A review by yourbookishbff
Oh! You Pretty Things: A Glam Rock Romance by Jane Hadley

emotional funny hopeful reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This story is so deeply rooted in both time and place, a beautifully complicated and messy exploration of queer life for 20-somethings in Minnesota in the 1970s. I would absolutely echo other reviewers in observing that the first half leans into historical fiction in its emphasis on queer awakening and in building out a contextual backdrop for our romance. We spend these early chapters learning how this  small group of college kids are attempting to live authentically at a time when war (and war protest), queer criminalization (and queer protest) shape both their ambitions and their anxieties. 

And then at about the 55% mark the romance comes in like a wrecking ball, and it becomes swoon-city. I absolutely adore the dynamic Hadley builds for Arthur and James and the ways in which they use play, intimacy and emotional vulnerability to help each other explore gender and sexual identity.  Hadley is using sex in particular to further each character's developing sense of self and gender in ways that are nuanced and realistically messy, and I love how much room she gives her characters to get it really, really wrong sometimes (looking at you, Eve). These are absolutely adults in their early 20s living through second-wave feminism and free love, so expect high drama, lots of codependency, and sex-will-fix-this-right approaches to problem solving. 

Also, do not miss the author's note! Excellent context for terminology (Arthur is experiencing a bi-awakening and a developing sense of gender nonconformity without a lot of the descriptive identity language he would have access to today).
Expand filter menu Content Warnings