Wednesday, June 20, 2012

My first DNF: All Through the Night by Suzanne Brockmann

It’s Christmastime in Boston, and this year the silver bells will be wedding bells as FBI agent Jules Cassidy ties the knot with the man of his dreams, Hollywood heartthrob Robin Chadwick.

The pair plan a quiet, intimate ceremony, to be witnessed by family and close friends from the FBI, SEAL Team Sixteen, and Troubleshooters, Incorporated, including Sam Starrett and Alyssa Locke. But the holiday season brings more to the happy couple than they expect.

A waterfall coming through their kitchen ceiling, a bat colony in the attic, old family tensions . . . even an international incident can’t dampen their spirits. But add to that a parade of unexpected guests, including a reporter looking for a scoop, an ex-lover hell-bent on causing trouble, and a dangerous stalker, and suddenly the wedding is poised to unravel in chaos.

But nothing will stop Jules and Robin from getting their happy ending, because along with a guest list featuring the most elite counterterrorism force in the world, they have their own secret weapon–true love.


Type: Contemporary romance, M/M relationship
Heat: no clue, didn't get that far
Rating: DNF 1 out of 5

Pretty bummed about it but I've had my first Did Not Finish with Suzanne Brockmann's All Through the Night. This was my first time reading Brockmann and by 70 pages in I just couldn't take it anymore. The writing in general was decent enough. The problem I had was that I basically read what amounted to a 70 page pro homosexuality PSA.



I have no problem with m/m relationships in books or real life and I do think it's sweet that Brockmann want's to support her son who is gay but the way the subject was presented had my hackles rising. Instead of presenting a m/m relationship that was positive and might sway some readers into being more accepting of the lifestyle this was purely someone's personal agenda being shoved down my throat with absolutely no finesse and with a huge dose of bitterness. I kept waiting for Brockmann to stop lecturing me and focus on just telling the romantic story between FBI agent Jules and his hunky actor fiance Robin but it just wasn't happening.

Maybe if I'd read the rest of the series first and was finally getting to read an anticipated happily ever after I might not have minded nearly as much but I kind of doubt that. This series seems to work for a lot of people but if it's anything like this book it is definitely not for me.

If you'd like to give it a try find your copy: 

Have you ever read a book where you might agree with the subject but the way it's presented just puts you off? 

2 comments:

  1. (Let me start off by saying that I absolutely love Suzanne Brockmann)

    I want to comment on you review of All Through the Night.

    I know that many series' have books that can be read as stand alone books but unfortunately this is not one of them. Starting the series at the beginning would have been best but if you would have started the series even at book 8 (Hot Target) you would have been seeing where Jules meets Robin for the first time and all of the struggles and difficulties both of the men have.

    By book 11 (Force of Nature), Jules and Robin finally realize that they are the ones for each other which then leads us to book 12 (All Through the Night). I agree that in this book the 'gay agenda' as many put it is out front and is, at times, heavy handed. But with her writing, Ms. Brockmann, is doing what many writers are told when they first start out (even thou she had written many books at that point)... write what you know/and or are passionate about. She knows what it is like to be the mother of a son who is gay and what is happening around him at the time she was writing this book with Massachusettes recognizing gay marriage. By bringing in a character such as Jules, an FBI agent who just happens to be gay, into her Troubleshooter Series, Ms. Brockmann is showing the diversity that is the world we live in.

    I'm sorry that you didn't finish this book but I do hope that you will give the series a go from the beginning. As I said, I love these books and this author and I wanted to share my thoughts on this.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment Mimirose! It's nice to hear the view from someone who has read the whole series. You could tell Brockmann was passionate and invested in what she was writing. I'll definitely give you that. I really didn't mind coming into an already established relationship it was just, like you mentioned, the heavy handed way she went about writing about the subject.

      I'll give the series another go starting at the very start and see how it goes with all of the background on the couple and maybe I won't feel so bothered by the style. I know a lot of people just love her writing.

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