Product Description

Five years after arriving in Australia, Jason Stuart is finally embarking on the dream that brought him Down Under: going on "walkabout" in the Australian Outback. But Jason is not that fresh-faced and untried boy from Canada anymore. Jason is a man with half a decade of bad memories and worse nightmares. His friends think he's crazy, or possibly just plain stupid, but Jason needs to make his dream real in order to face his past.

Everything changes when Jason picks up an unexpected travel companion. Suddenly, it's not his past that Jason needs to confront, it's his future.

Part coming-of-age tale, part romance, part travel yarn, Adagio paints a heartwarming picture of a fledgling relationship between two very different men against the lush backdrop of Australia's natural wonders.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #708643 in Books
• Published on: 2006-11-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 236 pages

About the Author

Chris Owen lives and writes in the wilds of Eastern Canada. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, but raised in Prince Edward Island, Owen has a fondness for both the ocean and the mountains. In 1996 Owen spent six months in Australia and this enjoyment of the outdoors expanded to include the desert and the tropics. Owen finds termite mounds to be genuinely fascinating.

A lover of putting words together since the early days of using crayons, Owen has passed that stage and now uses a computer, which is far less messy. Thankfully, the words go together a little better now as well. The author of several books, Owen writes mainly about gay characters in many different genres ranging from modern day tales to historical romance. How one defines one's family is a common theme in Owen's work, and often the answer is that blood is not as thick as water.

When not writing, Owen can be found surrounded by yarn, pets, and children.

Customer Reviews

More Romance than Sex
I loved Chris Owen's "Bareback," both for the sex and the plot line. It contained the right mix of conflict between the couple and the outside world and within the couple. It studied the "happily ever after" period of a relationship and showed how that period requires more than love to keep it on track. It will long remain one of my favorite reads. It does not need a sequel, though I understand that there is one on the way.

This book explores the initial period of a romance: meeting, falling in love, learning about each other and deciding to commit. The two main characters, Jason and Ryan, are appealing (Ryan absolutely adorable), with several interesting secondary characters. There is some (but not much, not enough) conflict between the two main characters, and one horrendous experience that almost shattered the romance. Because Ryan is so young, and because the book doesn't get into the "happily ever after" period of the romance, I would actually look forward to a sequel for this book in which the apparent differences between the two lovers were dealt with. I give it four stars because I thought the author should have found more depth/conflict in the differences between the two lovers, but it is an enjoyable read and definitely will keep me interested in reading anything written by Chris Owen.

Much more than a M/M romance!
Never one to fancy too much description of sceneries in my romance stories, I was prepared to skip any such wordy paragraphs. After all the summary does mention this to be a partly travel yarn. I ended up doing no such thing. Chris has a flair and I found myself enchanted by the backdrop of the Australian desert and the cities. I am envious of the lovers' trips!

Most of us are familiar with Chris's effort in gay eroticas under Torquere press and I love most of them (Bareback, 911, Deviations:Sub, Deviations:Dom, Gemini, Carbon and Ash to name a few). Adagio is more M/M romance in the category of "Carbon and Ash" (I lament this could not have been longer), in which sex is not the consuming focus. Love, friendship, characters are the focus here.
Jason and Ryan could not have been more different but their love story is hearfelt and believable. Attraction at first sight, their meeting, courtship and romance during their trips is a delightful read. We have Jason, a more-or-less down on his-luck poor painter still trying to recover from a near disastrous living in the seedy part of Sydney, who have seen it all and experience the worst, including complete cut-off from his sole parent. We have Ryan a sheltered 18 year-old genius with loving and supportive parents. Ryan is an endearing character and Adagio is just as much his coming-out story.
But it is not all sweet romance. Jason does struggle with his ghosts and Ryan's heartwrenching experience is painful to read, Chris doing an excellent job in the emotions built-up here.
I like the side characters too. Jason's friends Alex, Kris and Sylvain are appealing characters and their intrusion into the lovers' life does spice up the story. I hope Chris would do a story on this threesome (at least a single shot in Torquere Press ?).
I highly recommend this latest effort from Chris. Oh yes, definitely looking forward to her sequel of "Bareback" next month.

Beautifully Written
Owen, Chris. "Adagio". Casperian Books, 2006.

Beautifully Writtten

Amos Lassen and Literary Pride

Chris Owens has written a wonderfully readable novel with "Adagio". It is the story of Jason Stuart who arrives in Australia to embark on a "walkabout" in the Outback. His friends think he is crazy or perhaps slow but Jason feels that this adventure will make him fulfill his dreams and come to terms with his past. He imagined that this trip would exorcise his past but instead of facing his past, he is forced to rake a good hard look at his future.
When Jason meets an unexpected travel companion, he realizes that there is no need to deal with the past any longer and that what awaits is more important than what was. As Jason comes of age and finds romance, he gives a beautiful description of Australia and in reading we confront the burgeoning romance between the two men.
The descriptions of Australia are incredible and you almost feel that if you look up from the pages of the book that you are there. Own has created larger than life characters. As you meet the characters, you meet their minds and as you watch the love affair between the two men blossom, you feel as if you are part of the relationship.
The prose is beautiful and Chris Own has a way with the English language. As the tale is spun, the reader is taken into a beautiful story. This is an interesting book that has something for everyone---romance, suspense, comedy. The author runs the gamut of emotions and we are right there enjoying.