Thirst Trap - Zachary Ryan Book Review

I received Thirst Trap by Zachary Ryan in exchange for an honest review. This post is part of the Thirst Trap Blog Tour as arranged by Emily the Book Nerd. Visit her blog to enter the giveaway (closing date 14th April 2020).

Thirst Trap Information

Author: Zachary Ryan

Published: 4th November 2019

Format: eBook & Paperback

Publisher: Kingston Publishing Company

Pages: 210

Age: New Adult

Genre: LGBTQ+ Contemporary

Thirst Trap Summary

Tragedy comes in all forms, and you never know how you’ll deal with it. Four friends have all dealt with their fair share of struggles. Dillon, an aspiring writer with writers block because of his brothers sudden death, Jesse the emotional stunted drinker thanks to his boyfriend’s suicide, Ivan the abused victim just looking for a place to call home, and Leo the stubborn romantic trying to get his friends to open up, while keeping his issues close to his chest. With these four friends, they avoid all their elephants in the room like a death card agreement between Dillon and Jesse, Ivan completely hoping his abusive lover will change or Leo focusing on his friend’s problems instead of his own.

Can these four friends learn to embrace and accept their own tragedy or will they be stuck in the past? Thirst Trap is a humorous coming of age novel dealing with sexuality, tragedy, substance abuse and the most beautiful, insane friendships.

Thirst Trap Review

My Rating for Thirst Trap is 3.5 rounded up to 4 Stars.

Trigger Warnings: Thirst Trap mentions abusive relationships (physical and emotional), substance abuse, suicide and death.

Thirst Trap is told from the four friends’ perspectives. Each chapter starts from one of their viewpoints. All four characters have well-developed personalities with flaws and likeable qualities. It delves into the complexities of why people stay in abusive relationships and why it is important not to give up on your friends. It also discusses the impact of a sibling dying by suicide and how people can start to move forwards after loss.

The majority of the book is set in a bar and the gym and looks into how the stereotypes of what it means to be gay can leave people feeling inadequate or like they don’t fit in.

Overall, I think this is a well-written book with interesting characters and I wanted them to be able to move through their insecurities and low self-esteem issues.

You can buy Thirst Trap – Zachary Ryan here.