Reviewed by Susan
TITLE: Eyes On Sparrow
AUTHOR: Evan Gilbert
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 67 pages
BLURB:
High school grad Morgan Breck is riding out his last summer at home before he goes off to pursue the course of study his parents want him to take—at a college they want him to attend. His days are boring and lonely until a construction crew arrives to build a house across the street.
One of the workers is the sexy Sparrow Smith, and he quickly catches Morgan’s eye. Morgan is surprised to discover he and Sparrow share a mutual attraction; one that leads to smoking hot sex, the kind that leaves the room sweltering.
The guys’ friends-with-benefits relationship soon grows into something more, and Morgan realizes he can’t live without Sparrow. But summer’s end is rapidly approaching, and his parents are determined he leave for college, which will take him hundreds of miles away from the man he’s falling in love with.
Standing up to his parents has never been easy. In fact, Morgan’s never done it before. Ever. Morgan must work up the courage to voice his needs, or he’ll have no choice but to let Sparrow go.
REVIEW:
This is a short story, but it is not written in a short story way. Yes, it is direct and concise, but it takes the time to build the attraction between Morgan and Sparrow and there is not the insta love that so many short stories fall back on. It feels like a longer story than it is, and this is a good thing.
It is told from Morgan’s POV and he is mature for someone who just graduated from high school. It is summer and it’s hot and he is bored – when he is not watching Sparrow work. He is seriously attracted and weaves fantasies around the hot guy he watches every morning. When Sparrow returns his attention he is over the moon. Their interactions are hot and do not feel contrived at all. Both characters are likable and they work well together. Again the nice thing is that we see the two of them date and get to know each other beyond their attraction to each other.
The catch in the story is Morgan’s parents. They do know he is gay but are not happy about it. And their plans for Morgan do not include him having a guy in his life. Morgan’s growth and journey to happiness are really expressed quite well for a short story. I loved that he had a plan for himself and was willing to do what he had to do to put that plan in motion, no matter how painful that was. I really would like to see them again. I recommend this one for its feel good story.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS: