YA LGBT Books discussion

The Jan-Feb 2024 winner is The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer

(Note, this has been described as more dark than cute, so be aware)

Two boys, alone in space.

After the first settler on Titan trips her distress signal, neither remaining country on Earth can afford to scramble a rescue of its own, and so two sworn enemies are installed in the same spaceship.

Ambrose wakes up on the Coordinated Endeavor, with no memory of a launch. There’s more that doesn’t add up: Evidence indicates strangers have been on board, the ship’s operating system is voiced by his mother, and his handsome, brooding shipmate has barricaded himself away. But nothing will stop Ambrose from making his mission succeed—not when he’s rescuing his own sister.

In order to survive the ship’s secrets, Ambrose and Kodiak will need to work together and learn to trust one another… especially once they discover what they are truly up against. Love might be the only way to survive.

Content warnings: (view spoiler)[survival, dystopian, blood, violence, death (offpage and by action on page), depression, suicide, vomit (hide spoiler)]

I look forward to seeing what our members think of this one. If you want to comment on something that may be a story spoiler, you can hide it by putting <*spoiler> (remove the *) ahead of it, and <*/spoiler> (without the *) after it - eg. (view spoiler)[hide the info. (hide spoiler)]

It's been a few months since I read this, but I remember the ending is one of my favorite conclusions to a story ever. I can't say anymore since that would be a real spoiler, but its worth the twists and turns of the preceding 400+ pages.

I read this book in two days. It has so many layers and the more I think about it the deeper it goes. I'll try not to post spoilers, but there was a lot I liked about the book. There were some plot issues/plot holes that kept it from being a five star for me, and I grew repeatedly frustrated with the characters and their motivations. I wanted to shake them and yell a few times. But overall, I think the author did a very good job writing something that could've fallen completely apart and been a disaster both in keeping the plot moving and just execution in general. I am excited for the sequel to see where it goes.

A television series called, "ภาพนายไม่เคยลืม (Last Twilight)" just concluded. In the end, the two guys ended up together, but the path that got them there has been hotly debated by followers of the series. Lots and lots of Reddit, X, and other social media posts.

As readers (or viewers), even if we don't like some of the plot points an author (or screenwriter) makes their characters go through, the fact that we want to yell at the characters, shake them, and cry with or for them, means the work has made a connection with its audience. And that has to make any type of writer extremely happy!

BangtonBoy wrote: "A television series called, "ภาพนายไม่เคยลืม (Last Twilight)" just concluded. In the end, the two guys ended up together, but the path that got them there has been hotly debated by followers of the..."

You make a great point. A story should make its audience feel something and/or think. If it sparks a lively debate, that's a job well done.

It had been a long while since I read this, so I gave it another go yesterday. The science fiction/survival element dominates the story, but the romance is woven in from the beginning. I was kept on edge, constantly pulling for these two boys .

So pleased people are enjoying this one. It's sitting on my reader and it sounds like I should dive in.