MILF fantasies and mental health

Use this forum to discuss the February 2020 Book of the month, "Opaque" by Calix Leigh-Reign
User avatar
Odette Chace
Posts: 518
Joined: 22 Feb 2020, 16:22
Favorite Book: The History of Love
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 576
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-odette-chace.html
Latest Review: Everyday Pocket Poetry by LoAnn Twedt

Re: MILF fantasies and mental health

Post by Odette Chace »

GatugiM wrote: 08 Apr 2020, 20:40
Odette Chace wrote: 15 Mar 2020, 15:06 I didn't think Adam's infatuation with his mother was necessary. The scene with Terry was more than enough for shock value. I also thought he was mentally unstable at first because of his obsession with telekinesis.
I agree. However, It wouldn't make sense because the serum drew Adam close to his mother and kept her young. At first he comes off as a total pervert and killing Terry? That was on another level, I didn't see how it fits with the story. :cry2:
What wouldn't make sense?

The author could have easily left it out. Animals frequently pay no notice to other species (unless they are food). That doesn't mean that he needed to be sexually attracted to his mother. He could have just felt like his mother was the only one he was on the same page as.
User avatar
hasincla
Posts: 224
Joined: 04 Feb 2020, 09:00
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 50
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-hasincla.html
Latest Review: Fortune Cats with Full Tummies by Dave Hutchinson

Post by hasincla »

I just started the book, and I'm not sure how I feel about it, but I really hope that she's not his "real" mother, which makes is more palatable for me personally.
User avatar
Brielle_S
Posts: 14
Joined: 12 Jan 2019, 15:24
Favorite Book: We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 6
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-brielle-s.html
Latest Review: Mysteries you can't put down by Brad Bennett
Reading Device: B00HCNHDN0

Post by Brielle_S »

I didn't feel as though this element of the story was a crucial part of the plot. I think that it was probably added to create some sort of wow factor.
JKO
Posts: 586
Joined: 15 Apr 2020, 09:24
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 119
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-jko.html
Latest Review: 7 Ways To Manage Pain With CBD by David Anthony Schroeder

Post by JKO »

I think Adam didn't even understand himself at first. So being attracted to his mom and jealous of his father came from that baggage. I think he turned out well in the end though.
User avatar
Ariely 20
Posts: 124
Joined: 03 Feb 2020, 22:59
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 19
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-ariely-20.html
Latest Review: The Fox by M. N. J. Butler

Post by Ariely 20 »

I think it was for shock value as well as character development. It is a good thing the writer didn't take it very far, it would have been a turn-off.
Coud
Posts: 30
Joined: 19 Apr 2020, 15:11
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 19
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-coud.html
Latest Review: The Mountain and The Goat by Siamak Taghaddos

Post by Coud »

I've just started the book and I'm not gonna lie that wasn't t something I expected to happen but I'm totally sure that hes feelings are genuine but very shocking
JaimeAlfonzo
Posts: 59
Joined: 08 Jan 2020, 00:59
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 17
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-jaimealfonzo.html
Latest Review: The Hand Bringer by Christopher J. Penington
Reading Device: B00JG8GOWU

Post by JaimeAlfonzo »

First, I will not call an Oedipus complex and MILF complex. The attraction of Adam to his mother it is a clear Oedipus Complex. Nevertheless, the using of Oedipus or Electra complex it is natural on literature as 429 B.C. when Sophocles made i the first presentation of Oedipus Rex, or one more recent case in Psyco by Hitchcock.
Marlaszw
Posts: 35
Joined: 23 Jun 2019, 17:41
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 15
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-marlaszw.html
Latest Review: Flat Top Mountain Ranch -- the beginning by James E Doucette

Post by Marlaszw »

I do not feel this is at all appropriate for teens. Frankly, it is disgusting and far from normal. I don’t care who this mom ends up being in the end, if she raised Adam as her son then it is a mother son relationship and their is no possible justification for the attraction. A mother son relationship is NOT sexual. Even some of the more subtle affections in the book are disturbing because they are not how healthy moms and teen sons relate. This also makes it feel contrived to me. I’m sorry, it is just wrong and I can’t image many young adults not being completely repulsed by this book. Maybe a girl could get through it, but all the teen boys I know would throw away the minute they realized this sick dude was sexually fantasizing about his mother.
User avatar
Laura Lee
Posts: 1074
Joined: 18 Nov 2019, 08:12
Currently Reading: Holiday in Death 
Bookshelf Size: 101
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-laura-lee.html
Latest Review: My ABC "Chair" Book by Barbara H. Hartsfield

Post by Laura Lee »

Marlaszw wrote: 20 Apr 2020, 08:12 I do not feel this is at all appropriate for teens. Frankly, it is disgusting and far from normal. I don’t care who this mom ends up being in the end, if she raised Adam as her son then it is a mother son relationship and their is no possible justification for the attraction. A mother son relationship is NOT sexual. Even some of the more subtle affections in the book are disturbing because they are not how healthy moms and teen sons relate. This also makes it feel contrived to me. I’m sorry, it is just wrong and I can’t image many young adults not being completely repulsed by this book. Maybe a girl could get through it, but all the teen boys I know would throw away the minute they realized this sick dude was sexually fantasizing about his mother.
Honestly, I feel the exact same way. I don't care the "spin" put on it to make it acceptable. It doesn't make his jealousy of his father and attraction to his mother acceptable. It just grosses me out.
Laura Lee

“Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.”
― Groucho Marx, The Essential Groucho: Writings For By And About Groucho Marx
User avatar
gayscott
Posts: 160
Joined: 17 Dec 2018, 21:49
Favorite Book: The Legacy of Job's Wife
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 40
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-gayscott.html
Latest Review: Devil Among Us by Jack Winnick

Post by gayscott »

I didn't think it added to the story. It only made ot more complicated and I honestly almost stopped reading.
I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me. :reading-6: :reading-6: :angelic-cyan:
User avatar
NatRose
Posts: 157
Joined: 21 Mar 2020, 19:32
Currently Reading: The Eye of the World
Bookshelf Size: 27
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-natrose.html
Latest Review: Who Was That Masked Kid by Dan Neiser

Post by NatRose »

I don't think MILF is quite the right term because Adam's attraction to his mom wasn't because she was older. In fact, it was probably partially because she didn't age.

Regardless, I agree with many others here that Adam's attraction to his mother was an unnecessary part of the story, and the explanation for it that's brought to light later in the book really didn't fix things for me. I think the book would probably be much easier to relate to for most young adults if Adam simply had a good relationship with his mom and a strained relationship with his dad without the sexual overtones.

Still, I'm not sure the author intended this aspect of the book to be for shock value. In the note from the author, she says she wants us to "realize that there's hope for all seemingly troubled young adults." Well I agree with her sentiment, I don't think the book actually relays this because Adam is able to just overcome his troubles with supernatural means and explanations that us in the real world don't have access to. If the author wants to confront such a taboo subject, I would prefer she show that it's possible to overcome such things through therapy and a desire to change.
Netvigator72
Posts: 263
Joined: 23 Feb 2020, 18:34
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 21
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-netvigator72.html
Latest Review: Kindred Journeys by Marjorie Tapley-Olson

Post by Netvigator72 »

Ever_Reading wrote: 02 Feb 2020, 01:55 I'm finding it rather strange and can't possibly figure out why it's important to the plot. I am not yet done with the book, so maybe my view on it will change. But for now, I remain skeptical for sure. :eusa-think:
I would love to know what you think afterwards since this thought didn’t fail to leave me even after I finished the book.
User avatar
Laura Lee
Posts: 1074
Joined: 18 Nov 2019, 08:12
Currently Reading: Holiday in Death 
Bookshelf Size: 101
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-laura-lee.html
Latest Review: My ABC "Chair" Book by Barbara H. Hartsfield

Post by Laura Lee »

NatRose wrote: 22 Apr 2020, 18:27 I don't think MILF is quite the right term because Adam's attraction to his mom wasn't because she was older. In fact, it was probably partially because she didn't age.

Regardless, I agree with many others here that Adam's attraction to his mother was an unnecessary part of the story, and the explanation for it that's brought to light later in the book really didn't fix things for me. I think the book would probably be much easier to relate to for most young adults if Adam simply had a good relationship with his mom and a strained relationship with his dad without the sexual overtones.

Still, I'm not sure the author intended this aspect of the book to be for shock value. In the note from the author, she says she wants us to "realize that there's hope for all seemingly troubled young adults." Well I agree with her sentiment, I don't think the book actually relays this because Adam is able to just overcome his troubles with supernatural means and explanations that us in the real world don't have access to. If the author wants to confront such a taboo subject, I would prefer she show that it's possible to overcome such things through therapy and a desire to change.

I appreciate your well-thought-out, eloquent opinion. I agree with your assessment. Adam's fixation on his mother ruined the story for me, personally. I think the author could have selected another way to make her point without grossing out so many readers.
Laura Lee

“Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.”
― Groucho Marx, The Essential Groucho: Writings For By And About Groucho Marx
Kishor Rao
Posts: 232
Joined: 18 Feb 2017, 05:48
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 49
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-kishor-rao.html
Latest Review: Burn Zones by Jorge P. Newbery

Post by Kishor Rao »

I just thought he was a creep when the book started. Adam himself knows he should not be feeling such things. The explanation they gave was fair enough as for why was he feeling the things he was but I don't think it was absolutely necessary and we could have done without it as well.
User avatar
sacredheartsbookclub
Posts: 22
Joined: 14 Apr 2020, 06:38
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 43
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-sacredheartsbookclub.html
Latest Review: Don't Mind Me, I'm Just Having a Bad Life by Lewis Kempfer

Post by sacredheartsbookclub »

Laura Lee wrote: 01 Feb 2020, 21:02
Abacus wrote: 01 Feb 2020, 14:11 I have only read the sample, so cannot speak for the entire story. I suppose every author relates to the Oedipus complex and would use it if the opportunity arose. It does have shock value. It is a good question, and If I read more, I shall look for the answer.
Thanks for your reply. Honestly, I find this element quite off-putting. Just curious to hear from others. :)

I also find this element to be quite off-putting in stories. It tends to distract from the overall narrative in my opinion.
Post Reply

Return to “Discuss "Opaque" by Calix Leigh-Reign”