REVIEWED BY CINDY
TITLE: Bended Knee
AUTHOR: Rodney Ross
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner
LENGTH: 72 Pages
Blurb:
When restaurateur Hugh Neumann rebukes Oliver Nicholas’s very public proposal to his boyfriend during a Valentine’s Day dinner, the diverted Cupid’s arrow strikes Hugh not in the heart, but in the ass.
After a media storm of commentary, ironically pro and con, gains national steam, what Hugh begins to refer to as his personal “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre” begins to affect home life with his partner, Dominick Brodie.
The unrelenting focus forces Hugh to question whether his overreaction was pandering to his largely heterosexual clientele, or if maybe, just maybe, the incident triggered his own panic about same-sex marriage and his decade-long commitment to Dom.
As they realize their definition of a relationship is no longer the same, fractures form—and the public scrutiny threatens to crack apart the life they’ve built together.
Review:
I read the blurb for this story and I was intrigued with the premise. How can you consider a gay man to be homophobic? I had high hopes for it but I have to admit I feel let down.
My biggest issue was the romance between the two main characters or the severe lack of it. I get that Hugh and Dom are an established couple but in the end, this romance novel just didn’t have enough romance in it. There was so much focus on the situation that Hugh found himself in, that Dom was really a very minor side character and it left us without a couple to focus on.)
I found that I just couldn’t connect to either character very well, although I did sympathize with them in general; Hugh for finding himself in a ridiculous situation over a misunderstanding that puts his livelihood in jeopardy and Dom for being stuck with this partner who seems to be so consumed with the success of his restaurant that he’s forgotten how to show passion in his personal life.
Hugh seems so bent on excusing the lack of romance in his relationship because they have been together for so long and they shouldn’t have to try anymore. It’s a sad way to be and I am glad when he finally realizes his error in his thinking (kind of).
The story is a lesson on how social media and the regular media can take a small issue and blow it up into something over the top within a very short time. And it also drives home peoples determination sometimes, to have their fifteen minutes of fame.
While the writing was technically good, I found the style a little awkward at the beginning although it did smooth out at the story goes. I think with a little more time to grow so that we could know the characters a little better, this story could have been really good.
Rating: 
Buy Links:
I disagree with the review. I found the story to be intriguing and true to life. Realizing it is a short window that we are witnessing in a long period of a couples life, you can understand that we don’t always focus on the romance between a couple. Sometimes, there are things in our relationships which throw our world into a tailspin. I believe that the strength of the relationship is the romance. An amazing story! I can’t wait for more!