GAYLIFE.COM by Neil Plakcy

Publisher: MLR Press
Date published: June 2009
ISBN: 978-1-60820-036-8
Contemporary, GLBT
Paperback/E-book
Reviewed by Miss April


GAYLIFE.COM by Neil Plakcy is a story of a man who believes in a dream. Brian has done a little bit of everything but nothing permanent. When we meet him, he is unemployed and no job in sight. Luckily his best friend Stella comes through for him. She finds him a job possibility through her model contacts. Before Brian knows it, he is the office manager for an up and coming dot.com company and crushing hard for one of the owners, Nick. Nick who is in a committed loving relationship with his super model boyfriend, Pravvo. So what’s a gay guy to do? Believe in the dream, of course.

This was a fun book to read. There is a sense of humor throughout. A kind of poking fun at itself type that was enjoyable. It was interesting to see the characters who worked at what most would consider to be shallow jobs, actually show themselves to be smart as well as attractive. I especially liked how the author leads Brian through different relationships in his quest to find his dream. The different men and how Brian reacts to them are like little clues to Brian’s revelation at the end. The cast of secondary characters helps to make this roll right along. I liked how Brian, through everything, never really gives up on the dream he has. He is always aware that it is impossible but can’t stop himself from wanting it. By the end, I was rooting for him to have his dream.

There is also an underlying theme throughout the book of what happens when you hide being gay. I wasn’t hammered with it. Instead, it was after I had finished the book and was contemplating the story, did I realize that was there. Mr. Plakcy shows us that there are many ways to hide and it is a lesson on why it makes people so unhappy. The last two lines in the story were perfect and sum up this theme. I really loved this book.