With or Without You by Brian Farrey

With or Without You

by Brian Farrey

When are you too far in to get out?
 
Eighteen-year-old Evan and his best friend, Davis, get beaten up for being loners. For being gay. For just being themselves. But as rough as things often seem, at least Evan can take comfort in his sweet, sexy boyfriend Erik
—whom he’s kept secret from everyone for almost a year.
 
Then Evan and Davis are recruited to join the Chasers, a fringe crowd that promises them protection and status. Davis is swept up in the excitement, but Evan is caught between his loyalty to Davis and his love for Erik. Evan has lied to keep his two worlds separate. Now his lies are about to implode…and destroy the very relationships he’s been trying to protect.

Reviewed by layawaydragon on

1 of 5 stars

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Read for free on Riveted Lit back in June? 
Finished it. Wanted to know how it ended.
Liked the main POV, his double life, his art

Looked up bug chasers/chasing & it's not a movement as depicted. It's a made up thing that spreads via media like the knock out game. If I’d known this going in, I probably wouldn’t have picked it up. Any vague knowledge of this phenomenon and the mystery of The Chasers wouldn’t work. I don’t like stories that depend upon teenage naivete to succeed, especially when exposing them to toxic, dangerous nonsense. 

It’s not a movement. No fun nicknames or tattoos or exporting to recruit or splinter cells. They aren’t coming for you and yours to radicalize you against the normies. Read this article about what it was. 

While it’s good With or Without You has information about HIV & its health problems and a bit of history of the epidemic, it does a disservice to those who fought, who survived, and still do by arming homophobic assholes with this bug chasing movement fantasy. It’s one of their worst nightmares, dressed up in drag as a pro-gay novel. It has a throw away mention about PrEP and it doesn’t even get used! This is something that DOES need awareness and saves lives, but instead let’s throw away Davis for the angst?!?I’m very disappointed this somehow earned the Stonewall Award. 

Take away the bug chasing subplot, and it has a good story with potential about an age gap romance with the pitfalls and realities, homophobic communities, and the damage they cause to young gay people and the splitting of old friends. 

But the bug chasing takes over the novel and I just can’t forgive & forget and surely not recommend anyone read this. Not even for free. 

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  • 6 August, 2019: Reviewed