I received this book for free from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Midnight Gardener (The Town of Superstition, #1) by R.G. Thomas Series: The Town of Superstition #1
Published by Harmony Ink Press on November 12th 2015
Genres: Young Adult, LGBTQIA, Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 123
Format: eBook
Source: Net Galley
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The Town of Superstition: Book One
At fifteen, Thaddeus Cane has moved thirty-two times with his father. Each time he’s displaced without explanation, Thaddeus loses any friends he’s made. The name of their latest town is Superstition, but it seems normal enough, with one exception.Thaddeus’s bedroom window gives him a view into the beautiful gardens next door. Every night after dark, an attractive guy around Thaddeus’s age appears to tend the plants. When Thaddeus visits his neighbor, he discovers not only how deep his interest in the other man runs, but also that Teofil, the midnight gardener, isn’t human. He’s a garden gnome, a revelation that will lead to more secrets coming to light and an adventure unlike anything Thaddeus ever imagined
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ISBN: 1634762681Penny’s Rating: B
It’s been a while since I read a YA fairy-tale that I really enjoyed. This is a super-cute quick read, that just happens to have an inter-species (Gnome/Human) age appropriate romance. This is also book one in a series: The Town of Superstition, so if you want to read something that doesn’t end on a to be continued cliffhanger, this is not that book. There are going to be three in the series, and if you read, you’re going to want to read all of them, and you’ll have to wait for them to come out. Like I have to now.
Thomas has successfully created a modern-day fairy-tale, that ties together witches, werewolves, dragons, garden gnomes, with one very unusual small town. There were twists and turns that I didn’t expect in this book, and given that the book is written with young teens in mind, I find that incredibly refreshing.
So many LGBTQIA YA fiction novels often fall into those tragic archetypes of familial rejection, rebellion, tragedy, prejudice, or angst. I’m not knocking that at all – we all learn from tragedy and pain, but sometimes that is not what we need. Sometimes we need the fairy-tale. Sometimes, we need simple, clear-cut, with a bit of happy, and some weird garden gnome magic.
At any rate, I am looking forward to the sequel.
