The cover of Summer Shadows by John Harris Dunning, Ricardo Cabral, Brad Simpson and Jim Campbell is a tad misleading. It makes things look like a teen thriller in the line of a slightly darker Christopher Pike, RL Stine, or Richie Tankersley Cusick and the like. In other words, something from the late 1980s or early 1990s when I was a teen and actually reading realistic paranormal.
Instead of a “teeny bopper thriller with supernatural” we get sex, drugs, and vampires. We get some downright oddly graphic sex scenes, over the top innuendos, stalkers, creepy (wo)man servants, a land lady who won’t be getting good Yelp reviews, and a hunky Coast Guard officer. SPOILER maybe the good guy will get the love in the end, but the bad guys probably will win in the end in this The Great Gatsby with vampires and even more hedonism graphic novel.
This title was on a list of new LGBTQ titles that are getting attention (“New & Noteworthy Queer Comics”). It was sent via the email telling me I was getting a reader copy of another book. While I would like to read the titles on the list, I am not sure I should after this one. Of course, FOMO is real. Therefore, I will say, I am glad I read it for the goal of finishing the list. I am glad I read it for the experience of reading something outside my wheelhouse, though I have read more horror recently. However, I wish I did enjoy reading it more.
The main character is both interesting and a bit stereotypical. He wants to find his ex-lover, who has told him not to find him as he has found what he has always desired. The idea of family, found family, and the beautiful people have been told before, therefore, this is not an original tale, but if you are looking for a quick, somewhat easy to read (not easy content/concept) this might be the thing you’re looking for.
Others on the list I have reviewed Carousel Summer, Renegade Girls, Song for You and I, Pizza Witch, I Hated You in High School, It Rhymes with Takei, Motherlover, and Spent (with more on the way…)