Anyone But You

Book content trigger warnings:
Consensual rough sex
Consensual Non-consent (rape fantasies)
Dirty talk
Dom/Sub tones
Bad BDSM etiquette
Not nearly enough lube
No aftercare
Safe words
(Everything is consensual but very rough)
Past suicidal thoughts
Internalized homophobia (obviously)
Homophobic behavior
Homophobic slurs
Thoughts of suicide
Murder
Allusions to necrophilia

Well, okay then, this one’s finally done… There is a lot to unload here so bear with me.

Based on the synopsis I really wanted to like this book —
Drag queens! Closeted bi! Secretly dating your boss! Killer on the loose!!
It had all the ingredients for an amazing book, but, unfortunately there were a lot of problems, and it just did not work out. It was cluttered with all these elements for storytelling that could have worked well separately but were too much all jumbled together. Too much happening and too much angst and not enough attention paid to the right things.

Let me break it down as much as I can.

The first time Anyone But You blindsided me was the very beginning when Jack and Sheila had literally *just* met and she wanted very rough sex. By “rough” I mean pretend he’s raping her. Yes, that’s a thing that people do that I’ve read more than once; however, by people who know and trust each other or by a professional Dom with a Sub. The only way Sheila knew Jack was as an aquaintance on a professional level, and he didn’t know who she was at all. They didn’t know each other. Yet, five minutes after meeting, literally in her dressing room at the back of the club, she gave him a safe word, and without any BDSM experience or further discussion, the fantasy began.
I am by no means a BDSM expert, but even I know this is a terrible idea. And because Jack, and apparently Sheila, didn’t know better, there was zero aftercare any of the times they had sex in this way either, which, apparently, *bizarrely* didn’t have Sheila dropping, but sure as heck had me doing so. Where are the sweet kisses? The gentle cuddling? The washing, feeding, the quietly making sure she’s safe and okay after? But Jack struggled being with Sheila for any reason other than sex for such a long time he could barely stand to be around the Ryan underneath all that makeup, and only finally did (regretting offering in the first place the whole time) when Ryan suffered the loss of a dear friend.

Which brings me to more elements of this story I had such a hard time with. These characters were so dishonest with each other about so many big and little things, I had a hard time liking or trusting either of them. While at times Ryan did win me over with his sweetness and attention-mongering and fortitude, along with his alter ego Sheila’s chutzpah, Jack is another story. He was extremely internally homophobic, which I can’t and won’t comment anymore on because it’s not something I have to deal with and can’t understand. However, it was very painful to read. The main problem I had with this character was him telling Ryan he’d do better, be better, while every time thinking that it wasn’t actually true. Telling him he was okay with things, when really he was nowhere near okay. These men *could not communicate honestly* and it frustrated me beyond words while simultaneously breaking my heart. Based on this story, I can’t believe they will ever have a healthy relationship.

Another element of cluttery storytelling was Jack’s family. I realize they play a role since it’s because of them that Jack struggles so much with his bisexuality, but the only sides we see of his closest family are the hateful ones. There’s no softness, nothing familial between them to make me care about them in any way. I hated them. I was ready for Jack to be done with them from nearly there beginning, and therefore couldn’t care about any of the conversations proceeding him outing himself. The conversations were extraneous and unnecessary for the plot or for character development. Couldn’t find any sympathy to share for Jack when he lost them because as far as I had seen, he hadn’t lost anything worthwhile.

Then there was the killer and his corresponding murder “mystery.” Unfortunately, I knew who dun it the first pages the character was introduced, but in fact, for most of the book he was the ONLY possible suspect. It wasn’t until the very end that someone else was presented as an option, so I wasn’t given the chance to second-guess myself because there was nothing suspicious about this other option before this scene, and the killer was revealed the very next chapter.
Also odd, it didn’t it make sense to me that the character who knew the killer never noticed him hanging around the club.
In addition to that, he wasn’t given a real reason for picking drag queens as his victims. It was… weird that he became so obsessed with them for no apparent reason. Sure, he may have been mentally unstable and it just happened that way, but having a legitimate reason to hate them (for instance, a history with them in some way; he’d been done wrong by one or perhaps hated himself for being attracted to them — something like that) would have made for a more compelling killer.
Also, this idiot was so afraid of leaving DNA on his victims and yet defaced the tombstone of his first victim and then defecated in front of it. Too late, buddy, the cops have got plenty of your DNA.

An editing issue were these little contradictions from time to time in the story or plotline. For instance, originally when planning an event, Ryan had known Jack would insist on coming and thought “that was fine, though, added protection”; however, later we find out that apparently Ryan has been trying to convince Jack to stay this whole time and finally did so. What happened to “That was fine”? What happened to “Added protection”?
Now, full disclosure, I read an ARC, so it’s possible some of these contradictions have been fixed.

I gotta mention this too little lube thing in more detail too… Allow me to give you a quote:
“now he had what felt like a piece of steel between his legs. If Jack came back right now and tried to fuck him, he damn sure wouldn’t need any lube.”
Y’all, this was not an ABO. There was no natural lubrication. And while dry fucking is possible, it’s not pleasant, definitely not recommended. This was at a time where they hadn’t had sex for *at least* two weeks. He would be dry and tight, and I cannot see someone getting to a place where dry fucking doesn’t make him wince.

Besides all that, with so much crammed in with Ryan and his shows and Jack with his problems and his family and their sex life and personal issues and the killer on the loose, there were possibly other plotlines and characters that were lost, such as friends and coworkers. Chatting with a workmate and worrying he was catching on to them dating for instance.
I wished we’d gotten to see more of the queens’ of Sheila’s club reactions to this killer as well. The hush that would follow each death, fear, and queens deciding to stay home or go to a different club to protect themselves.
Any sweet moments between Jack and Ryan would have been appreciated. Cute dates where they aren’t discussing a problem. Waking up together, showering, kissing, anything. I got to feel very little for these two.

In the end, I’m sorry to say, this book needed a makeover or two, a little more research and a lot more editing. In my opinion, the author has the potential to write words that flow, but plotting and likeable character building especially need some work.

**My thanks to NetGalley/Riptide Publishing for the chance to read this book free in exchange for an honest review