#loving lee

[aro-absol]

I found a canon (word used!) grayromantic aroallo character!

The book is called "Loving Lee" by Cozy Dubois.

The book is about Lee, an audio technician at a gay bar, falling in love with the new drag queen Carlita/Antonio. It also tells the stories of his found family members, struggling with love, work and other things. All main characters are in their 20s and 30s, and all of them are queer in some way. There's lots of bi/pan characters, as well as trans and intersex representation. It also features an alloace side character.

It's a very characters-driven story with multiple POVs. I especially enjoyed how the communication was done, and all of the characters felt very authentic to me.

The greyromantic character actually falls in love for the first time, and while the greyromanticism isn't a focal point of the story, I think it was nicely done. We get to see the character trying to handle all these new feelings and being a little overwhelmed by them.

I think it's the first in a series, but I haven't read the others yet.

Be warned, though, this book features a lot of romance and several graphic sex scenes. But if that doesn't bother you, I'd totally recommend this book! I've enjoyed it a lot. It feels a little like checking in with your friend group, and I absolutely love that.

Other than that, the novel deals with various mental health issues, past trauma, becoming sober from a drug addiction, and (extreme) homophobia/transphobia.

Goodreads page with more info

Below, I'll take more about the aromantic representation. I also have screenshots of the scene that is about the character's greyromantic identity. Spoilers ahead!

So, the greyromantic character is actually Antonio, one of the main characters and the love interest of the protagonist. He has a reputation as a fuckboy. When Lee falls in love with him, all of his friends warn Lee about Antonio. Little does anybody know that Antonio is falling for Lee just as hard.

He had already worked for the gay bar once a few years ago, and then moved to New York to chase his big dreams of becoming as successful drag queen. That didn't work out, though, and all he got was an addiction. At the beginning of the novel, he had just moved back to be closer to his family again, so he had a support system to help him stay sober. He also starts doing drag there again, and this is where he meets Lee.

In the following scene, he's talking to Jackie, his alloace coworker, who he has known for years. I found this scene very relatable. Not knowing what I crush feels like, and thinking the description sounds like anxiety, are common aro experiences, I'd say. And weirdly enough, I Jackie's answer makes me feel really aromantic, as I've definitely never experienced that.

And then, a little later, it is talked about why he uses the grayromantic label and how he feels about it (descriptions of his past drug addiction ahead):

I never had an addiction before, but I can understand Antonio's insecurities very well. It's just so hard to prove a negative, and trying to rule out other possible explanations for your feelings (or lack thereof) isn't any easier.

Overall, I think the representation was very nicely done. I think it might be the best arospec-who-feels-romantic-attraction representation I've ever seen.

[lonelywithadropofwine]

You make me feel emotions that I never knew existed

[lonelywithadropofwine]

i dreamt of you and now i really wish you were here

[lonelywithadropofwine]

Cuddling so close that I feel every heartbeat you make

[lonelywithadropofwine]

I wish I could tell you I love you without fearing what your reaction might be