When I checked the list of recommended gay teen novels in Amazon, one name that kept popping up was The Year of Ice. After going through some difficulties, I am now a proud owner of the book.
The book is different from other gay teen novels that I have come across. The depth of the book is not about the boy facing his discovered gay orientation and his infatuation with a boy of his liking. Kevin Doyle is an 18 year old boy who has already accepted his sexual orientation, in secrecy. His companion is his bolster-Jon, where he pours his heart to, when he retires to bed. Jon, because that is the name of the school friend whom Kevin wishes is his lover. But Jon is straight. Way too straight that it saddens Kevin to admire Jon in secrecy.
The book however deals not with Kevin-Jon, but with Kevin with his child-like father, protective aunt, the girl who is infatuated with him and the women who want a piece of his dad. In dealing with life after his mother's passing away, Kevin is forced to balance and tolerate with the people who care for him, and watch people he crazy about, slip away.
This is not a gay romance novel. It is a book about a boy, who happens to be gay, growing up. Brian Malloy has penned a winner here. A light and interesting read.
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