The Locker Room by Amy Lane

Summary:

Xander Karcek has only wanted two things in his life: Christian Edwards and basketball—the man he loves and the game that let him escape a childhood he’d rather forget. His two obsessions have served him well. He and Chris beat the odds and stayed together through high school, college, and right on to the NBA.

But life under fame’s microscope isn’t easy, especially when two men are pretending to be frat-buddies so the world doesn’t know they’re the next best thing to married. Their relationship survives the sacrifices they make and the lies they tell to stay together, but when their secret is exposed, the fallout might destroy them when nothing else could.

Chris and basketball are the two things holding Xander together. Now the world is asking Xander to make a choice. Is there an option that includes a future with the man he loves?

My Review:

So I thought when I was finished with this that I would write this great review but I realize that I can’t. I am still numb. Amy Lane fucking kills me, I have said this many times.

I know I have a thing for boys in the closet but this hurt. This was more than being in the closet, this was..good lord. This hurt.

It hurt to know how Xander lived, wait…survived, before he met Christian that night on the court. It hurt to know that the only things this boy loved were Chris and Basketball and that one could break his heart. It hurt every time they gave their signals during the games and the ones they gave across the room every third home game. JHFC! I was in pain from the two page prologue and that didn’t stop until the end.

It hurt knowing what Christian went through, how he desperately wanted Xander to see him how everyone else did. How much he wanted for him. How much his family wanted for both of them. This was overly emotional, it was painful but it really was good. I mean that. Just because I am writing this with one finger as I am curled in the fetal position on my bed with the worst sounds coming from my mouth…kidding. Not Kidding.

The love story between the boys was gorgeous, I have to admit that. Ms. Lane writes so intensely emotional that sometimes the scenes feel overly intimate and that I shouldn’t be witnessing what I was. I had to stop reading a few times to gather myself. To remind myself that this was just a story and that hopefully everything would work out in the end.

That end? I love how it was handled, I do. The whole all or nothing sits well with me but I still hurt. I hurt because shit like this happens and it makes me sick. I won’t jump on my soap box but even though this is a story, this hurts to know that the masses would still do things like this. Thank goodness for family, for friends and for those who accept you for you who are no matter what. Ugh.

Another beautiful love story that has torn my heart out. I know better than to read books like this and I still do it. There is something about the angst and turmoil that attracts me even though it leaves me numb inside. I really need a switch to tone down the emotions when I read Amy Lane. Either that or don’t read her at all…nah, that isn’t a choice.