Pritty

Keith F. Miller

Book - 2023

"On the verge of summer before his senior year, Jay is a soft soul in a world of concrete. While his older brother is everything people expect a man to be--tough, athletic, and in charge--Jay simply blends into the background to everyone, except when it comes to Leroy. Unsure of what he could have possibly done to catch the eye of the boy who could easily have anyone he wants, Jay isn't about to ignore the surprising but welcome attention. But as everything in his world begins to heat up, especially with Leroy, whispered rumors over the murder of a young Black journalist and long-brewing territory tensions hang like a dark cloud over his neighborhood. And when Jay and Leroy find themselves caught in the crossfire, Leroy isn't... willing to be the reason Jay's life is at risk. Dragged into the world of the Black Diamonds--whose work to protect the Black neighborhoods of Savannah began with his father and now falls to his older brother--Leroy knows that finding out who attacked his brother is not only the key to protecting everyone he loves but also the only way he can ever be with Jay. Wading through a murky history of family trauma and regret, Leroy soon discovers that there's no keeping Jay safe when Jay's own family is in just as deep and fighting the undertow of danger just as hard. Now Jay and Leroy must puzzle through secrets hiding in plain sight and scramble to uncover who is determined to eliminate the Black Diamonds before someone else gets hurt--even if the cost might be their own electric connection"--

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Subjects
Genres
LGBTQ+ fiction
LGBTQ+ romance fiction
Gay romance fiction
Gay fiction
Queer fiction
Romance fiction
Novels
Published
New York, NY : HarperTeen, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers [2023]
Language
English
Corporate Author
HarperCollins (Firm)
Main Author
Keith F. Miller (author)
Corporate Author
HarperCollins (Firm) (-)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
406 pages : illustration ; 22 cm
ISBN
9780063264922
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

Jay doesn't stand out in the way his brother, Jacob, does. In fact, he's used to being overlooked. So, when Leroy, a boy entrenched in the world of the Black Diamonds, becomes interested in Jay, it spurs Jay into a spiral of self-discovery. Although Leroy and Jay form a connection, they're wrenched apart after a shooting targeting Leroy's older brother, the head of the Black Diamonds, leaves Leroy and Jay injured. Even with Leroy's temporary absence, Jay continues to blossom outside the prescribed identity he's created for himself. In this debut, Miller offers a vivid narrative, shining light onto the complexities of queer Black boyhood. Through alternating points of-view, we are given access to both Jay's and Leroy's journey--two unique voices that are arguably the heart of the tale. Miller expertly weaves together themes of survival, love, betrayal, and forgiveness in a way that gives the story an emotional vitality. This book's metaphorical layers celebrate the beauty and hardship of growing into adulthood.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Booksmart 17-year-old Jay Dupresh has one goal: get a full-ride scholarship to Northwestern to honor his older brother, who gave up his college dreams to help support their financially struggling family. On top of his collegiate desires, however, Jay also struggles with the need to be accepted and liked. After a charged encounter with 18-year-old Leroy, the younger brother of the Black Diamonds gang's leader, who intervenes when homophobic bullies target Jay, the two develop an electric friendship that soon blossoms into tentative courtship. Meanwhile, Leroy is wrestling with his own challenges: a run-in with a biased teacher sees Leroy on the verge of expulsion, so he recruits Jay's help in applying for a GED program. But when an unexpected attack leaves both boys injured, it becomes evident that there are greater threats to their fledgling relationship than a mutual fear of rejection. Miller's debut is laudable for its intimate portrayal of a Black community combatting systemic violence by creating their own institutions of support via the Black Diamonds, whose initially intimidating outward reputation begets a collaborative organization devoted to protection. Moreover, Miller sketches a panorama of queer Black characters who, even under threat, not only survive but thrive. Ages 13--up. (Nov.)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 9 Up--Miller's ambitious debut novel about queer Black boys in Savannah, GA, defies genre categorization. Part teenage love triangle, part conspiracy thriller, part identity narrative, and part gang violence retribution story, it races chaotically to its conclusion and ultimately leaves readers unfulfilled and vaguely confused. The novel alternates between two first-person narrators--Jay and Leroy--as they recount their burgeoning love story amid the backdrop of a community gang war orchestrated by unknown forces. Despite the presence of gang violence, the Savannah described herein is almost completely alien to reality: a utopia where Black queer boys and girls face almost no homophobia from their teenage peers or members of the community, despite openly pursuing each other. It seems too pervasive to not be deliberate, as if the author is attempting to create a parallel universe where these bigotries don't exist. However, the author's decision to gloss over the struggles of Southern queer people with homophobia is puzzling when it is revealed through plot events that bigotry is anything but absent from this fictional Savannah. VERDICT Full of beautiful prose and characters who laugh in the face of toxic masculinity, Miller's debut has a lot of promise--especially in terms of BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ representation--but uneven pacing and overly complicated plotlines keep it from its full potential.--Amy Shaw

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

The dangers of love letters, honest feelings, and trying to do right by your community are on full, gay display in this duology opener. Bookish high school junior and diehard romantic Joseph "Jay" Dupresh is used to feeling invisible, but a number of boys around the K-Town neighborhood of Savannah are showing interest lately, including sweet but rough-around-the-edges Leroy. While Jay focuses on writing love letters on commission as his growing side hustle (and some just for himself), Leroy's family affiliation with the Black Diamonds puts both boys at risk, forcing them to hit pause right when things start to heat up. Despite their reputation and even Jay's assumptions, the BDs are primarily a grassroots cooperative that happens to be made up of gangsters looking to protect and take ownership of their community. While Jay narrates his chapters with vulnerability and a delicate touch, Leroy provides contrast in both language and imagery from the peripheries of gang life. Together, they paint a rich, dynamic image of Black queer boyhood in a vividly depicted Southern community. The teens' will-they-won't-they romance is accompanied by the presence of a healthy number of other handsome queer boys and the life-threatening intrigue of a community violently turned against itself before discovering the real enemy. These storylines make for a compelling debut that impressively balances the sweet and the suspenseful. Queer Black boy joy at its juiciest. (Fiction. 12-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.