Jackie Lau’s books continue to be a place of refuge for me. Lau’s characters always feel grounded in a reality, whole people more than devices to carry a plot. Lau uses food sometimes as a love language, and sometimes as a safe place where characters can come together.
Bidding on the Bachelor is Lau’s first m/m romance, even so, it’s classic Jackie Lau. Cedric Fong is the last unpartnered Fong brother and has come out to his family as bi. His Po-Po (grandmother) bribes him with dumplings to enter a charity bachelor auction. Brian Poon is happily watching the drunken bidders behaving badly during the auction. He takes pity on both Cedric and a young woman whose parents are bidding on him for her, bidding an outrageous amount to win a date with Cedric. It’s a little awkward. During their playboy days, Brian was Cedric’s brother’s best friend (see Pregnant By the Playboy). Brian and Cedric end up having a good time together (as friends, no sexy stuff). Eventually, they become roommates because Cedric needs a new place and Brian has the space. It’s such a lovely acquaintances to roommates to lovers romance.
Cedric is struggling to write his second book of very serious literature and Brian is trying to find a purpose for his life. Brian does one of my favorite Jackie Lau things, he takes up baking as a way of taking care of Cedric. As a step towards finding his own sense of purpose, Brian tries to create an environment conducive to writing. I could go on and on about how lovely I found Brian’s service love language. Cedric has to let go of a lot of ideas about who he is supposed to be in order to write again and to allow for the possibility of love.
“A Very Beery New Year” was a delightful early gift from Lau to her newsletter subscribers. The short story features Kelsey, who we meet in The Professor Next Door. She is Nicole’s cousin who lives with their shared grandmother of TikTok fame. While searching for a steadier job, she is bartending. On Thursdays, just after 5 pm, Gerald comes into the bar and sits for an hour, has a beer and reads a book. This is Gerald’s version of socializing. Slowly, they start talking to each other. And then phone numbers are exchanged. And then there is the penis shaped donut incident. There’s some pretty excellent mutual pining before Gerald and Kelsey have their first date.