Keeper of Secrets
Keeper
of Secrets
is the sixth novel in the Gay Youth
Chronicles. The main character of KOS is a departure from
the usual gay youths that dominate my stories. Avery is not a gay
teenaged boy; he’s a sixteen year old gay basher that goes out of
his way to make life difficult for any gay that crosses his path.
Avery gives us a look at prejudice from the other side. Prejudice is
generally created by a combination of ignorance and hatred;
sometimes unreasoning, sometimes not. By living life through the
eyes of Avery, we get a chance to see what goes on in a young
homophobes head. Avery’s actions bring him trouble, not unlike an
act of Karmic justice. His situation and attitude are not without
hope, however. As the story progresses, Avery finds himself exposed
to his cousin Sean (from Someone Is Killing The Gay Boys of
Verona) and Sean’s boyfriend, Nick. After the initial discovery
that Sean and Nick are gay, Avery reacts with typical prejudice and
hate, but little by little his attitude begins to change. This
attitude adjustment comes about not only from exposure to two real,
live gay boys, but also through the eyes of a murdered gay youth of
a century past. Through the pages of a journal, Avery gains access
to the innermost thoughts and feelings of a boy long dead. His
attachment to this youth from the past exposes Avery to new ideas
and feelings. It brings to him the realization that things are not
always what they seem to be. I don’t want to give away the
story or the ending, but I think you’ll find that Avery isn’t quite
so despicable in the end as he is in the beginning.
Those who have read my previous novels
will find some familiar faces in this one. KOS picks up life
in Verona, Indiana where Someone Is Killing…left off. Sean is
the other “voice” of the novel and the story also explores his
relationship with his new boyfriend, Nick. Ethan and Nathan from
Someone Is Watching appear in the novel and Brendan and Casper
from A Better Place make an appearance as well.
Keeper of Secrets is the story of
a gay homophobe and two gay youths. It explores prejudice and hate,
as well as love and the ups and downs of relationships. There’s a
touch of ghostly activity too, but that can be expected when part of
the tale takes place in the infamous Graymoor Mansion. If you’ve
enjoyed my other books, you’ll want to read this one as well. If
you’ve never read one of my novels before, KOS will take you
on a journey I’m sure you’ll enjoy.
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