Stories 8-10

This is an anthology made with the intention of update in romance tropes and making them gay

(Fairy)like Attracts Like – Clair Kann

• trope: mutual pining

• Nia and Glory met at orientation and Nia felt a pull towards the other girl ever since. She just can’t get her out of her head. While they’re working at a children’s summer camp rin by “fairies” the two grow closer quickly, and form a mutual enjoyment of each other’s company. On top of that, they start a little bet. The loser has to do something for the winner. The twist? Nia has to deal with her “curse,” as she likes to call it. Her inability to lie and her compulsion to answer any question asked of her, which is not making it any easier to hide her little crush on Glory. Especially when said crush seems to know everything about her, especially the secret she has tried so hard to hide from everyone.
• ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
  • The plus-sized representation that was introduced naturally and casually was even better. The subtle touches on fatphobia in everyday interactions and how that affects everyone. Despite not being at all a central part of the story, the brief inclusion made me very happy. This story was a cute one. The added fairly like ambience of the setting just added to the story and made it even better. The way the story unfolded was really cute. I am a sucker for a bet between mutual pining love interests.

These Strings – Lilliam Rivera

• trope: Sibling’s hot best friend

• All Lili wants is for her family to see her. Really see her. To understand that she wants to be a part of the family’s puppet business as more than just a ticketmaster, but to be involved in the shows and performances that they put on. Instead, her family is focused on her older brother because he is a boy. And that’s how it has always been. Men run the business and do the performance. And then there’s Oscar. Oscar sees her and understands her interest and her frustration. He supports her, and values her opinion in his own performances. And he’s best friends with her brother. So, naturally, she had to get a crush on him. Lovely.
• ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
  • The thing with this story is that the two of them don’t actually have much in the way of chemistry. The extent of Lili’s feelings for Oscar comes from the fact that he listens to her. Which is kind of just the bare minimum in terms of relationship. It’s kind of ridiculous. I think that story could have been better if we got more interaction between the two of them. It was an alright romance, but it was really quick and had no actual substance or plot due to how short it was. I think the author just needs more practice in writing short stories and this would improve a lot. 

The Passover Date – Laura Silverman

• trope: Fake Dating

• Every year, every Seder, Rachel does not have a date, and all her cousins do. Well, not today, not this year. This year, Rachel will have a date just like everyone else. Even if it means that she has to fake it and lie to her entire family. She’s just done with the jokes and the condescension that her family has for her continued singleness. Of course, there’s the issue of trying to find a fake date who is willing to do this with her. Enter Matthew Pearlman. The two used to be close, but then puberty hit and Matthew got new friends and grew apart. Still, he’s her best chance for getting a fake date for the next night. So, here goes.
•  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
  • This was a really cute short story. There’s some strange logic that Rachel follows to decide that Matthew is her best choice, but my guess is that it was included because she actually likes him (despite claiming otherwise). The thing that confuses me is the relationship between Rachel and her sister, Audrey. Despite it being implied that the two are fairly close, they apparently don’t talk about anything. There were also some strange descriptions that Rachel uses to describe herself and it definitely comes across like the “i’m not like other girls” which is rooted in misogyny. It was clear that the author was trying to imply the opposite, that she’s confident in herself, but it is simply how the world works, but there was definitely a touch of that “I’m not like other girls.”

I liked all three of these stories well enough, but the inclusion of These Strings and The Passover Date did confuse me. Despite the anthology being about putting a twist on classic romance tropes, they were the same as every other story of that trope I have ever seen. I did like them, and I suggest them still, but it was an interesting choice to include them and to put them back to back.