Such a sweet love story with disturbing physical and sexual abuse undercurrent. I cried during the abuse parts. Alex oh Alex I am so happy you found a lovely supportive partner in Drew. We meet Alex hiding in the grasses near a swimming pond Drew comes upon him hears him crying. He stops and offers assistance h realizes he's not getting the whole story from Alex who has just been abused horribly by his step father. Drew takes Alex home Alex is grateful to have a friend as he is bullied at as school. While Drew is out of town with his family. Drew gives Alex a phone should he need to contact Drew it is hid on Drew's property thank god its there because the step father bets the hell out of Alex and Alex's neglectful mother. Drew notifies the authorities. The love between Alex and Drew is strong and beautiful. Fortunately Alex'sFather set him up real well. I would love to read more about these two. Great book Justin. Off to read Paul and Sam. Justin South certainly put his heart and soul into this story. You will see that each paragraph in this story is an evidence of his heartfelt dedication to the plight of children who are abused.Alex and Drew's story initially left me feeling totally choked up and very emotional. This part in the story focused on Alex's feeling of betrayal and hurt by his parents and community. As I read further, I felt Alex's utter despair and felt deeply hurt... and then Justin South changed his story line and focused on Alex's recovery...It seemed almost like he wanted to acknowledge and respect young Alex's pain and then move onto his healing process with a focus on the power of love and self-determination to move forward. I felt a little disappointed that there was not much about his family after the event. I think part of my disappointment was coming from my rage over Alex's pain and I wanted to see his family suffering for what they did to him. I also wanted to see Alex raging and demanding satisfaction for his pain and suffering.... but it seemed Alex was emotionally more grounded than I was. ..well...after a self-reflecting time, I realised, this story was not about abuse but about personal growth and recovery.Although, I find the dialogue between Alex and Drew a little too sweet for my taste but I can see what Justin is doing...he wants to bring a balance to his story so that his readers will not be simply struggling with despair and hurt. I noticed some issues with syntax but again I think Justin was trying to speak from Alex's point of view...a youth who never had opportunity to complete his education and had some developmental problems.This story is set in Australia so be prepared for the Aussie slangs and Aussie-English. I loved that Justin did not forget the healing powers of our Aussie icon yummy "TimTams" and used this tasty treat in the story of Alex & Drew.
This was more drama than I like, to maudlin for my taste.
—Adi
Loved the very HEA ending on this short story.
—nulani
The story just dragged on & on.
—khyati
Wonderful story. Great work.
—dani
1.5 stars
—wlfm
