Touch

Title:  Touch
Author: Remmy Duchene
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: September 29, 2019 (Second Edition)
Genre(s): Contemporary Romance
Page Count: 149 pages
Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Read book blurb here

Foster Erickson has had some really rough years and is now in college, finally getting his life together. Foster meets Sylvester Roberts in their psychology class and is interested in the other student. The two men begin a very tentative relationship, taking into account Foster's background and his haehophobia (fear of touch).

While the plot has potential, this novella just doesn't come together for me. Both men are older adult students; Sylvester has a lot of international business experience and is about 30 years old, yet he "reads" much younger. I don't get a strong sense of either man's personality and the relationship seems to progress with little deep meaningful interaction. Although the novella is fairly short, the pace feels slow to me, with a lot of similar scenes and conversation that seem very stilted and awkward.

Touch doesn't work for me due to the "distance" between the reader and the characters and there is a lot of "tell" versus "show." Ultimately, I could never really picture the two men together in a healthy and happy relationship. 3 stars.