abgayle

I found this book fascinating, although the words "Oh, dear" and a low cackle were uttered quite frequently while I read it.What I liked about "Love Sucks" is the reality of the stories. "Man and his Toys" for example, a funny yet sad description of Harry and his sex aids. Ken Shakin doesn't pull his punches. The resulting images may not be pretty, but they're probably realistic.I'm glad Lethe Press has re-issued the story written back in 1997 and it is also available as an ebook through All Romance Ebooks.Whether or not the gay scene of New York has changed in the thirteen years since the book was written is immaterial.The stories are about human nature as much as anything, the innate selfishness (much as we like to think otherwise), the resulting isolation, the dissatisfaction. These aspects are usually always present, they just manifest themselves differently in each generation.It's definitely not gay romance, more gay reality.Here's a good sample of what you can expect from "I Can't Get Enough":I ask him if he has a name. He mumbles something. He barelytalks. Sex will be the language we speak. What the UN callscultural exchange. I offer to buy him a drink. No response,so I buy him a beer. He drinks it. This is not the guy youask about his work, either to suggest that standing in a baris performance art or getting sucked off a career goal. Youcertainly don’t ask him to come home with you to fuck. Youhave to be subtle.