Reviewed by Kat
TITLE: Duplicity
SERIES: Blue Mountain University – Book 1
AUTHOR: A. E. Madsen
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 318 pages
RELEASE DATE: January 15, 2022
BLURB:
Daniel
When my ex outed me, he also lied about our relationship, and everything changed. Now, I’ve been effectively disowned by my parents, and I haven’t dated anyone in almost nine months since. According to my friend, that’s too much time to waste regretting the actions of a good for nothing jerk. Part of me wants to get back out there, but I’m not sure. She insists on setting me up on a semi blind date with her old study buddy. But when I run into him on campus, he isn’t anything like she said.
Ian
I can count the number of people that I’ve told I’m bi on one hand, make that one finger. I’ve never been the out and proud type. So, when Daniel approached me nervously asking about a date, I was a little surprised, but I was also on my way to soccer practice and had no time to think it through. I gave him my number so we could meet up later and we went on a date the next weekend. It was great, and he kissed me when we were saying goodbye. Then he called me Aiden. That’s my brother’s name. Did I forget to mention I’m a twin?
REVIEW:
First time author that pleasantly surprised me.
Ian Walsh has known he was attracted to both sexes and was bi-sexual long before his identical twin Aiden came out in high school. He has just never “advertised” it or even acted on his desires until this summer at summer soccer camp for college athletes. There he experiments in a safe place with his desires. He knows it’s a private summer fling with no expectations. When he returns to Blue Mountain University in Eastern Oregon for his junior year of school he gets mistaken for his gay and proudly out identical twin brother. When the cute and sweet Daniel Reyes taps him on the shoulder and asks for his phone number for a meet up he just gives it to him. After a wonderful time out Dani kisses him and says “I’d love to see you again, Aiden” as he runs off things start to click. Dani thinks Ian is this twin Aiden. He should correct the mistaken identity immediately but this solves his coming out to his team dilemma. But how long can this charade continue before it blows up in his face?
I adored Dani. He was given such a raw deal by his ex outing him and blaming him for coercing him into a gay relationship. A relationship that is strongly shunned by his staunch Hispanic Catholic parents and his childhood church. He has now been disowned by his parents and can’t see his little sisters. Thankfully his older brother Alejandro and wife Sophia do not feel this way and encourage him to be with them and attend their more progressive Catholic Church that even has a group for a LGBTQ meetup. Dani is sweet and a safe and positive experience for Ian. And I get why Ian is so hesitant to come out to his sports team. Although he had several allies on it he still recalls how Liam was treated in high school when the team thought he was gay and involved with Aiden. However, he let it keep going on way too long and the storm that resulted was bound to happen. Impersonating his brother while having a relationship with Dani was a recipe for disaster and totally inappropriate. I was thankful that Dani was who he was and Ian started showing his real vulnerable self to him in hopes they could at least become friends again. It was obvious that each man truly cared for the other and was falling for each other. But Dani had already been burned so badly by an ex and wasn’t willing to sneak around with a closeted man again. And I didn’t blame him.
I really enjoyed this book. It was a great first offering from a brand new author. I did think that the ruse went on a bit too long and then the book bogged down a bit until Ian and Daniel started speaking again after Ian helped with Joe and it picked back up. I was pleased to read that we would see more of Ian and Dani in the next book while exploring a new couple since I still want to know what happens to them next. I am really looking forward to the next book which is suppose to include Aiden and Liam’s back story.
RATING: 
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