“We Could Be So Good” by Cat Sebastian, paperback edition. The book is sat on my small outdoor table, beside a highlighter and pen, ready to be read.
“With covert glances across the newsroom, Nick catalogs the things he doesn’t like about Andy and stores them up like a misanthropic squirrel.”
THE REVIEW
I have had a long held love of journalism, and of homosexuals. I would argue my love of journalism only precedes my love of queer culture and people, because of exposure. I first learned about journalism on a field trip to one of those kid sized cities that gives you a “day in the life of an adult” experience. This must have been 4th grade, I was around eight or nine. I can’t remember the job I took first, but I know I quit it after 30 minutes or so, and went to work for the newspaper. I wrote an article on a hotdog related dispute, and had the time of my life. Ever since then I have loved what journalism stood for, as uncovering truths, and giving important information to as many people as possible. I didn’t go on to do anything with this love, other than deeply admire journalists, both mainstream and independent. I like to think of myself as a journalist in the florist sense of the word. I strive to write honest, but creative nonfiction pieces, and I take great joy in the research and experience gathering for a piece. I think this is why I enjoy writing book reviews as a whole, but it’s a whole new level of affection to be reviewing “We Could Be So Good” by Cat Sebastian. This book has realistic journalism drama, mixed with just enough unhinged to make this romance a beautiful fairy-tale. I have read a bit of gay romance in my life, mlm romances are some of my favorite books. I am biased as a gay trans man, married to a man I am hopelessly in love with. Sometimes characters in romances can fall a bit flat, or one dimensional. That is in no way the case in this novel.
“We Could Be So Good” takes place in late 1950’s New York, it is a romance between a rough neighborhood high walled stoic and a forgetful nerdy deeply lonesome wealthy boss baby. Specifically, our stoic Nick’s boss. Andy could have been a very flat, fluttery character with no real passion and a lot of angst. He was so much more though, and so was Nick. I at first thought this was heading in a standard grumpy/sunshine direction, but in a beautiful turn of event, I would say both men are equal parts sun and storm. Sebastian wrote these men with a level of raw humanity that can be hard to find. I laughed out loud multiple times at the dialogue between our main characters, and I found myself deeply interested in the surrounding characters as well. They felt real, dimensional, truly part of the story. I didn’t feel like the story was just filler, in fact, I didn’t find there to be really any filler. The whole story matters. The ending came a bit swiftly, before I was ready for it. I felt the story begin to tie up its ends, and get ready to say farewell well before I was ready, but by the end, I couldn’t have asked for a better conclusion.
“Andy is pissed now, his food abandoned, his fists clenched in his lap. “You assumed I didn’t know what I was talking about or that I was confused…”…But here Andy is, laying himself bare, and Nick isn’t sure he’s ever seen anything so brave in his life.”
Sometimes the way a romance ends can feel too contrived, too unreal, and too plastic. Even though this ending has a lot of similar formula pieces, it is executed in a way that I felt was natural to the story, and maintained the story’s tether to the real world. I am a sucker for deep contemplation, and nuanced characters, and I felt like this book had just enough to feel undeniably adult, but not like a brain workout. After having read several nonfiction pieces back to back, this was the perfect piece of fiction to hit me in the heart and mind. Also, I am totally liable to love a book at least 10% more with the addition of a cat. Especially a kind of dumb, and needy cat, who reminds me of one of our own. I related in some really lovely ways to these characters and their life, not so much literally, but in the way you can see pieces of yourself or your love in another couple.
“Nick caught that we, and wonders if Andy did, too.”
⭐ THE STARS OF IT ALL ⭐
Overall I give this book a solid 5 stars. It was everything I wanted this romance to be, and then some. My one and only complaint is that the epilogue included a piece of the story that I felt did not need rehashing, but hey, everyone deserves happiness. I found myself upset that I hadn’t read the book sooner, and also sad to have read it for the first time already. The kind of fluttery love, and deep devotion this story invokes is beautiful. The spicy scenes feel natural, and are in no way overly written or intrusive. The conflict feels real, and honest. It’s a slow burn at what felt like the perfect pace to still definitely be romance, but the kind of romance you could talk about in detail without even mentioning the sex. I really think cat Sebastian hit it out of the park with this one, and I am looking forward to seeing what else New York has in store in “You Should Be So Lucky”, which is already sitting on my shelf ready to go. I’m just not quite ready to let go of Nick and Andy, though I have a feeling I will get to see at least some of them in this next read.
After having read several nonfiction pieces back to back, this was the perfect piece of fiction to hit me in the heart and mind. Also, I am totally liable to love a book at least 10% more with the addition of a cat.
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