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betanianne 's review for:
Disco Witches of Fire Island
by Blair Fell
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
I think that I had expected this to be a fun, light romance about gay witches on Fire Island, but it ended up being so much heavier. This feels most like the literary fiction that I haven't read in years, just with magic sprinkled in. It's a tortured young man who still grieves his lover who died from AIDS and learns how to move on.
It's the summer of 1989, and Joe's best friend Ronnie has convinced him to spend the summer bartending together on Fire Island. Ronnie the extrovert has taken Joe under his wing and seeks a hot, rich husband. Joe's first love Elliot died two years ago, and he's been frozen ever since. But when they get to Fire Island, things don't go quite as expected, and Joe ends up taking a room with a pair of older, eccentric gay men named Howie and Lenny. Meanwhile, Howie and Lenny are trying to figure out which young man on Fire Island is the innocent man that needs to be protected from a great evil, and the leader of their coven, Max, is sick and unable to help. In a summer of love and heartbreak, Joe and Ronnie find friendship, love, and most importantly, themselves.
Side plot of trying to attract your crush while organizing an ACT UP benefit.
I think that I was not 100% the right reader for this book, but it was still good. I had expected something either more campy or more paranormal, and this was much more focused on Joe's personal journey through grief and fighting his figurative demons. I think that the intended reader will enjoy this book.
The couple does get their own Happily Ever After but I think I would consider this more of a 1980s historical fiction (lol) with light fantasy than a true romance novel.
Big CW for: drugs, alcohol, grief, AIDS
Thank you to Netgalley and Alcove Press for this ARC.
It's the summer of 1989, and Joe's best friend Ronnie has convinced him to spend the summer bartending together on Fire Island. Ronnie the extrovert has taken Joe under his wing and seeks a hot, rich husband. Joe's first love Elliot died two years ago, and he's been frozen ever since. But when they get to Fire Island, things don't go quite as expected, and Joe ends up taking a room with a pair of older, eccentric gay men named Howie and Lenny. Meanwhile, Howie and Lenny are trying to figure out which young man on Fire Island is the innocent man that needs to be protected from a great evil, and the leader of their coven, Max, is sick and unable to help. In a summer of love and heartbreak, Joe and Ronnie find friendship, love, and most importantly, themselves.
Side plot of trying to attract your crush while organizing an ACT UP benefit.
I think that I was not 100% the right reader for this book, but it was still good. I had expected something either more campy or more paranormal, and this was much more focused on Joe's personal journey through grief and fighting his figurative demons. I think that the intended reader will enjoy this book.
The couple does get their own Happily Ever After but I think I would consider this more of a 1980s historical fiction (lol) with light fantasy than a true romance novel.
Big CW for: drugs, alcohol, grief, AIDS
Thank you to Netgalley and Alcove Press for this ARC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Alcohol, Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Classism
Minor: Death of parent, Abandonment