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readwithhugo 's review for:
The Bright Lands
by John Fram
Joel doesn’t have a good relationship with his hometown of Bentley, Texas. A gay man, Joel was ostracized from the small, conservative community and he left as soon as he could. Ten years later, Joel is living a happy life in NYC, but when his high school-aged, star quarterback of a brother, Dylan, goes missing, Joel packs up and returns to the town he swore he’d never step foot in again. Joel’s high school girlfriend, Starsha, stayed in Bentley. She’s a sheriff’s deputy now, and both Dylan’s disappearance and Joel’s return to town has brought back to the forefront of her mind questions regarding Starsha’s own brother’s disappearance a decade prior. Meanwhile, Dylan’s friends are certain that their classmates know more than they’re letting on when it comes to what happened to Dylan. But there are bad people in Bentley, and they’re desperate to make sure their crimes and secrets stay buried...literally.
Alright, alright, alright, I see you, John Fram. This was his debut novel and holy mackerel, color me impressed. It was part crime fiction, part 80s slasher film, and part paranormal thriller. I’d think I know what was going to happen next only to be proven wrong time and time again. The reader gets to see so many different points of view (aside from Joel and Starsha, there are POV chapters from a lot of Dylan’s classmates and football teammates) and I think that brings more depth to the plot, even though this means it can be tough to keep track of all of the names. There was so. much. social commentary in this book; messages about compulsory heteronormativity, drug abuse, the victimization and railroading of POC by the criminal justice system, and toxic masculinity - especially the type of toxic masculinity that’s present in sports like football. This book was a wild ride and I know it’s going to stick with me for a long time.
Alright, alright, alright, I see you, John Fram. This was his debut novel and holy mackerel, color me impressed. It was part crime fiction, part 80s slasher film, and part paranormal thriller. I’d think I know what was going to happen next only to be proven wrong time and time again. The reader gets to see so many different points of view (aside from Joel and Starsha, there are POV chapters from a lot of Dylan’s classmates and football teammates) and I think that brings more depth to the plot, even though this means it can be tough to keep track of all of the names. There was so. much. social commentary in this book; messages about compulsory heteronormativity, drug abuse, the victimization and railroading of POC by the criminal justice system, and toxic masculinity - especially the type of toxic masculinity that’s present in sports like football. This book was a wild ride and I know it’s going to stick with me for a long time.