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kp_khera's review against another edition
3.0
Let me explain.
I liked this book, I liked it a lot.
It made me laugh out loud (the actual one, not the one you say you're doing)
It made me exasperated beyond measure at Sandy, Helena, Darren. But, in a fond manner.
It was also pretty hot.
So... Funny, great characters, and hot = okay?
I just couldn't get sucked in. I admit, from the plot --> execution, it was interesting to see how it would play out. But, it amused me. It didn't make me drop whatever else I was doing and get me to read this book right the fuck now.
I can't even begin to count the sheer amount of times I started paused this book during my read - and just had to set my foot down and finish it.
Trust me when I say that you'll enjoy it. The banter is hilarious, how characters go from A --> B --> F --> X --> A again is hilarious. All in all, it's quite ridiculous, but the kind of ridiculous you like.
So, I would say give it a shot, but if you can't handle the first few chapters don't read further. It's a style of writing - which I actually really like - but it will persist throughout the book, and if you can't deal with that then this book might start feeling like a chore. And it's not. Not really.
I liked this book, I liked it a lot.
It made me laugh out loud (the actual one, not the one you say you're doing)
It made me exasperated beyond measure at Sandy, Helena, Darren. But, in a fond manner.
It was also pretty hot.
So... Funny, great characters, and hot = okay?
I just couldn't get sucked in. I admit, from the plot --> execution, it was interesting to see how it would play out. But, it amused me. It didn't make me drop whatever else I was doing and get me to read this book right the fuck now.
I can't even begin to count the sheer amount of times I started paused this book during my read - and just had to set my foot down and finish it.
Trust me when I say that you'll enjoy it. The banter is hilarious, how characters go from A --> B --> F --> X --> A again is hilarious. All in all, it's quite ridiculous, but the kind of ridiculous you like.
So, I would say give it a shot, but if you can't handle the first few chapters don't read further. It's a style of writing - which I actually really like - but it will persist throughout the book, and if you can't deal with that then this book might start feeling like a chore. And it's not. Not really.
francescam88's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
layla87's review against another edition
5.0
Relisten #4
Do you know what happens in the FEBRUARY?
Relisten #3... And I have never rated or reviewed this book.
I apologize for the travesty.
Anywhooooo
This book cements that:
1. TJ Klune is the funniest human alive.
2. TJ klune is obsessed with fisting in his books. It's hilarious.
3. No-one writes OTT ridiculous, nonsense FUN better than TJ. With anyone else I would say "Less is More". Not him though. He is the exception.
4. TJ is also fascinated with and a bit intimidated by lesbians.
5. This series should NOT be listened to in public because #reasons. Mainly the snorting-Hyena-laughs that you may experience.
6. TJ Klune gives word-boners.
7. Michael Lesley NEEDS a statue in his name because he is a GENIUS. I can't imagine anyone else doing these voices.
fin
Do you know what happens in the FEBRUARY?
Relisten #3... And I have never rated or reviewed this book.
I apologize for the travesty.
Anywhooooo
This book cements that:
1. TJ Klune is the funniest human alive.
2. TJ klune is obsessed with fisting in his books. It's hilarious.
3. No-one writes OTT ridiculous, nonsense FUN better than TJ. With anyone else I would say "Less is More". Not him though. He is the exception.
4. TJ is also fascinated with and a bit intimidated by lesbians.
5. This series should NOT be listened to in public because #reasons. Mainly the snorting-Hyena-laughs that you may experience.
6. TJ Klune gives word-boners.
7. Michael Lesley NEEDS a statue in his name because he is a GENIUS. I can't imagine anyone else doing these voices.
fin
ryanpfw's review
4.0
The second in a series originally billed as being about a homicidal parrot and an uncontrollable Nana, and neither disappointed here. I appreciate that the plot was purposefully absurd, and it parked the landing.
elee2013's review
5.0
4.5/5
So I said to myself I didn’t really care so much for Sandy and I loved Paul’s inner monologue more than life, but I decided to read the next books anyways, even though I said I wouldn’t… and I enjoyed them quite a lot so I don’t know what I was thinking. Sandy is ridiculous but there is plenty of Paul and everyone being darling that it comes out as one could wish. ❤️
So I said to myself I didn’t really care so much for Sandy and I loved Paul’s inner monologue more than life, but I decided to read the next books anyways, even though I said I wouldn’t… and I enjoyed them quite a lot so I don’t know what I was thinking. Sandy is ridiculous but there is plenty of Paul and everyone being darling that it comes out as one could wish. ❤️
teresab78's review
5.0
****Reviewed for Prism Book Alliance®****
4.5 Stars - I laughed so hard and had a smile on my face for most of this book. The Queen and The Homo Jock King was snarky, outrageous, and fun. Anything I write will not do it justice so here is my take in a nutshell.
Sandy/Helena is a fierce diva with a tender heart. Darren showed he was more than just a homo jock king. We get to see more of Paul, Vince, Corey/Kori and the rest of Paul’s family. Hilarity ensues and love happens.
While the snark was almost too much at times, and I think the book would have been just as good if a little shorter, I enjoyed every UST filled moment.
If you liked Tell Me It’s Real, you’ll love this.
Narration Review:
I loved this narrator! All the voices were perfect and it was a true performance!! I look forward to more of his work.
4.5 Stars - I laughed so hard and had a smile on my face for most of this book. The Queen and The Homo Jock King was snarky, outrageous, and fun. Anything I write will not do it justice so here is my take in a nutshell.
Sandy/Helena is a fierce diva with a tender heart. Darren showed he was more than just a homo jock king. We get to see more of Paul, Vince, Corey/Kori and the rest of Paul’s family. Hilarity ensues and love happens.
While the snark was almost too much at times, and I think the book would have been just as good if a little shorter, I enjoyed every UST filled moment.
If you liked Tell Me It’s Real, you’ll love this.
Narration Review:
I loved this narrator! All the voices were perfect and it was a true performance!! I look forward to more of his work.
hielke's review
3.0
I was excited to read this, because Tell Me It’s Real made me laugh so much, but it just wasn’t as funny.
I wonder if maybe it is because this story is even more bizarre and the characters are even less believable than in Tell Me It’s Real. With the baseline being so wild and out there, how do you push it even further for a laugh? It doesn’t feel as punchy.
Couple of other things:
- The romance itself was fun, and romantic in a way that I feel really resonates with a lot of gay experiences. I loved it when Sandy had to drop the witty/mean persona to face his own real feeling.
- Sometimes it feels like the author has written this book for straight people, with how much he’s explaining things, and especially he has to explain how *fabulous* all these gay people are. (And sometimes wrong! If you’re writing a trans character, especially as an LGBT+ author maybe don’t use the word “transgendered”. It might be a small terminology thing but it just says: I don’t really know any trans people and I’ve not taken the time to ask around and research enough to write about their lives.)
- The whole trope of a drag queen being really fabulous as well as really sassy and bitchy, and having two separate personalities feels stale and one dimensional - and this is our main character!
- Some bits were a little problematique. Was this book really before people talked about cultural appropriation?
- I do not like the assumed monogamy-as-true-love trope. Is it really impossible to think that someone would love someone and still slept with someone else during the messy uncertain build up? Is there no one in this entire gay universe who can say “Hey Sandy, even if Darren met up and slept with the Hipster Twink, he might still genuinely love you and you could be perfect together still.”? I just think having some of those nuances and layers in there would really enrich the story. But instead it feels like the author is trying to convince a straight audience of how fabulous and yet disney proof the gays are.
I just can’t wait for a good gay romcom where people can be attracted to multiple people and sometimes in different ways. Maybe I’m just sad that I dont get to see that in combination with TJ Klune’s incredible wit and imagination.
I wonder if maybe it is because this story is even more bizarre and the characters are even less believable than in Tell Me It’s Real. With the baseline being so wild and out there, how do you push it even further for a laugh? It doesn’t feel as punchy.
Couple of other things:
- The romance itself was fun, and romantic in a way that I feel really resonates with a lot of gay experiences. I loved it when Sandy had to drop the witty/mean persona to face his own real feeling.
- Sometimes it feels like the author has written this book for straight people, with how much he’s explaining things, and especially he has to explain how *fabulous* all these gay people are. (And sometimes wrong! If you’re writing a trans character, especially as an LGBT+ author maybe don’t use the word “transgendered”. It might be a small terminology thing but it just says: I don’t really know any trans people and I’ve not taken the time to ask around and research enough to write about their lives.)
- The whole trope of a drag queen being really fabulous as well as really sassy and bitchy, and having two separate personalities feels stale and one dimensional - and this is our main character!
- Some bits were a little problematique. Was this book really before people talked about cultural appropriation?
- I do not like the assumed monogamy-as-true-love trope. Is it really impossible to think that someone would love someone and still slept with someone else during the messy uncertain build up? Is there no one in this entire gay universe who can say “Hey Sandy, even if Darren met up and slept with the Hipster Twink, he might still genuinely love you and you could be perfect together still.”? I just think having some of those nuances and layers in there would really enrich the story. But instead it feels like the author is trying to convince a straight audience of how fabulous and yet disney proof the gays are.
I just can’t wait for a good gay romcom where people can be attracted to multiple people and sometimes in different ways. Maybe I’m just sad that I dont get to see that in combination with TJ Klune’s incredible wit and imagination.
bookish_notes's review against another edition
4.0
This review is also posted on my blog.
I feel like listening to the audiobook for this series was a nice change of pace from actually reading the book. I had initially started reading this book right after I finished Tell Me It's Real, and I just wasn't into it. TMIR was too...shocking a book to read after finishing The Art of Breathing to be honest. It was too over-the-top and the instalove and the comedy just wasn't my thing.
But I did want to give this series another chance, and since I absolutely love Michael Lesley's narration in the Tales from Verania series, I decided to give this series another chance. And I'm glad I did! I love the characters so much more by audiobook, and the really long stream-of-consciousness type ramblings from the characters are much more tolerable (I was fine reading Bear's POV in the BoaTK books, so I don't know why I couldn't read them here). This is the one series by TJ Klune I've struggled with reading, but the audiobook knocks it out of the park and now I realize why so many people love this series.
This story focuses on Sandy and Darren, and the UST is unreal. You don't usually get contemporary romance books that are 17 hours long (most are around the 7 or 8 hour mark), so the sexual tension between Sandy and Darren feels that much longer. I'm a huge fan of slow burn romances, and Sandy and Darren absolutely have to work for their HEA here. And the payoff is so worth it.
The Queen & the Homo Jock King is about Sandy, a car insurance call rep by day, and sometimes drag queen Helena Handbasket at night, and Darren, an actuary. So, Darren is actually a nerd for numbers (and really smart), but looks and acts like a frat boy who likes working out. Darren has a reputation for only having sex with twinks, so Sandy definitely doesn't think that Darren would ever want him.
Many years ago, the first time Sandy had met Darren, Sandy had instantly fallen for Darren, but Darren was an asshole and hurt Sandy's feelings. And ever since that day, they've been nothing but enemies. Or at least, that's how it is from Sandy's POV.
They get embroiled in some over-the-top performance (Sandy is Meryl Streep while Darren is Daniel Day-Lewis) to be fake boyfriends to convince Darren's dad to allow the gay club Sandy works as Helena Handbasket to stay open. The whole thing is a little sketch and doesn't make a whole lot of sense outside rom coms, but just roll with it. Fake boyfriends is not a trope I particularly like reading, but it works well here for Sandy and Darren.
Something I really liked is that the deal was for Sandy to seduce Darren and to keep the whole plan a secret, but Darren finds out really quickly that Sandy wants to use him to get to his dad - a man who he rarely speaks to. Drawn out secrets between the love interests are a thing I'm not a fan of, so I really like how that wasn't a thing that happened here and Darren was super into the idea with fake dating Sandy.
Darren doesn't really have a relationship with his dad - the mayor of Tucson. Darren is a bastard child he's mostly ignored, not that he paid anymore attention to his actual son, Vince (the love interest in the first book). A common theme in TJ Klune's books is found family. Paul, Sandy's best friend, has a very loving and welcoming family consisting of his mom, dad, and nana. I really love how the characters come together and how Paul's family embraces each character with open arms. It's certainly nothing Vince ever had with his parents, and even though Darren has his mother, Paul's family opening up to him as well is just really touching and heartwarming.
The relationship between Sandy and Darren is something else. They're a bit of enemies-to-lovers and they bicker a lot. It's hilarious. The funniest scene is a sex scene where they don't actually have sex. They're faking it and I both wanted to die from secondhand embarrassment for listening to this audiobook at work and just die laughing at this entire scene. For two characters who are very sexual, there's actually not that much sex in this story, which is fine. It just means that the sexual tension between the two just builds and BUILDS over the course of the book.
So. The awkward part is that I loved the story but I’m not going to pretend this series doesn’t contain some of the most offensive stuff I’ve ever read. It's not as bad as TMIR, because Vince's ignorant comments are toned down, but there's just ~jokes in places that can be highly problematic and offensive. That's my one big issue with this series. The jokes don't land well and makes me cringe every time. Johnny Depp (the bird, not the actor) has some of the worst "jokes," usually rape jokes that I hate. But the one blatant mistake that wasn't meant to be a joke at all is referring to a character as "Arabic' when Arabic is a language, and "Arab" is probably what was meant.
There's one part of the story that's definitely seems more researched and written with a more care is Corey/Kori. They were my favorite part of the BoaTK series and I can't wait for their book in Why We Fight (book four of this series). Corey/Kori is bigender and mixed race (black and Mexican). I haven't read a book that specifically states that a character is bigender, so I'm really excited to read their book and for Corey/Kori to get their HEA!
I'll be reading the rest of the series by audiobook, it seems. Michael Lesley does an outstanding job. At first, I was worried about this audiobook since a lot of people have said the voices are too similar to the voices used in the Tales from Verania series, but I don't think it was too similar. There are instances where I felt Corey/Kori seemed a bit too much like Gary, but that's not too bad. I actually think I found Vince and Darren's voice to be too similar at times (it's that bro voice, probably). Overall, Sandy's voice is distinct enough as a narration that I thought the audiobook stood out on its own and I would highly recommend the audiobook.
I feel like listening to the audiobook for this series was a nice change of pace from actually reading the book. I had initially started reading this book right after I finished Tell Me It's Real, and I just wasn't into it. TMIR was too...shocking a book to read after finishing The Art of Breathing to be honest. It was too over-the-top and the instalove and the comedy just wasn't my thing.
But I did want to give this series another chance, and since I absolutely love Michael Lesley's narration in the Tales from Verania series, I decided to give this series another chance. And I'm glad I did! I love the characters so much more by audiobook, and the really long stream-of-consciousness type ramblings from the characters are much more tolerable (I was fine reading Bear's POV in the BoaTK books, so I don't know why I couldn't read them here). This is the one series by TJ Klune I've struggled with reading, but the audiobook knocks it out of the park and now I realize why so many people love this series.
This story focuses on Sandy and Darren, and the UST is unreal. You don't usually get contemporary romance books that are 17 hours long (most are around the 7 or 8 hour mark), so the sexual tension between Sandy and Darren feels that much longer. I'm a huge fan of slow burn romances, and Sandy and Darren absolutely have to work for their HEA here. And the payoff is so worth it.
The Queen & the Homo Jock King is about Sandy, a car insurance call rep by day, and sometimes drag queen Helena Handbasket at night, and Darren, an actuary. So, Darren is actually a nerd for numbers (and really smart), but looks and acts like a frat boy who likes working out. Darren has a reputation for only having sex with twinks, so Sandy definitely doesn't think that Darren would ever want him.
Many years ago, the first time Sandy had met Darren, Sandy had instantly fallen for Darren, but Darren was an asshole and hurt Sandy's feelings. And ever since that day, they've been nothing but enemies. Or at least, that's how it is from Sandy's POV.
They get embroiled in some over-the-top performance (Sandy is Meryl Streep while Darren is Daniel Day-Lewis) to be fake boyfriends to convince Darren's dad to allow the gay club Sandy works as Helena Handbasket to stay open. The whole thing is a little sketch and doesn't make a whole lot of sense outside rom coms, but just roll with it. Fake boyfriends is not a trope I particularly like reading, but it works well here for Sandy and Darren.
Something I really liked is that the deal was for Sandy to seduce Darren and to keep the whole plan a secret, but Darren finds out really quickly that Sandy wants to use him to get to his dad - a man who he rarely speaks to. Drawn out secrets between the love interests are a thing I'm not a fan of, so I really like how that wasn't a thing that happened here and Darren was super into the idea with fake dating Sandy.
Darren doesn't really have a relationship with his dad - the mayor of Tucson. Darren is a bastard child he's mostly ignored, not that he paid anymore attention to his actual son, Vince (the love interest in the first book). A common theme in TJ Klune's books is found family. Paul, Sandy's best friend, has a very loving and welcoming family consisting of his mom, dad, and nana. I really love how the characters come together and how Paul's family embraces each character with open arms. It's certainly nothing Vince ever had with his parents, and even though Darren has his mother, Paul's family opening up to him as well is just really touching and heartwarming.
The relationship between Sandy and Darren is something else. They're a bit of enemies-to-lovers and they bicker a lot. It's hilarious. The funniest scene is a sex scene where they don't actually have sex. They're faking it and I both wanted to die from secondhand embarrassment for listening to this audiobook at work and just die laughing at this entire scene. For two characters who are very sexual, there's actually not that much sex in this story, which is fine. It just means that the sexual tension between the two just builds and BUILDS over the course of the book.
So. The awkward part is that I loved the story but I’m not going to pretend this series doesn’t contain some of the most offensive stuff I’ve ever read. It's not as bad as TMIR, because Vince's ignorant comments are toned down, but there's just ~jokes in places that can be highly problematic and offensive. That's my one big issue with this series. The jokes don't land well and makes me cringe every time. Johnny Depp (the bird, not the actor) has some of the worst "jokes," usually rape jokes that I hate. But the one blatant mistake that wasn't meant to be a joke at all is referring to a character as "Arabic' when Arabic is a language, and "Arab" is probably what was meant.
There's one part of the story that's definitely seems more researched and written with a more care is Corey/Kori. They were my favorite part of the BoaTK series and I can't wait for their book in Why We Fight (book four of this series). Corey/Kori is bigender and mixed race (black and Mexican). I haven't read a book that specifically states that a character is bigender, so I'm really excited to read their book and for Corey/Kori to get their HEA!
I'll be reading the rest of the series by audiobook, it seems. Michael Lesley does an outstanding job. At first, I was worried about this audiobook since a lot of people have said the voices are too similar to the voices used in the Tales from Verania series, but I don't think it was too similar. There are instances where I felt Corey/Kori seemed a bit too much like Gary, but that's not too bad. I actually think I found Vince and Darren's voice to be too similar at times (it's that bro voice, probably). Overall, Sandy's voice is distinct enough as a narration that I thought the audiobook stood out on its own and I would highly recommend the audiobook.
jugglingpup's review against another edition
3.0
To see more reviews check out MI Book Reviews.
I LOVED the first book in this series. I wheezed with laughter and had to make sure I took bathroom breaks so I didn’t pee myself. It was that funny. This book just fell short of the first book.
Sandy was really bland to me. He felt like a tame version of Paul with the way that narration went. He was also really terrible with the trans 101 stuff, which is surprising. Most queens are amazing at trans 101 or they get called out super quick. So seeing the constant issues there was really off putting. Then he was just not as funny as Paul. Paul was hilarious from the very first page. Sandy was not. It was like Sandy got stunted somewhere and thought the only way to be was to be obsessed with blowjobs and be a half a person. I was sad. I expected so much more from a book from Sandy’s perspective.
Love at first sight just doesn’t do it for me, especially when it is at a club and fueled entirely by lust like it was for these two. Normally love at first sight can be super exciting for me, but this one just felt off. I didn’t see why they were into each other. Sandy was clearly into all sorts of men, but Darren is said to be super into twinks, which Sandy is not. So where the hell did that come from. It was also pretty damn creepy how much Darren was into Sandy.
The sex was interesting and condom usage was better than before. At least Sandy admitted he forgot a condom, but his reasoning was “well Darren would have told me that he had something”. WRONG. Considering Darren was known for a great deal of casual sex and Sandy was too, there was a good risk in not using a condom. Then there was also the issue where Sandy’s one night stand flat out said that Sandy swallowed, which meant another time without a condom, despite Sandy swearing he didn’t do oral without one. I just felt let down. Sandy should have been the best about condom usage considering he lectured Paul in the first book about it. I was waiting for that to be a point, but no, I was let down again.
So, I was let down, but the book was still fun. I read a few scenes out loud to my partner who actually said he wanted to read the book. He is not a romance fan and rarely reads books that I read. I usually have to pick up his books to have any books in common. So don’t let my disappointment stop you. I am very much in the minority with my views.
I LOVED the first book in this series. I wheezed with laughter and had to make sure I took bathroom breaks so I didn’t pee myself. It was that funny. This book just fell short of the first book.
Sandy was really bland to me. He felt like a tame version of Paul with the way that narration went. He was also really terrible with the trans 101 stuff, which is surprising. Most queens are amazing at trans 101 or they get called out super quick. So seeing the constant issues there was really off putting. Then he was just not as funny as Paul. Paul was hilarious from the very first page. Sandy was not. It was like Sandy got stunted somewhere and thought the only way to be was to be obsessed with blowjobs and be a half a person. I was sad. I expected so much more from a book from Sandy’s perspective.
Love at first sight just doesn’t do it for me, especially when it is at a club and fueled entirely by lust like it was for these two. Normally love at first sight can be super exciting for me, but this one just felt off. I didn’t see why they were into each other. Sandy was clearly into all sorts of men, but Darren is said to be super into twinks, which Sandy is not. So where the hell did that come from. It was also pretty damn creepy how much Darren was into Sandy.
The sex was interesting and condom usage was better than before. At least Sandy admitted he forgot a condom, but his reasoning was “well Darren would have told me that he had something”. WRONG. Considering Darren was known for a great deal of casual sex and Sandy was too, there was a good risk in not using a condom. Then there was also the issue where Sandy’s one night stand flat out said that Sandy swallowed, which meant another time without a condom, despite Sandy swearing he didn’t do oral without one. I just felt let down. Sandy should have been the best about condom usage considering he lectured Paul in the first book about it. I was waiting for that to be a point, but no, I was let down again.
So, I was let down, but the book was still fun. I read a few scenes out loud to my partner who actually said he wanted to read the book. He is not a romance fan and rarely reads books that I read. I usually have to pick up his books to have any books in common. So don’t let my disappointment stop you. I am very much in the minority with my views.