For Love Of God

It's Manhattan, 1983. The Rocky Horror Picture Show is going strong at the 8th Street Playhouse. HIV/AIDS is still called "the gay plague." The Twin Towers still stand tall. And Spencer Hill is convinced God has called him to the Episcopal priesthood.

There's just one problem. He's gay.

Determined to stay the course, Spencer avoids Donald Rainey, a young actor he's attracted to. Then he tries dating a woman, another candidate at General Theological Seminary. Then, as a last resort, he considers a life of chastity.

His attempts to deny his orientation fail, and he has a crisis of faith that nearly sends him over the edge. He's saved by an insightful therapist and by his relationship with Donald, which he can no longer avoid. Then his life is in disarray again when Donald's life takes a religious turn Spencer cannot accept, and he must find a path where there is no conflict between God and gay.

Auteur

Robin Reardon is an inveterate observer of human nature, creating stories about all kinds of people, some of whom happen to be gay or transgender or bisexual or intersex-people whose destinies are not determined solely by their sexual orientation or gender identity. She writes endings that are realistically hopeful rather than sugary and/or "happy ever after."Reardon has five novels released through Kensington Publishing and six independently published novels. A Secret Edge was a finalist in the annual Lambda Literary competition; The Evolution of Ethan Poe was on the 2012 ALA Rainbow List and won first place in several Rainbow Awards categories; Waiting for Walker was awarded a cash prize by the North Street Book contest; and On Chocorua (book 1 of the Trailblazer series) won first place in the Pencraft Award for Literary Excellence. Reardon has contributed work for LBGTQ+ charitable causes, including a novella benefitting The Trevor Project and a short story supporting author Brent Hartinger's Real Story Safe Sex Project. Reardon writes in a butter yellow study overlooking the Boston skyline.