Caleb Roehrig

When you are a spoiled rich girl, how do you get your kicks when drugs and drinking are just so passe? You create a team of skilled students to help you rob museums, and other rich folks. And we are not talking about the Bling Ring, but a group with many more skills, and lots more balls. And to top it all off, the team dresses in Drag to help hide their identity. But Drag is not just a costume. It’s armor, and it’s Life.

Margo is the “poor little rich girl” in this book. But shes not show more bad. There is a purpose behind her thefts. It helps her friends with no other way to live, and helps secret organizations help others. But her life is not all champagne and caviar. Her father is sick with some mysterious illness, and everyone wants to rule her world. Only Margo can save the company and herself, but she will need all the help from her fabulous team.

Her team is made of of her best friend Axel and his brother Joaquin. Axel is a true Drag performer. It is his passion and his escape from the life his embezzling father left behind while in prison. Joaquin is the newest member of the team who is enamored with team member Leif. Leif, is a small town country boy moved to the big city to be himself, and attend ballet school. He needs the money from these jobs to pay his tuition as his strait laced religious parents will no longer help foot the bill for his alternative lifestyle. The last team member Devan is the car person. You can pull his drag hills from his cold body when he is gone.

This book was so much fun. It is very inclusive. Margo is bi, and the rest of the team is gay. And it just is. No explanation needed, no excuses, it just is, deal with it. (Love that). It also hits every point to be labeled a SAGA (sexual and gender acceptance) read. As well as having a cast of characters who can claim various nationalities and skin color. This book does contain sexual situations, but most are glossed over, or hinted out. However the innuendo is full on, especially when the team needs a sixth member. Some of it might be considered gratuitous, but then again, I think it is realistic to the teens it represents.

Overall this was a fun romp. I hope the author makes it a series for new adults. I could see the team becoming spies, or secret operatives. I think they could do it, forwards, backwards, and in heels.
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A clever, thoughtful reimagining that goes so far beyond simply making Romeo and Juliet gay (as laudable a project as that is). This book sparkles with wit and verve, the characters feel real, both familiar and developed, and the dialogue flows beautifully. Romeo and Valentine’s love story is utterly compelling while also feeling grounded in its historical and literary setting. The true themes of the original play, the vicious cycle of violence, the dire effects of parental neglect, and show more the senselessness of avoidable loss, all shine through here. Juliet and her unwanted marriage to count Paris don’t get overshadowed even though the main story is about two boys falling in love; indeed, the Juliet of this adaptation is lively, resourceful, and as cunning as any Shakespearean character ever was. It was a pleasure to read from start to finish and I also appreciated the impressive number of Shakespeare references the author was able to work in (“claim his pound of flesh”, “ghost at the banquet” etc.). This is book is a great example of the wonderful, high quality, gay fiction I wish had been more prevalent when I was a teenager. show less

Not going to lie: after "Song of Achilles," I'm very nervous about reading novels based on stories that I KNOW have tragic endings. I spent a lot of this book's second half freaking out over whether we were going to keep to the traditional Romeo and Juliet ending, even with it being Romeo and Valentine. Thankfully, Roehrig was willing to use artistic license in many areas of the original tale, shaping it into something that shares to basic concept and general vibe, but which is its own show more narrative completely.

I think one of my favorite things about this book is the presentation of Juliet as at least aromantic, if not asexual as well. She wanted adventures and independence, not husbands and babies! For that, I love her. I do, though, wonder how things will play out past the last page, when she enacts the final part of hers and Romeo's plan and becomes a "widow" in the eyes of the law, but that's what fanfic gaps are for. show less

August is 16 years old and he lives in Fulton Heights. It’s a perfectly normal, boring town to grow up in except for the fact that it’s infested with vampires. Vampires… in this book are known about… and live around people. Sure, they’re annoying and bitey and they do kill the occasional human. But, it’s not as weird as you might think. At first. Then it gets weird.

One evening, August meets a really cute vampire named Jude. He tells him that August is important… that he’s show more going to be changing and when he needs him, to call him. He tosses Auggie a burner phone and disappears.

I’m not even going to try and explain the amazingness that goes on in this book because I really think that Caleb Roehrig is amazing! He is a wonderful writer, and one of my favorites. So… there are a few things going on in this book. Sure, there are vampires but they’re not the sparkly kind that you might expect! These vampires range from adorable teen boys (at least that is how they appear) to old monsters! There are magical practitioners! There are historical figures woven into this tale. There are cute first dates and passionate kisses. Do I even need to continue?

It turns out that August is the vessel for a terrible entity that is arising. The problem is that there’s really no consensus about what’s going to happen when he’s taken over. There are warring factions trying to determine Auggie’s future… and suddenly he is left feeling as though he has no control over anything.

There are some really great scenes in this book about love – it’s not a romance, so don’t go there! But Auggie is 16 and there are cute boys all around him and even if some of them might be bitey and fangy, he is still 16! There are some really great discussions about love, relationships, and friendship.

The characters in the book are complex and interesting! No one is really all they seem when they are first introduced. I have always enjoyed that about Caleb’s characters. Auggie is my favorite, but some of the vampires are really intriguing. I loved how Caleb delved into what it might be like to consider living forever. What if you’re turned when you’re very young? What if you outlive your entire family? There are so many practical things to consider when you think about becoming a vampire.

There is a great story in this book. There’s great attention to detail and I love how the entire story comes together in the end. There might be a few things that are unresolved…but I can’t help hoping that there might be a sequel in the future. A girl can wish. show less