A review by darryn_gray
Vanilla by Billy Merrell

emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book reminded me of one of the relationships I had just gotten out of around the time this book was given to me. And after reading it, I can see why they gave it to me. If I would have read it around that time, it might have just hurt me more; having healed and grown, this resonated more with me in different ways, it didn't just hurt, it was seeing how sexualities can change and shift and how that can even change and shift how you are with the person you're with.
This book is wonderfully written using the poetry to its advantage, framing it like the characters are actually writing these for others to read and someone just came and pieced all the writings together. It sometimes gets a little confusing in spots, but nothing that doesn't get cleared up just a few pages later.
This book is so realistic feeling, and I love it even more for that. It's not your average soft, cute, gay love story, it's more. It has pain and anger, and people thinking wrong with emotions clouding their brain and things that you can only hope the characters later on learned how wrong they are for it. It depits a perfect scene of exactly what it was trying to do