Review of Shade

[Roy Nick]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Shade" by H N Hirsch.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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The year is 1985, and a few things were not particularly welcome in society, like openly gay men. Set in a time when AIDS was prevalent and with no medication, the stigma was at its peak. Trip Howard is an openly gay man and a son to one of Boston's most elite families and friends with Vice President Bush. The guy is charming, and every man wants a share of his body and erotic encounters. Sadly, Trip dies, and his death is pronounced a homicide.

Meanwhile, Trip's professor, Marcus, learns of the untimely demise after the two had developed quite a close relationship. Marcus is devastated by the death of one of his most promising students. Marcus receives an unusual request from Trip's family. They want him to investigate the death of their son; the local cops do not sound promising in unraveling the murder mystery. Marcus takes up the mantle and begins playing detective. One clue leads to another. Here's one shocker: Trip was connected with a congressman, drug dealers, and even porn stars. While at it, he engaged sexually with quite a number; he was promiscuous. Digging deeper only uncovers more dark skeletons from Trip's life. Who killed him? What motive did the killer have?

Have you encountered a book that incorporates several storylines and yet grips you from beginning to end? Shade by H N Hirsch is your answer! We have gay men in a historical society, AIDS, murder, drug dealing, and societal echelons. And yet, the author manages to influence a romantic affair between a seemingly out-of-place professor and a younger man. Those are some of the things I cherished deeply.

The author couldn't be more vivid with his elucidations. He was specific with Bob's height, skilled cooking hacks, etc. These minor details made the book even more admirable. Then the suspense builds up page after another. Together with Marcus and the other officials, we keep trying to figure out who killed the charming Trip, and yet his life was a myriad of complexities and surprises. The ending was dumbfounding!

I disliked nothing. I discovered a few grammatical errors. Hence, the book is professionally edited. The humor between Marcus and Bob was a mood lightener. Marcus was selfless, as he devoted his time to uncovering Trip's killer, despite receiving no pay from the affluent Howard family. I award Shade 4 out of 4 stars. I recommend it to readers intrigued by crime novels with LGBT as the center of the plot.

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Shade
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[Peace10]

From your review, I can see this is a great book. I wonder who among Trip’s numerous lovers or clients had something against him to kill him. A mix of romance and suspense in a book is one that must not be missed. Great review! So simple to read and understand.

[Hue-Morningstar]

I cannot finish reading this review. The thought of having to read about a gay man makes it hard for me to continue with the review. It is just against my personal beliefs and religion. Though, am sorry if I have offended you or anyone reading this reply.

[Amy Luman]

Do you think that possibly the police weren’t trying very hard to solve Trip’s murder as he was a gay man in the mid-80’s? I’m glad to hear that even in those times Marcus was enough of a friend to Trip to help regardless of the stigma. All people deserve that, no matter their difference from the norm.

[Blessing E]

Imagine the presence of romance and suspense in a book. I find this mind-blowing, to say the least. Well done on a perfect review

[Uwe Neufeld]

Something revolts within me to read the review till the end, but I do it anyway. Because of the story, of course.
Never could read a book like this.

[Adaeze Joan]

Trip's death is about to uncover a lot of mysteries. This book uncovers a lot of thought-provoking themes. It also has some interesting characters. I would definitely love to read this book. Thanks for the review.

[Sopulu Ezidimma]

What could be the case of his death? From the review, I can see that trip lived a life that could draw him closer to death. Nice review.

[Nmartha]

The fact that Trip's life is a mystery that is only being discovered after his death,the dark secrets of his living,makes me want to read the book. Thanks for the review

[Shillah Andeso]

It's very funny a professor turning detective. I think this story has a touch of crime and I'd love to read it.

[Stephanie Cameron]

Great review. It sounds very interesting and eventful. I a am defiantly interested in reading it.

[Elendu Ekechukwu]

I get goosebumps when I see a romantic thriller this good. I.jope to enjoy it as much as you did. Thanks for the review

[Jeff Kanda]

I have enjoyed reading your review but I will not read the book because of the gay character. Thanks for the superb review!

[Elenimo Chembe]

Being a very religious person I am generally against gay practices, however, I hope the book was not full of erotic content, otherwise, I would read it. The reviewer should have made a clear indication of whether the erotic content in the book is vivid or not.

[Zwelihle_Myeni]

Being a very religious person I am generally against gay practices, however, I hope the book was not full of erotic content, otherwise, I would read it. The reviewer should have made a clear indication of whether the erotic content in the book is vivid or not.

I have nothing against the LGBTQ community but I don't enjoy their erotic scenes when reading a book. The reviewer should've specified if the book contained any explicit scenes just so we can have a choice wether or not we want to read it.