Darts and Flowers

by Dean Backus

Overview

"Written in fresh, snappy prose, the book includes multiple twists and turns....Funny and LGBTQ+ affirming, Darts and Flowers is a story about teenagers who are desperate to be loved, validated, and part of a community." (5 of 5 stars!) - Foreword Reviews

When Josh Bradshaw returns to his childhood home and the house down the street from his childhood best friend, it seems like it could be a new beginning. After all, he's older now, and although his feelings haven't changed, he now has words to describe what he felt. He's gay, and he's had a crush on Brian Esau since they were eleven.

Zack Standish couldn't be happier that his best friend is back home, and although he's not sure how to respond to the fact that Josh is gay, there is one very clear silver lining: Missy, the girl of his dreams, is dating his best friend's crush.

The plan is simple:

1. Break up Brian and Missy.

2. Confess their love to their respective crushes.

3. Live happily ever after.

It's a win-win for everyone... or maybe not.

When the plan spirals out of control, Zack and Josh must choose what matters most—their childhood friendship or the romance just within reach.

Debut young adult author Dean Backus spins a fun and crafty tale of friendship, identity, secrets, and love in this LGBTQ romantic comedy set in the 1990s at a private Seattle high school. Darts and Flowers is inspired by Shakespeare’s comedies and iconic teen films of the 90s. "The Breakfast Club-esque cast spans the breadth of academic institution social-strata with a perfect mix of personalities comprising the secondary characters....This is a well-written, laugh out loud (even during the painful scenes) epic that takes the best of high school, Twelfth Night-inspired dramedy and infuses it with current social sensibilities, wrapping it all in a warm, hopeful hug." - Booklife

Booklife suggests Darts and Flowers is great for fans of: Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being A Wallflower and Lindsay Sproul’s We Were Promised Spotlights. Readers compare it to Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. Enjoy!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611534672
Publisher:	Top Reads Publishing, LLC
Publication date:	08/23/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	332
File size:	971 KB
Age Range:	13 - 18 Years

About the Author

Dean Backus is the solo author or co-author of over eleven plays, one of which (Thus With A Kiss) was a runner-up for Best Play at the 1993 Seattle New Playwright' s festival, and another of which won Best Play at the 1996 San Fransisco Fringe Festival (Is This Seat Taken?). He is the author of numerous award-winning short stories, one of which appeared in Alyson' s 1998 anthology Wilma Loves Betty, and was featured in the book Gay Marriage Real Life (2006) by Michelle Bates Deakin. He resides outside of Portland, Oregon with his partner, Jonathan.

Editorial Reviews

10/17/2022

In this joyful romantic YA romp through 1990s high school culture, Backus immerses readers in the cringe-worthy antics of five fairly disparate students as they struggle to find their own paths. Sixteen-year-old Zack is a loner, existing as a scholarship student on the outskirts of his Christian academy near Seattle. When his former best friend, Josh, returns from parental exile in California, the slightly boring year of lusting from afar for Missy, the girlfriend of his hated rival, the football golden-boy, Brian, doesn’t look so bad—especially when he finds out that Josh is gay and in love with Brian. Brian’s not as unaffected as his reputation would seem, and his sister, Jamie, is the high school’s Machiavelli—with a heart. She has her eye on Zack and won’t let little things like ethics get in her way.

What follows is a delightfully sharp, somewhat familiar comedy of errors, aptly studded with pointed social commentary. The coming of age of this group of teens speaks to, and transcends, more than just one generation, and each individual comes to the story with their own unique challenges that will resonate with readers. The Breakfast Club-esque cast spans the breadth of academic institution social-strata with a perfect mix of personalities comprising the secondary characters.

Though the current generation of young adults will find plenty to relate to in the pages, many of the references—from Jamie’s love of old Katharine Hepburn movies, to hints of the dawn of the internet, to cheeky reference to the 1983 film War Games—may speak more to older audiences who are looking for that touch of nostalgia. This is a well-written, laugh out loud (even during the painful scenes) epic that takes the best of high school, Twelfth Night-inspired dramedy and infuses it with current social sensibilities, wrapping it all in a warm, hopeful hug.

Takeaway: A high school romantic dramedy that perfectly captures late 1990’s culture while staying up to date.

Great for fans of: Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being A Wallflower; Lindsay Sproul’s We Were Promised Spotlights.

Production grades Cover: A Design and typography: A Illustrations: N/A Editing: A Marketing copy: A

BookLife Reviews

2023-01-08
In Backus’ debut YA novel, two best friends, one straight and one gay, conspire to break up their private school’s most popular couple.

Zack Standish doesn’t fit in with the rich kids at Watson Christian Academy in the Seattle suburbs, where his offbeat skater-boy look causes him to stick out in a crowd. Imagine his delight when his best friend from childhood suddenly moves back to town after five years in Los Angeles. Josh Bradshaw is the same old guy, but he’s got something to tell Zack before they pick up their friendship where it left off: Josh is gay. And for years Josh has been secretly in love with Zack’s archrival, Brian “Superjock” Esau. Zack loathes Brian, the school’s star athlete, because he’s dating the girl whom Zack is in love with—the gorgeous Missy Hoff. Josh is pretty sure that Brian reciprocates his feelings, which gives Zack a crazy idea: What if Zack and Josh conspire to wreck Brian and Missy’s relationship? “ ‘You want us to break them up for our own devices?!’ Josh leaped to his feet as Zack nodded. ‘Why, for God’s sake?’ ‘For sex, of course! Why else?’ ” It’s a bonkers plan—the best ones always are—and it only gets wilder after the boys accept the help of Brian’s sister, Jamie, the school’s resident manipulator. The high school culture that Backus creates feels notably cinematic; it’s not at all realistic, but it’s entertaining, nonetheless. The author gives the plot some appealing dimension by including Brian and Missy as point-of-view characters, adding unexpected depth to the king and queen of the school; Brian is in therapy to figure out why he isn’t happy with his life, and Missy doesn’t feel secure in the relationship because she suspects that Jamie hates her. Overall, the book has a big heart and should please fans of both high-school comedy films and YA fiction.

A high-energy homage to 1990s teen movies.

Kirkus Reviews