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Beach Reading
by Mark Abramson
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$13.00 |
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Paperback
Publisher: Lethe Press
Gay tourists are arriving in San Francisco by the planeload for the party of the decade at the Moscone Center, a tribute to a late disco star. On the same night as the dance festival, a infamous evangelist plans to bring his nationwide crusade against gay rights to the Civic Auditorium a few blocks away. Tim Snow finds himself caught in the middle when his activist friends plan a protest. For Tim, the fun and the intrigue are about to begin. Beach Reading , a San Francisco Chronicle best-seller, is equal parts mystery and romantic comedy set in romantic San Francisco with a taste for adventure, a touch of magic.
| Customer Reviews: |
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| Fluffy, brief but enjoyable book could be start of interesting series. |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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It should be a busy weekend for Tim Snow, a 20-something waiter at a restaurant in the Castro. Not only are gay visitors pouring into San Francisco for a massive party celebrating the birthday of disco legend Sylvester, but the weekend will also see protests and counterprotests as a infamous evangelist holds a "prayer vigil" against gay rights. In a newspaper photo that accompanied an article about the religious rally, Tim was surprised to recognize, among his supporters, a former high school teacher who was also Tim's first male lover. Before the weekend is over, Tim will also learn he was part of a plan to ruin the preacher's rally.
With this book, Abramson kicks off a series of gay titles that aim to combine two genres: mystery and romance novels. This first fluffy piece (no doubt the reason it was named "Beach Reading") is a bit shorter than I would have liked to see (Actually, it's only 183 pages, not counting a preview of his next book.) and perhaps a bit predictable, but otherwise well-written. With a shortage of good gay mystery novels coming out lately, I'm definitely interested in seeing his follow-up books in the series. I give this four mirrored stars out of five.
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| A Romantic Comic Mystery |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Abramson, Mark."Beach Reading", Lethe Press, 2008.
A Romantic Comic Mystery
Amos Lassen
I just finished reading Mark Abramson's "Beach Reading" and the only word I can think of to describe it is "WOW!". It's a short book--only 193 pages--and each of those pages is a pleasure.
The story takes place in San Francisco and it manages to cover many of the issues of gay life including homophobia, relationships, and S&M (stand and pose) as well as others. "Beach Reading is a "love song to San Francisco" and I felt like singing along as I read it. It seems that city on the bay has been the center of gay life forever and after reading this you will understand why.
Gay male tourists find their way to San Francisco by planeloads for what is to be "the party of the decade", a tribute to Sylvester at the Moscone Center. As it happens at major gay events, it is not only gay men who arrive and the Christian right led by Arlo Montgomery also finds his way there. He and his cohorts have come to protest the event and they have set up camp a few blocks away from the festivities at the Civic Auditorium. Tim Snow, a gay activist, plans to protest the protest and the fun and games begin.
I understand that this is the first in a series of books that Mark Abramson is writing on gay life. I plan to be a major fan and I will be bringing news of them when they are published. I also must commend Steve Berman of Lethe Press for picking up the slack that the folding of Harrington Park Press created.
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