Light by ‘Nathan Burgoine
Bold
Strokes Books, October 2013
Light should have been in my
original “Best Reads of 2014” list, so I am adding the mini-review here. This
first effort from fellow Ottawa scribe ‘Nathan Burgoine is funny, immersing
and interesting. Single gay protagonist Kieran Quinn has always had a
super power and has always vacationed during the Ottawa Gay Pride Festival.
Throw in a husky leather bear as his love interest, an evangelical villain who
also possesses a power, and Kieran’s family dynamic (a straight brother who is perpetually single), and you have a winner.
That the hero can read others’ thoughts, including those of dogs (i.e.: ‘Play!
Friend? Play?’) adds a great texture to inter-character exchanges. He can tell what the other person is thinking. Burgoine
also possesses a super power himself—a whiplash sense of humour. This humour is
evidenced by an ongoing contest in which people can vote on the new hero’s
moniker (‘Rainbow Man’ and ‘Disco’ are options.). In setting the story in Ottawa’s
Pride week, Burgoine gives the narrative a rich, authentic, localized feel. Readers
not only get to tag along with endearing characters, but also tour the
nation’s capital in the summertime, when the city is actually warm.
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