People can really surprise you if you take the time to look behind their masks. That’s what this story is all about. I liked the back and forth between the MCs and the not so buried message to hang in there bc you never know when just one more day will get you through the storm and into the rainbow. ( )

The third book in the ‘Lighting Tales’ series is about Adrian and Marty - two men facing their fears eleven years after high school, about how they come to terms with who they are, and about them learning to deal with their past. While Adrian and Marty are “typical” in the sense that Adrian was the bullied guy in high school and Marty the head jock haunting him, the way each has dealt with these events is different from other stories of this kind. I loved the new spin KC Wells has given one of my favorite tropes, and the addition of characters from the previous books made this story even more enjoyable. It was a heartbreaking, emotional, and very rewarding story for me to read.

Adrian is slight of build, shy, and gay. He was the ”perfect victim” in high school, but one discussion with Ric (from book two) turned his life around by laying the groundwork for Adrien’s future. Ric’s comments made Adrien think about who he is and who he wants to be, how he might be able to protect himself, and what tools were at his disposal to make it happen. As a successful member of the theater club, acting was familiar to him – and that is how he began to use a persona to build a wall between those who might threaten him and his more vulnerable self. Becoming a drag queen – and a very successful one – must have seemed like a logical next step for him. Adrienne is everything Adrien is not. She is self-confident, outgoing, and doesn’t take crap from anyone. I loved her!

Marty may be twenty-six and an accountant, pretty independent from the looks of it but he is so deeply in the closet that he isn’t likely to come out anytime soon. His father and most of his friends are raging homophobes, his mother is too quiet to contradict his father, and Marty doesn’t seem ready to take a stand and take charge of his life. Drag queens fascinate him, and he quietly admits that he knows why that is, but he’d never say that out loud. A man is what Marty craves but thinks he can never have.

When Adrien and Marty meet again, Marty is desperately trying to get Adrienne to notice him so he can have one of his “usual rendezvous” with her, Adrien is full of a need for revenge. He puts Marty on the spot and thinks that will get rid of him. But there is more to Marty than expected, and he soon begins to grow a backbone. Their initial relationship is a roller coaster of emotions, feelings of hatred and regret, misunderstandings, and incredulity. It is also a fascinating character study of what happens when old assumptions and prejudices are put aside – on both sides - and a new kind of understanding and even love begins to blossom. Not an easy feat to pull off, but KC manages it exceedingly well.

If you like stories with a grounding in psychology, if you want to find out how two men who used to be enemies and think they can’t possibly become involved deal with falling in love, and if you’re looking for a read that will keep you in suspense and might just surprise you a couple of times, then you will probably like this novella.


NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )