Boy Friends

Simo and Luca have been best friends since the age of seven. They both live in a small seaside town where everyone knows everyone. They are both gay but Simo hasn’t come out yet. Four years’ ago, Simo lost his older brother who died at the age of thirteen. The family is still grieving.

Luca is openly gay, as is his father. He is also a very good baker and helps out regularly in his father’s café. Then his estranged paternal grandparents move to the area and things change.

One day, a notice goes up on the community notice board where town news, big and small, is posted: Simo loves Luca. Who put it there and will it change the boys’ special friendship?

This book deals very well with the pain that fractured relationships of all kinds can cause. At first glance, Spellmeier’s work is a simple boy/boy romance. This description fails to do it justice. It is about the messy, real and complicated relationships between people and about what happens when you are not honest about your feelings. What is really refreshing in this YA novel is that the adults don’t always react the way the reader assumes they will, and the reasons for this are explored. Also, anyone who likes a nerdy love interest will love Simo.