WL's Mainstream Gay Book Reviews - 9. Clear Water by Amy Lane

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12393029-clear-water

An old 2012 short 14-chapter 230 page book about a gay 23-year-old rich boy, Patrick Cleary, with severe ADHD, an abusive boyfriend named Cal, and a nickname of “Trix” meeting an older 36-year-old bisexual biological researcher, Wesley Keenan, with a serious demeanor, kind heart, and the nickname of “Whiskey”, readers should expect a quirky romantic story about a young man who has stopped believing in himself and an older man, who is slowly falling for his quirky ticks. Add an overlapping story about environmental damage created by the presence of chemicals in the Sacramento River causing frog mutations, plus a spunky bisexual female researcher, Freya, nicknamed “fly bait”, the characters and plot build on one another.

Wesley saves Patrick after he is drugged and his car is thrown into the river by his boyfriend, Cal. Having vowed to not rely on his father and being betrayed by his boyfriend, along with the attempted homicide and robbery of his credit cards/phone, Patrick join “Whiskey” and “Fly Bait” on their investigation. The investigation into the environmental issues culminate into a massive plot that involves an illegal marijuana growing operation, a bomb threat, and some soul searching.

This a slow burn romance with an interesting side scientific mystery, but it’s a quirky kind of story that will cause to fall in love with characters. Patrick and Whiskey share really good book chemistry with one another despite their differences. The action towards the end of the novel was fun and engaging. Plus, environmental issues were very interesting topic, which made me question the benefits of legalized marijuana. I never realize that chemical treatment could be so dangerous to the ecosystem, especially from run-off in marijuana growing operations. Environment is not a go-to cause for me, I won’t pretend that it’s something that usually tops my thoughts as some do, but I am aware of them.

Patrick is someone you can easily want to snuggle and hold, especially when he said “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” (My heart broke every time I hear that from him). He tries so hard to improve himself, but his self-esteem issues and inability to function without ADHD medication is very telling. I’ve met kids like Patrick in my life, good guys who are intelligent and capable in their own right, but severe ADHD inhibits their behavior. I love what Amy Lane did here in this story, portraying a character who struggles so hard to live a normal life. I love the little details like “LBP”, little brown pill, being a fixture in the story. Patrick’s medication for his mental health is not a crutch as Cal and even Patrick’s father criticized in the novel; in this day and age, I find such notions to be so asinine. Personally, Patrick’s father misunderstanding of Patrick’s issues made me angry at the man. Claiming Patrick was a “slacker” and “fuck-up” was a horribly derogatory that further worsens Patrick self-worth and sadly made his situation worse; tough love might be useful for kids acting up or not reaching their full potential, but Patrick is a disabled boy with a real medical condition, his SOB of a father was an asshole. Mental health is one of those elements in gay fiction that writers, amateur and professional alike, rarely get into details about or descriptive ramifications, but seeing it appear in this novel, it made my day when I read it. Severe ADHD is not like a Percy Jackson story, it’s far worse in-person.

Also, Patrick had a string of boyfriends, who used him for money or sex with the nickname of “Trix” being the result, was a heartbreaking revelation when you learn about it early in the novel. He might come from an affluent background, but he doesn’t enjoy any of the privileges for himself, instead he is objectified by his wealth and sexuality. Amy Lane outdid herself in creating such a sympathetic character. Yet she also made Patrick unique, he is not completely pathetic or the stereotypical Dickensian character that needs help. He is quite capable if he is given direction, if he is motivated by others to reach for more, and he has his own skill sets, especially in the area of Yoga, perhaps the sexiest exercise in the world.

On the other side, Wesley/Whiskey is the perfect caretaker and caregiver. He wants to be supportive lover, but is resistant to take advantage of Patrick. His issue is very simple and makes logical sense, he is older and self-conscious about their age difference. There was tragedy in his past, like his parents dying from a car accident and him having to work as a fry-cook before being rescued by “Fly bait”, but he has dealt with his pain and there’s a sense of maturity with his psychological hang-ups. I like the idea of him cuddling up to Patrick and thinking of him as one of the frogs, who he was trying to protect and save from the unknown polluter. He also had assumed the worse about Patrick's father being the stereotypical corporate polluter, Patrick's father wasn't in the end, but there maybe an additional layer of psychological protectiveness beneath the surface as well due to the parallels. Patrick can be spastic, but Whiskey just keeps the boy calm and it’s so adorably supportive. Additionally, Freya/fly bait may appear to be a snarky and antagonistic character, but she is very caring towards both Patrick and Whiskey, like an older sister in their unconventional family. Fly bait also has a girlfriend and she is very proud to be in a lesbian relationship, despite the undercurrents of sexual tension between her and Whiskey.

Both characters were very good for the overall plot of the scientific mystery of the two-headed frogs, one pair named Caleb and Catherine. Anomaly data sets based on animal samples, water sensors, chemical compound analysis, and boring tabulations may not be appealing to most readers, but I do find it very nice note of authenticity and demonstration the author had done research into Environmental studies. These two characters are interesting counterweight of organization and analytical compared to Patrick's chaotic nature.

Being a short story, you don’t have a lot of secondary characters, nor time to develop the plot more intricately. Somethings towards the end felt weird, Cal’s criminal conspiracy was a great twist, but Patrick’s father change of heart was rushed. Yes, Patrick saved his father from a bomb, but one life endangering moment changing your relationship and perception of the world doesn’t feel right for that character. Additionally, I wish we had more development for Whiskey’s character.

My Rating: 4 out of 5, it’s a nice story even if it’s short. The gay romance was slow and steady. The core protagonist Patrick was an amazing breakout character for me, an ADHD gay young adult with issues was a great idea. Patrick's journey carried the novel from beginning to end, while the dual viewpoint story was neat to see the thoughts of both lovers reducing the age gap awkwardness between the characters.