Friday, October 28, 2016

Book Review: THE GOD OF JAZZ: FUGUE, CONCORD by Varian Krylov


After years struggling to realize his dream of directing a feature film, on the final night of his fundraising campaign Godard is on the cusp of having everything he ever wanted. The man he loves is upstairs waiting for him, and he's just a few dollars short of his GoFundYourself goal.

Then everything falls apart.

His personal and professional life in ruins, when his old nemesis from film school offers to fund his dream project if he's willing to shoot it in Spain, Godard knows it's a deal with the devil. But he also has nothing left to lose.

Among the labyrinthine streets of Barcelona's Barrio Góthico, the city's vibrant music scene, and the sun-gilt beaches of the Costa Brava, Godard begins making shooting his dream project and putting his life back together, largely under the domineering gaze and deft touch of Ángel, the god of jazz.

But Ángel is keeping a secret, and a deal with the devil always comes at a price.



Carra's Review

Now that was one damn fine story.  It’s a romance, a drama, an emotional upheaval and I absolutely did not want to put it down.  Aside from the author’s penchant for reusing certain terms a bit too often, this story is a standout example of angst and heartbreak turned into newfound love, while also giving readers a journey of rediscovery for one of its main characters.  It goes from sweet and sassy to sensual to teasingly erotic, kicking things up a bit with a touch of kink as well.

There’s no doubt that Godard has been broken personally and professionally when the story first starts out, and he’s given a chance to start over-at least temporarily.  He truly believes in what he has written, and jumps at the chance to bring it to the screen-even if he might be making a deal with the devil to do it.  Meeting Ángel and falling under his spell makes for one hell of an intimate story, punctuated by drama and insecurity.  Their relationship just drew me in, and I was unsure until quite a ways in just as Godard was whether Ángel’s intentions were pure and true.  The uncertainty was just another way to keep me glued to the pages.

I was also completely intrigued by the story-within-a-story of the movie being made-Godard’s vision being brought to life.  I was just as pulled into that as I was into Godard and Ángel’s relationship, to the point where I’m actually a bit disappointed that there’s no movie for me to actually see in the end…that is how thoroughly pulled in to this story I was.

This story pulled my emotions all over the place, from heartbreak to lust to worry to fear to love and everywhere in between.  The tension, drama and pain of the beach scene between Godard and Jordi (Godard’s former film school nemesis) was particularly powerful…while in counterpoint to that the intimate scenes between Godard and Ángel range from loving to passionate to raw and carnal-and are just as powerful, and at times even more so.

An emotional rollercoaster, erotic dance, and descriptive drama, The God of Jazz: Fugue, Concord was a 4.5-star read for me.  This story is strictly for readers 18+ due to adult language, erotic M/M sexual content, and a disturbing scene of attempted rape that may be a trigger for some readers.  I highly recommend this story to fans of M/M romance, especially those who like the extra drama from emotionally powerful scenes.


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