Customer Reviews

Beach Reading

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Not the heaviest out of the blocks in the gay romance race, but still a nice read. A little light on character development, but there is promise that the sequel will produce something with more depth. He is certainly a capable writer, so let's see what he brings forth next.

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.

I bought three books by Mark Abramson through Amazon as a gift for my partner. Beach Reading, Cold Serial Murder and Russian River Rat. I have read the other reviews and can't wait for him to get through the books so that I may read them. I would also recommend Murder in the Garden Distric by Greg Herren purchased through Amazon

An exciting first book with well-established characters. I've read all of the series thus far: #2, 3, 4 and 5; and I'm looking forward to the publication of #6, 7 and 8 which will be coming.

Delightful characters well defined. A gay San Francisco waiter with "second sight", his employers (and landlords), his co-workers and fellow apartment dwellers, and an Aunt Ruth in Minnesota with whom he corresponds frequently. He is coming off an intense relationship and looking for another--and fairly active for an HIV-positive male. No in-your-face sex but a number of adventures about town including the arrival of a homophobic preacher just as the "gay party of the year" is about to take place at the civic center. A tad contrived, perhaps, but fun. Recommended, especially for those who know San Francisco (or would like to).

This book was recommended to me by a very good friend; and I was not disappointed at all. Well, I was disappointed that the novel had to end. I haven't had so much fun reading about characters from San Francisco since Armistead Maupin's "Tales Of the City." I fell in love with all of the characters. I liked the book so much that I just picked up the next book in the series, "Cold Serial Murder." I really adore Mark Abramson's writing. He is amazing. I am looking forward to reading all of the books in the series.

I was going to the Falcon Studios 40th Anniversary Party on September 24th and had this book sitting on a shelf. So I thought, why not read it to get me in the mood for San Francisco. At first I was thinking,"what the hell is this book about" but I just kept on going and found myself very interested in the life of Tim Snow, an HIV positive waiter in San Francisco's Castro District. He works at a restarant called Arts, owned by a cute old gay couple that also serve as Tim's landlords. This book in my opinion is just a day in the life of Tim Snow, but Tim is an interesting enough character that a day in his life is actually something that held my attention.

Keep on reading, the story takes an interesting turn where secrets are revealed and hypocrites are exposed. Good book, I cant say that I am a fan, but I did enjoy this book and the Falcon Party was fun. I met Jesse Santana and he kissed me. OMG!!!