synopsis:vaan has returned to college a week early, and his parents have made him an appointment with a therapist on campus. while he is in the waiting room, he meets saul, who is in a wheelchair. vaan doesn't dance around the question, but asks straight out what happened to put saul there. saul appreciates the straightforward manner, and the two of them have a good conversation before they each have to go in to their respective therapists. vaan, of course, doesn't like his, and when they are released at the same time, vaan and saul talk some more. they don't meet up until a couple of weeks later, when they meet in the laundry room of their dorm. after that, vaan and saul are pretty much inseperable. they enjoy being with each other and vaan brings saul out of his shell. when saul and vaan share a kiss, in an experiment on vaan's part, things start to change. when vaan kisses saul in public, and then doesn't have the reaction that saul wants him to, saul asks vaan to "let him think" for a week. vaan realizes that saul was actually serious about their potential relationship, and things go much better from that point onward.what i liked: i really liked saul and vaan, and the alternating 1st person pov. i liked the build in relationship, and that neither of them was really "gay for you", since saul was repressing, and vaan always said that it didn't matter who he loved, as long as he did love. i also liked that they were best friends, and they did talk about everything with one another, and that they understood each other. i liked the surrounding characters, especially vaan's roommate. i also liked that saul was independent and was very matter of fact about his limitations, and that you got the sense that it was hard won; that everything was NOT sunshine and roses from the start.what i didn't like: not a lot. i would like to see more of vaan and saul, though. Holy mother of the gods. No wonder this has such a high rating. It is freaking fantastic. Seriously, unbelievably good. 5 stars does not do it justice. This is the second story I've read for free online that I would gladly pay to have a copy of. The writing noticeably gets better as the story goes on (as I understand it, it was written over a very long period of time) but it hooks you right from the start. Alternating first person POV is unusual and can be very hard to pull off, but this author does it and does it very very well.I seriously started reading this on a whim, but damn, did I ever get into it. And thank the gods it was finished by the time I found it, because I pretty much would have died if I hadn't been able to read it straight through in one sitting. It doesn't have a lot of angst or plot twists or some great mystery to make you turn the pages, but you so quickly get so caught up in the MC's relationship that you just have to keep reading.I had a tiny bit of hesitating when I first started reading. I wasn't really sure I would like Vaan, simply because his tone of voice was a little bit off in the beginning. From the first couple paragraphs I was worried he would be a blunt jerk, instead of the straightforward sweetheart he turned out to be. But by the end of the first chapter, I was totally in love. Vaan and Saul are such distinct characters, with such vibrant beautiful personalities, I feel like I've just made two new best friends, not read a book! They have distinct voices that are maintained throughout the story, and they just compliment each other so well. They are one of the cutest, adorable, most inspiring couples I've ever read about. They do require a tiny bit of suspension of disbelief: Vaan is just so very over-the-top. But that is part of what makes him so freaking awesome. If I knew people like him in real life, maybe I wouldn't be quite so antisocial! (Seriously, it's a good thing Vaan doesn't exist in real life, because I would totally go full stalker-chick mode on him. He is the very definition of my perfect guy: goth/punk, intelligent, flamboyant, geeky, cute, sweet, dyed hair and piercings. *swoon*)And the side characters just totally made my day. It wasn't necessarily the most realistic view of college life (or maybe it was, and my college and every student attending it just sucked) but it felt totally genuine. Vaan's friends made me laugh so freaking hard, and I totally loved them. Even with side characters, just such beautiful characterization! It is a completely character-driven story, and everyone is so vibrant, so adorable, and so real!Ugh, this book just made me so happy. I loved the characters, I loved the slow burning romance, I loved the college setting, I loved the group of friends, I loved the massive number of pop-culture and geek references. I loved everything about this story, and everyone everywhere should go read it, right now. Ok, ok, that's not actually a helpful review type statment. How about this: if you like m/m, college stories, coming of age stories, odd MC pairings, stories where one or both of the MCs are not in perfect physical shape, punk guys, piercings and dyed hair, or sweet slow-burning romances, this is absolutely the story for you.
What do You think about Pretty Shade Of Grey (2013)?
It was an awesome book. I felt that Vaan and Saul were so real I totally loved it :3
—kat
Ughhhhhhhh! I need a sequel. This was an awesome read! And it is FREE.
—hunger
This is the definition of cute. Adorable.
—16466489388
