Thanks to NetGalley for another delightful eARC! The gorgeous cover drew me in and I'm so glad it did.

While reading Becoming Ted, I felt my heart fill with joy. As someone in mid-life, nothing makes me happier than to read about people over 40 finding love, discovering their true passions, and confronting the things that have held them back in life. Ted is such a sweet, wholesome character. I really enjoyed getting to know both him and his much sassier drag persona.

We make so many assumptions about our families and our place in the world. Becoming Ted was a good reminder that we need to question those assumptions in order to make sure they are not holding us back from true happiness.

Ted works in a charming ice cream parlor owned by his family in a quaint seaside town. He has a handsome husband, a cute dog, and friends who care about him. Sounds perfect, right? Maybe not if it's the life that other people have decided would be best for you.

I learned a lot about drag culture from this book, and there was some interesting and heartbreaking history of what it was like to be gay generations ago in both England and Poland. Matt Cain balanced that well with Ted's self-discovery, his drag journey, and his complicated relationship with his family.

I particularly enjoyed the romance, which was understated and sweet, just like the characters. I give this book a 9/10 and recommend it to anyone who loves a marshmallow main character or who enjoys watching a 40-something get his groove back.

I was laughing out loud and smiling through so much of this book. Having absolutely adored The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle, I was very excited for this novel. It did take me a while to get through the first few chapters - I didn't really warm up to Ted at first, which was my main issue. However, seeing as Ted is in a pretty awful place to start with, that's understandable, and once he comes into his own, I started absolutely loving him. I'm so glad I kept on though, because it was well worth it.
I'm so glad Matt Cain is writing books with older queer MCs. As someone who came out later in life, it makes me so glad to see these character flourish and become, as one of the characters puts it, second act sensations.

A sweet story, but not quite well-written enough to lift it above cliche.

Pros: great representation of the drag scene, presented from an emotional rather than a performative point of view. Nice to see a coming-of-age story featuring someone middle-aged.

Cons: I found it hard to feel connected to the characters, as the emotions were 'told' rather than 'shown.'

While I tend to enjoy lgbtq novels, just as a matter of course, I especially like ones that explore history along with the rest of the story taking place. And although this book takes place in a made up village along a coast near Manchester, UK, the parts that take place in Manachester are very real, so much so that I had to look up Canal Street, and the Gay Village are of the city. And I even went into google maps to find that there was a statue of Alan Turing in Sackville Park, which is right off of Canal street.

You might well ask, what does that have to do with the story. Well, part of the story, as I have said, takes place there, and one of the characters in the story has a boyfriend whose fate sounds very similar to that of Alan Turning who committed suicide after he was chemically castrated for being Gay.

The story follows Ted, who has been married to his husband for over 20 years, until said husband figures he can find someone better and leaves him. So Ted realizes that he should take the time to follow his dreams.

I love how the author gets the voices so distinctive. There is an elderly gay man that Ted befriends, who really sounds like an old queen. It is quite sweet.

Very enjoyable book as Ted realizes that his marriage wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, and how much more fun he can have doing drag, then hiding this love.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book comes out in the US on the 21st of May 2024. It is already out in the UK.

✰ 2.25 stars ✰

““Human beings are complex, dolly. And what you learn by the time you get to my age is that there are all kinds of reasons good people do bad things.

But usually, it comes down to just being human.”

A paragraph into Becoming Ted I seriously considered not continuing any further. A paragraph in; that has to be a record and a first for me. Sadly, my brain would not allow me to exit, as the ever-pressing question would forever linger in my mind, that perhaps there is a chance it would get better. So I inhaled deeply and read on, cautiously optimistic that my fears would be unwarranted. 🤞🏻

After twenty years of dedicating their life to one person, forty-three year old Ted is dumped by his husband, Giles; it's saddening, absolutely painful and horrible the way Giles treats Ted - during their relationship and leading up to it. 'Their relationship wasn’t enough. Ted wasn’t enough. I’m never enough for anyone, are painful and hurtful thoughts that plague Ted throughout. The amount of gaslighting, disparaging comments and belittling sentiments that crushed Ted's self-esteem and self-worth were truly upsetting and even more painful to see how much Giles refrained Ted from being who he wanted to be. 💔💔 To find pleasure in the simple act that brought him a little happiness - the courage to be something else on stage and win over hearts with his appeal.

“And he realizes that Denise is right—the breakup of his marriage has given him an opportunity to make some changes. This really is his chance to live a life that doesn’t revolve around other people.

And he isn’t going to suppress his dream any longer.”

It truly is never too late to chase your dreams and if Ted's lifelong dream has never been one to continue in his family's ice-cream business, but to be a drag queen, instead - then he's going to see it through head-on and head-strong - even if the path to fame is not without its troubles. 'He’s determined to make the most of it' and with a lot of helpful guidance and brave encouragement he ventures out into that bold and daring and colorful start to his new life. And along the way as he reflects on the moments in his life that led him here, to the good and bad times that he shared with Giles, he also is rewarded with the hopeful flair that perhaps, it may be never too late to find love again, either.

Ted is not the only one on a road to self-discovery in this story of finding oneself and identifying and embracing and loving yourself as who you are. Oskar, the thirty-three year old Polish painter and decorator and potential love interest for Ted, has his own dreams that he wants to fulfill, while also searching for a positive approach to being true to himself as a gay person. 😔 His forty-five year old best friend, Denise, is also hoping and searching for another chance at a relationship with someone who won't be too abusive or offensive towards her own wants or needs. It's how these three lives intertwine, how on their path of a hopeful future and positive outset on life, that made it worth seeing how their stories would unfold.

Ted has a unique relationship with each of them, including his own parents. I liked how Ted slowly shed the pains of his failed marriage, found the strength to gain the confidence needed to perform on stage, to be more comfortable in himself and his personality, and how he was able to instill that same positivity in Oskar and Denise. They each have their own personal demons that they have to shed and it was interesting to see how their conflicts arose with Ted and how they were resolved in a realistic way. 🙏🏻🙏🏻 Denise and Ted had a very strong friendship and I enjoyed how very supportive she was of him and his desire to perform. How she even didn't allow her age to define who she was and ventured the waters to find a way to give meaning to her life was nicely done; I liked how she was able to get the closure she needed.

“Once again, the two men look into each other’s eyes. Oskar is convinced there’s a spark between them. Yeah, I’m pretty sure he’s gay.

He suddenly feels emboldened. “My name’s Oskar,” he blurts out. “Oskar with a K.”

“Pleased to meet you, Oskar with a K. I’m Ted. With a T.”

Also seeing how Ted and Oskar became closer, how they each shared their personal histories, how Oskar reacted to Ted's decision to continue dressing in drag - how it made him unsure of himself and how it allowed for him to better embrace himself as a gay person, despite his reservations, despite his fears of not publicly coming out. Ted's growth as a person, recognizing his true worth, seeing the glimpses of his life showered in mistakes that he hid behind and eventually shedding that cover - and embracing the power to be proud of who you are. It was empowering and encouraging and very honestly and realistically done at how he rid himself of the shame and disgust he had felt for so long about his true nature and finally spread his wings and let go. 👍🏻👍🏻

Sadly, these few worthwhile and notable parts could not be saved from the abysmal and less than appealing way in which it was written. My enemy with Matt Cain was the writing and the choices made to make this story stand out in a positive light, rather than the unsavory results that it garnered for me. 😢

“But Ted didn’t care; they were having fun. So much fun he’d forgotten his parents were downstairs. Until they burst in to the room.

“What’s going on ’ere?” gasped Hilary.

“What are you two playing at?” panted Trevor.”

In sixth grade, our English teacher, Mr. David taught us the many different options we could use in place of the word, 'said'. I would be remiss if I didn't say that I applied the various terms into my own creative writing, as well. But, it was while reading this, that I have never appreciated the word 'said' more. And it's not that I didn't mind the different ways it was not used, it's just that some alternative choices were so poorly applied, it completely took me out of the actual scene!

When Ted is pleading with Giles to not break up with him, to not abandon what they had - if Ted is going to squeal and mewl his pleas - I can not take it seriously. I just can't! 🙅🏻 How can I sympathize with Ted's plight - c'mon - this is meant to be an emotional scene!! - if the choice of words do not do justice to the sentiment?? Especially when Ted does not appear as someone with a high-pitched voice! 😖

This was just the start of some very questionable and poorly advised choice of words for certain ways to express a person's delivery. I mean, I can not understand when a statement is issued calmly by his father, why are you going to use he boomed and she shrieked? Why?? 😭😭 Please explain it to me! From bleats to burbles to tweets to brays to chirps.

ea

It felt as if the author had been issued a challenge to use a thesaurus and apply ever known alternative to said in his writing! 😣 And the examples I shared aren't even half of them! I was spending more time noting how many different ways the human voice is used, rather than appreciating the writing, itself! To say it was overkill is putting it lightly, and yet it makes me wonder if it was intentionally done this way to show in a satirical manner at how similar humans are to animals. 😩😩

And I have read plenty of books in the present tense - I mean, I'm sure I have; but the minute I read the first sentence, there was something about it that didn't sit right with me. For the life of me, I couldn't put my finger on why it was not working; something about the context of the writing style just seemed off. To make matters worse, the flashbacks happen within the narrative, as Ted reflects on the past, taking a look back in time. The only discerning difference in the writing - the shift to past tense. Why? Why? 😑😑 It really affected the flow of the story, even if I appreciated those insightful moments that it gave, I didn't enjoy how they were delivered.

“The music changes and Denise gives a wistful smile. “Oh, listen to this; it’s that Celine Dion song from Titanic. I love that film.”

“You sound just like my mum,” says Lauria. “It’s one of her favorites too.”

Your mum? Denise tries not to wince.

“I’ve actually never seen Titanic,” Lauria goes on. “It came out before I was born.”

Oh, I felt that jab right in the heart! 😅 Especially, since I have this amazing Titanic calendar from 1998 with stills from the film and historical facts about the Titanic, too. There is a heart-felt and emotional story buried under my very glaring complaints that readers will definitely appreciate and relate to. But, the writing really has to resonate with me; it has to make me feel something and has to be something that is tolerable for my senses! There was too much of what felt wrong that marred my overall appreciation of the story. I really tried to see the positive, but when the negatives are too blatantly obvious for me to ignore, I can only let out a long exhale that the worst is over and hopefully move on. 😞

Matt Cain does an excellent job at writing characters that make me root for them from the first page. I wanted Ted to ditch everything about his life and start over and make himself happy, and I really enjoyed seeing him go for it.

The characters were really fun (adored Stanley!) and it's always nice seeing older characters live their best lives, something Cain does exceptionally well.

I did think this story was a bit long for my taste, however. It wasn't my favorite from Cain, but still a heartwarming, fun read.

Ever since I finished reading The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle, I wanted more books written by Matt Cain! I adore his writing style, his wonderful characters, and his plots. It is as simple as that. He creates a world in his books that I want to dive into and experience all that he has to offer.

I thought that Becoming Ted would be a great story and I was correct. My heart broke at times. Then my emotions were soaring in happiness for Ted, who definitely became much more than a character in a book to me.

Matt Cain is an excellent storyteller, and I love this book and cannot wait to see what will be next!

I want to thank Kensington Books (A John Scognamiglio Book) and NetGalley for giving me the pleasure of reading the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.

I DNFed this one at only 12%. I just couldn't get on board with Ted's desperation to win his cheating husband back. I'm sure he grows and learns to value himself at the end, but I wasn't invested enough to see it through.

This was my first novel by British author Matt Cain and I was not disappointed. Becoming Ted is the touching story of a 43 yo gay man named Ted who is navigating the path of major life changes. We get a front row seat into Ted’s life, experiencing a devastating breakup from a long time emotionally abusive parter and watching him spin the negative by exploring parts of life he was always too afraid, scared or discouraged from doing. Ted is a people pleaser trying to reframe his mind to please the most important person, himself.

While navigating his personal growth, he continues working and being groomed by his seemingly overbearing, but complex parents to take over the family business he isn’t sure he has the passion for. Ted has a fun best friend named Denise and a growing relationship with a sweet man named Oskar, both going through their own growth we get a front row seat for.

The development of our cast of characters is well detailed. I enjoyed meeting and learning about their lives and experiencing their emotions and quirks. Cain does a great job of bringing them all to life on paper and painting the scenes around them. By the middle of the book I was emotionally invested in most of the characters and couldn’t get enough of the story. The last few chapters had me in tears and it takes a bit to move me like that on paper. I didn’t want it to end. I resonated a lot with our main character making it a special read for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to provide an unbiased review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC.

Sometimes a book comes to you exactly at the right time. As soon as I saw Becoming Ted I knew I had to request it because of how much I enjoyed "The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle". I didn't look too much into what this novel was about but because of my enjoyment of Albert but I knew I absolutely had to read it. So, it was a surprise to me when I started to read this book and see that what was going on with Ted was also going on with me in a figurative sense. I didn't have a divorce or become a drag queen but I am going through a period where I am deciding it's okay to say no and put myself and mental health first. I have had a skewed sense of life and what it means to be okay with myself.

Ted Ainsworth's life was turned upside down and shifted one morning when he found pictures of another man on his husbands phone. But from that he became the person he always wanted t0 be. There are so many good messages that I found while reading this story such as You are important and it's never to late to follow your dreams. This book was so cozy and made me want to go and do things I have only dreamed of. I loved the setting of this story and the writing was splendid.