Review: Judgment of the Moon and Stars

Judgment of the Moon and Stars by Tymber Dalton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The title is fitting as this is a judgmental book where two men collide only to be torn apart. Not sure how many times Ms. Dalton will continue to pound through about conservative Christians giving gay men a hard time. But they do say, write what you know. I find that many religions are against gays so this is nothing new, just disappointing. Disappointing that one's sexual identity is still a point of contention. Because frankly, if people are not involved in that person's sex life… who cares? Do these people have nothing better to do with their time? It is just unfathomable to me why people persecute in this manner. To add insult to injury, when it is their own mother, it is just unacceptable.

Noah is a man who's wound up tighter than a windup toy. He is terrified of being outed and yet he is an adult with a decent paying job--trying to live his life. But is it really a life when it is half of one when he has to hide most of himself? Not only is he gay, he's also kinky. These two "sins" are not grave enough because he is also a submissive. At this point, he might as well just end it. He's getting hit from multiple sides because just one of these isn't bad enough. The stigma of being kinky is lessening, but not necessarily for men--especially men who are submissive. They are treated as lesser and in this story it isn't covered as much, but it is something I'm conscious of and it infuriates me.

Noah should be granted the same rights as everyone else--the right to find someone he loves and live his life w/o being censored. In his 40's, he's finally thinking of taking this plunge to live life before he dies. Luckily for him, he finds Jackson. This sounds like the start to a beautiful relationship. And yet, there is a failure to communicate. Generally contrived miscommunications aggravate me. In this story, it isn't contrived. It is an all too easy mishap that can happen. In the heat of the moment, trading contact information and logistic generally isn't in the forefront. In this case, it should have been.

The reasons why Jackson is gun shy is valid and helps paint a picture of why sometimes the other person doesn't call. There are many assumptions Jackson and Noah make about each other when they aren't able to connect. These fears and past hurts makes it difficult to reconnect and it saddens me. Luckily, through intervention, this derailed romance is set back on track. These two are sweet. They may not be as memorable as some of the other couples, and yet they leave a lasting impression. This erotic romance is recommended to kinky m/m readers who enjoy angsty themes.

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