Everything in the world is about sex except sex. Sex is about power. ― Oscar Wilde
WARNING! Raining Men is not your typical romance novel. Hot sex abounds! Love does conquer all! It is raining men! Amen! However, don’t expect gooey romance with this book.
I was interested in how Reed was going to follow up his novel Chaser, and was I ever surprised; first of all, to find out that it was a meaty 400 plus pages, and secondly, that the main character was Bobby, the despicable slut, who in Chaser nearly breaks up the two main characters. I thought to myself, “this is going to be interesting.”
I have to admit that at first Bobby put me off. Because of that, I think the book started out a little slow for me. Though as despised as Bobby was from Chaser, Reed did a remarkable feat in making him likeable. Reed did a remarkable job, in fact, of fleshing out all the characters and making them come alive.
Bobby is struggling. His best friend, Caden, won’t talk to Bobby because he tried to break up Caden and his boyfriend. Bobby now finds himself in therapy and discovers that perhaps he is a sex addict. I have to be honest and say that this story is not about romance, but about Bobby’s sexual addiction. The story is about Bobby’s struggle to discover himself, his motivations, and why he is unable to establish lasting relationships. It is a remarkable journey that, once I was into the novel, I found it truly engrossing.
As a gay man for which sex plays a big part of my persona, I was fascinated by Bobby’s struggle. I enjoyed rolling around inside Bobby’s head and studying his motivations for sexual deviancy and sexual promiscuity. Bobby’s evolution as a person who is able to love and yearns for a loving relationship is a tour de force, because you start out hating him and in the end are in love with him. In Raining Men, there is a plot with plenty of substance about a main character that makes one examine themselves, and if not themselves, helps them to understand others. Not trying to give too much away, yes, there is romance in the end, but it is not the lead character in this fabulous novel. Instead, it is the struggle of a person discovering himself, healing, and becoming a whole person.
This novel is truly a remarkable work and deserves plenty of accolades. I am sure that it will receive many.
Reviewed by: Bruce
Raining Men can be purchased here: 