Best Friends Perfect series
This series of three books, set in the nineties, in the New Forest and London, is about 18 year old Kieran, who realises who he really is at the same time as meeting his perfect new best friend Jo: together they travel the world in search of the perfect Boyfriend, capital B. Kev, Hannah and Grace notice that Jo may not be quite as perfect as he seemed, but will Kieran listen? What are the pitfalls of best-friending someone? Can you really do anything with an ironic twist? Were Steps really the Abba for the nineties?
Best Friends Perfect Book One is available from Wilde City Press and Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
Kieran, 18, comes out to himself then his family by going to a youth group. There he meets Kev, a cross dressing gay man with awful taste in boyfriends and Jo, a grade A drama student, at college and in his real life. Kieran navigates his way through the maze that is being a gay man in the late nineties, with help from his two new best friends, and his two old best friends; Hannah, just coming out too and trying to work out if Steps are Abba for the nineties; Grace a one woman charity shop bargain hunter with encyclopedic pop knowledge.
Here are some reviews for Best Friends Perfect Book One
What other people have said about it
Johanna at the multitaskingmomma blog said:
Marc at Rainbow Gold Reviews said:
Beverley at Prism Book Aliance said:
Reviews by Amon Lassen said:
Mark from Sinfully Sexy Reviews said:
Best Friends Perfect Book One is available from Wilde City Press and Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
Kieran, 18, comes out to himself then his family by going to a youth group. There he meets Kev, a cross dressing gay man with awful taste in boyfriends and Jo, a grade A drama student, at college and in his real life. Kieran navigates his way through the maze that is being a gay man in the late nineties, with help from his two new best friends, and his two old best friends; Hannah, just coming out too and trying to work out if Steps are Abba for the nineties; Grace a one woman charity shop bargain hunter with encyclopedic pop knowledge.
Here are some reviews for Best Friends Perfect Book One
What other people have said about it
Johanna at the multitaskingmomma blog said:
- 'What I found outstanding in this work was how relaxed this tale was written'
- 'Each character is very well developed and even if that may sound too detailed, it really is not. Whatever details came out through conversations and short narratives and just gelled naturally.'
- 'Hearing the author's voice in his work is not common and it resulted to my 'hearing' Kieran's story rather than just reading it. This is the one aspect of this work that made me love it.'
- 'It is just a story of life. Period. Different. Personal. Intimate. A great read.'
Marc at Rainbow Gold Reviews said:
- 'The book is like a road trip into another time with wonderful characters and a unique style.'
- 'It is about friendship, growing up in the 90′s, being in and out of love and finding oneself.'
- 'There is a lot of subtle humor in the book that comes from the unique interaction between the characters and the main protagonists analysis of the events unfolding in front of his eyes.'
- 'Generally, this book was just a completely unexpected breath of fresh air and while it took me a bit to get into the author’s very different style, for me it was completely worth it.'
- 'I have set out to find pots of gold at the end of the rainbow and I think I have found a treasure in this book.'
Beverley at Prism Book Aliance said:
- 'Liam Livings has written a charming and absorbing read. I loved every page.'
- 'There is an affectionate tone throughout the book and I loved Kieran’s family and the part they play in the book.' 'a wonderful character driven novel'
- 'It is also a story about friends and how each friend serves a certain purpose in your life and you in theirs.'
Reviews by Amon Lassen said:
- 'Livings has something to say about friendship and there is more to this book than a fascinating cast of characters. Indeed it is the characters that make this a special read—they are very real and very relatable.'
- 'Try to think back to what you can remember about your coming-out and self-acceptance process—we all have something in common there and the ways that Kieran’s is related to us via Liam Livings makes for a delightful read.'
- 'Livings uses humor in just the right way—there are several laugh out loud moments and yet there is also a good deal of subtle humor.'
- 'You really do not want to miss this one.'
Mark from Sinfully Sexy Reviews said:
- Kieran’s mum knows something is up, which mother wouldn’t know, so she wheedles the truth out of Kieran and he comes out to his mum and then his family. This was such a heartfelt scene.
- Also includes some really funny moments, that made me smile.
- What I liked about this book a lot were the characters.
- The characters and their conversations were delightful carried the book nicely, full of camp at times between Kieran and his friends, colourful and always entertaining, but also deeper depths of emotion with the more serious aspects of Kieran’s coming out not being made trivial or superficial. This was the driving force and strength for me in this book.
- We see and experience everything through Kieran’s eyes and his perspective on things which made the read almost like a personal memoir.
Best Friends Perfect Book One is available from Wilde City Press and Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
Best Friends Perfect Book Two
1999, Kieran, 18 is searching Australia, the New Forest and London for Prince Charming with new best friend, Jo. They sample some men, and march with Pride. What happens when you fall for a straight man? What’s Jo’s solution, and why doesn’t Kieran agree?
Kieran introduces Jo to his other best friends, Hannah, Grace and Kev. The others don’t think Jo’s quite so perfect, but that’s just Jo is, isn’t it?
Kieran and Jo go to university in London, and meet Irish students Sean and Andrew. Why does Kieran feel more alone than ever? Where has Jo disappeared with Andrew? Will Sean call Kieran back?
Here's what others have said about it
Multitaskingmomma gave Best Friends Perfect Book 2 a lovely 5* review.
Beverley from Prism Book Alliance gave this book 4.25 stars out of 5.
Amos Lassen reviewed the second gave it a lovely review.
'Once again Livings has created wonderful characters and he has done an excellent job of developing the plot. He actually writes the kinds of stories that do not require anything more than opening a book and enjoying a read. Give him a try.'
1999, Kieran, 18 is searching Australia, the New Forest and London for Prince Charming with new best friend, Jo. They sample some men, and march with Pride. What happens when you fall for a straight man? What’s Jo’s solution, and why doesn’t Kieran agree?
Kieran introduces Jo to his other best friends, Hannah, Grace and Kev. The others don’t think Jo’s quite so perfect, but that’s just Jo is, isn’t it?
Kieran and Jo go to university in London, and meet Irish students Sean and Andrew. Why does Kieran feel more alone than ever? Where has Jo disappeared with Andrew? Will Sean call Kieran back?
Here's what others have said about it
Multitaskingmomma gave Best Friends Perfect Book 2 a lovely 5* review.
- Once the page is opened, it is impossible not to get lost within the world that unfolds, or even laugh at the silliness of the characters' actions. On that note, Livings has this gift of creating characters that drive the story to wherever it takes the readers.
- Liam Livings' works are one of the few gay fiction that I love to read. His works make for such interesting reads and screams realism even if the story is set in the 1990s.
Beverley from Prism Book Alliance gave this book 4.25 stars out of 5.
- 'This is the second book in the series and although I enjoyed a lot of the character development having read book 1 I think it could be read as an enjoyable stand alone, but why not follow Kieran’s journey through the trilogy?'
- 'This is a book of gentle humour and hidden hurts encountered whilst growing up'
Amos Lassen reviewed the second gave it a lovely review.
'Once again Livings has created wonderful characters and he has done an excellent job of developing the plot. He actually writes the kinds of stories that do not require anything more than opening a book and enjoying a read. Give him a try.'
Best Friends Perfect Book Two is available from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
Best Friends Perfect Book Three
What happens when your perfect new best friend isn’t so perfect after all?
1999, Kieran, 18 is at uni searching London for Prince Charming with new best friend, Jo. Between his new uni friends, American students Julie and The Sarahs, his work at the hospital and his studies he’s keeping himself busy.
But all Kieran wants is to share this with Jo, but he’s disappeared with his boyfriend, Irish student Andrew. Why doesn’t Sean call Kieran back?
And then something happens to turn Kieran’s world upside down, when he really needs his friends around him.
How far can you really push a practical joke? How many frogs does a boy have to kiss, until he meets his Prince Charming? And what do you do when your friend can’t see what’s in front of his face?
What happens when your perfect new best friend isn’t so perfect after all?
1999, Kieran, 18 is at uni searching London for Prince Charming with new best friend, Jo. Between his new uni friends, American students Julie and The Sarahs, his work at the hospital and his studies he’s keeping himself busy.
But all Kieran wants is to share this with Jo, but he’s disappeared with his boyfriend, Irish student Andrew. Why doesn’t Sean call Kieran back?
And then something happens to turn Kieran’s world upside down, when he really needs his friends around him.
How far can you really push a practical joke? How many frogs does a boy have to kiss, until he meets his Prince Charming? And what do you do when your friend can’t see what’s in front of his face?
