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90th out of 380 books
—
1,083 voters
When You Don't See Me (Manhattan #4)
Being Invisible Is Nick Dunill's M.O. For nineteen years, he's been "the one who disappears" to his disapproving, Midwestern family. And now in New York City, a metropolis of anonymity built on not making eye contact, he feels right at home. Walking the streets of the Village, sneaking into dive bars, cleaning apartments, and trying to co-exist in a cramped apartment with...more
Paperback, 352 pages
Published
October 1st 2007
by Kensington
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This was a book I was eager to read because in so many ways at least on the surface it very closely resembles the novel I am currently writing. Like my protagonist, the story centers around a 19-year-old who leaves home because of the rejection and alienation he feels for being gay. He moves to a big city (in this case Manhattan, in my story Brian moves to San Francisco) in hopes of finding acceptance and the chance to be himself and live life fully. It also takes place in the recent past so the...more
This book took me completely by surprise. Not something I would have chosen for myself, I was intrigued from the first page and could not put it down. Told from the POV of Nick, aged 19, we watch his day to day life unfold as he does normal things like work, hunt for a new apartment, find roommates, etc. But there is so much more to it.
Nick comes out to his parents when he is about 16 and things change. He is tortured at school, his own brothers are no better and his dad can't accept that he is...more
Nick comes out to his parents when he is about 16 and things change. He is tortured at school, his own brothers are no better and his dad can't accept that he is...more
I don't normally read gay themed books, but then I wouldn't label this a gay themed book. Its a character study in which the lead character, 19 year old Nick happens to be gay. He's a likeable enough character. What caught my eye when I was browsing this book before buying it was a line from the first few pages, maybe it was the opening line, something about Nick stepping into a puddle of slush and how NYC can be harsh. It's been a few years since I read it, but I remember the feel of that line,...more
I feel like this was a bit of a miss for me. The story was essentially a year in the life of the main character. Although we tried to learn as he grew and became his own man in the big city nothing really felt complete. He had issues with his roommates: never really fully resolved. It was hinted more and more the trouble with his family and it seemed like he just started trying to heal from that. His gay family felt shunned or rejected by him when he seeks his independence... or thats what we ar...more
At first, I thought the book was going to get off to a good start but I got rather disappointed as I read it.
The main character “Nick” is a 19yo transplant from the mid-west and his life in the “big city”. I found him dull and uninteresting. I also found his situations and interactions with the books other characters to be rather “cliché.”
The author had a real good opportunity to delve into why Nick seemed so ambivalent to love, career or life but chose to write about mundane scenarios in Nick’s...more
The main character “Nick” is a 19yo transplant from the mid-west and his life in the “big city”. I found him dull and uninteresting. I also found his situations and interactions with the books other characters to be rather “cliché.”
The author had a real good opportunity to delve into why Nick seemed so ambivalent to love, career or life but chose to write about mundane scenarios in Nick’s...more
Again, where books like this when I was growing up??? This books captures what it's like to be 19 and finding your way anywhere let alone in newly post 9/11 NYC. I loved that the main characters sexuality is a given to him not a struggle--that relationship issues are ones any 19 year old would have. There are a lot of characters and they're all very attactrive and appealling--you want to spend time with them/know more about them. With its almost episodic feel and structure it almost feels like w...more
Jan 01, 2010
Elisa Ramblings
added it
The collaboration of the four authors who write under the pen-name of Timothy James Beck built a strange “New York” series: all the spectrum of gay experiences and this time was the time of the young adult, self-discovery journey of a young gay man dealing with the traumatic experience of the after 9/11.
At the beginning of the novel, the reader, or at least me, has the impression that Nick is older than he really is. He has a job, he is no more a student, he lives alone, better he shares a two...more
At the beginning of the novel, the reader, or at least me, has the impression that Nick is older than he really is. He has a job, he is no more a student, he lives alone, better he shares a two...more
Author Timothy James Beck, helmer of such gay page-turners as Someone Like You, He's The One, and I'm Your Man, has introduced yet another displaced Midwestern teen, Nick Dunhill, in his latest novel, When You Don't See Me.
Shunned by his family members, including a twin brother, Chuck, who would rather see their kin sent away than accept his being gay, Nick takes off for the Big Apple to live with his Uncle Blaine and Blaine's partner, Daniel. An appreciator of all things creative, Nick graduate...more
Shunned by his family members, including a twin brother, Chuck, who would rather see their kin sent away than accept his being gay, Nick takes off for the Big Apple to live with his Uncle Blaine and Blaine's partner, Daniel. An appreciator of all things creative, Nick graduate...more
It's not the worst book I have ever read but I must say that it is not part of the good-book-league too. I thought the story was all over the place. I really had no idea where Mr. Beck wanted to go with the story. Too many characters in one go, I struggled really hard to keep track with all the names -- and it wasn't even a detective story! I don't think I'll keep buying his books. I don't have the chemistry with him, I guess. If I don't have that chemistry with an author's work, I prefer to kee...more
2 likes · like · see review
The story of Nick, a young former art student trying to re-ground himself, rediscover his artistic drive and make his way in the world after 9/11 shook his world and life. This is not about self-pity, it is about self-awareness and coming to terms with one's flaws as well as one's strengths. Great storytelling.
Not nearly as fluffy as I had been lead to believe it would be. In fact, this story of a young gay man and his friends in NYC was, well, touching. Moving, even. I ended up reading it all in an evening, after picking it up on the fly at work - someone else had left it lying about on a desk. There were some shades of Peter Cameron's Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You, though I personally found Beck's book to be more enjoyable, if not better written in a literary sense. My biggest complaint is...more
Jul 06, 2010
Kevin
added it
Read... But abandoned.
I'm all for gay novels, but this story about a self-hating gay boy who is searching for love and an apartment in New York is just not getting any empathy or interest from me. Maybe it's just that I'm not 'there' anymore.
Make the protaganist a mid-30s suburban housewife, and I'd be all over it. :)
I'm all for gay novels, but this story about a self-hating gay boy who is searching for love and an apartment in New York is just not getting any empathy or interest from me. Maybe it's just that I'm not 'there' anymore.
Make the protaganist a mid-30s suburban housewife, and I'd be all over it. :)
1 like · like · see review
So many characters, but none of them easy to relate to. I didn't hate this, but I don't remember why I picked it up and I'm still not sure why I finished it - it's an easy read, I guess.
I loved that the writer simply told the story of this young man's life and it was realistic.
Sep 15, 2010
Dan
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
trouble-finishing,
gay-interest
I am stuck on this book, can't seem to make myself finish it.
Too many characters, boring story.
1 like · like · see review
i bought this book because the guy on the cover was hot but it turned out to be a pretty good read lol.
Timothy James Beck is one of my favorite authors, and he definitely didn't disappoint in this novel. It's all about getting out of being invisible to everyone and living your life, and I absolutely adore it.
i could associate with this charecters feelings throught the book.. i liked it, this was the first time i had read anything by this author
anything by tjb is a guilty pleasure for me. i stop everything and read them
Jul 03, 2008
Melynda
added it
These are really great beach books.
Wondrfully indulgent book.
May 22, 2013
Maegen Schmidt
marked it as to-read
May 12, 2013
J♥J
marked it as ext-series
May 11, 2013
Shannon
marked it as to-read
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“The strong times, the weak times-- they all come in waves. Trust me, none of us has it together.”
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Apr 21, 2013 01:48pm