Stage Fright

by Pender Mackie

STAGE FRIGHT is a love-conquers-all story in which desire, honesty, and communication combat jealousy, secrets, and fear.

Jesse flees his small, narrow-minded hometown in hopes of being able to live a more honest life, but he discovers moving to Vegas doesn't immediately eradicate his fear of living openly gay. Jesse pushes himself even further into the closet when he gets a job as a stripper, not wanting his nude co-workers to be uncomfortable around him. But when Jesse meets Val, the new bartender, he starts to question what is truly important to him.

I had a tough time rating this book as I found myself going back and forth about whether or not I liked it. I started out feeling like the two main characters had some significant character flaws - jealousy, inability to communicate, naivet�, and cowardice. However, what finally led me to a four star review was the honesty of these flaws and the emotions that accompanied them. While I didn't like all of Jesse and Val's characteristics, the author made me see them as challenges and not flaws. The author also did a great job of expressing the strong emotions associated with overcoming difficult challenges.

What really roped me in was the strength that both characters displayed when they felt like their happiness was truly being threatened. I would have liked to have seen this strength sooner, but I felt like these two needed a significant challenge to make them realize they had any strength. The two of them were able to come together and use their passion and love for one another to overcome some significant obstacles. Once the obstacles were removed, there was room for growth and true happiness. Great story.