Title:  Seduce Me After the Show

Author: est em

Publisher:  Deux

ISBN:  9781934496169

May Contain Spoilers

Seduce Me After the Show is a collection of understated BL stories.  None of these can be considered up-beat, and the collection as a whole is pretty depressing.  The stories are intense, highlighting pent up emotions and desperate longings.

The opening chapters were the best, as they explored the relationship between Theo and Darren.  Theo is a dancer, and he’s still reeling from the death of his mother in a plane accident years before.  She was the mother everyone longs to have - his biggest fan, his ardent supporter, the person he turned to when he was down.  Now the emptiness left by her death has him spinning his wheels, searching for a way to fill the void.  Enter actor Darren Fergus, and maybe he’s found a way to distract himself.  What starts as a taunting kind of joke turns into a complicated freight train of emotions between the two men. 

My second favorite chapter was “Nero,” because it was so bizarre.  Those blank, wide-eyed stares from Nero and Nye were a little creepy, but this was an inventive, unique story.  Yeah, and really, really weird  Saying any more would ruin the chapter, so be sure to check this one out.

I wasn’t a big fan of the art style.  It’s rather plain, and its sketchy appearance is not very attractive. The illustrations lack detail, and the backgrounds are almost non-existent, which made for some drab panels. Like the tone of the stories, the art seems dark and heavy.  I thought that the characters’ facial expressions were distant and unemotional as well.

With its cheerless selection of stories, Seduce Me After the Show offers a mixed bag of  BL tales.  There is undeniably a lot of emotion here, but most of it seemed to get all revved up, with nowhere to go.

Grade:  B-

Rated for Mature

Review copy provided by Deux