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Perfect Score
Feckless, exasperating Alex Finch is a rich, handsome and talented singer/songwriter who longs for two things: a career as a professional rock singer, and to have his love for Sam Barrowdale reciprocated. But drifter Sam's two aims are simply to earn enough money to pay his sister's medical bills and to hide from the world his reading/writing and speech disability. At this time the word "dyslexia" is generally unknown so to most people he's just a "retard." From the severe knocks life's dealt him, Sam's developed a tough outer coating and he has no time for a spoilt, selfish guitar player. Despite his defects, Alex's love for Sam never wavers and when Sam unexpectedly disappears, Alex begins a somewhat bungling quest to find him, only to discover that Sam has a fearful enemy: Alex's powerful and influential yet sociopathic uncle. As Alex spirals downwards towards alcoholism, many questions need answering. Just why did Alex's evil uncle adopt him at age eleven yet deny him any affection? And what's the mystery behind Alex's father's death? Both seem to face unbeatable odds. Are they doomed to follow separate paths forever?
331 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 1, 2010
4 people are currently reading
304 people want to read
About the author
Susan Roebuck
5 books112 followersSusan Roebuck was born and bred in the soft south of the UK but was exported to Portugal after meeting her husband in London. She now lives overlooking the mighty Tagus River which is a wonderful source of inspiration.
She loves being in her adopted country and believes that Portugal has a huge heart, which the world should know more about. Portugal also doesn’t appear in many English-language novels and Susan hopes that, now, that will change.
"Joseph Barnaby" is about a farrier who, in order to avoid a deadly vendetta against him, finds solace in the island of Madeira.
“Forest Dancer” is her fourth novel but it is her second one set in Portugal (in the forests near Lisbon).
“Rising Tide” was her first book (third one published) set in Portugal, in a tiny fishing village on the beautiful, rugged Alentejo coast. One of the themes of this book is man against the sea.
They are both contemporary romance/suspense stories.
Her first novel was “Perfect Score”, set in 1960s USA and is a LGBT romance/suspense covering many social issues of the time – including having to cope with dyslexia.
“Hewhay Hall” is a dark fantasy which won the EPIC (Electronic Publishing Industry Coalition) Award in 2013 in their horror category.
Do pop over to any of her social media sites and say hello. Susan loves to hear from readers.
She loves being in her adopted country and believes that Portugal has a huge heart, which the world should know more about. Portugal also doesn’t appear in many English-language novels and Susan hopes that, now, that will change.
"Joseph Barnaby" is about a farrier who, in order to avoid a deadly vendetta against him, finds solace in the island of Madeira.
“Forest Dancer” is her fourth novel but it is her second one set in Portugal (in the forests near Lisbon).
“Rising Tide” was her first book (third one published) set in Portugal, in a tiny fishing village on the beautiful, rugged Alentejo coast. One of the themes of this book is man against the sea.
They are both contemporary romance/suspense stories.
Her first novel was “Perfect Score”, set in 1960s USA and is a LGBT romance/suspense covering many social issues of the time – including having to cope with dyslexia.
“Hewhay Hall” is a dark fantasy which won the EPIC (Electronic Publishing Industry Coalition) Award in 2013 in their horror category.
Do pop over to any of her social media sites and say hello. Susan loves to hear from readers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
June 21, 2017
Romantic, reflective and heartwarming!
In this novel by Roebuck, she transports us back to the 1960s to the rugged terrain of the dusty prairies where life is hard; blood, sweat, and tears are the norm; and small-minded mentality surrounding politics, economics, special needs, and sexuality is rampant.
The characters are troubled, unique, and endearing. And the plot, which is ultimately about life, loss, survival, family, morality and love has a lot of subplots and tackles a lot of issues, including industrial pollution, pharmaceutical negligence, homelessness, abuse and sexual orientation.
This is a very complex, intriguing story that definitely has a “Brokeback Mountain” feel with that deep, enduring, underlying bond and love between the two main characters. And even though Roebuck did an exceptional job of writing the narration and dialogue true to the characters natures and time period, at times I did feel it caused a little disruption in my connection to the story and the overall flow.
Thank you to Susan Roebuck and Faye Rogers for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
In this novel by Roebuck, she transports us back to the 1960s to the rugged terrain of the dusty prairies where life is hard; blood, sweat, and tears are the norm; and small-minded mentality surrounding politics, economics, special needs, and sexuality is rampant.
The characters are troubled, unique, and endearing. And the plot, which is ultimately about life, loss, survival, family, morality and love has a lot of subplots and tackles a lot of issues, including industrial pollution, pharmaceutical negligence, homelessness, abuse and sexual orientation.
This is a very complex, intriguing story that definitely has a “Brokeback Mountain” feel with that deep, enduring, underlying bond and love between the two main characters. And even though Roebuck did an exceptional job of writing the narration and dialogue true to the characters natures and time period, at times I did feel it caused a little disruption in my connection to the story and the overall flow.
Thank you to Susan Roebuck and Faye Rogers for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
January 2, 2016
I'm usually a fast reader, but it took me a while to get through 'Perfect Score' by Susan Roebuck; I consider it time well spent. The style, content and complexity of the story dictated that each page be read and digested before proceeding to the next, otherwise, no compass in the world would have been able to help me find my way back. A pet peeve of mine is when information is repeated several times. I am pleased that Susan Roebuck did not do that. She explained something once and expected me to remember it, rather than repeating it a few more times just in case I didn't.
The vernacular used in the story added lots of local color. Words and phrases such as “A current of bad breath swept over them carrying with it the aroma of undigested raw bull hide with the hair still on.”; or “You know what you look like?...A mule-deer in meltdown.” placed me right in the middle of Nowhere, Oklahoma. The references to the 60s and 70s time period such as “Car 54 where are you?”, 'Midnight Cowboy', Simon and Garfunkel, and Carlos Santana led me even deeper.
The characters In 'Perfect Score' are superbly crafted, each evoking different, but essential emotions which had me embroiled in the story from the beginning, but
Sam influenced me the most. Life knocked him down so much that anyone of lesser moral quality would have given up, but not Sam. Not only did he overcome disparity, he rose like the Phoenix from the ashes. Sam was an amazing combination of strength, intelligence, gentleness and forthrightness; in the face of injustice, whether for a person or an animal, Sam was there on his white horse ready to do battle.
Alex was a unique blend of musical genius, stubbornness and detachment. However, Sam possessed more direction in his little finger than Alex did in his whole body. Yet he offered Sam what he would have not accepted from anyone else in the world; he loved him madly, blindly and completely. “No one had ever got under the fence and rocked his world like Alex had.”
Reading 'Perfect Score' was quite a moving experience for me. It brought to mind several life lessons, especially one in particular: whatever you sow, you reap. Alex and Sam paid their debt of responsibility and sowed consideration, kindness and compassion, even though it was not reciprocated by others. In the end, they reaped their reward by finding happiness together. In my opinion, this book deserves a 'perfect score'.
NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
The vernacular used in the story added lots of local color. Words and phrases such as “A current of bad breath swept over them carrying with it the aroma of undigested raw bull hide with the hair still on.”; or “You know what you look like?...A mule-deer in meltdown.” placed me right in the middle of Nowhere, Oklahoma. The references to the 60s and 70s time period such as “Car 54 where are you?”, 'Midnight Cowboy', Simon and Garfunkel, and Carlos Santana led me even deeper.
The characters In 'Perfect Score' are superbly crafted, each evoking different, but essential emotions which had me embroiled in the story from the beginning, but
Sam influenced me the most. Life knocked him down so much that anyone of lesser moral quality would have given up, but not Sam. Not only did he overcome disparity, he rose like the Phoenix from the ashes. Sam was an amazing combination of strength, intelligence, gentleness and forthrightness; in the face of injustice, whether for a person or an animal, Sam was there on his white horse ready to do battle.
Alex was a unique blend of musical genius, stubbornness and detachment. However, Sam possessed more direction in his little finger than Alex did in his whole body. Yet he offered Sam what he would have not accepted from anyone else in the world; he loved him madly, blindly and completely. “No one had ever got under the fence and rocked his world like Alex had.”
Reading 'Perfect Score' was quite a moving experience for me. It brought to mind several life lessons, especially one in particular: whatever you sow, you reap. Alex and Sam paid their debt of responsibility and sowed consideration, kindness and compassion, even though it was not reciprocated by others. In the end, they reaped their reward by finding happiness together. In my opinion, this book deserves a 'perfect score'.
NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
February 3, 2011
When Alex and Sam first meet, Alex is a bored rich brat waiting in his uncle’s fancy car, and Sam is a ragged street kid collecting cardboard. Even during this first scene, their characterization starts, in an amazingly subtle and yet unmistakable way: Alex is a dreamer who waits passively for what life dishes out for him, shaping what plays before his eyes until it meets his own perception and the way he wants his world to be. Sam is a doer, going about an impossible task like pulling a cart that is heavier than he simply because it’s a thing that needs to be done, radiating a stubborn determination to make his world accomodate his needs, if not this way, then another. What amazed me most was how I, the reader, learned these facts about the boys. All the information was conveyed in the tone of Alex’s voice, his thoughts and the way he perceived Sam – and I was hooked from the start. The narrative was “showing, not telling” to perfection, and not only during the first paragraph, but kept up through the entire book. It continued in the chapter-wise change of perspective. Alex, formally educated and articulate, tells his parts from his first person point of view. Sam’s parts are narrow third person, which fits him since Sam is almost barred from normal social interactions by his speaking and writing disability, and communicates mostly through his actions.
After their first encounter, Sam’s and Alex’s ways part for several years. Although they move in entirely different circles, there is still a connection. Sam, who has long forgotten about the rich boy, unwittingly works for Alex’s mother and stepfather and also butts heads several times with Alex’s uncle Timothy Finch. In contrast, Sam stars in Alex’s imagination for years, first as Alex’s invisible friend and later as his dream lover, although Alex doesn’t know the first thing about Sam and is sure he won’t never meet him again. Still, when Alex learns that Sam is right there at his stepfather’s ranch, he spares no effort to leave an impression with the shy, taciturn laborer. I kept turning pages, impatient for them to get back together, always kept on the edge by the fact that any little twist of fate could bring them further apart. When they finally meet again, it is pure coincidence and yet inevitable since Sam’s hut on the ranch of Alex’s stepfather is the place where their own decisions have taken them, although Uncle Tim with his deeds of darkness unconsciously and certainly unintentionally pushed them along.
The characters are incredibly complex; I’ve hardly ever come across two so flawed and tortured heroes. Alex in particular isn’t easy to take to. For a big portion of the book, I alternately pitied him or held him in contempt. He’s the very example of the “poor rich boy”, grown up with all his worldly needs met and still so loveless and lonely that he must resort to an invisible friend for company. Cowering before his uncle, afraid almost of his own shadow, Alex nevertheless cheats his way around the business class his uncle wants him to take, studying music instead, since all he ever wanted to be is a musician. Selfish to a fault, gullible, sly and weak before his uncle’s oppressive personality, Alex still goes about his goal secretively, almost casually becoming a singer/songwriter superstar in the process. And Alex never wavers in his love for Sam. It’s beautiful to see how after a long and painful process of growing up he finally finds, with Sam’s help, the inner and outer strength to take charge of his own life.
Sam, on the other hand, is an incredible person I fell in love with on the spot. Running away from an abusive stepfather at age seven, he was used to fighting for his life every day. Forced to fend for himself with hard bodily work since he was twelve, Sam gathered enormous knowledge about chemistry, pharmacy, herb medicine, farming, animal husbandry almost in passing, making him a self-taught practical universal genius. But he stutters so badly that he can barely communicate, and he is dyslexic, both facts making him a retard in the eyes of his contemporaries. Thus he is denied approval and even reward for his achievements, which makes him distrustful against almost everybody. He trusts and loves only his physically handicapped sister, who he has saved from a state-owned asylum and put into a private nursing home which he pays for all on his own. In turn, his sister loves him back unconditionally and trusts him blindly. Alex is the only person who manages to get behind Sam’s thick walls; it’s Alex’s music which first melts Sam’s heart, and later Alex’s brash refusal to accept Sam’s rejection, Alex’s blind, mad love for him. Slowly, gradually Sam comes to care for Alex and to trust him, to a point where he finally manages to accept Alex’s help and to lean on him. Those two were fated to be together against all odds, those two dysfunctional men who compliment each other in a way that neither makes sense alone.
But not only the main characters, also the secondary cast were distinguishable, well-elaborated characters. Even Alex’s uncle Tim, a psychopath if there ever was one, was given character traits and motivations which, although they didn’t exculpate him, at least made his actions understandable. And I totally loved Sam’s sister Amy, who is as stubborn and determined as her brother at three times the sass.
Perfect Score isn’t an easy read. It’s set during a hard time, in the late 1960′s, and people’s lives were hard back then. The narrative voices, either Alex’s or Sam’s, make no big deal of the hardships, though. Things are as they are. People get drunk and kill other people, children get abused or become disabled due to poverty and poor healt care. The poor die early, the strong feed off the weak, and money makes everything possible. The intensity comes with the factual tone of voice, and the realism brought me right in the middle of Silver Creek, anywhere. Hints and references at the time, like musicians, clothes, hairstyles, mannerisms of speech further added to the timely feeling. I was there with them, on the pastures and in the cow barns, in the dingy bars and smoke-filled clubs. I suffered with both Sam and Alex through their darkest hours and rose with them to their bright, shining future.
Read the full review at reviewsbyjessewave.com
After their first encounter, Sam’s and Alex’s ways part for several years. Although they move in entirely different circles, there is still a connection. Sam, who has long forgotten about the rich boy, unwittingly works for Alex’s mother and stepfather and also butts heads several times with Alex’s uncle Timothy Finch. In contrast, Sam stars in Alex’s imagination for years, first as Alex’s invisible friend and later as his dream lover, although Alex doesn’t know the first thing about Sam and is sure he won’t never meet him again. Still, when Alex learns that Sam is right there at his stepfather’s ranch, he spares no effort to leave an impression with the shy, taciturn laborer. I kept turning pages, impatient for them to get back together, always kept on the edge by the fact that any little twist of fate could bring them further apart. When they finally meet again, it is pure coincidence and yet inevitable since Sam’s hut on the ranch of Alex’s stepfather is the place where their own decisions have taken them, although Uncle Tim with his deeds of darkness unconsciously and certainly unintentionally pushed them along.
The characters are incredibly complex; I’ve hardly ever come across two so flawed and tortured heroes. Alex in particular isn’t easy to take to. For a big portion of the book, I alternately pitied him or held him in contempt. He’s the very example of the “poor rich boy”, grown up with all his worldly needs met and still so loveless and lonely that he must resort to an invisible friend for company. Cowering before his uncle, afraid almost of his own shadow, Alex nevertheless cheats his way around the business class his uncle wants him to take, studying music instead, since all he ever wanted to be is a musician. Selfish to a fault, gullible, sly and weak before his uncle’s oppressive personality, Alex still goes about his goal secretively, almost casually becoming a singer/songwriter superstar in the process. And Alex never wavers in his love for Sam. It’s beautiful to see how after a long and painful process of growing up he finally finds, with Sam’s help, the inner and outer strength to take charge of his own life.
Sam, on the other hand, is an incredible person I fell in love with on the spot. Running away from an abusive stepfather at age seven, he was used to fighting for his life every day. Forced to fend for himself with hard bodily work since he was twelve, Sam gathered enormous knowledge about chemistry, pharmacy, herb medicine, farming, animal husbandry almost in passing, making him a self-taught practical universal genius. But he stutters so badly that he can barely communicate, and he is dyslexic, both facts making him a retard in the eyes of his contemporaries. Thus he is denied approval and even reward for his achievements, which makes him distrustful against almost everybody. He trusts and loves only his physically handicapped sister, who he has saved from a state-owned asylum and put into a private nursing home which he pays for all on his own. In turn, his sister loves him back unconditionally and trusts him blindly. Alex is the only person who manages to get behind Sam’s thick walls; it’s Alex’s music which first melts Sam’s heart, and later Alex’s brash refusal to accept Sam’s rejection, Alex’s blind, mad love for him. Slowly, gradually Sam comes to care for Alex and to trust him, to a point where he finally manages to accept Alex’s help and to lean on him. Those two were fated to be together against all odds, those two dysfunctional men who compliment each other in a way that neither makes sense alone.
But not only the main characters, also the secondary cast were distinguishable, well-elaborated characters. Even Alex’s uncle Tim, a psychopath if there ever was one, was given character traits and motivations which, although they didn’t exculpate him, at least made his actions understandable. And I totally loved Sam’s sister Amy, who is as stubborn and determined as her brother at three times the sass.
Perfect Score isn’t an easy read. It’s set during a hard time, in the late 1960′s, and people’s lives were hard back then. The narrative voices, either Alex’s or Sam’s, make no big deal of the hardships, though. Things are as they are. People get drunk and kill other people, children get abused or become disabled due to poverty and poor healt care. The poor die early, the strong feed off the weak, and money makes everything possible. The intensity comes with the factual tone of voice, and the realism brought me right in the middle of Silver Creek, anywhere. Hints and references at the time, like musicians, clothes, hairstyles, mannerisms of speech further added to the timely feeling. I was there with them, on the pastures and in the cow barns, in the dingy bars and smoke-filled clubs. I suffered with both Sam and Alex through their darkest hours and rose with them to their bright, shining future.
Read the full review at reviewsbyjessewave.com
May 3, 2011
Perfect Score is a difficult book to read and it’s not entirely enjoyable. The story is complex and the characters three dimensional with strengths and weaknesses, all against a backdrop of the 1960s when attitudes were very different about a lot of things. The story takes a real chance in introducing a rather unlikable main character who I never really warmed up to despite his later attempts at change. The other character’s speech defects should endear him to readers but I found myself pitying him more than anything, which creates a second uncomfortable situation while reading when combined with a loathsome other half. In the end the slow pace and questionable characters left me with a bad feeling and sorry I’d read this.
The plot of the story is very character driven, but by the end I wasn’t exactly sure what the point of the story was. Alex and Sam meet when they are very young and come from completely opposite sides of life. Alex lives a very sheltered, privileged life with his uncle, the owner of a successful pharmaceutical company. Sam is a dyslexic homeless boy living on the streets trying to avoid authorities and other horrible outcomes. Over the years the two meet and bounce off each other as Alex has a crush on Sam yet can’t quite express it. When the two finally meet they can’t be together as Alex has a baby on the way with his singing partner. The epilogue is meant to give a glimpse into how these two men lived their lives apart but found happiness.
Before getting into the disappointing epilogue the characters themselves are difficult to warm up to. Alex spends the majority of the story as a weak willed, spoiled brat that constantly lies and manipulates to get his way. Not very well though as his uncle always finds out and usually punishes Alex by taking away his money thus forcing Alex to try to get the money from others instead of actually standing on his own. Alex never really grows up from the spoiled, willful, scared boy that is he for most of the story. He finally manages to support Sam in some minor ways towards the end of the book but he comes across as simply wanting someone that he can’t have. He’s sensitive to Sam’s speaking condition, which is perhaps the one bright point to Alex’s otherwise rather disagreeable personality. Unfortunately all of this combined to make him very unlikable.
Likewise Sam is a difficult character. On the one hand he’s gone through so many traumas and hardship that you want things to finally go right yet right up to the very last page nothing really connects well for Sam. He’s used and abused for the majority of the story, going through one horrific problem or accident after the next and there is never the feeling that he finally “wins” and finally gets the great life he deserves. Instead he settles for something that is supposed to be good enough considering the time period and attitudes. I wanted to connect to him and feel for the problems he’s experiencing yet there is no satisfying pay off that everything works out in the end, because really it doesn’t.
This leads to my biggest problem with the story which is the epilogue. Now reader tastes will vary but I found it incredibly depressing. Not only does Alex never stand up for his desires until (literally) the last page but Alex has raised another spoiled, willful, ignorant boy. His son is nearly an exact replica of how Alex was and Alex is surrounded by the various characters that never really cared about Alex at all, just what he could do with them. So he spends his life away from Sam and with all these various people because it’s his responsibility – I’m guessing – which I guess is supposed to show that Alex has grown up. Yet all I see is once again Alex gave in to his weak personality and did exactly what everyone wanted him to do since it was the easiest path.
For all the various action that happens, the pace is somewhat slow though it does pick up noticeably in several different areas. The narrative alternates between Sam’s third person perspective and Alex’s first person, which can be somewhat jarring sometimes. Sam’s stilted way of speaking is awkward and not easy to get into a flow of reading. However I will say this without a doubt gives Sam a lot of texture and easy recognition. He’s always distinct and stands out, which is one of the good parts about the story. The writing is not exactly smooth with numerous spelling and editing mistakes. That importance will vary from reader to reader.
Ultimately this story just didn’t work for me because I didn’t care for either main character and the writing couldn’t compensate for that. Other readers may like this more if they can really connect to the main characters, although I think the ending is far from satisfying. I may be alone in my opinions but I wouldn’t recommend Perfect Score.
The plot of the story is very character driven, but by the end I wasn’t exactly sure what the point of the story was. Alex and Sam meet when they are very young and come from completely opposite sides of life. Alex lives a very sheltered, privileged life with his uncle, the owner of a successful pharmaceutical company. Sam is a dyslexic homeless boy living on the streets trying to avoid authorities and other horrible outcomes. Over the years the two meet and bounce off each other as Alex has a crush on Sam yet can’t quite express it. When the two finally meet they can’t be together as Alex has a baby on the way with his singing partner. The epilogue is meant to give a glimpse into how these two men lived their lives apart but found happiness.
Before getting into the disappointing epilogue the characters themselves are difficult to warm up to. Alex spends the majority of the story as a weak willed, spoiled brat that constantly lies and manipulates to get his way. Not very well though as his uncle always finds out and usually punishes Alex by taking away his money thus forcing Alex to try to get the money from others instead of actually standing on his own. Alex never really grows up from the spoiled, willful, scared boy that is he for most of the story. He finally manages to support Sam in some minor ways towards the end of the book but he comes across as simply wanting someone that he can’t have. He’s sensitive to Sam’s speaking condition, which is perhaps the one bright point to Alex’s otherwise rather disagreeable personality. Unfortunately all of this combined to make him very unlikable.
Likewise Sam is a difficult character. On the one hand he’s gone through so many traumas and hardship that you want things to finally go right yet right up to the very last page nothing really connects well for Sam. He’s used and abused for the majority of the story, going through one horrific problem or accident after the next and there is never the feeling that he finally “wins” and finally gets the great life he deserves. Instead he settles for something that is supposed to be good enough considering the time period and attitudes. I wanted to connect to him and feel for the problems he’s experiencing yet there is no satisfying pay off that everything works out in the end, because really it doesn’t.
This leads to my biggest problem with the story which is the epilogue. Now reader tastes will vary but I found it incredibly depressing. Not only does Alex never stand up for his desires until (literally) the last page but Alex has raised another spoiled, willful, ignorant boy. His son is nearly an exact replica of how Alex was and Alex is surrounded by the various characters that never really cared about Alex at all, just what he could do with them. So he spends his life away from Sam and with all these various people because it’s his responsibility – I’m guessing – which I guess is supposed to show that Alex has grown up. Yet all I see is once again Alex gave in to his weak personality and did exactly what everyone wanted him to do since it was the easiest path.
For all the various action that happens, the pace is somewhat slow though it does pick up noticeably in several different areas. The narrative alternates between Sam’s third person perspective and Alex’s first person, which can be somewhat jarring sometimes. Sam’s stilted way of speaking is awkward and not easy to get into a flow of reading. However I will say this without a doubt gives Sam a lot of texture and easy recognition. He’s always distinct and stands out, which is one of the good parts about the story. The writing is not exactly smooth with numerous spelling and editing mistakes. That importance will vary from reader to reader.
Ultimately this story just didn’t work for me because I didn’t care for either main character and the writing couldn’t compensate for that. Other readers may like this more if they can really connect to the main characters, although I think the ending is far from satisfying. I may be alone in my opinions but I wouldn’t recommend Perfect Score.
July 23, 2012
Personally, I found this to be a very strange book, with a very odd ending, and while I know others appreciated the authors unusual style, I can't say it a style that works for me.
It is the mid 1960's and Sam is a homeless man, living from hand to mouth, and taking odd jobs where ever he can find them, with his earnings all going towards keeping his disabled sister in a community home. Sam himself suffers from at least one form of speech impediment (stuttering), as well as dyslexia and synaethesia.
Alex, on the other hand, seemingly comes from a wealthy background, at least when he lives with his uncle. He is supposed to follow his uncle in to the family's business, yet at heart, he a musician struggling to find fame.
Although both men are about 20 for most of this book, they first meet when they are in their early teens, while Sam lived on the streets and Alex lay in the back of his uncle's limo with a broken leg.
Unknowingly, both dream about the other for years and when they finally meet again, their worlds start to unravel.
And unravel they do. Honestly, I am struggling how to summarise what happens. All I can really say, is that this is a story of conspiracies, cover-ups, ruthless greed, drugs and sheer survival. It is hard to tell at times what is reality, what is conspiracy. and what is merely the hopes and dreams of these two men. Facts are rarely clearly outlined, with much being only hinted at. Sam clearly sees what is going on, but due to his disabilities, has difficulty conveying it. Alex, on the other hand, is rather naive and overly trusting, and has a hard time seeing through the deceptions... Or does he?
I think in the end, this is a story of survival. Of making sacrifices and compromises whether they be ethical or moral issues or personal happiness merely to survive. This doesn't really have a HEA ending, but it does, perhaps, allow for the possibility of one.
It is the mid 1960's and Sam is a homeless man, living from hand to mouth, and taking odd jobs where ever he can find them, with his earnings all going towards keeping his disabled sister in a community home. Sam himself suffers from at least one form of speech impediment (stuttering), as well as dyslexia and synaethesia.
Alex, on the other hand, seemingly comes from a wealthy background, at least when he lives with his uncle. He is supposed to follow his uncle in to the family's business, yet at heart, he a musician struggling to find fame.
Although both men are about 20 for most of this book, they first meet when they are in their early teens, while Sam lived on the streets and Alex lay in the back of his uncle's limo with a broken leg.
Unknowingly, both dream about the other for years and when they finally meet again, their worlds start to unravel.
And unravel they do. Honestly, I am struggling how to summarise what happens. All I can really say, is that this is a story of conspiracies, cover-ups, ruthless greed, drugs and sheer survival. It is hard to tell at times what is reality, what is conspiracy. and what is merely the hopes and dreams of these two men. Facts are rarely clearly outlined, with much being only hinted at. Sam clearly sees what is going on, but due to his disabilities, has difficulty conveying it. Alex, on the other hand, is rather naive and overly trusting, and has a hard time seeing through the deceptions... Or does he?
I think in the end, this is a story of survival. Of making sacrifices and compromises whether they be ethical or moral issues or personal happiness merely to survive. This doesn't really have a HEA ending, but it does, perhaps, allow for the possibility of one.
June 26, 2017
3.5 Stars.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, quite honestly I think I approached it as yet another ‘gay’ romance as in boy meets boy and it’s all very predictable. Well Perfect Score has a lot more depth than that.
This is set around the 1960’s in small town USA, in those days a male relationship was viewed entirely differently to now. Ultimately this is a love story where both parties ‘meet’ but there is never a good time for things to develop. Will there ever be a moment that these two get a break!?
Told from alternate viewpoints .. Sam is what I can only describe as an unfortunate fellow. Raised on the streets, seen things and experienced things a youngster should never have to deal with. He also has an affliction with his speech and comprehension. In those days he was branded a ‘retard’ whereas now the world understands dyslexia. At times I felt pure pity for him as he struggles with life, then he will show a much tougher side.
Alex is the polar opposite, spoilt brat who has never known any difficulties but somehow they attract each other as their paths cross.
It’s not a book to be read quickly, it does take some perseverance to maintain either concentration or any emotion for the characters. There is a lot going on and during the story we are introduced to the boys as they try to unravel their sexuality while coping with other family members. It’s nicely written and I was intrigued sufficiently to continue to the end. Personally I think it’s one of those books that as soon as you finish it the questions begin to form in your mind which shows it penetrated a lot further than I initially thought. It would probably benefit from a second read. Overall a story of hope, love and a thought-provoking theme.
I received a copy to read and review voluntarily from the author and Faye Rodgers, thank you.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, quite honestly I think I approached it as yet another ‘gay’ romance as in boy meets boy and it’s all very predictable. Well Perfect Score has a lot more depth than that.
This is set around the 1960’s in small town USA, in those days a male relationship was viewed entirely differently to now. Ultimately this is a love story where both parties ‘meet’ but there is never a good time for things to develop. Will there ever be a moment that these two get a break!?
Told from alternate viewpoints .. Sam is what I can only describe as an unfortunate fellow. Raised on the streets, seen things and experienced things a youngster should never have to deal with. He also has an affliction with his speech and comprehension. In those days he was branded a ‘retard’ whereas now the world understands dyslexia. At times I felt pure pity for him as he struggles with life, then he will show a much tougher side.
Alex is the polar opposite, spoilt brat who has never known any difficulties but somehow they attract each other as their paths cross.
It’s not a book to be read quickly, it does take some perseverance to maintain either concentration or any emotion for the characters. There is a lot going on and during the story we are introduced to the boys as they try to unravel their sexuality while coping with other family members. It’s nicely written and I was intrigued sufficiently to continue to the end. Personally I think it’s one of those books that as soon as you finish it the questions begin to form in your mind which shows it penetrated a lot further than I initially thought. It would probably benefit from a second read. Overall a story of hope, love and a thought-provoking theme.
I received a copy to read and review voluntarily from the author and Faye Rodgers, thank you.
May 18, 2011
I am going to enthuse. This–I know from people who complain that I’m too critical–is a rare thing, but I was so impressed by this debut novel I can’t not. It’s not perfect–and I can’t give it five stars for reasons I’ll explain later, but I’ll say right out that I consider it a must read and it has my highest recommendation. I will discuss plot points, so beware of spoilers.
The story hangs on either side of the Speak Its Name cut off of Stonewall. It starts in 1963 and goes on for twenty or so years.
It’s easy to get tripped up on “remembered history.” From experience I’ve found that writing recent history can be a lot harder than writing about several hundred years ago. It’s easy to take stereotype and run with them, overdo the slang and the product references. Despite a teenaged Alex being full of “cool slang” in the first chapter, it doesn’t wallow in nostalgia and product placement.
It’s absolutely not an m/m novel. And for a debut novel this is very, very impressive writing. Don’t make the mistake that “literary” means “I don’t understand a bloody word of this.” It’s readable without being coy or self-indulgent and you’ll be sucked in from the first chapter. The homosexual aspect–whilst actually being the core of the book isn’t the theme. It’s a love story, and the gender of the people involved doesn’t matter as much as the twisting and sometimes heart wrenching path they make while managing to not be together for one reason or another.
The story is told in three points of view. Alex’s story is in first person, Sam’s is in third, and there’s a final three chapter epilogue in first person by another character that I won’t list here. Don’t be put off by the rather literary device of mixing and matching the points of view–it works and it couldn’t work any other way. Alex’s mind is bright and colourful, full of self-indulgence, a selfish, rather spoiled young man who thinks more of himself than he has any right to be, and it’s his maturation that winds around the plot as he learns to care about other people instead of satisfying his own needs. Sam however is considered a “retard” — dyslexia was not as well-known a disorder as it is today, and anyone hearing his speak or seeing the way he interacts with the world would have thought he was educationally sub-normal. To have written his point of view in first person would have tripped this book up, and I think the readers would have been impatient with the way Sam stumbled over the words, even in his head. Doing it in third cushions the reader a little–just enough–from this mental and vocal confusion.
What wasn’t really needed then, in my opinion, was to be told at the beginning of each chapter, which young man it referred to–as only a few words in would have made it clear.
There’s a lot of layers to this book too. It’s not at all just a case of boy meets boy, boy loses boy, boy finds boy–but then I’ve already said it’s not a romance. (not a tragedy either, but that’s all I will say about the ending.) As the blurb suggests there’s a hell of a lot going on even without the tortuous way the young men never seem to catch a break. Even for a full-sized novel, it covers a lot of ground, has a lot of plot and I loved that, it really gave me plenty to get my teeth into.
What also impressed me was the sheer scale of the research involved. Not only does the history feel right–and that’s some doing in an era that went from the Beatles to the Space Age and into our technological era–but there’s dyslexia, chemistry, biochemistry, farming, mining, popular music and so much more, and if there was a bum note anywhere, I didn’t spot it.
Negatives, yes, there were a couple. There was a section–one of Sam’s–which was thumpingly subtitled “(ten days earlier)” and that jarred me. I wouldn’t have been so dim that I couldn’t have worked out we were skipping back to see what had happened to Sam at a slightly earlier point where we’d left Alex’s section. I was also a little bemused about the conflict Liza came up with, there didn’t seem that enough time had passed for her to be as sure as she was about that particular thing. (attempting to reduce spoilers here, but it’s difficult, :D )
There were a few–very few–typos here and there, but not enough to pull me out.
The ending–well, I absolutely don’t want to spoil, but I am pretty sure that (unless you are rabid about the falling into the arms and the HEA) you won’t be disappointed. The real kicker comes half way through the epilogue, which had me sobbing like a baby. I was railing at the end of the book proper and hating what had happened, but the explanation of the ending, and the way that it was concluded at the “proper” end was entirely right, and said buckets about the characterisation of Sam and the real coming of age of Alex.
There aren’t many books in this genre of ours that have me mulling over them after I’ve closed the book but this really got under my skin and it’s been eating away at me in the same way that “The Catch Trap” or “Brokeback Mountain” did.
Don’t miss this, because you’ll miss a real treat. I can’t imagine what Ms Roebuck will come up with next, but I’ll be first in line.
The story hangs on either side of the Speak Its Name cut off of Stonewall. It starts in 1963 and goes on for twenty or so years.
It’s easy to get tripped up on “remembered history.” From experience I’ve found that writing recent history can be a lot harder than writing about several hundred years ago. It’s easy to take stereotype and run with them, overdo the slang and the product references. Despite a teenaged Alex being full of “cool slang” in the first chapter, it doesn’t wallow in nostalgia and product placement.
It’s absolutely not an m/m novel. And for a debut novel this is very, very impressive writing. Don’t make the mistake that “literary” means “I don’t understand a bloody word of this.” It’s readable without being coy or self-indulgent and you’ll be sucked in from the first chapter. The homosexual aspect–whilst actually being the core of the book isn’t the theme. It’s a love story, and the gender of the people involved doesn’t matter as much as the twisting and sometimes heart wrenching path they make while managing to not be together for one reason or another.
The story is told in three points of view. Alex’s story is in first person, Sam’s is in third, and there’s a final three chapter epilogue in first person by another character that I won’t list here. Don’t be put off by the rather literary device of mixing and matching the points of view–it works and it couldn’t work any other way. Alex’s mind is bright and colourful, full of self-indulgence, a selfish, rather spoiled young man who thinks more of himself than he has any right to be, and it’s his maturation that winds around the plot as he learns to care about other people instead of satisfying his own needs. Sam however is considered a “retard” — dyslexia was not as well-known a disorder as it is today, and anyone hearing his speak or seeing the way he interacts with the world would have thought he was educationally sub-normal. To have written his point of view in first person would have tripped this book up, and I think the readers would have been impatient with the way Sam stumbled over the words, even in his head. Doing it in third cushions the reader a little–just enough–from this mental and vocal confusion.
What wasn’t really needed then, in my opinion, was to be told at the beginning of each chapter, which young man it referred to–as only a few words in would have made it clear.
There’s a lot of layers to this book too. It’s not at all just a case of boy meets boy, boy loses boy, boy finds boy–but then I’ve already said it’s not a romance. (not a tragedy either, but that’s all I will say about the ending.) As the blurb suggests there’s a hell of a lot going on even without the tortuous way the young men never seem to catch a break. Even for a full-sized novel, it covers a lot of ground, has a lot of plot and I loved that, it really gave me plenty to get my teeth into.
What also impressed me was the sheer scale of the research involved. Not only does the history feel right–and that’s some doing in an era that went from the Beatles to the Space Age and into our technological era–but there’s dyslexia, chemistry, biochemistry, farming, mining, popular music and so much more, and if there was a bum note anywhere, I didn’t spot it.
Negatives, yes, there were a couple. There was a section–one of Sam’s–which was thumpingly subtitled “(ten days earlier)” and that jarred me. I wouldn’t have been so dim that I couldn’t have worked out we were skipping back to see what had happened to Sam at a slightly earlier point where we’d left Alex’s section. I was also a little bemused about the conflict Liza came up with, there didn’t seem that enough time had passed for her to be as sure as she was about that particular thing. (attempting to reduce spoilers here, but it’s difficult, :D )
There were a few–very few–typos here and there, but not enough to pull me out.
The ending–well, I absolutely don’t want to spoil, but I am pretty sure that (unless you are rabid about the falling into the arms and the HEA) you won’t be disappointed. The real kicker comes half way through the epilogue, which had me sobbing like a baby. I was railing at the end of the book proper and hating what had happened, but the explanation of the ending, and the way that it was concluded at the “proper” end was entirely right, and said buckets about the characterisation of Sam and the real coming of age of Alex.
There aren’t many books in this genre of ours that have me mulling over them after I’ve closed the book but this really got under my skin and it’s been eating away at me in the same way that “The Catch Trap” or “Brokeback Mountain” did.
Don’t miss this, because you’ll miss a real treat. I can’t imagine what Ms Roebuck will come up with next, but I’ll be first in line.
November 7, 2010
Original review found at The Romance Reviews.
Perfect score is a sweet M/M romance that will appeal to all lovers of the genre and will change the way that you look a gay romance novels...
Alex Finch doesn't know what he's going to do. He wants to be a rock star but the rich uncle who's been taking care of him for the last 6 years wants him to go into the family business. He also wouldn't mind being loved by the man who's starred in his fantasies since the first day they met about 5 years before.
Sam Barrowdale only wants to survive. He's lived on the streets pretty much since he was about 7 years old, so he knows how to do just that. He has been teased unmercifully all his life because of his speech and reading impediments, so he doesn't trust easily. He needs to make enough money to support his sick sister and to keep her in the home where they are taking care of her. Other than that, he really doesn't get a chance to think about or want anything else. They two men meet again in 1968 and begin down a path that will have them reaching for each other and trying to be together for years to come. However, fate seems to working against them at every turn, and when they finally get a chance to be together, it may be too late.
This is non-erotic gay romance that is more like a saga. It is set in the late 1960's into the 70's. There is little to no sex in the book, but it really didn't need it. There is so much going on in the novel; there are family secrets, corporate wrong-doings, alcohol abuse, unplanned pregnancies, and the list goes on and on. It really does have something for everyone, but underneath it all, you have two young men who are willing to risk everything to be together.
The book was written in shifting first-person views, going back and forth between Alex and Sam, but unlike most books I've read that have done this, the author tells you who is speaking at the beginning of each chapter, so you are not left guessing who is speaking throughout the entire scene. I really liked the way this was done because it gave two viewpoints on the same situation, and it was interesting to see how each man interpreted some of the events that happened in the story. I must say that this story is very heavy, but it is so intriguing. I had a hard time putting it down because I just had to see what secret was going to come out next. The ending left a bit to be desired for me, but when I thought about the fact that it's set in the 60's and 70's, it made much more sense and was much more realistic than a traditional "happily ever after". The characters were well-developed and very realistic, sometimes painfully so. I laughed, cried, was horrified, outraged, and sometimes even wrung out, but more than anything, I was engrossed. The book did move slowly at the beginning, but the plot really moved quickly once you got to the middle of the book.
I recommend this book to anyone who likes serious romance. The plot is heavy at times, and the story takes through a wide range of emotions, but I felt like at the end of it all, it left me hopeful. Hopeful that, with love, anything really is possible.
Perfect score is a sweet M/M romance that will appeal to all lovers of the genre and will change the way that you look a gay romance novels...
Alex Finch doesn't know what he's going to do. He wants to be a rock star but the rich uncle who's been taking care of him for the last 6 years wants him to go into the family business. He also wouldn't mind being loved by the man who's starred in his fantasies since the first day they met about 5 years before.
Sam Barrowdale only wants to survive. He's lived on the streets pretty much since he was about 7 years old, so he knows how to do just that. He has been teased unmercifully all his life because of his speech and reading impediments, so he doesn't trust easily. He needs to make enough money to support his sick sister and to keep her in the home where they are taking care of her. Other than that, he really doesn't get a chance to think about or want anything else. They two men meet again in 1968 and begin down a path that will have them reaching for each other and trying to be together for years to come. However, fate seems to working against them at every turn, and when they finally get a chance to be together, it may be too late.
This is non-erotic gay romance that is more like a saga. It is set in the late 1960's into the 70's. There is little to no sex in the book, but it really didn't need it. There is so much going on in the novel; there are family secrets, corporate wrong-doings, alcohol abuse, unplanned pregnancies, and the list goes on and on. It really does have something for everyone, but underneath it all, you have two young men who are willing to risk everything to be together.
The book was written in shifting first-person views, going back and forth between Alex and Sam, but unlike most books I've read that have done this, the author tells you who is speaking at the beginning of each chapter, so you are not left guessing who is speaking throughout the entire scene. I really liked the way this was done because it gave two viewpoints on the same situation, and it was interesting to see how each man interpreted some of the events that happened in the story. I must say that this story is very heavy, but it is so intriguing. I had a hard time putting it down because I just had to see what secret was going to come out next. The ending left a bit to be desired for me, but when I thought about the fact that it's set in the 60's and 70's, it made much more sense and was much more realistic than a traditional "happily ever after". The characters were well-developed and very realistic, sometimes painfully so. I laughed, cried, was horrified, outraged, and sometimes even wrung out, but more than anything, I was engrossed. The book did move slowly at the beginning, but the plot really moved quickly once you got to the middle of the book.
I recommend this book to anyone who likes serious romance. The plot is heavy at times, and the story takes through a wide range of emotions, but I felt like at the end of it all, it left me hopeful. Hopeful that, with love, anything really is possible.
March 29, 2011
It’s hard to review Perfect Score without giving away spoilers, but I’ll do my best. Alex Finch’s first recollection of Sam Barrowdale is a chance meeting in 1963 when a grubby thirteen year old Sam pushes a rickety, overloaded cart down a windy sidewalk and Alex gawks at him from the rear seat of his uncle’s shiny black Fleetwood.
This is a time when dyslexia is unknown to the parenting public. To the public period. Sam’s disability manifests itself in stuttering and a false mask of illiteracy that causes others to misjudge his intelligence and strength. While fighting stigma he endures the perilous squalor of homelessness with courage, grueling ranch work with grit and a surprising well of knowledge, and he charges himself with the care of his ailing sister. Alex, on the other hand, handsome and naturally talented, chooses to nurture an affinity toward music and composition, while appearing to take for granted the shelter and privilege of wealth.
The youths couldn’t have been more different, their worlds further apart. Or so it seems.
But fate has a way of intertwining lives, of intervening when love seems all but forbidden, and fate had much in store for Alex Finch and Sam Barrowdale. Their lives cross time and again in Perfect Score, and the attraction between them grows with each encounter.
Using an engaging and pliable mix of first and third person, Susan Roebuck weaves a tale that runs the gamut from tender experimentation to the hardships of ranching to the greed and flagrant abuse of a corrupt pharmaceutical giant. But the constant and underlying theme in Perfect Score is universal, whether male to male or male to female: a tender and uncertain love.
I’m giving Perfect Score 4 stars. There’s a genuine, down-to-earth quality in Roebuck’s writing that draws the reader into a complex story made all the more compelling by the author’s daring and keen ability to tell it. As far as weaknesses, I would’ve appreciated seeing the characters fleshed out a little more, the plot tweaked an additional bit, and the transition in the Epilogue smoother. I won’t say more for fear of spoiling the read for others.
Born and educated in the UK, Susan Roebuck now resides in Portugal with her husband where I hope she’s working diligently on her next project in that wonderful office overlooking the Atlantic. To read more about this author and her writing visit http://lauracea.blogspot.com/2011/03/....
This is a time when dyslexia is unknown to the parenting public. To the public period. Sam’s disability manifests itself in stuttering and a false mask of illiteracy that causes others to misjudge his intelligence and strength. While fighting stigma he endures the perilous squalor of homelessness with courage, grueling ranch work with grit and a surprising well of knowledge, and he charges himself with the care of his ailing sister. Alex, on the other hand, handsome and naturally talented, chooses to nurture an affinity toward music and composition, while appearing to take for granted the shelter and privilege of wealth.
The youths couldn’t have been more different, their worlds further apart. Or so it seems.
But fate has a way of intertwining lives, of intervening when love seems all but forbidden, and fate had much in store for Alex Finch and Sam Barrowdale. Their lives cross time and again in Perfect Score, and the attraction between them grows with each encounter.
Using an engaging and pliable mix of first and third person, Susan Roebuck weaves a tale that runs the gamut from tender experimentation to the hardships of ranching to the greed and flagrant abuse of a corrupt pharmaceutical giant. But the constant and underlying theme in Perfect Score is universal, whether male to male or male to female: a tender and uncertain love.
I’m giving Perfect Score 4 stars. There’s a genuine, down-to-earth quality in Roebuck’s writing that draws the reader into a complex story made all the more compelling by the author’s daring and keen ability to tell it. As far as weaknesses, I would’ve appreciated seeing the characters fleshed out a little more, the plot tweaked an additional bit, and the transition in the Epilogue smoother. I won’t say more for fear of spoiling the read for others.
Born and educated in the UK, Susan Roebuck now resides in Portugal with her husband where I hope she’s working diligently on her next project in that wonderful office overlooking the Atlantic. To read more about this author and her writing visit http://lauracea.blogspot.com/2011/03/....
Read
March 5, 2011Sam watched Alex chase a potato around his plate. How the hell could you do one kind of course while pretending to do another? How could you fool someone for so long? Alex took another long slug of whiskey. “I don’t really know why I am telling you this.”
Neither did Sam. If he had done something like that he sure as hell wouldn’t yak about it.
Liza’s hand was still on my cheek and I pressed it more comfort than anything else. “I think I lost him in any case.” As I spoke my fears, longing for him lodged in my throat like a peach stone.
“Good,” she said, taking her hand away, and sounding business-like. “Then make sure he stays lost.” *************************************************************************************** Sam and Alex, two of the most unlikely kindred spirits, are crossing paths in the most unlikely of circumstances. Their lives could not be any more different; their personal goals any more at odds. Where Sam has the drive and natural instinct to protect his sister, Sam faces a constant battle to prove his intelligence. Alex appears to have the skills to make it in the world, but lacks any semblance of direction or motivation. How is it that these two men meet each other and end up helping each other? What pulls them together both physically and emotionally? Will their secret love for each other bring them together or push them further apart?
In the late 1960s, homosexuality is still misunderstood by the general public. This particular element makes this highly engaging and poignant coming of age story, rendering it a superbly moving look at the twists and turns faced in life. Author Susan Roebuck gives readers of Perfect Score a thoughtful look into the lives to two young men who must deal with their family histories that started each man on his life path. This compelling read works on many levels for the open-minded reader who believes a good story is a good story; the male/male relationship element is front and center but never treated in the all-too-often stereotypical fashions.
Roebuck uses a mix of first person and third person narration to bring new insight into her main characters. This unusual approach allows readers to settle into a comfortable read within the first few chapters, and provides for a more revealing look into the lives of two young men who discover more about themselves as they learn more about each other.
Neither did Sam. If he had done something like that he sure as hell wouldn’t yak about it.
Liza’s hand was still on my cheek and I pressed it more comfort than anything else. “I think I lost him in any case.” As I spoke my fears, longing for him lodged in my throat like a peach stone.
“Good,” she said, taking her hand away, and sounding business-like. “Then make sure he stays lost.” *************************************************************************************** Sam and Alex, two of the most unlikely kindred spirits, are crossing paths in the most unlikely of circumstances. Their lives could not be any more different; their personal goals any more at odds. Where Sam has the drive and natural instinct to protect his sister, Sam faces a constant battle to prove his intelligence. Alex appears to have the skills to make it in the world, but lacks any semblance of direction or motivation. How is it that these two men meet each other and end up helping each other? What pulls them together both physically and emotionally? Will their secret love for each other bring them together or push them further apart?
In the late 1960s, homosexuality is still misunderstood by the general public. This particular element makes this highly engaging and poignant coming of age story, rendering it a superbly moving look at the twists and turns faced in life. Author Susan Roebuck gives readers of Perfect Score a thoughtful look into the lives to two young men who must deal with their family histories that started each man on his life path. This compelling read works on many levels for the open-minded reader who believes a good story is a good story; the male/male relationship element is front and center but never treated in the all-too-often stereotypical fashions.
Roebuck uses a mix of first person and third person narration to bring new insight into her main characters. This unusual approach allows readers to settle into a comfortable read within the first few chapters, and provides for a more revealing look into the lives of two young men who discover more about themselves as they learn more about each other.
March 18, 2011
I write in the afterglow of this wonderfully written light literary/romance novel, the characters' emotions of heartwrenching longing still washing over me in waves.
Alex is a character I didn't understand, nor care for very much, at the beginning. I didn't understand his fascination with a boy he had only barely met once before. But, as I read on, I began to witness his circumstances and I began to empathize with him. I could see that he needed Sam, as a youth. And, once I knew of Sam's story, and saw the level of compassion in him (despite the odds), I could see why he was so drawn to him once they were older.
Sam is an intriguing character. He has everything against him, the world continually spits on him, yet he still maintains his decency, despite his tough outer shell. Sam is Dyslexic with a stutter, and since the story is set in the late 1960's (when Dyslexia was very misunderstood) he is often wrongly labeled a "retard" or "dumb". I've seen men with less on their plate than all Sam has had to survive through, turn downright feral as adults. But, Sam has a level of compassion and goodness in him that has saved him from such a fate, and has made him into a very endearing character that the reader can completely embrace.
Perfect Score has enough suspense and mystery within (and none too predictable) to make it a wonderful read with a strong storyline, and one I would recommend on those merits alone. But, the tale of these two men, the struggles they face and the longing they have to be together.....that emotion is so powerful that it made my heart ache for them. That is why I suggest you read this book, to experience that for yourself.
This was my first M/M novel to read, and after doing so, it will not be my last. This book has no explicit or overly erotic scenes, so if you are a reader of romance, but tend to shy away from same-sex characters, perhaps this book would still be of interest. This book leans more towards light literary than romance, but would appeal to readers of both. I was thoroughly caught up with the Uncle and his practices, as much as I was about the mysteries of Sam's life.
Alex is a character I didn't understand, nor care for very much, at the beginning. I didn't understand his fascination with a boy he had only barely met once before. But, as I read on, I began to witness his circumstances and I began to empathize with him. I could see that he needed Sam, as a youth. And, once I knew of Sam's story, and saw the level of compassion in him (despite the odds), I could see why he was so drawn to him once they were older.
Sam is an intriguing character. He has everything against him, the world continually spits on him, yet he still maintains his decency, despite his tough outer shell. Sam is Dyslexic with a stutter, and since the story is set in the late 1960's (when Dyslexia was very misunderstood) he is often wrongly labeled a "retard" or "dumb". I've seen men with less on their plate than all Sam has had to survive through, turn downright feral as adults. But, Sam has a level of compassion and goodness in him that has saved him from such a fate, and has made him into a very endearing character that the reader can completely embrace.
Perfect Score has enough suspense and mystery within (and none too predictable) to make it a wonderful read with a strong storyline, and one I would recommend on those merits alone. But, the tale of these two men, the struggles they face and the longing they have to be together.....that emotion is so powerful that it made my heart ache for them. That is why I suggest you read this book, to experience that for yourself.
This was my first M/M novel to read, and after doing so, it will not be my last. This book has no explicit or overly erotic scenes, so if you are a reader of romance, but tend to shy away from same-sex characters, perhaps this book would still be of interest. This book leans more towards light literary than romance, but would appeal to readers of both. I was thoroughly caught up with the Uncle and his practices, as much as I was about the mysteries of Sam's life.
November 1, 2010
Perfect Score Review
I’ll be perfectly honest with you, when I started reading this and found that the prologue was written in first person, I nearly quit and said to h**k with that. I don’t like first person pov. It jars me- well - since we’re being honest, it grates on my last nerve. But the prologue was intriguing, and I persevered. Glad I did. In fact, I actually read it at my computer into the late hours of the night because I couldn’t stop reading it. I wanted that badly to know what would happen next!
The characters are what make this story so addicting. The author actually uses a unique system of combining Alex’s first person perspective and Sam’s third person. Both main characters are intriguing, quirky and endear themselves to the reader.
The author describes this as a romance, but I beg leave to differ. In a traditional romance, boy meets boy, falls in love, stuff happens to hinder a relationship, but miraculously all is resolved, and voila, happily ever after showers rainbows on their heads. Not so, Perfect Score. This story is about family relationships, corruption, growing up, integrity, responsibility, and being a man of worth in a society of the worthless. In other words, it’s a story about life with a bit of romance thrown in to make life easier to swallow.
Alex isn’t immediately likeable as a character; he seems somewhat of a jerk in everything except his fascination with Sam Barrowdale. Seeing how Alex grows and responds to the events that unfold make him a more sympathetic character, and by the end of the story I loved him as much as I did Sam, whom I fell in love with upon the utterance of his first garbled attempt at communication.
Sam doesn’t grow much as a character, not during the actual story, that is, but by the epilogue- which delivers the aforementioned happily ever after- he’s come into his own.
All told, I enjoyed reading this, and I highly recommend it.
I’ll be perfectly honest with you, when I started reading this and found that the prologue was written in first person, I nearly quit and said to h**k with that. I don’t like first person pov. It jars me- well - since we’re being honest, it grates on my last nerve. But the prologue was intriguing, and I persevered. Glad I did. In fact, I actually read it at my computer into the late hours of the night because I couldn’t stop reading it. I wanted that badly to know what would happen next!
The characters are what make this story so addicting. The author actually uses a unique system of combining Alex’s first person perspective and Sam’s third person. Both main characters are intriguing, quirky and endear themselves to the reader.
The author describes this as a romance, but I beg leave to differ. In a traditional romance, boy meets boy, falls in love, stuff happens to hinder a relationship, but miraculously all is resolved, and voila, happily ever after showers rainbows on their heads. Not so, Perfect Score. This story is about family relationships, corruption, growing up, integrity, responsibility, and being a man of worth in a society of the worthless. In other words, it’s a story about life with a bit of romance thrown in to make life easier to swallow.
Alex isn’t immediately likeable as a character; he seems somewhat of a jerk in everything except his fascination with Sam Barrowdale. Seeing how Alex grows and responds to the events that unfold make him a more sympathetic character, and by the end of the story I loved him as much as I did Sam, whom I fell in love with upon the utterance of his first garbled attempt at communication.
Sam doesn’t grow much as a character, not during the actual story, that is, but by the epilogue- which delivers the aforementioned happily ever after- he’s come into his own.
All told, I enjoyed reading this, and I highly recommend it.
December 24, 2010
Beautifully written. Engaging descriptions. Perfect Score is never slow or dull. The story is told in chapters through the views of both Sam and Alex, with a mix of the first and third person. Interestingly enough, the first person point of view does not clash with the third person point of view; both work to weave together the boys’ stories.
All of the characters have big, distinct personalities, no matter their roles. They’re lifelike. But Sam and Alex are beautiful – together and apart. From their appearances down to the way they talk, they’re characterized so well. Everything they do and say has a purpose; the dialogue is not fluff or filler.
The writing itself is strong. At times the descriptions go on for what seems longer than necessary, but they don’t take away from the story. The story is a bit difficult to follow at certain points, though. Time changes sporadically, and sometimes you’re given so much information about the present that you begin to question the past, and vice versa. Even the relationship between Alex and Sam at first feels like it’s just being thrown into the mix. After the occasional mid-story confusion, Roebuck successfully ties everything together in the end.
Perfect Score is definitely a refreshing change from mainstream Adult fiction. It’s neither cliché nor typical, but rather genuine and unique.
(www.thegrammariansreviews.blogspot.com)
All of the characters have big, distinct personalities, no matter their roles. They’re lifelike. But Sam and Alex are beautiful – together and apart. From their appearances down to the way they talk, they’re characterized so well. Everything they do and say has a purpose; the dialogue is not fluff or filler.
The writing itself is strong. At times the descriptions go on for what seems longer than necessary, but they don’t take away from the story. The story is a bit difficult to follow at certain points, though. Time changes sporadically, and sometimes you’re given so much information about the present that you begin to question the past, and vice versa. Even the relationship between Alex and Sam at first feels like it’s just being thrown into the mix. After the occasional mid-story confusion, Roebuck successfully ties everything together in the end.
Perfect Score is definitely a refreshing change from mainstream Adult fiction. It’s neither cliché nor typical, but rather genuine and unique.
(www.thegrammariansreviews.blogspot.com)
February 20, 2011
I quite enjoyed this book, my first e-book.
Sam was living on the streets when Alex first meets him - Alex felt an instant connection to Sam and would have liked to talk to him some more but it was to be at this time. Alex was 15 and living with his rich uncle, Sam was 14 and had been living on the streets on and off since he was 7, such a different life to Alex. Roll on 5 years and Alex goes home to see his mother and stepdad and is surprised to find Sam working and living there. It seems that Sam did not remember Alex but Alex sure remembered Sam.
This story had lots of different things to tell and was written in a style that I quite liked. The chapters were broken up to Sam or Alex telling their tale and their thoughts.
Alex is a talented singer/songwriter and Sam though dyslexic has hidden talents as well - he is very good with animals and also wood working. Sam had to earn a living to help pay for his sister Amy to live in an assisted living home as she needed full time care.
It took some time for these two to get together and when they did it was written with such feeling, I was surprised how much I enjoyed the relationship. Because Alex was about to become a father Sam let him go. With the Epilogue you get to find out what happens in the years between Alex becoming a father and eventually changing his lifestyle so that he could be with Sam.
Sam was living on the streets when Alex first meets him - Alex felt an instant connection to Sam and would have liked to talk to him some more but it was to be at this time. Alex was 15 and living with his rich uncle, Sam was 14 and had been living on the streets on and off since he was 7, such a different life to Alex. Roll on 5 years and Alex goes home to see his mother and stepdad and is surprised to find Sam working and living there. It seems that Sam did not remember Alex but Alex sure remembered Sam.
This story had lots of different things to tell and was written in a style that I quite liked. The chapters were broken up to Sam or Alex telling their tale and their thoughts.
Alex is a talented singer/songwriter and Sam though dyslexic has hidden talents as well - he is very good with animals and also wood working. Sam had to earn a living to help pay for his sister Amy to live in an assisted living home as she needed full time care.
It took some time for these two to get together and when they did it was written with such feeling, I was surprised how much I enjoyed the relationship. Because Alex was about to become a father Sam let him go. With the Epilogue you get to find out what happens in the years between Alex becoming a father and eventually changing his lifestyle so that he could be with Sam.
July 22, 2011
Review by Sabrina
Review copy provided by author
Through most of this book I was just chugging along. The type of writing style was stream of thought. Which definitely fit well for this book, but I had a hard time following sometimes. There was a weird little back plot of an uncle taking advantage of the small town and trying to get Sam to take the fall. It was weird.
Now, with that being said- the ending was so worth it. When they finally got together and had their little heart to heart I turned to mush. It was heartbreaking too- you'll see why- but I was super excited about the ending. Then the epilogue came. While the epilogue was told by a completely different character that I did NOT like, it was nice to be on the outside, looking in. It was adorable. The things they had gone through to be together and the things they had to keep hidden (this was the sixties after all) they managed to make a life and to have hopes on improving that life.
I may not have been a fan of the writing style, the back plot was nothing to note, and some of the characters made me want to scream, but the way the heartbreak and resolution was written was amazing. I am glad I read the book just for that.
Review copy provided by author
Through most of this book I was just chugging along. The type of writing style was stream of thought. Which definitely fit well for this book, but I had a hard time following sometimes. There was a weird little back plot of an uncle taking advantage of the small town and trying to get Sam to take the fall. It was weird.
Now, with that being said- the ending was so worth it. When they finally got together and had their little heart to heart I turned to mush. It was heartbreaking too- you'll see why- but I was super excited about the ending. Then the epilogue came. While the epilogue was told by a completely different character that I did NOT like, it was nice to be on the outside, looking in. It was adorable. The things they had gone through to be together and the things they had to keep hidden (this was the sixties after all) they managed to make a life and to have hopes on improving that life.
I may not have been a fan of the writing style, the back plot was nothing to note, and some of the characters made me want to scream, but the way the heartbreak and resolution was written was amazing. I am glad I read the book just for that.
April 7, 2011
This is an intricate book with well drawn characters who develop in a credible way throughout. The author explores the complex relationship between Sam and Alex and does not flinch from confronting the difficult situations and darker sides of human nature head-on. Alex is by no means a wholly likeable character - but he is all too real and three dimensional and I felt the pace of the story meant that his personality, along with Sam's and the other main characters with whom they interract, unfolded naturally. It kept me reading, as I absolutely had to know what happened in the end. No spoilers here, but suffice it to say, I wasn't disappointed and I would highly recommend this ebook
January 3, 2011
This story and characters are so complex and in such way written that it really amazed me fully. The plot in this story is so had and so deep...., damn hard book but so realistic. I could picture it.
Really have to say it's complex but awesome piece of book. OK I could think of negative critic about the story... but when I think about it..., it wouldn't be fair to the author, because I believe that this book was really hard to write. And I have only admiration in my head. Truly great and awesome work.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED COMPLEX READ!!
Really have to say it's complex but awesome piece of book. OK I could think of negative critic about the story... but when I think about it..., it wouldn't be fair to the author, because I believe that this book was really hard to write. And I have only admiration in my head. Truly great and awesome work.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED COMPLEX READ!!
Currently reading
March 31, 2011I just won this in a contest! I'm so excited, I started reading it right away. I had to laugh. On so many sites, we've talked about how readers don't like prologues and editors won't accept prologues. This starts with one, but it's great, capturing the essence of the 1960s with James Darren's Mac the Knife, the two boys from opposite sides of town (or tracks, as the case may be) down to their clothing, voice and desires. Love it so far. Stay tuned for more as I progress. Will fit it in around the 1000 other things I must do this next month. LOL
March 20, 2011
This is the first book I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it. Set in the late 1960's this story sucked me in completely. Sam and Alex are very different men but they compliment each other very well. The story is complex, emotional, intense, very well-written and filled with a varied and very interesting cast of characters. Sam especially is a fascinating and unique hero. The story dragged a bit at times but ultimately is well-worth reading. Recommended.
March 2, 2011
I was given this book by the author. This book takes you on an emotional ride filled with some tender highs and brutal lows in a very good way. A book that can draw emotion from you and show the characters' perspectives from their different points of view is well worth the read. This book was, for me, a reinforcement of my own personal belief that we are all just one version of normal. I recommend that everyone read this book.
June 1, 2011
Ms Roebuck has managed to tackle a gay romance and not make it stereotypical. There is a plot, lovable characters, and a sense of place. It's not 'porn' from cover to cover and is the sort of book anyone can read and broaden their outlook. I enjoyed it.
July 31, 2011
This was so beautifully written I can forgive the slightly rambling plot. It's the story of two very different guys and their journey towards, away from and then back together. I suppose in a way it was like a fleshed out Brokeback Mountain - and just as well written, IMO.
November 26, 2010
Blogged about this book at my blog, http://theenchantedbook.blogspot.com/
Really liked the story. Good read!
Really liked the story. Good read!
October 25, 2015
2011 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention (5* from at least 1 judge)
December 5, 2010
A book that you'll read over and over, and sigh with contentment when you turn the page.
July 3, 2017
Reading Perfect Score I really had no idea what I was picking up. My deciding to read this was really as spontaneous as you can get. I do know why I did, though. I was intrigued by a M/M romance story that took place in the 60’s. It’s not something I’ve read before.
Perfect Score had a good solid foundation in the two main characters. It was their interactions that kept me reading the most. I loved how they both acted and spoke, it felt authentic. I also believed their attraction, especially from Alex, and particularly when they were together. I only wish we had gotten more of that in the story.
Another area that I thought was strongly developed was the affection between Sam and Amy. I love how hard he worked to take care of her, and I loved how much Sam meant to Amy. I especially loved how Amy and Alex’s love of Sam brought the two of them them together.
Finally, I thought that the author stayed true to the era, even if I’d maybe hoped for a more current resolution to the story. I was glad that the author didn’t bend the times, or the evolution of Alex and Sam’s relationship to give the readers that super sunshine filled sparkling ending. Life is usually messier than most romance novels would have you believe.
Unfortunately there were a few things that I struggled with while reading. First, the prose of the book was jarring for me. I tend to steer clear of books with unusual vernacular and slang. I don’t like feeling as though I need to decipher each sentence. Basically, I wanted the characters to be written like they were from the 60’s, but the description shouldn’t be heavy with outdated terminology.
I also wasn’t really into the romantic suspense part of the plot. I didn’t think it was very suspenseful. It was more of a story about two men who’d been dealt shitty hands, and how they put their lives back together in spite of the obstacles that tried to tear them apart. I would have preferred the emphasis be on there relationship. Maybe if it we would have had more one on one time with Sam and Alex.
All in all, it was an interesting entertaining read, and I’m happy that I was asked to join the Blog Tour for Perfect Score.
Thank you to the author for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
If you liked this review, and want to read more, check out Birdie Bookworm!
Perfect Score had a good solid foundation in the two main characters. It was their interactions that kept me reading the most. I loved how they both acted and spoke, it felt authentic. I also believed their attraction, especially from Alex, and particularly when they were together. I only wish we had gotten more of that in the story.
Another area that I thought was strongly developed was the affection between Sam and Amy. I love how hard he worked to take care of her, and I loved how much Sam meant to Amy. I especially loved how Amy and Alex’s love of Sam brought the two of them them together.
Finally, I thought that the author stayed true to the era, even if I’d maybe hoped for a more current resolution to the story. I was glad that the author didn’t bend the times, or the evolution of Alex and Sam’s relationship to give the readers that super sunshine filled sparkling ending. Life is usually messier than most romance novels would have you believe.
Unfortunately there were a few things that I struggled with while reading. First, the prose of the book was jarring for me. I tend to steer clear of books with unusual vernacular and slang. I don’t like feeling as though I need to decipher each sentence. Basically, I wanted the characters to be written like they were from the 60’s, but the description shouldn’t be heavy with outdated terminology.
I also wasn’t really into the romantic suspense part of the plot. I didn’t think it was very suspenseful. It was more of a story about two men who’d been dealt shitty hands, and how they put their lives back together in spite of the obstacles that tried to tear them apart. I would have preferred the emphasis be on there relationship. Maybe if it we would have had more one on one time with Sam and Alex.
All in all, it was an interesting entertaining read, and I’m happy that I was asked to join the Blog Tour for Perfect Score.
Thank you to the author for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
If you liked this review, and want to read more, check out Birdie Bookworm!
July 31, 2013
The plot floats around a main storyline, but misses a lot of key events that would have added a lot of depth to the story, and the end just sputtered out rather than climaxing.
One of the worst aspects of this story is the POV writing. Alex's POV is written in first person, and Sam's is written in 3rd, which is really annoying to read and kept kicking me out of the story every time I had to start a new chapter and readjust back to a different POV style. If you want first person, write it all in first person. If you want 2 POVs, write it in 3rd. It's a very basic guideline; I don't know why the author would make the story so much more difficult to read by being so indecisive.
The story was well written (technically) and interesting, but the writing style was annoying, and it was frustrating that no plot points ever come to a climax. The tension never ramps up to a resolution, it just keeps flopping around like a fish out of water.
One of the worst aspects of this story is the POV writing. Alex's POV is written in first person, and Sam's is written in 3rd, which is really annoying to read and kept kicking me out of the story every time I had to start a new chapter and readjust back to a different POV style. If you want first person, write it all in first person. If you want 2 POVs, write it in 3rd. It's a very basic guideline; I don't know why the author would make the story so much more difficult to read by being so indecisive.
The story was well written (technically) and interesting, but the writing style was annoying, and it was frustrating that no plot points ever come to a climax. The tension never ramps up to a resolution, it just keeps flopping around like a fish out of water.
February 5, 2014
I was def disappointed. It was very hard for me to get into this book. There was just too much going on & I felt like this book was all over the place. It kept skipping from Alex's point of view to Sam's point of view, then from the past to the present. I had a hard time following the story. There was even a talking cat .... very strange.....
Anyway, I am giving it 1.5-2 stars only because I liked Alex and Sam as a couple but this story just didn't do it for me. I am truly surprised at all the high ratings this book received.
Anyway, I am giving it 1.5-2 stars only because I liked Alex and Sam as a couple but this story just didn't do it for me. I am truly surprised at all the high ratings this book received.
dnf
November 28, 2011Just got this book and already know it's not for me. Just difficult to read and I don't even know what they're talking about half the time and it's too 'inside' and slangy stuff from the 1960's. It doesn't help that one of the characters has a speech impediment/dyslexia and stammers his way through obscure references. I've read Kassa's review and I can see this will be a waste of time for me to continue.
October 22, 2012
What a perfectly weird little book, right at the intersection between gothic and psychedelic. Definitely not what I was expecting. Not bad, either.
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