What Love Looks Like

A great coming of age queer YA that had me smiling all the way through

* @bookfacejames *

An important addition to the LGBTQ canon and a tender, poignant love story, What Love Looks Like paints a vivid picture of what it feels like to come-of-age as a young, gay person in todays’ Ireland. Bens’ life is filled with an array of people from varied backgrounds, bringing a broad diversity and experience to the story and shows them off with reality…warts and all. This allows the reader to get a strong sense of the reality of Bens’ life. It reads as a genuine experience; Ben reads as a real person and the story is totally believable from start to finish. There are discomforting moments as the tale deals with issues of homophobia, bullying and social stereo-typing. But all in all it is a touching romance, exploring a wider view of what love actually looks like, gender identity, how families differ from one another and how they are built. Raw, fresh and intriguing, What Love Looks Like is also, funny, moving and true. (Please note: this book is definitely for older readers

* Fallen Star Stories *

One book cannot be all things to all people. It can’t represent everyone,” Gregory points out, but while presenting a picture of the ordinariness of some LGBTQ lives, his book, released next month, does a pretty good job of representing the rainbow spectrum of gay and trans diversity to a young adult readership

* Evening Echo *

Profoundly politically and socially engaged - the various ills of Dublin, including homelessness and racism, are woven into the story - without being heavy-handed. Space is made for queer subcultures (and their importance) without this being the defining factor in someone’s life. Ben enjoys cheering on his best mate’s drag performances. He’s also a kind and compassionate trainee teacher. The plot is deftly calibrated to incorporate other pieces of LGBTQ-related legislation passed that year, with the book serving as a time capsule. This big-hearted novel isn’t just about love but about what hope looks like. A must-read

* Irish Times *

There is plenty to like about this book; it’s highly readable and a welcome addition to Irish YA

* Irish Independent *

Set in modern Ireland, this a confident YA LGBTQ+ tale...Think Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda that takes place in post #marref

* @bookaneer808 *

Wonderful ... valuable addition to the LGBTQ canon; a tender, funny, uplifting romance, with a rich cast …Entertaining and important, Gregory’s novel explores a broad view of what diversity and love in all its guises really looks like

* Sunday Independent *

Gregory’s novel is full of wit, charm, and honesty with a sneak peek into the fabulously nitty gritty backstage reality of Ireland’s drag scene …  Ben’s teenage angst is entirely relatable to everyone and anyone yet, this protagonist has wisdom beyond his years. What Love Looks Like is much more than a coming-of-age novel. It is a celebration of family, friendship, and young love. Recommended for young adults.

* Irish Examiner *

a realistic and optimistic picture of life for Irish teenagers exploring their sexuality

* CBI Guide Free to Be Me *

Meet Ben, seventeen, gay and looking for love. Refreshingly honest, yet sometimes naïve, Ben has everything mapped out – teacher training awaits, family life is good. His best friends, Chelsea and Soda, bring advice and life tips on the joys and perils of love with their own compelling stories in contemporary Dublin’s LGBTQ+ community. Navigating bullying, anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment and the North/South view of ‘coming out’ in Ireland, Gregory gives a realistic and optimistic picture of life for Irish teenagers exploring their sexuality.

* CBI Deliver the Joy of Reading *

tender, poignant LQBTQ+ love story

* Sunday Independent *

Gregory weaves in the complexities of modern gay dating and all the normal trepidations of teen experience, and delivers a highly readable and poignant, profound story … for fans of Albertalli and Gonzales

* Munster Express *

this Dublin coming of age novel is highly readable and a welcome addition to Irish YA

* Irish Independent *

Navigating bullying, anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment and the North/South view of ‘coming out’ in Ireland, Gregory gives a realistic and optimistic picture of life for Irish teenagers exploring their sexuality

-- CBI’s Pride Reading Guide