by

Dawson Wozniak has lost both parents and a relationship in the same year. After working remotely in Mexico as an editor for a West Coast publisher during the Covid pandemic, he makes the big move to stay in the seaside town known for its beauty and festivities and pursue his goal of reinventing himself. He purchases a condo on the edge of the jungle and makes new friends. One night during a raging thunderstorm, he has an encounter with an iguana, engages in a stolen kiss, and witnesses a tragic death. The events are forever stuck in his head. Everyone around him wants to move on from that night, including Ivan, the divorced father with whom he shared the kiss. Dawson makes decisions that complicate his life and Ivan’s who finds himself in web of psychological and moral dilemmas. Despite the complications, Dawson believes there was something in that night that drew him to Mexico in the first place and he refuses to let it go. The enigmatic attraction between the two men finds its own tempo and they keep coming back to each other against all odds. In the quiet times they discover a refuge from the turmoil of their lives.
Editors:
Genres:
Pairings: M-F, M-M
Heat Level: 3
Romantic Content: 4
Ending: Click here to reveal
Protagonist 1 Age: 36-45
Protagonist 2 Age: 36-45
Tropes: Class Differences, Coming Out / Closeted, Coming Out Later in Life, Cultural Differences, Find Love and Come Out, First Time, Gay for You / Straight to Gay, Slow Burning Love
Word Count: 100000
Setting: Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Languages Available: English
This is a deeply layered novel that intelligently explores issues of sexual identity, grief, and moral accountability. In each case, Meis avoids any sententious moralizing; instead, he relates a consuming story in powerfully simple prose. – Kirkus Reviews (blurb)