I read Fake, a manga series about "two New York City cops with an attraction for action--and each other!" on the recommendation of a recent Library Journal article. Dee Laytner, a hard-hitting cop with a devil-may-care attitude, falls hard for his new partner Ryo (it is explained several times that he's "part Japanese"), but Ryo isn't sure about the whole boy-boy thing. Their romance plays out over seven volumes of barely believable plot against the hardly recognizable backdrop of "New York City." Throw in two younger "comic relief" characters, whose ages vary wildly between volumes, and you know you definitely aren't reading Fake for the plot. However, there is plenty of material for those readers interested in, erm, cop-on-cop action in which kisses happen at seemingly impossible angles. The development of the relationship over time is actually quite sweet and believable, and everything comes to a satisfactory conclusion. However, I found Antique Bakery infinitely preferable in pretty much all respects.
Grade: D for plot, B+ for romance, C- overall
Random Thoughts: The Ludlow library classified the first six volumes as Young Adult and the last as Adult, and I understand why (although the scene isn't all that shocking, really), but it seems counterproductive to have parts of the series shelved in different parts of the library. I know we are past the point in history where we are just glad that there is GLBT material available in the library in the first place, so maybe we could take the next step and trust teens to be responsible for what they read.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment