As I read this book I couldn't help my wild swing of emotions. Between pages, I would travel from being turned on by awesome gay flirtation and sex, disgusted and horrified by the violence and gore, annoyed by the protagonist, hopeful and despairing for the story line, angry at the author's treatment of the characters, and overwhelmingly enthralled by the story and desperate for more.⁣
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I can't describe how meaningful it was to have queer, Black and Brown characters centered from cover to cover in this book. James does an incredible job of reflecting how those intersecting identities play a key role in the lives, actions and reactions of a suite of fully developed characters. The story would not have been the same without acknowledging, normalizing and centering their identities as factual and relevant.⁣
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This is the first of a planned trilogy. When I heard him speak on the book, James said this will be the same story three times, each told from a different character's POV. He leaves it to us, the readers, to decide whose story holds the most truth. I'm so excited for these other tellings to fill in gaps and probably completely change my feelings toward the characters. James is masterful, and if anyone can pull it off, it'll be him.⁣
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