Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Do You Know What I Know
SERIES: The Heart of the Holidays
AUTHOR: Shane Morton
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 100 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 20, 2020
BLURB:
He may be one of my bullies- but he’s also my secret boyfriend
Archie- We used to be friends, but that changed when we went to middle school. He became the most popular boy and I became a target. It didn’t help that I enjoyed choir more than sports. It didn’t matter that I stayed hidden in the closet.
But one day, he knocked on my window- just like the old days and I let him in. Everything changed that night between us. We were safe hidden away from the world, exploring all the mysteries of life. That was a year ago. Things have changed. I have changed, and I am not sure that our secret relationship can survive. I am tired of hiding who I am. What will that do to us?
Hudson- I hate that being popular means so much to me. But as the quarterback and team captain of the football team, there are a ton of expectations set upon me. Not only from the school, my teammates and fans- but from my family. Being a preacher’s son makes being who I really am, even more difficult.
My life is lived in fear, and I have the ulcers to prove it. I love Archie and I need him more than he knows. Without him, this life would be dark and miserable. I wished I could be strong enough to do what he wishes. I want to hold his hand down the hallways and protect him from the others. I do. But life is never that simple. We’re seniors and we have a lot of decisions to make about the future. I just hope that we have one.
REVIEW:
Archie is a smart high school senior in Kentucky who plans on going to the University of Michigan. He’s a talented vocalist and he can’t wait to get out of town and start living his own life. He’s gay, but in the closet. He’s also bullied. Mostly by the jock – well at least the football team.
Hudson is the star quarterback. The IT boy in town. He’s good looking and he’s pretty much gotten everything. He’s also pretty smart and he’s got a huge secret. He’s also a PK (preacher’s kid) and that makes things even more difficult for him. His friends are jerks and bully Archie. He tries to keep it to a minimum, but he’s afraid if anyone suspects what his secret is, that he’ll lose his golden boy status.
Hudson is Archie’s secret boyfriend. This is of course made more difficult but Hudson’s friends constantly harassing Archie. But Hudson is afraid of coming out – because of his parents, his potential football scholarship, losing his “friends” and other reasons. As things build towards the Christmas dance, Hudson is put in a terrible position and he has no idea what to do. He’s torn about what his life should look like and he doesn’t know what to do. Archie has made up his mind though and he’s no longer willing to hide who he is. Can they find a way to both get what they want and need?
Well I really wanted to like this one more than I did. This is a new to me author and this is the first book I’ve read from him. There were some editing issues in the version I received for review which detracted a few times for me. In addition, I felt like the writing was a bit choppy. I’ve read some really outstanding YA closeted teen and nerd/jock stories and perhaps this just paled a bit for me compared to those. The pacing was a bit off as well. I felt like things sort of dragged along until the closing quarter where things were a bit too neatly wrapped up very quickly. Honestly I felt like this story needed to be a much longer book with a lot more depth and probably suffered from the sort word count. I really liked Archie’s BFF Izzie and Hudson ex-girlfriend Jackie. I also liked Hudson’s mom a lot. Some of the others felt a bit two-dimensional me, but again, the short word-count left them a bit short-changed. If you’re looking for a short YA coming-out story, then this one might be for you.
RATING: 
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