First Time for Everything is a beautifully written story about a gay man trying to find his place in the world. Danny's life is stables but it's not what he dreamed it would be. It's not till he realizes his boyfriend of 5 years doesn't consider their relationship to be monogamous and he gets kicked out of his flat that Danny realizes he needs to try something new. For the first time in a long time Danny finds himself single and starting over. First Time for Everything follows Danny on his adventure of self discovery and happiness. It's a heartfelt story that will make you laugh and cry.

This book was un put down-able!

Danny Scudd is down on his luck and things just keep getting worse. This is an excellent adult, queer coming of age story on dealing with unpacking trauma and finding one’s true identity. It gives an honest look at mental health and the struggles of queer identity in a hetero-normative society.

Danny finds out his boyfriend has been cheating on him then gets kicked out of his home by the friend he’s living with and moves into a queer commune of sorts with his non-binary best friend, Jacob and then starts seeing a therapist for the first time. This is just the tip of the iceberg for everything that Danny goes through. The book is told through the lens of Danny and that’s part of what makes this book so great. Also, I love Danny’s love for the queen herself, Miss Dolly Parton.

This book is honest, funny and relatable to anyone who is part of the LGBTQ+ community and/or has struggled with mental health issues, especially generalized anxiety disorder.

Five stars!
⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley, Ballantine Books and Random House for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is easily one of the funniest books I have ever read. First Time for Everything is poignant and real for anyone who has ever experienced inner struggles that literally broke your spirit. Henry Fry...you nailed it!

Danny Scudd age 27, thinks he's handling life great until he finds himself in an STI clinic. He believed he was in a monogamous, loving relationship with Tobbs that was anything but. Now Danny is forced to deal with the humiliating pain of a breakup and find a suitable new place to live.

Jacob, Danny's life-long best friend offers Danny a room at his place. Jacob is a flamboyant non-binary professional entertainer with some very whimsical friends. In the wake of the move, Danny begins to realize how little he knows about the inner struggles that pull him down. He seeks counseling for answers. Is he coping with life as well as he thought? Does he really accept himself as he is? How can he find happiness?

This is definitely a 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ book. Thank you Henry Fry for this heartfelt message. The world needs more writers like you!

I appreciate NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, for sending me this book to review. First Time for Everything will be published May 10th.

3.5
Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for sending me an e-ARC to read and review. I have mixed feelings on this one. Sometimes the humor didn't land for me and parts felt a bit dragged out. On the other hand, I love how diverse and inclusive this book is. The characters were of varied gender, sexuality and race and I really liked seeing that in what I read. I also loved the importance of mental health. More than one character sought out counseling and therapy and it wasn't something that just got played off, it was continuous and I could really see the development and understanding from beginning to end. The tone at most times was conversational as well and I think it brought the heaviness of some of the topics down to a bit of a lighter note. The England setting was fun and the pop culture references were a time. There were some really profound moments found within the story that I think any reader could relate to.

Overall I thought to book was funny and had potential. It was a quick read but overall it just wasn’t for me.

While this book was an easy read, and the main character quite likable - I did not particularly find myself have strong feelings for it. It was an ok book overall, and I might not have been the target reader for this - there was a lot I found myself confused about, some nuances that maybe I couldn't pick up on. Overall, light & quirky, but just not of my taste.

First Time for Everything fell short for me. I had high expectations when I read the synopsis, but unfortunately I was not inclined to finish the book. The writing style felt too immature for an adult novel and lacked any real depth. I couldn’t connect with any of the characters and did not find myself caring where the stories would lead.

I do think there is an audience for this novel, it just was not for me. It seems like it could be a good first new adult pick for people segueing out of young adult romance.

I think the book would benefit from a marketing shift. I was expecting a “raw” and “powerful” story, and what I found was fluff and filler.

Stopped reading at 20%.

Unfortunately, I had to put this one down early on. I felt it was a little slow paced and I couldn’t get into it.

Thank you for the ARC of this book. I was a funny coming of age book. The poor main character had so many things against him, and just wanted to be loved. He was terrible at communication and was a bit infuriating at times. I loved his best friend and hope there will be a novel focused on him. Thanks for the opportunity to review this book.

This is a story about whether first experiences become second experiences.  Danny Scudd is ... ok.  He left his small town with dreams of a big city life, full of a fulfilling career as a journalist, a loving boyfriend, and a vibrant group of friends.  His life has not quite worked out that way.  He has a boyfriend who often seems largely indifferent and, he has just learned, likely has been unfaithful.  His work, writing for an app that mostly provides event listings, often feels like a journalism-adjacent career at best.  And his roommates, a couple, are kicking Danny out because they are soon to have a baby.

Danny moves in with his best friend since childhood, Jacob.  Jacob, a nonbinary artist, lives with a an eclectic group in what they call a "commune" in East London.  Danny's experience living with Jacob and his housemates, and the new therapist he starts seeing at Jacob's suggestion, prompt him to reexamine how he has been living and leads him to overhaul almost every aspect of his life -- he changes how he dresses, how he dates, how he engages with his co-workers, and how he spends his time.  At first, Danny can't believe how exciting his new approach to life is -- but soon begins to wonder if his new life, full of first-time experiences, is sustainable long-term.

I really enjoyed this book.  Danny was a compelling character, and it was great to go on his journey of discovery, from the dimensions of modern queer life to dating to therapy to work.  The author did a terrific job of depicting Danny's dimensions and contradictions, which kept me rooting for him even as he engaged in questionable or hurtful behavior.  It is ultimately a heart-warming coming-of-age tale of someone who, both by circumstance and choice, had been cut off from many key experiences of childhood and early adulthood and is now making up for lost-time as he determines what he really wants for his future. 

Strongly recommended!

Didn’t love. Funny and descriptive writing but a tad boring overall. I think this author has a lot of potential but I wasn’t crazy about this one.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book through Netgalley from the publisher . What follows is my honest review.

In 2020 the following quote by Alexander Leon went viral on social media.

"Queer people don’t grow up as ourselves, we grow up playing a version of ourselves that sacrifices authenticity to minimise humiliation & prejudice. The massive task of our adult lives is to unpick which parts of ourselves are truly us & which parts we’ve created to protect us."

In First Time for Everything author Henry Fry explores this theme through his brilliantly crafted fictional characters Daniel Scudd, Jacob Diaspora, and their eclectic group of queer housemates. Daniel Scudd has always been a shy person, averse to conflict, and an all-around doormat for others. He's spent his entire life projecting a disarming version of himself hoping to create the least friction possible. Though out since his second year at Uni, he has only had one real boyfriend. His boyfriend takes his affection for granted and continually makes him jump through hoops for any kind of reciprocation. Daniel simply believes this is his lot in life and accepts his muted reality. His best friend Jacob is the exact opposite and lives a glittering multi-color life. An in-your-face artist and nonbinary beauty, Jacob Diaspora is a force that commands attention everywhere they go. With an infectious wit and unmatched fashion sense, Jacob marches through life like an exotic gazelle turning heads everywhere they go. Their unapologetic queerness dares you to stare and they seem completely at peace with themself. In First Time for Everything, we learn how these two best friends are both doing the great unpacking of their childhood trauma and learning to exist as their authentic selves in a world that was not built for them. This book had me highlighting words of wisdom on almost every page and I am a better person for reading it.

I loved this book! Danny is 27 and his life is a mess. This one had me laughing out loud so many times but also it was so relatable because who hasn’t been to that point where they just realIze they just need to start over, and the reality is it’s not easy. This book was quirky and well written and I enjoyed it so much.

First Time for Everything by Henry Fry was an interesting read for me. I normally don't read LGBTQ books, just a personal preference, but this one was really good! Danny, our main character, wasn't happy in life even though he looked like he had it all going for him; good job, nice place to live, boyfriend. But when he realized he was unhappy his world completely changed and sent him on a new path of self discovery. Overall, I actually enjoyed this book and no matter the characters sexual preferences, everyone can relate to Danny in some way, shape or form.

This was an interesting book about individuals in an alternative lifestyle. Danny is a gay single man and has been living with a married couple. When she gets pregnant, they kick him out as they need his room for the baby, With nowhere to live he ended up moving in with his best friend Jacob, a flamboyant nonbinary artist and their eccentric group of friends living in a commune. Danny had been dating Tobbs for a number of years but after a visit to the doctor where he learned that Tobbs had not been faithful, his world changed. After confronting Tobbs, he learns that Tobbs did not consider their relationship monogamous. He moves all of his plants and Dolly Parton collection in the commune. In that house with a variety of colorful individuals, he begins a voyage of discovery through the modern queer life and lots of therapy. The therapist and his new roommates help him understand himself and the demons that he has been trying to repress. One problem that I had with reading the book was that Jacob who is nonbinary refers to himself as we and the others refer to him as they. As I am not familiar with any nonbinary people, I was confused at why he was referred to in the plural. After a while, I got used to it. This is an interesting book that i enjoyed reading once I got into it. I recommend it.

Danny Scudd is a young, gay man living in London. He’s trying to fit in and not rock the boat but nothing is really working for him. His job, his living situation, his boyfriend - nothing makes him happy. It isn’t long before Danny finds himself single, evicted, and seriously fed up with his work. This leads Danny on a journey of self-discovery. His journey is messy. Danny’s quest is at time funny and at times cringe-worthy, which seems realistic. Even while making terrible choices, (most of the time) Danny is a sympathetic character; I wanted things to work out for him. For me, the flaw of this novel was how many characters felt like flat stereotypes. Danny and his friend, Jacob were written with such care and thoughtfulness and I think that if more of the characters had been made more dynamic then the novel would have been much richer. Anyone who has ever had self-doubts or felt that they had to hide who they are to fit in will enjoy A First Time For Everything. Thank you to NetGalley for copy of this book in return for an honest opinion.

this one didn't really grab me and it was a dnf for me. i just couldn't get into it. but thats okay. i can tell the talent of this writer is developing and will look for future books!

Not really groundbreaking or memorable. Characters were not that likable and i felt like i took nothing away from this

DANNY is so better off without Tobbs. There I said it. But when we are young and already starting out in a new place, for Danny it is Life in London, compared to a small town, and well if someone feels comfortable to you, then why rock the boat? But the boat gets rocked....hard and Danny is tossed out the side.
Next the author --very well done---introduces us to the new life of living a little "differently" than Danny has before by reconnecting with a school chum, Jacob.
Though Danny enters his new living situation out of necessity at first it is what Danny needs to really take a look in on himself and the future wants and how he wants to be identified in that future.
This is an amazing debut novel coming in at just under 400 pages by an author (Henry Fry) that is sure to become a voice in LGBTQ Literature....and bust into mainstream literature's comfort zones.

This was a pleasant surprise! We follow Danny through a hard time in his life where he has to go on a journey to really figure out who he is and what he wants.

All of the characters have such unique personalities and the dialogue was mostly hilarious. The dynamic between Jacob and Danny was fabulous and I love that this also focused on the highs and lows of friendship. The tone throughout is very light and fun and you feel like the book isn’t taking itself too seriously, even though we are tackling very serious topics — such as mental health, queer identity, and setting and respecting boundaries in relationships. And I think these topics were handled well with satisfying revelations and conclusions at the end.

I do feel like the first half really pulled me in and I was excited to keep reading, but as we went on into the 2nd half I feel like it really slowed to the point where I was kind of hoping things would be summed up more quickly.

Thank you to Netgalley, Ballantine Books and the author for providing me with an eBook copy in exchange for an honest review!! Review will run on publication day.