The Infinite Onion by Alice Archer
Publisher:
Shine Even If
Release Date:
March 31, 2020
Length (Print & Ebook):
Print: 388 pages
Subgenre:
Contemporary gay romance
Pre-order now:
alicearcher.com/book/the-infinite-onion
Book synopsis:
The truth is harder to hide when someone sharp starts poking around.
Grant Eastbrook hit the ground crawling after his wife kicked him out. Six months later, in Seattle without a job or a place to live,he escapes to the woods of nearby Vashon Island to consider his options. When he’s found sleeping outdoors by a cheerful man who seems bent on irritating him to death, Grant’s plans to resuscitate his life take a peculiar turn.
Oliver Rossi knows how to keep his fears at bay. He’s had years of practice. As a local eccentric and artist, he works from his funky home in the deep woods, where he thinks he has everything he needs. Then he rescues an angry man from a rainy ditch and discovers a present worth fighting the past for.
Amid the buzz of high summer, unwelcome attraction blooms on a playing field of barbs, defenses, and secrets.
Praise for The Infinite Onion:
I loved this book! – Christa Désir, Award-Winning Author
The Infinite Onion | A Novel Take PRContact: Judith@anoveltake.com
There are writers whose prose is so vivid and so emotionally resonant, that you might briefly forget you’re reading a work of fiction, and while Alice Archer has already proven that her hand is as elegant as it is masterful, her newest novel continues to show real insight into the human soul. – Natasha is a Book Junkie
The Infinite Onion was a powerful and relevant story which touched our hearts immensely. – Totally Booked Blog
I loved this book! This is a brilliantstory. So fulfilling. I laughed and cried. I kept sneaking away to read another chapter. I loved theatmosphere and artistry of the characters and the setting. This is exactly the sort of romance novel I look for. The Infinite Onion is the real deal–deep and deeply satisfying. – Kelly Jensen, Award-Winning Author
Teaser Excerpt:
GRANT
Grocery bags thumping against my calves, I’d trudged half a mile down Southwest Bank Road before I got a ride from the youngguy, who took me all the way to Mitch’s driveway.
“Best of luck,” he said before he drove off.
Finally. Silence.
Well, not exactly silence.Birds twittered. A breeze sang through the hemlock and pine trees. My feet crunched on the gravel.
It was a long driveway.
My shoulders hurt from all the hauling. I prayed the cabin had a bathtub. A soak and a meal would go a long way toward rebooting my brain. I’d spend what remained of the afternoon in contemplation of my situation. Ifmy crap cell phone could pick up a signal, and if I had enough credit left on my pay-as-you-go phone plan, I’d start a job search. I didn’t expect it to take long to find a new job. All I required was The Zone and enough money to keep my ass out of a homeless shelter. On the other hand,
The Infinite Onion | A Novel Take PRContact: Judith@anoveltake.comI was a thirty-eight-year-old underachiever who’d been suspended from a menial job and then quit, so maybe the ship of employability had sailed without me.
About Alice Archer:
Alice has questions. Lots of questions. Scheming to put fictional characters through the muck so they can get to a better place helps her heal and find answers. She shares her stories with the hope that others might find some healing too. For decades, Alice has messed about with words professionally, as an editor and writing coach. She also travels a bunch. Her home base is Eugene, Oregon.
Connect with Alice:
Website: www.alicearcher.com
Newsletter sign-up: www.subscribepage.com/executivedecision
Facebook: facebook.com/byalicearcher
Twitter: twitter.com/byalicearcher
Instagram: instagram.com/byalicearcher
Giveaway:
Join us to celebrate the release of THE INFINITE ONION by Alice Archer with this special giveaway. 3 prizes: 1 e-copy of critically acclaimed EVERYDAY HISTORY; 1 e-copy of THE INFINITE ONION; 1 grand prize of a paperback copy of THE INFINITE ONION.
Must be 18 to enter and win. Physical prizes mailed only with the USA; international winners will receive e-copy.
[I received a digital arc for an honest review]
The Infinite Onion by Alice Archer is the story of the strange meeting of Oliver and Grant on Vashon, a small island off of Seattle, and how that meeting changes both of their lives. Grant’s life is in shambles since the divorce, he can’t keep a job and is living out of a motel. After a bad customer leads him to being suspended he decides to head to his ex’s brother’s summer home on Vashon. When Mitch, Grant’s ex brother-in-laws shows up with son Kai in tow, he tells Grant he can’t stay there and offers him a ride back to Seattle. Before that happens though Grant and Kai encounter the eccentric artist Oliver and his world shifts. Oliver agrees to help Grant but with strict conditions and a signed contract. Grant signs knowing he has no other options and starts his several week project with Oliver. Oliver gets inspired by his meeting with Grant and Kai and finds himself being drawn to the man he is just helping get his life back together. But emotions run high as Grant and Oliver get attached but fail to leave the ghosts of the past behind. As their contract comes to an end will they be able to stand together or will they allow everything that drives them apart to keep them that way.
Oliver Rossi is a complicated character that I really liked at the beginning. He was quirky, fun and carefree. As his past became know it became hard to watch him want Grant but push him away at every turn. It was like he couldn’t get out of his own way and allowed Grant to suffer because of it. Grant was definitely no saint either. He allowed his gruff personality and pushy behaviors to force Oliver into dealing with issues he wasn’t ready to. They both had strong personalities that lead to them making bad decisions that were cringe worthy to read at times. It didn’t prevent you from wanting them to get their happily ever after though.
“Oliver goddamn Rossi. A guy like an onion unwilling to give up its outer layer, the reluctant skin coming away in thin strips. A poke into the juicier layers would only provoke a sharp sting.”
This story was strangely formatted. So much of it took place in inner dialogue and sometimes in Oliver’s fantasies/memories. At times it felt jarring because you would be reading as the story unfolded between Oliver and Grant and other times you were like wait what am I reading? Although it was meant to give the story more depth the fantasies occasionally took you out of the story a bit too much and made scenes unnecessarily complicated.
A highlight of this story for me was the side characters. Each tween and island member added another layer to already complicated characters. Grant’s interactions with his nephew Kai as well as the other tweens on the island were sweet and he managed to care for them by letting them learn and grow without overbearing supervision. Of course there were moments that lead me to wonder why any parents would allow their children to spend time with the guy who sleep in a tent in the woods but it you suspend that train of thought you can appreciate it for the sweetness it is. Clementine and Talia added layers to Oliver’s story that made you more sympathetic to him when he wasn’t being an enjoyable person.
Overall The Infinite Onion was a story about two people finding themselves through each other and learning that moving on in life is difficult and different for everyone.
OnceUpon_A_BookDream 