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Franky Gets Real

by Mel Bossa (Goodreads Author)

3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 · rating details · 16 ratings · 11 reviews

"Franky's lost the map to his life. What he needs is a getaway. A break from the city. But most of all, he needs a breather from Geena Piranha Pirelli, his domineering girlfriend and...boss. Franky escapes with his four childhood friends, heading to the woods for a four-day camping trip. With their twenties over, the old gang faces adulthood. Responsibilities. Marriage. Pi...more

Paperback, 288 pages

Published December 20th 2011 by Bold Strokes Books

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Nov 11, 2011 LenaLena rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mm

I have friends on goodreads that read m/m almost exclusively and love almost everything they read. Over and over, they fall in love with the current couple, the current story line, no matter how many of these books they've read. I envy them. I am one of those Scrooge type people. One of those overly analytical people. The more I read in a certain genre, the pickier I get. In my head are unofficial check lists of tropes and cliches and stereotypes and caricatures and I seem to develop new pet pee...more I have friends on goodreads that read m/m almost exclusively and love almost everything they read. Over and over, they fall in love with the current couple, the current story line, no matter how many of these books they've read. I envy them. I am one of those Scrooge type people. One of those overly analytical people. The more I read in a certain genre, the pickier I get. In my head are unofficial check lists of tropes and cliches and stereotypes and caricatures and I seem to develop new pet peeves every day. I have already worn out the m/f genre, fantasy and science fiction and sometimes I fear I am on my way to wear out m/m. I am not happy about this, by the way, and I am not blaming the authors. Well, maybe a select few. But I mostly blame my overactive left brain where the bitchy narrator lives.

This is kind of how the bitchy narrator was approaching this story: Yeah, yeah, Franky has a bitchy girlfriend, watch her be evil so he can just dump her, oh we're going camping with old friends, there's the jock, he is going to freak out about his brother being gay, oh there's the nerd, he's gonna be the peacemaker, oh look there's the fag hag for comic relief, she's gonna be annoying. Here come the lovable established gay couple to show Franky that his life isn't going to get bad necessarily if he turns gay. Oh, we all have little life crises going on in the group, now we're moving on into group therapy territory and we'll cry by the campfire and we're all going to have a catharsis and leave with friendships reaffirmed. Maybe one of the guys will get mauled by a bear and we can have a grand hospital scene!

So I am not saying none of that happened, some of it did, but far less than I expected. There were no easy fixes. No soul baring that magically cleared the air. No simply meeting the right penis for insta-solutions. And although I am sure the sheer amount of drama would be offputting for some readers, apart from a few minor eyerolls, I got completely sucked into the story. With so many characters it is not surprising that some remained a bit sketchier than others, but all had unexpected sides to them that deepened the story. Except for Vlad the Impaler, none of them were all 'good' either. Hell, I am not even sure I like Franky all that much. Dude has some serious issues. But I sure enjoyed reading about them.

The main reason this ended up with 4 stars instead of 5 is the abrupt ending. It's a HFN at best, and after all that time watching Franky fall apart, I really, really wanted to share some happy times with him. Not that it ends depressing, it just ends a bit.... open. Another chapter wouldn't have killed the author, and it would have left me flailing a tad less wildly. Because, after all, I am so used to getting everything wrapped up nicely with a bow on top in my m/m.

OK, so this not for the lovers of fluff and simple solutions. It is also not for those who rapidly overdose on drama. But well worth the read for everyone in between.

BTW: no sex. No, not fade to black, no sex at all apart from a little groping. But lots of juicy emotional stuff! (less)

10 likes · like · see review

Nov 23, 2011 Rebekah Weatherspoon rated it 4 of 5 stars

A few days ago, I had a long talk with my sister that ended with us both agreeing that high school is the period in your life that fucks you up the most. This book should be called "This is exactly what would happen if your friends told the truth at a high school reunion."

Mel's writing as with Split, totally sucked me in, though I didn't find the characters as likable. Wyatt ended up being my hero in the end. I found myself wanting to stab Franky, but in a way that just showcases how strong of...more

2 likes · like · see review

Dec 22, 2011 Elisa Ramblings added it

I started this book expecting to read a romance and ended witnessing to an almost therapy session where everyone joining the session was at first “normal” and exited it on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

It’s also a story about the death of illusion, or better the reaching of a point where you need to really stop and decide what it will be of your life. It’s about Franky and Alek, but also Wyatt, Nevin and Holly, and all those characters wandering around them. Franky is presented as a bookish t...more I started this book expecting to read a romance and ended witnessing to an almost therapy session where everyone joining the session was at first “normal” and exited it on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

It’s also a story about the death of illusion, or better the reaching of a point where you need to really stop and decide what it will be of your life. It’s about Franky and Alek, but also Wyatt, Nevin and Holly, and all those characters wandering around them. Franky is presented as a bookish type, someone who befriended the same bookish boy Alek when they were teenagers; but today Franky is a salesman, something that is quite far from the career you would expect by someone loving literature. Then you learn that Franky’s girlfriend, Geena, is also Franky’s boss, and so maybe, you think, she is the one who tried to shape Franky to her own imagine of a perfect boyfriend. Doesn’t matter that, apparently, it’s quite clear that Franky is gay, or at least bisexual. For fear or weakness, Franky has never acknowledge his feelings for Alek, or Alek’s feelings for him, and he has opted to basically cut his bond with his best friend.

But now the fabulous five, Wyatt, Holly, Nevin, Alek and Franky decided to go on a weekend trip together, living at home wives, parents, children, boyfriends and all. They want to have yet again a weekend for them, a time when they can be again the same as they was, free and innocent. Only that it’s not so simple, even if they have left at home the evident “troubles”, the more dangerous are there with them, ready to explode. Alek is gay and he is tired, for various reason, to stay in the closet; if Alek comes out it’s obvious that Franky is involved: until his best friend/possible lover is in the closet, Franky can ignore his own feelings, but if Alek decides to be open, and to have a boyfriend, then Franky cannot allow it to be someone else than him.

Even if Franky and Alek took the major part of the novel, another interesting evolution is the one Wyatt is going through; Wyatt stubbornly denies his brother his gay since, admitting it is like admitting his own past experience of having being molested. Wyatt sees being gay as being a pervert, and of course he cannot accept that of his own brother; if, and only if, he is ready to admit his brother is gay, than it’s for sure some psychological illness, something that he has to be cured for.

Good stories also for Holly and Nevin, but I would like to highlight the one of Eli and Vlad, they feel so good and real that I’m pretty sure the author had a story for them, something she has already written or maybe is in the phase to plan out. If not, I strongly suggest her to do so.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1602825858/?...(less)

1 like · like · see review

Dec 15, 2011 Kerry sullivan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: gay-fiction

This book was reviewed for Musings of a bookworm

This is what the book is about.
Lately, life has been giving Franky the finger, and it isn't the index. He’s lost the map to his life. What he needs is a getaway. A break from the city. But most of all, he needs a breather from Geena Piranha Pirelli, his domineering girlfriend and...boss.

Franky escapes with his four childhood friends, heading to the woods for a four-day camping trip. With their twenties over, the old gang faces adulthood. Respon...more

2 likes · like · see review

Aug 28, 2012 Hilcia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-read, contemporary, gay, lgbt-books, fiction

The title of this novel is Franky Gets Real, but in reality this book is not just about Franky. Mel Bossa brings stark reality back into the lives of five high school friends who after a few years of distance decide to go on a camping trip, just like the good old days. Unfortunately you can never really go back and instead of fun and relaxation, baggage follows them and the trip turns into one where lifelong secrets are revealed, one at a time.

Franky is engaged and works for the domineering Geen...more The title of this novel is Franky Gets Real, but in reality this book is not just about Franky. Mel Bossa brings stark reality back into the lives of five high school friends who after a few years of distance decide to go on a camping trip, just like the good old days. Unfortunately you can never really go back and instead of fun and relaxation, baggage follows them and the trip turns into one where lifelong secrets are revealed, one at a time.

Franky is engaged and works for the domineering Geena whom he wants to escape, but can't or won't. His problem? Confusion about his sexuality and inability to make decisions. Geena is already questioning Franky's sexuality and now his best friend Alek is about to come out of the closet to the whole group. If Alek comes out, Franky will have to admit to himself that his feelings for his best friend are deeper than friendship and he doesn't want to confront reality.

Alek has his own past ghosts to slay, but there's a good reason for his decision to come out to friends and family now. His situation and revelations act as a catalyst for the whole group, as his older brother Wyatt, a man who once was the coolest finally reveals why his marriage and life are slip sliding away, brainy Nevin's seriously pathetic problems come to the surface, and even Holly finds some previously unknown and disturbing revelations about her life. Acting almost as therapists to the group are excellent secondary characters Eli and Vlad, a gay couple the group meets at the camping grounds.

There is a lot of drama in this story, and as with Split, in many ways this book by Bossa is tough to categorize. In Franky Gets Real everyone is revealed for who they really are, secrets, warts and all. I found the characters well rendered with the exception of both female characters: Geena who becomes the screeching girlfriend and (even when there is reason to) tough to sympathize with, and Holly who pretty much plays a secondary character. Franky's confusion about his sexuality, Alek's hurt, insecure feelings and tough circumstances, and Wyatt's present and past horrors take center stage and give this story substance. As it often happens in real life, these characters and the way they confront difficult situations with their insecurities and prevarications can be frustrating at times, but the payoff in the end is worth going through the emotional ride.

I'm enjoying Mel Bossa's gay/bisexual/queer themes, as well as her writing style. Fiction? Romance? Gay? Bisexual? Who cares? Franky Gets Real has a little bit of everything and it is good!(less)

1 like · like · see review

Dec 06, 2011 Christi Snow rated it 3 of 5 stars

My Review:
Whoa, this is one of those books...serious guilty pleasure. This book is just like when you are flipping channels and catch sight of one of those horrible talk shows full of misfits. This book is one of those shows. This book is about five friends who have been friends since high school, but are now all in their 30's. They go out on a 4 day camping trip where all their secrets (and there are MANY) come out. Whoa, these are some messed up people. It is fascinating in a warped kind of wa...more

1 like · like · see review

Apr 17, 2012 Jeff Erno rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: gay-romance

Franky gets real is the story of a thirty-year old man who works as a retail sales clerk in Canada. He is in a long term heterosexual relationship with his boss. Franky and a group of high-school friends leave the city and head out for a four-day camping excursion.

One of the other members of the group, Alek, was Franky's boyhood best friend. Alek has also been in a heterosexual relationship for some time. Franky has lost touch with Alek over the years, but at one time they were really close and...more

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Aug 18, 2012 Leanne rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: best-friends-to-lovers, made-me-cry, mm, nice-n-angsty, autobuy-author, favorites

I’m not sure I liked Frankie for much of this book. He’s shallow, insecure and self-centred – a bit of a prick, actually. But Mel Bossa writes with such skill and uses such wonderful, rich prose she sucked me in and I just could not put this one one down. The story is fraught with drama and angst (yes, a lot of angst and drama...maybe not for the faint of heart! ;-P )as it’s not only Frankie who struggles with unsolved issues from the past. The cast of supporting characters are well drawn and, a...more

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Nov 26, 2011 Darci rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, bffs-into-lovers, canada-eh, fucked-up-issues, modern-contemporary, netgalley, oh-the-angst, lgbt

Holy shit. You like books with issues? This is the book for you. Loved it.

2 likes · like · see review

Feb 18, 2012 Rogier rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2-review, m-m-romance, adult

it was oke /not gr8 but i enjoyed it

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Dec 09, 2011 ~PJ20~ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebook

Review to come ...

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Jun 11, 2013 Claudia Bossa added it

Jun 03, 2013 Elaine Mulligan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Jun 02, 2013 Venecia marked it as to-read

Shelves: kindle-lendable

Jun 02, 2013 Parker marked it as to-read

Shelves: mmr, own

Jun 09, 2013 Carnell added it

Shelves: m-m

Mar 19, 2013 Nina marked it as to-read

Shelves: gay, romance-adult

Jan 26, 2013 Monica marked it as to-read

Jan 01, 2013 Meep marked it as to-read

Dec 22, 2012 Mallory rated it 5 of 5 stars

Dec 01, 2012 Sylvia marked it as to-read

Nov 24, 2012 N.J. Nielsen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Nov 06, 2012 Stephanie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: mm

Aug 29, 2012 Mariana marked it as to-read

Aug 17, 2012 Michael rated it 2 of 5 stars

Jul 28, 2012 Tina marked it as to-read

Shelves: own-it, kindle-lendables

Jul 24, 2012 Neet marked it as to-read

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Shelves: own

Jun 23, 2012 Mary Ellen marked it as to-read

Jun 26, 2012 Maxine rated it 4 of 5 stars

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About Mel Bossa

Mel Bossa is the author of Split, a Lambda award finalist. Her third novel, Franky gets real, is a foreword Book award finalist. Her latest short story will be featured in the gay erotica anthology Tricks of the trade, edited by Jerry L. Wheeler (February 2013). Also look for her next novel, In his secret life, coming in 2013. Mel lives in Montreal with her partner, a visual artist, and their thre...more

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