Gay All Year

by Richard May

Twelve optimistic MM stories, one for every month of the year.

How do men meet? Each story is connected to a holiday or event—Epiphany, Valentine’s Day, Pi Day, Arbor Day, Mothers’ Day, Fathers’ Day, summer vacation, a rodeo, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving, and Hanukkah—but may not be quite the celebration you’re expecting.

Neither may the men, and when these men meet, attraction does not always equal love—at least immediately—but chemistry finds a way.

Genres: Short Stories, Romance, LGBT

ebook

Published August 17, 2020

Reviews

[Stephi · Rating 1 out of 5]

The writing was too stilted and the plots unrealistic. The characters were rather one-dimensional and inconsistent at times. I found a few typos that I'm assuming will be fixed by publication, but I think the whole book could go through some more rounds of editing.

I received a free eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[CrabbyPatty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the format of this novel - one short story for each month of the year, sometimes highlighting a holiday or event during that month. For example, for March the story includes the Pi Bar, where their $7.22 special is good until 6:28. May is Mother's Day, there's surfing during July, October features a disturbing Columbus Day / Disaster Day and there's a very festive kinky Hanukkah.

The writing style is all over the place, in my opinion, with some very lyrical phrases mixed with others like "his tongue probing my dental work" or "I took notes on the rotation of his ass in slacks otherwise loose through the leg." Occasionally, phrases read as if they had been translated into English. The stories are a bit too short for any character development or depth, often have tangents that go nowhere, and the October vignette felt particularly mean-spirited to me.

I like the concept but the stories did not always deliver. 2.5 stars, and as always, "your mileage may vary."

I received an ARC from the Publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Visit my blog, Sinfully Good Gay Book Reviews

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that the premise for this collection of short stories was interesting. A short MLM encounter for every month of the year. The stories, as far as I can tell, are unrelated to each other, but there are similarities: The men are all unquestionably hot, hung, and horny. It's clear this author likes his beefcakes and if you enjoy descriptions of male pecs, butts, and bulges, then these stories will tickle your fancy. The encounters that occur range from fairly mild to pretty wild. Though there is plenty of sex, I actually think the author could have been slightly more graphic and gratuitous, but maybe that's just wishful thinking on my part. I just think that the lead-ups are so descriptive, it would be nice if we got the same level of intensity when the action actually happens. It felt like a bit of a tease, which once again, isn't an inherently bad thing.
I don't know that these stories are particularly deep or thought provoking, though the author does address some aspects of love and sex in the gay community that can promote a discourse.
As is the nature of most short story collections, some piqued my interest more than others, but for the most part, they were all well-written and easy to digest.

[Wayne Goodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every month has a holiday (even August). What if you could get away from your work-a-day life 12 times a year in search of adventure and love? "Gay All Year" takes the reader on a dozen such excursions, sometimes discovering a new love, sometimes even more.

Penned by a master of short-story writing (check out May's "Inhuman Beings" [https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/sho...]), these tales take you to places you might not have ever dreamed you would go. And, on the odd chance you are familiar with one of the locations, it will bring back nostalgic memories.

Savor each piece as a slice of someone's life, someone you know, someone you have yet to meet, or, perhaps, you yourself. If you need a bit of escape right now, I highly suggest this wonderful male-male short-story collection.

[Jessi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am trying to expand my reading horizons so, when I saw this book of short stories from NetGalley, I requested them. And, from a literary standpoint, most of these stories were good but some gaps in stories and things left unfinished. I am very much a reader who likes character development and relationship building (which is possible in short stories) but there wasn’t much of that in this volume. And one story also had a main character who sort of cheated on his partner who wasn’t technicall his partner... But if you are one-true-pairing kind of reader, at least one story will not be your cup of tea.
Within the page constraints, these author did a fairly good job of giving an idea of how he could stretch his wings. I very much appreciated the range of characters and the celebration of holidays outside of Christmas and Valentine’s Day. I was surprised by the touches of Christianity added in the first couple of stories. If the author writes longer stories at some point, I would I would be tentatively interested.

[Erika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley for a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. There was something off about this collection of short stories. I appreciated the variety, but they were too short, or just stopped at an awkward spot that was unsatisfying. The month/holiday theme was unique, but each story didn't give me enough to be invested in them.

[Nadia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this copy from the publisher and Netgalley for my honest review. I have conflicting feelings about this book. I like the how the stories were broken up into months. Some of the stories were really good and I wanted more of them. Then some stories were a bit odd to me. A lot of the stories felt unfinished, the ending was too abrupt in some of the stories. Overall, I think it was an okay book.

[Simmy]

Gay All Year
by Richard May 

MM, Contemporary Romance 

Publishing Date : 17 August 2020

First, i will admit that before this book I had never read romantic short stories before. The idea that they could be fun had never crossed my mind, like come on, the idea of a story book felt like theasing myself over and over again only to never get satisfied. This collection did not change my ideas because the story were so unique and surprising and deserved their own novels.

Gay All Year is a 12 story collection on 12 different gay couples in their quest for love.

This book is good, it is masterfully written, the different stories focus a lot on the world's social problems, i both hated and loved this, it shows that the author is aware of the world around him but I would have loved to see less of it. When reading a book I want to sometimes forget of the world.

I truly enjoy how the author connected the aspects of the different months to the different couples, it was very smart.

I would rate this book 4 out of 5 as I truly enjoyed it but felt the was a little something missing in the writing of some of the stories.

It has triggers such as racism and homophobia.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book covers a lot of ground for a short story collection! Please read the warnings the publisher and author have provided. For the most part, these stories are about gay men finding one another. Sometimes this happens where you might expect it, other times, it happens in strange circumstances. The stories were entertaining, although they didn't have much depth. Many of these stories would probably make a good novella!

It was a nice change to read a collection of stories that all had "positive" outcomes. It's hard to say whether all the relationships in this collection are healthy... but they all work on a level that the characters need them to. This would be the perfect book to take along on a short commute!

[RACHEL REED · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories, for each month of the Year where we get to see couples falling in love. Each story ends on a happy note and will have you wanting for more!
If you want a quick, sweet morsel, this collection will keep you entertained!

( Please read the warning or triggers before venturing into this collection.)

[Liz104 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I really liked the stories, most of them were really sweet, some were really hot, but they're really short, I would have prefered less stories but longest ones.
Warning/Spoiler alert:


the puppy play one was december, in case someone doesn't like the kinkier ones.

[W. Stephen Breedlove · Rating 5 out of 5]

A GAY STORY FOR EVERY MONTH OF THE YEAR

After I bought my copy of Richard May’s Gay All Year, I sat down and read the first two stories, which were so absorbing that I had to force myself to stop for a while so I could prolong my reading pleasure. I picked up the book the next day and read the rest of the stories in one sitting. Wow, I thought to myself, I haven’t been held captive like this by a book in a long time! A couple of years ago, I did have a similar experience with May’s Inhuman Beings: Monsters, Myths & Science Fiction (2017). Only this time, in Gay All Year, May populates his stories with real flesh-and-blood gay men.

The subtitle on the front cover of Gay All Year is “A Contemporary Romance Collection.” The blurb on the back cover says that the collection contains “Twelve optimistic MM stories, one for every month of the year.” Each story is connected to a holiday. In spite of the MM designation, these are insightful and nuanced stories about how gay men meet and relate to each other. Richard May transcends genre in these twelve stories.

May takes us all over the United States: to San Francisco, the Southwest, the Mississippi Delta, New England, New York City (with a side trip to Paris), even Fort Riley, Kansas. Several of the stories have first-person narrators whose objects of lust or romantic affections could be considered unsuitably older or dangerously younger. One of the narrators is attracted to men who remind him of his father. Many of the narrators and the men they go for are at vulnerable stages of their lives or ready for changes in their settled routines. Each story always includes a great deal of tension between the two, or sometimes three, men.

Often, after a story was over, I would wonder what the prognosis might be for the men as a couple and their futures together. In some of the stories, the bonds between the men seemed pretty solid, and in other stories not so much. That’s romance, I guess. I realized that the joy of these stories is not a possible HEA (I’m succumbing to romance genre terminology here), but the journeys the men, and the reader along with them, take to get to where the possibility for some kind of relationship can occur. May’s stories can take unpredictable paths.

In the story for January, twentysomething Stephen, who was involved in a lawsuit against a priest when he was younger, finally decides to honor his dying mother’s wish and returns to the Catholic Church. On the Sunday he goes to mass, he meets Father Adrian, a handsome, somewhat older priest. Stephen is immediately attracted to Father Adrian. After the two men become better acquainted, Stephen realizes that he can trust Father Adrian, who also reciprocates his attraction. Stephen tells us: “The subject of permissible extracurricular sex came up again every once in a while, but I continued to maintain I didn’t need it, and we continued to maintain the status quo. Adrian wanted to fulfill his vows, and I didn’t want to lose him. And maybe he didn’t want to lose me either.” May perceptively handles the delicate subject matter of this beautiful story, which is titled “Epiphany.”

April’s story, “Ripe Fruit,” is fun with its cute connection to Arbor Day, but, like “Epiphany,” touches upon a sensitive topic. While shopping for fruit trees at a nursery, Doug, the narrator, finds himself attracted to an employee named Alejandro, who is much younger. The banter between them is clever and suggestive. While planting trees in Doug’s yard, they find it hard to resist temptation but don’t go all the way. Doug receives a phone call from Mr. Garcia, Alejandro’s handsome, mustachioed father, the owner of the nursery, who tells Doug to stay away from Alejandro. Doug feels relieved that he hasn’t been arrested. But later, he is invited to dinner at the Garcia household.

I’ll discuss one other story, the story for September titled “Garden Party.” Henry Williams is invited by Bill Barnes, a work colleague in Memphis whom he has been after for a long time, to spend Labor Day weekend at Beaulieu, an old plantation in Mississippi, with Bill’s family. When they arrive and everyone introduces themselves, Henry notices “one young man with a deeply tanned olive complexion and curly black hair. He hung back as if he were shy or not really part of the group.” Bill introduces Henry to the young man, whose name is Jamie Battle, and who is Bill’s cousin. Henry observes: “No one else looked like Jamie Battle . . . Maybe he was adopted.” Jamie shows Henry to his room and reveals that he owns Beaulieu. During the weekend, Henry finds himself helping Mrs. Watts, Jamie’s grandmother, who doesn’t live at Beaulieu, in the rose garden. She tells Jamie, “Henry Williams and I will eat at my place.” Is Mrs. Watts grooming Henry to be worthy of Jamie? In this story, May explores a part of Southern history of which I was aware but that I had never encountered in a story.

I could discuss the other nine stories included in this collection, but that would make for a much longer piece. Instead, to further whet your appetite for these intriguing stories, and because I can’t turn loose of them yet, I will quote a line of dialogue from each story:

“Wait for me.” (January: “Epiphany”)
“Should I leave my hat on?” (February: “Finding Good in Plenty”).
“It is so complicated, Ajay.” (March: “One Plus One”).
“Give up, Dougito. I have made my choice.” (April: “Ripe Fruit”).
“We should really go to Paris.” (May: “Someone I Didn’t Know”).
“You can call me Dad if you want.” (June: “The Man in the Photo”).
“I thought it would be different with a guy—with you.” (July: “That July I Learned to Surf”).
“Men dress up like the gods and dance through the main part of town.” (August: “Kachina Dancer”)
“Well then, how do you like the master of Beaulieu?” (September: “Garden Party”).
“Hate eats you up, Frank.” (October: “Disaster Day”).
“I’ll call you.” (November: “Home on Leave”).
“Good dog.” (December: “Eight Nights”).

I hope the use of “MM” to describe the stories in this book doesn’t deter prospective readers who may shy from genre reading. As I said earlier, Richard May’s stories are much more than typical MM romance. Gay All Year is a perfect collection of stories to read while you’re self-partnered during the pandemic. Richard May will take you back to that long-ago world where men could meet in person and . . . I’ll conclude by saying, Enjoy!

[ChillwithJill · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was simplistic and sweet, but it definitely lacked both the time and depth needed to get someone really invested in any of the stories. It felt like every time I'd start to get into the very fast-paced, matter of fact way a story was being told, it was time to start a new one. And I didn't really mind because I wasn't invested. The tones of the stories kind of blended together.

The writing is good, but it is much more 'tell rather than show' and it should be the other way around! Saying that, it's a cute book if your looking for something quick and light.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

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