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A review by bookcadaver
The Stop by W. Dale Jordan
4.0
The Stop by W. Dale Jordan is a devastating and gut-wrenching novella that surrounds Donnie, a gay man who is relentlessly trying to hunt down a killer who’s focuses are on queer men.
I found this novella absolutely heartbreaking.
It’s a profound look, although fictional, into the lives of what being queer was like 20+ years ago, and even now, it’s relevant. Having to hide your sexuality, being internally homophobic due to fear, having to sneak around, hiding your identity. The title of the novella holds a lot of history. Years ago, queer folk were having to make secret meet up spots to be able to express who they are, explore who they are and meets other suffering the same oppression, in the hopes of feeling normal for a few hours a day. Now we have apps and social media to help us feel that little bit safer with our sexuality, and even at that, there’s still a lot of homophobia and transphobia that runs rampant.
There was a specific line that really got to me.
“His life means nothing to anyone except me.”
After reading this line, I had to pause, because I genuinely felt it so deep inside my chest.
Being queer, we learn that we need to be there for our siblings in the community, because sometimes, nobody else is there for us, and we have to stick together, support each other and love each other unconditionally.
The Stop, although emotionally painful, also had such an interesting plot, had pop culture references weaved within, and characters that many readers could relate to. There was also the religious aspect in the story which I rather enjoy in books, and I became increasingly stressed with how everything would play out.
I think my only critique would be that the ending felt a bit fast for what was happening and could have been drawn out longer, but that did not affect my enjoyment after reading.
Thank you to W. Dale Jordan for sending me a free copy in exchange for honest review.
TWITTER | BLOG | INSTA
I found this novella absolutely heartbreaking.
It’s a profound look, although fictional, into the lives of what being queer was like 20+ years ago, and even now, it’s relevant. Having to hide your sexuality, being internally homophobic due to fear, having to sneak around, hiding your identity. The title of the novella holds a lot of history. Years ago, queer folk were having to make secret meet up spots to be able to express who they are, explore who they are and meets other suffering the same oppression, in the hopes of feeling normal for a few hours a day. Now we have apps and social media to help us feel that little bit safer with our sexuality, and even at that, there’s still a lot of homophobia and transphobia that runs rampant.
There was a specific line that really got to me.
“His life means nothing to anyone except me.”
After reading this line, I had to pause, because I genuinely felt it so deep inside my chest.
Being queer, we learn that we need to be there for our siblings in the community, because sometimes, nobody else is there for us, and we have to stick together, support each other and love each other unconditionally.
The Stop, although emotionally painful, also had such an interesting plot, had pop culture references weaved within, and characters that many readers could relate to. There was also the religious aspect in the story which I rather enjoy in books, and I became increasingly stressed with how everything would play out.
I think my only critique would be that the ending felt a bit fast for what was happening and could have been drawn out longer, but that did not affect my enjoyment after reading.
Thank you to W. Dale Jordan for sending me a free copy in exchange for honest review.
TWITTER | BLOG | INSTA