for Tawan never really goes away. His goal throughout the novel is to make Tawan happy. He brings him food at work, he drives him around.

This would all be fine and I would have chalked this observation up to me being hyper-critical except that Rangimant brings it up. And at first, I thought 'oh, this could be really interesting' because it's presented as an opportunity for Tawan to have character growth after realizing that their class difference could potentially put a strain on their relationship in a way that would be more salient for Mork, as the poorer one, than for him since money isn't something that he has to think about in the same way.

But in the end, the solution is for Mork to just get a 'better' job. It's presented as 'this relationship is the thing that motivates Mork to self-actualize' but it felt...off because until this issue of class comes up, Mork doesn't have a problem with his job. Like, if part of his journey had included that he was unhappy and spinning his wheels that would have been one thing, but that doesn't come across strongly enough to make this sudden shift feel organic. At least to me.

That all being said, this only comes up at the end, and it isn't the main focus or anything; it just stuck out to me because everything else feels really purposefully progressive.

And it really, really is progressive in many ways. Rangimant is an openly queer author, and that shows in the shades of the queer experience portrayed in the novel, particularly in conversations between Tawan and his best friend, Nadia, about discourse within the community, but also just in the existence of Mork's uncles and his colleague having a trans girlfriend.

He never seems like he's sanitizing his portrayals of queer people for a straight audience, but at the same time is clearly aware that straight people will make up a large part of the readership and lets that advise somewhat the types of conversations the characters have around identity that may not be the case in a novel aimed at a queer audience.

He mentions his disappointment in a recent interview with DramaLlama that in the series adaptation of 'My Ride' Nadia's gender was swapped because the portrayal in film of what he described as a femme 'power bottom' would have been something new for Thai audiences, but that he also understood why such a change was made given that the presumed audience was straight women.

The novel, 'My Ride, I Love You', however, definitely feels like a big step in the right direction for M/M romance, and I'm always happy to support queer authors out there producing good work.

Definitely will be picking up his other novel, 'My Imaginary Boyfriend'.

[Tina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Probabilmente sono scema io che mi aspettavo qualcosa di diverso, che pur leggendo tantissimo romance MM non sono abituata a questo stile molto BL, con le sue regole e convenzioni. Leggendo le moltissime recensioni positive mi sembra davvero di essere la studentessa che come compito ha letto il libro, ma che non ci ha capito niente.
Nonostante ciò, il mio parere è soggettivo, e non posso far finta che quello che ho letto mi sia piaciuto.
I dialoghi sono strani, a volte surreali. I termini usati sono a tratti estremamente cringe. I personaggi hanno del potenziale e lo riconosco, ma a mio parere lo stile non permette un buon approfondimento degli stessi. Alcune cose poi proprio non le ho capite, come Nadia, a cui, a paragrafi alterni, viene dato sia del maschile sia del femminile (senza che questo personaggio sia non-binary, né genderfluid né altro, o perlomeno io non ho trovato questa informazione). Questa cosa mi ha dato molto fastidio, soprattutto venendo da uno dei suoi amici più stretti, che quantomeno dovrebbe sapere come rivolgersi a ləi, e che invece continua anche a chiamarlə con il nome sbagliato.
Che poi ci siano molte inesattezze o semplicismi nella terminologia LGBTQ+ pazienza, è un romanzo scritto qualche anno fa e ci può stare.
Però non è una scusa per tutto e io l'ho trovato davvero caotico, strano e un po' ridicolo, tanto che ho deciso di non finirlo.
Auguro comunque a tuttə un'ottima lettura e spero che lo apprezzerete più di me, soprattutto se già bazzicate i BL thailandesi.

[Fujoshi Mundo BL · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mork Tawan já era meus bebês por causa da série, mas agora com este livro eles são ainda mais meus bebês. Mork é ainda mais fofo, a história deles é mais linda. Tawan e Mork criaram um relacionamento a partir de uma amizade e cumplicidade linda. Amei demais rever esta história e espero ter continuação.

[Linh Tran · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am glad to have found a link supplied on social media the release of this novel in English. The translation of this novel is good. It's easy to understand. The story is cute and I am looking forward to the adaptation BL series release.

[Emerch]

Would really like to know what happens in the future for this couple, since their journey was just about to start when the book ended.

[Uruwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Letto dopo aver visto la serie TV che ne è stata tratta. L'ho trovato davvero molto carino, anche più della serie.
È una storia che si concentra soprattutto sull'introspezione dei personaggi. Le esperienze e le emozioni dei protagonisti e dei personaggi secondari sono le parti più importanti della storia: le loro esperienze passate, le loro interazioni tra loro e i consigli e il supporto che si scambiano nel corso del romanzo servono a evidenziare agli occhi del lettore i vari aspetti del loro carattere. I flashback di tanto in tanto tendono a essere un po' più presenti di quello che avrei preferito, ma la considero una questione di gusti.
Ho letto l'edizione italiana della collana Lotus, ma la traduzione lascia molto a desiderare: è legnosa ed è stata palesemente fatta dall'inglese, con varie espressioni inglesi che sono state tradotte alla lettera invece di essere adattate correttamente alla lingua italiana. Mi sono chiesta più volte se a tradurre è stata veramente una persona, o se il lavoro è stato tradotto automaticamente da una qualche app di traduzione inglese-italiano. L'unico punto a favore sono le note a piè di pagina che spiegano i termini thailandesi e alcuni aspetti della cultura, ma non bastano a redimere il pessimo lavoro di traduzione.

Consiglio a chi cerca qualcosa di spicy di cercare altrove, dato che questo romanzo non ne presenta affatto (cosa che personalmente ho adorato). Consiglio inoltre a chiunque ne abbia la possibilità di recuperare il romanzo direttamente in inglese.

[Jon O · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always been reading Western gay themed books. I have never been bothered to read BL novels translated until recently. I have to admit translation-wise, some BL novels could turn me off. However, this My Ride was handled relatively better than other BL novels I have come across.

And it is not just about the translation. My Ride was superbly told that I found myself unable to stop reading. I wanted to know more about Mork and Tawan. I never liked a book where POV of both leads are alternated in each chapter. Again, not with this book. I was loving the thoughts of both leads. I liked the chemistry between the two of them so much, that it felt sad that I had come to the last chapter. And to be told that there would be a Part Two was a delight.

Oh ya... I liked how this BL did not have too much unnecessary crying drama. I liked how the time spent between both of them were usually positive dealing between them. How positive!!

And there was no sex scenes even to get me interested or hooked. I thought usually BL novels would have that. I was quite surprised this novel could pull that off.

That said... spoiler here.. seriously.. 2 years already and they have not moved in with one another? Kinda unrealistic. But I am willing to overlook this and happily claim this as my top favourite BL novel. I love MorkTawan. For heaven sake, give us a kiss, please.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw the trailer of this series but it doesn't seem to be happening now. So I saw this on a list of Thai authors and since it was under Kindle Unlimited, I thought I would give it a try. Other translations of Thai novels have been hard to read, mostly due to formatting more than anything else, but this one was done far better. As well as formatted so it was easy to read, there were also footnotes explaning cultural norms and certain jokes that would only make sense if you knew Thailand and Thai pop culture. 

The story itself was really cute. I liked the meet-cute, I liked the whole motorcycle taxi driver/doctor pairing as one I haven't seen done before, as well as how Tawan's boyfriend was dealt with. The relationship developed really nicely, you could see why the two of them liked each other, as well as Mork dealing with his own sexuality. Nadia and Mork's Loong and Ar are great side characters and they made this story better. This story was fairly low conflict, which was actually quite nice for once but I could see it being a little dull for someone else. 

4 stars! 

[Michelle Layne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ready for the sequel

I absolutely loved this book and as I put in my title.. I am ready for the sequel.

Plus I also want to know..
What happened with the side characters..
I want to know what happened with Nadia ..
I loved the story, the characters, the real life wisdom in there!
i look forward to seeing Mork and Tawan take on life challenges especially when Mork starts work in his profession and balancing that with TAwan's demanding profession.

I loved the various words in Thai and explanations because as a polyglot linguist.. languages are my happy place!

Well done to the My Ride team and I look forward to watching the series as it airs!!!

The new characters not in the novel.. please tell me they also get their own story???

Anyway, I look forward to seeing this novel gain a sequel and expanding the universe set in this novel.. I really enjoyed it... I read it all in one go. I couldn't put it down.

THANK YOU!

[Hoong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first gay YA novel from Rangsimant I have read, and I am pleasantly surprised. The series adaptation was made for BL fans, but this is more realistic for cisgender Thai gay men. I appreciate that he does not include any salacious content that BL genre fans normally expect. Unlike his contemporary Samon, who also wrote Thai BL novels and includes some unnecessary lurid sex content, Rangsimant embedded some educational and relationship advice content for the gay-curious readers. Kudos to the neurosurgeon who turned novelist writing this, as education is sorely needed for the gay-curious readers, short of spending money to enroll in university classes offered in less prudish societies. While a part of the plot is overblown and irrational to those used to Western Logic and North American gay culture, I can overlook that. To cisgender gay men, the book gives more depth to the characters than the makeover to the BL product.

[1000storie1000vite · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un romanzo delicato e pieno di emozioni.
Per me è stato il primo incontro con la società Thailandese e ne sono rimasta colpita e soddisfatta.
I due protagonisti sono dolcissimi: impossibile non innamorarsi di loro. Sono delineati con soddisfacente dettaglio e i loro sentimenti si sono mescolati ai miei in modo armonico e pieno di garbo. I loro pensieri, come quelli degli altri personaggi, sono stati spesso il punto di partenza per tante interessanti riflessioni personali.

Le pagine scorrono allegre e romantiche, il ritmo è coinvolgente e allegro, l'ambiente descritto con cura e le note di chiarificazione molto utili.
La traduzione è curata, l'immagine in copertina (dell'edizione italiana) di Zel Carboni è fantastica.
Hugs&kisses

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

“It doesn’t matter whether other people like you or not, Mork. Don’t you see, if you don’t like yourself, you must make yourself a better person, or at least meet your own expectations.”

I came for the m/m romance, I stayed for the beautiful themes of healing, forgiveness, doing your own self self-work, and most importantly how showing love to others might be as simple as bringing them happiness- and finding happiness in the act of doing so.

Pat is a great author, I look forward to the sequel and will absolutely be buying an English translation if he makes one available!

Also staying tuned for the series adaptation!

[SiMo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Patrick Rangsimant knows human nature very well. In his books he explores human minds every range of our emotions, both from a clinical perspective (he is a neurologist) and from the point of view of a very compassionate human being who knows that we all harbour a duality of darkness and light. In this novel he explores our most positive nature, he shows us how we can live our lives taking full responsibility of ourselves, our emotions and actions without making other unnecessarily suffer in the process. Mork and Tawan both suffer setbacks and hardships but they do so with so much kindness and compassion setting an incredibly positive example for all of us. Take notes!

[keaiyuehua · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the ENG version of this book. So happy when the publisher/author decided to release ENG version. Love the content especially the conversations that took place with the main characters when discussing on various stuff. I recalled enjoying reading while noting down the ‘life quotes’ throughout the book. Cant wait for the live adaptation!

[William Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book

This is only the third Thai BL novel I’ve read but it was the best of them. The translation was quite good (way better than Behind The Scenes) and there is an emotional depth to the story that was really gratifying. It is a very wholesome story and a slow burn which might not be to everyone’s liking, but I loved it! Really good!

[Eduardo Enriquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mork es de mis protagonistas favoritos, tan lindo en todos los sentidos. Tawan era un buen personaje también, y junto con Mork eran una buena pareja. El final no es de mi agrado. Aunque deja abierto a una parte 2, que creo ya salio o saldrá en Tailandia, prefiero el final de la serie, más redondo. Aún así diverti leyendo este libro

[Star · Rating 5 out of 5]

So the series is airing right now and after watching four episode I couldn't help myself reading the story .
The story between Tawan and Moke it's so adorable and good
And I love when their conversation
I love the story and uncle pair
And every other character beside p'por

[Layane Linhares · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute 😊 I can't wait for the Thai series. BL 😍

[Kimalyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love sweet and simple

Can’t wait for the live adaptation. I feel like it’s going to be a Long awaited change of place. We all need

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first BL novel, kind of cute.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

super sweet and heartwarming

I am so glad I read this. The story is interesting so heartwarming. I spent the whole time reading it with a big smile in my face.

[Mayara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A série é um pouco diferente do livro, mas eu amei ambos :)
Teve algumas partes e algumas passagens que eu não concordei e não gostei por isso as 3 estrelas.

[Dharmadi Lim · Rating 4 out of 5]

How we open the books?

[Lucia Brunetti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mmmm
2.5/3⭐️
La premessa c’era, ma alla fine la storia in sé l’ho trovata un po’ deludente.
Lo stile invece non fa proprio per me.