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A review by books_and_cha
Dance in the Dark by Megan Derr
2.0
This book fucked me up. So, if you read my review on the first book on the series, you'd know that I didn't like it a whole lot. That being said, I decided to give Derr a second try cause sometimes the second book is better than the first.
Spoiler alert: that was not the case for this one. It was actually the same set of problems that I had with the first book, except worse.
1) Did I not say CONSENT IS KEY, CONSENT IS SEXY? Yeah, this book has no concept of consent. Once again, when Johnnie meets Eros, Eros kisses and fondles him AGAINST HIS WILL, EVEN WHEN EXPLICITLY STATED. What gets me is this: the way it is rationalized is that since Johnnie enjoys Eros's advances physically, it's not a case of assault. Johnnie literally thinks that it would have been sexual assault, except that his body responded. Um, no. A physical reaction does not equal consent. When a woman is raped, it is still possible for her to physically experience an orgasm. The body can't differentiate between forced and consensual penetration. Just because someone physically reacts to touch, kisses or other sexual advances does not mean they consent. Basically, if this was real life, Johnnie would have a legitimate case of sexual assault on his hands. If I was uncomfortable in Dance with the Devil, I was plain angry with this installment.
2) I never forgave Bergin for not telling Johnnie the truth. I felt like all the build-up: the angst, the sadness, and insecurity did not balance the pay-off. Bergin and Johnnie were cute when they argued, but I did not ship them as a couple after what Bergin did. Johnnie actually suffered: at some point in the book, he felt like there was no one who loved him like there was no one he was good enough for. The whole thing with Eros cut him so deep, that when the resolution took place, it felt mediocre. In my head, the two of them simply don't belong together.
3) This is minor compared to the rest of the stuff that bothered me, but I also didn't like how Johnnie kept quoting books. At times, it was fitting, but it was overdone more often than not.
Just because I don't want to be a terrible person, I'm going to list some things I actually liked in the book:
1) Johnnie's relationship with his father
2) The arguing between Johnnie and Bergin
3) That poem they quote to each other in the beginning and end of the book
4) The way Bergin is a complete Momma's boy
5) The way each chapter was a mystery
6) Johnnie's clothes
Anyways, so this one was bust for me. CONSENT, people.
Spoiler alert: that was not the case for this one. It was actually the same set of problems that I had with the first book, except worse.
1) Did I not say CONSENT IS KEY, CONSENT IS SEXY? Yeah, this book has no concept of consent. Once again, when Johnnie meets Eros, Eros kisses and fondles him AGAINST HIS WILL, EVEN WHEN EXPLICITLY STATED. What gets me is this: the way it is rationalized is that since Johnnie enjoys Eros's advances physically, it's not a case of assault. Johnnie literally thinks that it would have been sexual assault, except that his body responded. Um, no. A physical reaction does not equal consent. When a woman is raped, it is still possible for her to physically experience an orgasm. The body can't differentiate between forced and consensual penetration. Just because someone physically reacts to touch, kisses or other sexual advances does not mean they consent. Basically, if this was real life, Johnnie would have a legitimate case of sexual assault on his hands. If I was uncomfortable in Dance with the Devil, I was plain angry with this installment.
2) I never forgave Bergin for not telling Johnnie the truth. I felt like all the build-up: the angst, the sadness, and insecurity did not balance the pay-off. Bergin and Johnnie were cute when they argued, but I did not ship them as a couple after what Bergin did. Johnnie actually suffered: at some point in the book, he felt like there was no one who loved him like there was no one he was good enough for. The whole thing with Eros cut him so deep, that when the resolution took place, it felt mediocre. In my head, the two of them simply don't belong together.
3) This is minor compared to the rest of the stuff that bothered me, but I also didn't like how Johnnie kept quoting books. At times, it was fitting, but it was overdone more often than not.
Just because I don't want to be a terrible person, I'm going to list some things I actually liked in the book:
1) Johnnie's relationship with his father
2) The arguing between Johnnie and Bergin
3) That poem they quote to each other in the beginning and end of the book
4) The way Bergin is a complete Momma's boy
5) The way each chapter was a mystery
6) Johnnie's clothes
Anyways, so this one was bust for me. CONSENT, people.