Dnf'd at 35%.
Sorry, I can't get over the marriage 'proposal'.

Dnf'd at 35%.
Sorry, I can't get over the marriage 'proposal'.

This book is about Eric and Joel. Eric is a Prince and heir to the throne of Doggerland... Joel, a friend he meets at Oxford. The world might be fictional (at least it seems it was real once upon a time) but the issues, I suspect, are real enough.

Eric doesn't want to be King nor does he want to get married to a woman. Now, this isn't a particularly original plot. There are quite a few books out with this premise. What Bosman focusses on is the fact that Eric isn't able to be his authentic self because of homophobia in his country.

The two characters get together very quickly... and I was a bit confused at first. They went from a few sexual encounters to Eric asking Joel if he wanted to get married too quickly for me. I think the author was using this to illustrate the desperation that Eric was feeling. Clearly, Eric is trapped by his life and feels as though his future is on rails without opportunity for him to do anything he wants.

Of course, things don't work out the way that Eric wants them to. Joel's family certainly have their fair share of issues. His father hasn't wanted much to do with him in the past but tries to weasel his way back into Joel's life once he hears about Prince Eric. Eric's mom has issues as well, she's depressed and anxious and always taking medication.

Really neither character is happy with their home life or particularly connected to their families. It might be for different reasons, but there's a disconnect either way. Maybe this is why the author has these two characters get together so quickly. He could have been trying to illustrate that there was a huge gap in both of their lives and they were looking to fill it with a relationship.

The language is a bit quirky throughout. I suspect this is because the author has lived all over the world and speaks a few languages. At times, it did take me out of the story for a bit. There were just some odd word choices... like "Plunged onto the couch."

There's a huge cliffhanger in this one folks, so don't go into it expecting a HEA or HFN! ( )