Reviewed by Jenna

TITLE: Omorphi

AUTHOR: C. Kennedy

PUBLISHER: Harmony Ink Press

LENGTH: 480 Pages

BLURB:

High school senior Michael Sattler leads a charmed life. He’s a star athlete, has great friends, and parents who love him just the way he is. What’s missing from his life is a boyfriend. That’s a problem because he’s out only to his parents and best friend. When Michael accidentally bumps into Christy Castle at school, his life changes in ways he never imagined. Christy is Michael’s dream guy: smart, pretty, and sexy. But nothing could have prepared Michael for what being Christy’s boyfriend would entail.

Christy needs to heal after years of abuse and knows he needs help to do it. After the death of his notorious father, he leaves his native Greece and settles in upstate New York. Alone, afraid, and left without a voice, Christy hides the myriad scars of his abuse. He desperately wants to be loved and when he meets Michael, he dares to hope that day has arrived. When one of Michael’s teammates turns enemy, and an abuser from Christy’s past seeks to return him to a life of slavery, only Michael and Christy’s combined strength and unwavering determination can save them from the violence that threatens to destroy their future together.

REVIEW:

Wow, I don’t even know where to start. I guess I’ll just start by saying that I was a bit unsure about reading this due to the length of the book, but I’m glad I did since every page was totally and completely worth it. I also don’t ready YA too often, but Omorphi definitely has me wanting to read more. The story begins when Michael, a high school senior and track star meets the very pretty and sweet, Christy, a boy who is in many ways a mystery. Their relationship moves quickly, but it takes some time before Michael learns who Christy is. All he knows at first is that he’s been badly abused, and Michael wants to be able to understand so he can help Christy and not cause more harm. As a series of hate crimes rattle their existence, Michael learns of a new danger from overseas. Christy’s abusers are still at large, and they quite possibly can put them all in mortal danger.

There is a lot of action in this book as well as a lot of deeply emotional and tragic issues that come up as Michael discovers layer after layer what Christy has been made to endure. There is a large cast of characters, but they all came to life and played important roles in the book. As for the main characters, Michael is a great guy, and Christy is the sweetest, most beautiful boy you can imagine. Though I adored Christy’s fragility, I especially loved how Christy grows throughout the book, becoming stronger and learning to stand up for himself. The only thing I wasn’t crazy about was the excessive gay bashing and hate crimes that are portrayed. However, I can’t really complain since this sub-plot advanced the story and paved the way for a richer understanding of Christy and his situation. Overall, this novel was fantastic. If I could give it additional stars for the abuse survivor awareness theme, I would. It was both great entertainment and extremely meaningful. I look forward to continuing this series. I recommend Omorphi to anyone who loves YA m/m romance and hurt comfort themes.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Harmony Ink Press

Amazon

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