There will be spoilers in this post, so if you haven’t read A Rose to the Fallen and don’t want to be spoiled, I suggest you stop reading now.
Moving along…
I’m writing this commentary in response to some of the emails and reviews I’ve read regarding the topic. I’m not surprised some of my readers have a problem with what I’ll call “The Tristan & Justin Chapter”. I’m not going to apologize for what I wrote because I don’t regret writing it, but I will explain my reasons for those of you who thought:
- The story could’ve done without it.
- It was out of character for Bridget to have the boy-on-boy fantasy and ask Tristan to fulfill it.
- It was out of character for Tristan to agree to do it.
- If Bridget loves Tristan so much, why would she want to see him with another guy?
First, I really don’t think homophobic people should read my book. I wouldn’t recommend it. I would never recommend a book to someone if I know they’ll be disgusted. The fallen angels in MY world are ALL BISEXUAL. I don’t care if you don’t believe angels can be gay. When you write your OWN novel about fallen angels, you make them the way YOU want. My angels don’t discriminate who they love based on gender. Homophobia and homosexual intolerance is a HUMAN problem. It only becomes a problem for Fallen when humans make it a problem for them. I don’t believe God condemns gays. I believe he loves everyone and so do angels. I’d also like to say that being bisexual doesn’t make Tristan less of a bad boy, less masculine, or less of a man. A person’s sexuality does not define them.
Secondly, how many times in the story did Tristan tell Bridget he’d do anything for her? Did you think he was lying? She asked. He did it. End of story. How is that out of character? He’s bisexual, so he doesn’t have any qualms about being intimate with another man. If you’re in a relationship with someone you truly love, you’re supposed to be able to share your secret sexual fantasies and fulfill them for each other. As long as it involves consenting adults and no one gets hurt or killed, I don’t see the problem. If your soul mate won’t fulfill your sexual fantasies, then who will? A stranger?
I had multiple reasons for adding the gay sex scene and introducing Justin’s character. Let me start with the reasoning behind Justin’s character. He’s one of the catalysts in the story which tests Tristan & Bridget’s relationship. He’s a Fallen and has the same seduction power that Tristan has. A love triangle with a human guy would’ve been pointless. Tristan’s brother Jake wasn’t a threat to their relationship because Bridget wasn’t remotely interested in him. Tristan needed to meet his match and have real competition, someone Bridget would have difficulty resisting. All humans have a hard time resisting Fallen when they seduce you. To quote Bridget, “…I still don’t know how you can seduce me so easily and I can’t ever resist. No one has ever been able to manipulate me the way you do. One look from you and I’m no longer in control of myself.” I whispered in total trepidation and uncertainty, “It’s like you bend me to your will. How do you have this power over me?” More importantly, Justin is the one who made Tristan reveal his secret. If Bridget had never run away after cheating on him, Tristan never would’ve chased after her and revealed how he found her. His Fallen abilities allowed him to find her. Justin set up the pins and Tristan knocked them down.
Lastly, I’ll comment on the actual sex scene between Tristan and Justin, and about Bridget. I’ve read reviews where people said my book was predictable. Well, this scene wasn’t predictable. Most of my readers didn’t see it coming and some were bothered by it. Hence the reason I’m writing this response. I think it’s unfair that some women don’t say much about guys who have fantasies about seeing two beautiful women have sex, but they have a problem when a woman has a fantasy about seeing two beautiful men have sex. Double-standard much? Why is it okay for men, but not for us? That’s one of the reasons I wrote the sex scene. Men aren’t the only ones who enjoy seeing same-sex couplings. I wanted to show my readers that women do too.
I’ve also read reviews where people commented on the clichés in my story. You know what else is cliché and predictable? A ménage à trois. That’s why Bridget just wanted to watch Tristan with another man and not get involved herself. It’s not out of character for her to have the boy-on-boy fantasy. There’s a thing called “character development”. Characters should change and grow. Certain events or people affect them that cause them to behave differently than they normally would, or change a part of their personality. Bridget was not going to be sexually timid throughout the entire book, especially if she’s in a relationship with someone like Tristan. The more time she spent with him, the more she started to lose her inhibitions and gain confidence. He awakened a dormant sexual liberation inside her. Not to mention, it’s usually the good girls who have the naughtiest thoughts and desires. They’re just too afraid to act them out. Luckily for Bridget, she had someone like Tristan to make her fantasy a reality.
