Deviate: A Love in the City Novel by Mia MonroeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Do you know what one of my favourite tropes is? Fake relationships. I can't tell you why it just is. Seeing two people grow together and fall in love when there is at least something there between them before they find themselves in the relationship (friendship, attraction, raw chemistry) does something to me. Now take that trope (well, more like a marriage of convenience) and add it to a first time same-sex relationship where two close friends transition to lovers before the end?
YES PLEASE!!!!
That's what you get when you pick up Mia Monroe's debut novel Deviate: A Love in the City Novel. You get this beautiful story of two friends who become so much more in what started out as a way for one to get a tax break turns into a meaningful lifetime love. Stop me right now, I'm waxing poetic about these guys and I can't help myself !!!
"I've never wanted a man sexually. Sometimes my brain asks why is this happening. Why do I want this." He smiles. "It's not that I don't though. Do you wonder why sometimes?"
Jason is a man with means. He's well invested, a driven and dedicated real estate mogul in New York who's frustrated at giving as much money in tax to the IRS as many of us are at paying taxes, but he has a giving heart and would rather donate that money and do things to help the people he loves than pay it in taxes. When he's offered for the millionth time the option of getting married to get that tax break with a marriage of convenience, he's skeptical. How could he choose to commit himself to anyone? He didn't want the potential to lose what he'd amassed in wealth, or his tax break, when the other party decided they wanted a real relationship that he couldn't give them.
And then there's Quinn. He's the quintessential starving artist, suffering for his creative process which itself is starting to suffer because of the feelings of failure and depression crushing down on him. He's flailing. He's been selling off anything he can just to make ends meet because he has yet to see success as an artist. He has the talent, Jason knows he has the talent, but he hasn’t broken through yet as one of the many artists in residence in New York. What starts as a suggestion by their mutual friend becomes the moment JPK becomes a pseudo knight in shining armour.
Can you tell, I always love these marriage of convenience/fake relationship stories when one character needs saving??? Can you??? Because I do!
These guys have been friends for most of their lives. Neither can claim best friend status with anyone else, but they can claim the closest relationship they have is with each other. And it's a relationship that grows deeper and deeper the closer they get. One thing I love about this book is that Mia Monroe doesn’t shy away from the fact that Jason is questioning. He's never felt this kind of attraction before, whether the fact that his attraction is to his "best" friend who is much more open and exploratory with his sexuality. I think that was probably one of the best parts of this book. That even though he's questioning where this is coming from, he knows that it feels right and that keeps going back with a willingness to explore the sensation and learn what feels good to him. The whole idea of being free to feel and to explore with each other was a prominent and beautiful part of Quinn and Jason's love story - and the physical aspect of that relationship was certainly hot while the emotional parts were incredibly rewarding.
Normally there's a lot of funny stuff in here but you'll find a lot more heart in my…
Favourite Lines -
"Too fucking proud. Especially to Jason. He's a year older than me, but it's like he's twenty years ahead. He's a fucking millionaire at thirty, and I'm still hustling to get grocery money."
"Billionaire."
"What?"
"Yeah. His Investments."
"Doesn't make me feel better."
To rid myself of nervous energy, I stand and grab some paint before sitting in front of my latest canvas. I call it Before the Dawn in the hope this is my darkest moment and the sun is just around the corner. Maybe Jason is the sun.
"Nothing wrong with holding out for epic." He grins. "Just don't fall in love. I'm the princess in this story."
I haven't felt like this since I was a kid learning what turned me on. Quinn… turns me on. Why and how is confusing the shit out of me.
"Are you sure you don't need to see a doctor?" he asks. "You're still really pale."
"I'm Irish. I'm always pale."
"If you were a girl - " I shake my head.
"If I was a girl, what?"
"If I was a girl, you wouldn’t question our connection, right?"
"Wrong. If you were a girl and I felt the way I do, I would run."
I smile, "Same."
So then am I straight with an asterisk? Some exceptions apply? Fuck me. I have no idea.
"We thought our lives would just go on as they were, but the smartest people know it's ok to deviate, make new plans, adjust."
This was possibly one of the best M/M debuts I've had the privilege of reading. One-click this baby on July 15th and feel the real and beautiful story of Jason and Quinn as they move from friendship to something so much more.
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