Customer Reviews: Read 19 more reviews...
 Great Comming of Age story September 7, 2008
O. Long
Unlike other comming of age stories involving a gay teenager, this one had depth, it veered clear of smut, and it was uplifting in conflict resolution. I really didint care for the protagonist's choice in guys, but I found it hard to put the book down. I do hope the book is available soon in hardback library binding because it does deserve to be in the adolecent section of public and school libraries.
A Secret Edge by Robin Reardon August 30, 2008
Elisa Rolle (Italy)
A Secret Edge is a classical Coming of Age novel with teen characters. But it's slightly different from the usual young adult novels since for the first time the characters are pretty open in their sexual experience, and the author doesn't used the rule of don't tell what happened behind the closed doors. So as always when this happens, I have the feeling that this is more a romance for adult with young characters rather then a young adult novel for teens.
Jason is 16 years old and the classical good boy next door. Good at school and good in sports, he is also cute and lucky with girls. He is also the type of boy who gathers around him other boys who want to be his friends to shine in his aurea. But Jason is really a good guy and he is friendly with everyone. Lately however he is troubled since he makes strange dreams by night: a wet dream for a teenager is not a strange thing, but if in the dream there is another boy instead of a girl... So Jason is beginning to questioning his sexual preferences and maybe that friend he had when he was younger, the boy who shared their first sexual discoveries, was not only a friend.
When Jason starts to open his eyes to his new urges, he also opens the eyes to all the other guys around him, and finds out that he is not alone. And when he lays his eyes on Raj, he is smitten. Ray is an years older, with indian origins, and he is "hot": Jason can't stop to think at the exotic beauty of his new friend, and when Raj comes out to him as openly gay, Jason has to face an hard decision: being out himself and so have Raj, or stay in the closet... the choice is not hard when he realizes that he has a supportive family and that also at school he can find a support. True, there are other guys who are not so friendly as before, but the pros are more than the cons.
A Secret Edge is a very good novel since it faces a difficult matter without being too pedantic. When you are speaking of boy of 16 or 17 years old, you can't pretend that they act like adult. True, Raj is a old young, but he has seen a lot in his younger age. But Jason instead had a pretty comfort life, he is the beau of the school, he has big chances in front of him for the future. So he behaves like a simple guy, who likes to date and who likes to kiss and who is open to more. He can discern what it is right and what it is wrong, but he is not the perfect son who always follows the right path, he is, after all, a teenager.
Jason and Raj will not go out from this experience unarmed, but all in all I think they had a simpler life than a lot of other guys in the same situation. Jason and Raj are among the lucky ones, those who can think of a future, and a positive one.
An excellent book, couldn't put it down! June 18, 2008
Tom Conner
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Robin Reardon has written an excellent novel. I had a hard time putting it down and that's the real test for me. Her characters are developed expertly and the plot is full of twists, turns, and conflict which kept me wanting to read on. This book is perfect for any teenager who's questioning sexual orientation and it's a great read for adults also. Now that's good writing. Reardon is an author to watch. She just may be our next Patricia Nell Warren.
A Secret Edge June 2, 2008
Robert D. Shull (Fairfield, OH)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Reardon is a wonderful author and very adept at bringing to literature the many turmoils of struggling to understand your sexuality. A Secret Edge tells the story of Jason, a teenaged runner who is beginning to understand that he is gay. This story is about accepting ones homosexuality, but it is about so much more than that. It is about love and romance, assumptions, betrayals and friendships. As in real life, the story is never certain. There is never any guarantee that everything will work out in the end and this kept my attention throughout. Readers will begin to feel for the characters and perhaps even examine their own lives a bit more closely. This is perhaps the great genius of this book. It has the power to entertain, educate and transform all at the same time.
 If you are actually a teenager this might be great, but... May 30, 2008
Mr. R. J. Smith (New York City)
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
I would describe this book as rather thin. It's a coming of age story and I have come of age quite a while ago, so I had a problem relating. The drama and conflicts were about teenagers and the advice was coming from a well meaning aunt, uncle and track coach. I related better to them than to the main character. He was rather appealing and there was some sexual tension but in that department it was rather tame. There are a lot of gay books out there and many coming of age stories. There are quite a few better ones than this one.
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