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A review by apireading
When You Get the Chance by Robin Stevenson, Tom Ryan
4.0
**the e-arc was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I really like the first part of the book. We dive quickly into the Tremblays and the shared point of views between the two main characters is a very good idea. Even though Mark can be such a douche, I felt really connected to Talia.
The intrigue really starts when they all hit the little cottage near Toronto. It’s a bit unusual to begin your story in the forest – but hey it’s Canada after all – I loved that part. Mark and Talia tiptoe around each other in attempt to catch up with all those years apart and it was interesting to show that despite being a member of the same family and being a member of the LOGBTQI+ community, you can always get along.
The journey begins quickly after that. It was more about finding themselves and what they seek in their respective relationships in this road trip towards Toronto Pride. They have to put aside their differencies in order to get to their destination. Luckily, they have Paige. I loved that kid, she’s so wit and smart, and even if she’s a bit confused about the questions of genre and sexuality, she’s open-minded and well-intentioned. I hate that Mark treated her as a burden, a fun-killer of his road-trip. My little girl deserved better than her awful big brother!
I’m usually not very fond of ‘road trip’ stories as they frequently built on the same pattern. But everything becomes more fun when you add some extra queer gents in your schemes! The Tremblays came across a rainbow – see what I did there – of people who helped them get through their journey and I loved them. They were all very endearing and welcoming.
I think that one of the main topics that I liked the most was that the LBGTQI+ is not a big homogeneous group who has the same issues. The relationship between Erin and Talia is really interesting and explore many of those issues: when you’re in a very small group of queer people, people – or yourself – tend to regroup and being drown with the other. But it doesn’t necessarily match. The importance of verbalizing our preferences is essential in a world that don’t usually want to acknowledge the fan of diversity. Therefore, we are not able to understand one another.
Identity and sexuality are commonly resume as the same thing. I was glad to see in a book that it’s two different things, very-well explained and carried by all the characters. Those two subjects are usually seen as irreversible, carved in marble whereas it’s an hiking trip and it’s okay to question yourself and it’s okay to decide you still haven’t figure it out. At the end, I think the authors wanted to tell us that it’s okay to live your own experience, you don’t have to be in the mold to blend in, and most of all : be happy with who you are and what you want.
It was a good book. Very entertaining and informative on a lot of subjects.
[rep : pp gay, pp lesbian, non binary rep,]
[tw : misgendering, forced coming out, homophobia]
I really like the first part of the book. We dive quickly into the Tremblays and the shared point of views between the two main characters is a very good idea. Even though Mark can be such a douche, I felt really connected to Talia.
The intrigue really starts when they all hit the little cottage near Toronto. It’s a bit unusual to begin your story in the forest – but hey it’s Canada after all – I loved that part. Mark and Talia tiptoe around each other in attempt to catch up with all those years apart and it was interesting to show that despite being a member of the same family and being a member of the LOGBTQI+ community, you can always get along.
The journey begins quickly after that. It was more about finding themselves and what they seek in their respective relationships in this road trip towards Toronto Pride. They have to put aside their differencies in order to get to their destination. Luckily, they have Paige. I loved that kid, she’s so wit and smart, and even if she’s a bit confused about the questions of genre and sexuality, she’s open-minded and well-intentioned. I hate that Mark treated her as a burden, a fun-killer of his road-trip. My little girl deserved better than her awful big brother!
I’m usually not very fond of ‘road trip’ stories as they frequently built on the same pattern. But everything becomes more fun when you add some extra queer gents in your schemes! The Tremblays came across a rainbow – see what I did there – of people who helped them get through their journey and I loved them. They were all very endearing and welcoming.
I think that one of the main topics that I liked the most was that the LBGTQI+ is not a big homogeneous group who has the same issues. The relationship between Erin and Talia is really interesting and explore many of those issues: when you’re in a very small group of queer people, people – or yourself – tend to regroup and being drown with the other. But it doesn’t necessarily match. The importance of verbalizing our preferences is essential in a world that don’t usually want to acknowledge the fan of diversity. Therefore, we are not able to understand one another.
Identity and sexuality are commonly resume as the same thing. I was glad to see in a book that it’s two different things, very-well explained and carried by all the characters. Those two subjects are usually seen as irreversible, carved in marble whereas it’s an hiking trip and it’s okay to question yourself and it’s okay to decide you still haven’t figure it out. At the end, I think the authors wanted to tell us that it’s okay to live your own experience, you don’t have to be in the mold to blend in, and most of all : be happy with who you are and what you want.
It was a good book. Very entertaining and informative on a lot of subjects.
[rep : pp gay, pp lesbian, non binary rep,]
[tw : misgendering, forced coming out, homophobia]