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j3rstw's review
5.0
I absolutely adored this. Jim Grimsley is a wonderful writer and the way he wrote this romance was just so authentic and sweet. Ronny and Ben need to be protected.
revisions_pending's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
5.0
lord_crybaby's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This was such an intimate read. I love books like these - depicting life exactly how it is with no frills, tugging on my emotions as if I'm there in the moment with the characters.
It hit too close to home a few times, but I try to always find appreciation in reading about a character going through the same things I have.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this, even when I had to put it down for a time and find the strength to return.
It hit too close to home a few times, but I try to always find appreciation in reading about a character going through the same things I have.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this, even when I had to put it down for a time and find the strength to return.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Dementia, and Death of parent
brittaniethekid's review
3.0
This is a book for people that like slow, quiet "day in the life of" stories with ambiguous endings. We follow Ronny through a year of college in 1970s South Carolina as he tries to figure things out. There is plenty of drama and life changing events but they're all presented here on a low simmer. As a result, while the story itself was easy to follow and kept me mostly engaged, I never really connected with any of the characters and none of these huge events really hit me very hard. Unexpectedly, it has a HFN "ending" but left me feeling like the story still had a long way to go.
The book opens with Ronny starting a new year in a dorm that houses a lot of the football team - who use him as their resident paper writer. He helps them study and pass their classes and they don't give him too much shit. One of the team, Ben, is someone Ronny has always been a bit obsessed with and they end up having a secretive affair throughout the year. Ben is still dating girls during and it's a little convoluted whether he's doing this because he wants to, to keep up appearances, or it's just something that's just expected but meanwhile he's very possessive of Ronny even while he perpetually cheats on him. There are a lot of moments that are major red flags against Ben but there are also a lot of sweet private moments that make you think maybe it's worth it for Ronny, especially when he doesn't have much else in his life.
Besides the relationship drama, we also see two deaths of old women, daily school and local newspaper business, and a vague picture of what college life was like in this time and area. Interestingly, there aren't a lot of mentions of racism or even homophobia (besides blatant use of the word fa**ot) despite the time and location of the story which I thought was strange. There's even a campus-supported LGBT meetup group. Unless this was a particularly liberal city in the middle of the South, it felt a little duplicitous. The author mentions that his own life inspired a lot of the story so who am I to call it fake but it also makes me think he must have been incredibly lucky and/or naive.
Overall, I'd recommend it if the above is your thing. It was well written and the characters felt like real people with realistic dialogue. It just left me feeling a little bereft and wasn't a page-turner for me, taking me 3 weeks to complete.
The book opens with Ronny starting a new year in a dorm that houses a lot of the football team - who use him as their resident paper writer. He helps them study and pass their classes and they don't give him too much shit. One of the team, Ben, is someone Ronny has always been a bit obsessed with and they end up having a secretive affair throughout the year. Ben is still dating girls during and it's a little convoluted whether he's doing this because he wants to, to keep up appearances, or it's just something that's just expected but meanwhile he's very possessive of Ronny even while he perpetually cheats on him. There are a lot of moments that are major red flags against Ben but there are also a lot of sweet private moments that make you think maybe it's worth it for Ronny, especially when he doesn't have much else in his life.
Besides the relationship drama, we also see two deaths of old women, daily school and local newspaper business, and a vague picture of what college life was like in this time and area. Interestingly, there aren't a lot of mentions of racism or even homophobia (besides blatant use of the word fa**ot) despite the time and location of the story which I thought was strange. There's even a campus-supported LGBT meetup group. Unless this was a particularly liberal city in the middle of the South, it felt a little duplicitous. The author mentions that his own life inspired a lot of the story so who am I to call it fake but it also makes me think he must have been incredibly lucky and/or naive.
Overall, I'd recommend it if the above is your thing. It was well written and the characters felt like real people with realistic dialogue. It just left me feeling a little bereft and wasn't a page-turner for me, taking me 3 weeks to complete.
niteskyi's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
castle_42's review
5.0
Toxic yet exhilarating like poison rushing through your veins reminding you of being alive . A story about anger , sorrow , and feeling alive through the biting cold.
Somber , tender . It was a sucker punch .
A love story without gentleness . Just enough to ease . The characters were immaculately written they felt complex and when they felt
pain so did I. It almost brought me to tears.
Definitely well written .
Somber , tender . It was a sucker punch .
A love story without gentleness . Just enough to ease . The characters were immaculately written they felt complex and when they felt
pain so did I. It almost brought me to tears.
Definitely well written .
kay_jax's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
i loved the writing style and the narrator for the audiobook (Michael Crouch has narrated some of my favorite books!). i’m tried and don’t want to write a review, but basically these are the elements that i enjoyed:
slow-paced
not plot, just vibes
tender hearted
explored one of my favorite topics; unrequited love
seasonally atmospheric - summer through winter
slow-paced
not plot, just vibes
tender hearted
explored one of my favorite topics; unrequited love
seasonally atmospheric - summer through winter
louismunozjr's review
5.0
TEN stars! Just finished this, and I don’t know how to put my thoughts into words. This book grabbed me and never let me go.
Jim Grimsley pulls off an outrageous magic trick with “The Dove in the Belly.” Gay college kid befriends big, beefy straight jock with hints of danger: the stuff of thousands of books, shows, movies, and, yup, “adult movies” and fantasies. But right from the start I felt I was with two main characters who were very “real,” very compelling. Technically, Ronny, the gay kid, is the MC, but Ben, the football player, he comes to us as more than just a tired trope, more than just the obscure object of our desires - the movie is referenced in that context. In fact, I cared just as much, hoped just as much, believed just as much, for Ben, than one might normally care and than I thought I would.
There was electricity in this book, and there WAS danger, and I stayed wound up, keyed-up, the whole way through this incredible, beautiful, powerful journey. And the ending was so different and so much better than what I expected. No spoilers from me, but I’ll just say, I can breathe again; I didn’t realize how much I had been holding my breath. And now that I can breathe again, I can tell you, this book will stay with me for a very long time to come.
Jim Grimsley pulls off an outrageous magic trick with “The Dove in the Belly.” Gay college kid befriends big, beefy straight jock with hints of danger: the stuff of thousands of books, shows, movies, and, yup, “adult movies” and fantasies. But right from the start I felt I was with two main characters who were very “real,” very compelling. Technically, Ronny, the gay kid, is the MC, but Ben, the football player, he comes to us as more than just a tired trope, more than just the obscure object of our desires - the movie is referenced in that context. In fact, I cared just as much, hoped just as much, believed just as much, for Ben, than one might normally care and than I thought I would.
There was electricity in this book, and there WAS danger, and I stayed wound up, keyed-up, the whole way through this incredible, beautiful, powerful journey. And the ending was so different and so much better than what I expected. No spoilers from me, but I’ll just say, I can breathe again; I didn’t realize how much I had been holding my breath. And now that I can breathe again, I can tell you, this book will stay with me for a very long time to come.
srkubin717's review
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
debchan's review
3.0
you know, i really with i could appreciate this like it deserves. but i am simply a fantasy reader through and through.
okay so the middle i was so numb, just flipping pages not connecting with anything at all. but that beginning and that ending was different. it was *chef's kiss* perhaps it was because there was more conflict in those sections, whereas the middle parts were more of an internal and family conflict-based? anyways, there's a lot to like and dislike about this book!
the plot
it wasn't bad at all. in fact the writing style was so unique it would have been better for me to process this through a play or i can imagine an indie movie. i say a play because there's just so much dialogue sometimes i got lost. there's also a host of background characters each with their own personalities and i think that would be perfect for a play as they pop in and out of the scenes. now on the other hand, i felt that the actual prose was very direct? not that it's a bad thing per se, but just something i noted. i don't want to say childish, but it was very simple. something would happen and then something else would happen and then the characters would go pages talking to each other. but if that's the style grimsley was going for, i understand that. it mirrors ronny's thoughts.
the characters
ronny was a nice guy. occasionally he made a funny joke which surprised me. i guess i'm just used to morally grey grisly antiheroes as the protagonist. but all his relationships (bar one) were genuine and i actually liked that. too often, like [b:A Little Life|22822858|A Little Life|Hanya Yanagihara|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1446469353l/22822858._SY75_.jpg|42375710], the protagonist separates themselves from all humanity. ben was definitely a character. at times, i was like this guy's off his rocker and other times it was like he was just a kid who never learned how to grow up. and then i have to remind myself this was the 70s. i liked the other characters too, especially ms. dee, but i just didn't really care about them. i didn't really care about the main characters either to be fair but i definitely wanted to.
overall, i just didn't think the plot was that interesting and that's entirely on me not grimsley. if i loved reading fiction, i'm sure i would have loved this too. people's personal problems are just not my preference to read. so the fact that i even slightly enjoyed it, gives a lot of credit to grimsley! i thought it would be dark academia, but it's definitely more about people and their relationships with the people they love. definitely recommend if you're interested in that kind of thing!
okay so the middle i was so numb, just flipping pages not connecting with anything at all. but that beginning and that ending was different. it was *chef's kiss* perhaps it was because there was more conflict in those sections, whereas the middle parts were more of an internal and family conflict-based? anyways, there's a lot to like and dislike about this book!
the plot
it wasn't bad at all. in fact the writing style was so unique it would have been better for me to process this through a play or i can imagine an indie movie. i say a play because there's just so much dialogue sometimes i got lost. there's also a host of background characters each with their own personalities and i think that would be perfect for a play as they pop in and out of the scenes. now on the other hand, i felt that the actual prose was very direct? not that it's a bad thing per se, but just something i noted. i don't want to say childish, but it was very simple. something would happen and then something else would happen and then the characters would go pages talking to each other. but if that's the style grimsley was going for, i understand that. it mirrors ronny's thoughts.
the characters
ronny was a nice guy. occasionally he made a funny joke which surprised me. i guess i'm just used to morally grey grisly antiheroes as the protagonist. but all his relationships (bar one) were genuine and i actually liked that. too often, like [b:A Little Life|22822858|A Little Life|Hanya Yanagihara|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1446469353l/22822858._SY75_.jpg|42375710], the protagonist separates themselves from all humanity. ben was definitely a character. at times, i was like this guy's off his rocker and other times it was like he was just a kid who never learned how to grow up. and then i have to remind myself this was the 70s. i liked the other characters too, especially ms. dee, but i just didn't really care about them. i didn't really care about the main characters either to be fair but i definitely wanted to.
overall, i just didn't think the plot was that interesting and that's entirely on me not grimsley. if i loved reading fiction, i'm sure i would have loved this too. people's personal problems are just not my preference to read. so the fact that i even slightly enjoyed it, gives a lot of credit to grimsley! i thought it would be dark academia, but it's definitely more about people and their relationships with the people they love. definitely recommend if you're interested in that kind of thing!