It's a Complicated Life by M.C. Questgend (transgender thriller)

One of the things that M.C. Questgend does so well, better than most authors I know, is delve deep into the darker complexities of transgender relationships. She is not afraid to explore the fears and prejudices of society, but she also never shies away from allowing her characters to rise above them.

It's a Complicated Life opens with precisely that kind of darkness. Toni is a successful career woman who keeps to herself, but Robert is persistent in his attempts to get to know her. Theirs is a relationship that sours quickly when he discovers her transgender secret, and the eventual attempted assault is played perfectly, violent and edgy, but without crossing the line into rape.

That confrontation, and the attempts he makes to ruin her life, force Toni to relocate from Chicago to Dallas. Although she gets a sense it will not be any more welcoming, she is too strong of a woman to allow fear and harassment to ruin her life. It is there that she meets Andi, and the friendship that develops between them, fueled by the slow sharing of secrets, is almost as beautiful as she way she protects Toni from the overly-aggressive Kenny.

Even travelling cross country, however, Toni cannot escape the shadow of Robert or his attempts to ruin her life and her career. It is there that Questgend's devious imagination and clever mind come into play, weaving an fantastic battle of legalities, with the way in which Toni finally silences her rival absolutely brilliant.

Of course, It's a Complicated Life is not all darkness and pain. There are erotic elements, happier moments of sexual excess, but even they tend to have a bit of an edge, owing to the power-exchange dynamics. The developing relationship between Toni and Andi is what brings the story to its emotional high point, but that is hardly the end. There are still dark motives at work behind the scenes, and one more attempt will be made to ruin Toni for good, opening the door for a surprising white knight to come to her rescue and bring the whole story full circle.

Born in 1971, M.C. Questgend traveled the country with his parents as a military brat. Settling in Texas where he was first introduced to alternative lifestyles, he was able to finish high school and continue his new "hobby" in college. After college, he and "she" returned to start a family, but the strain of his "secret" was too much for his now ex-wife. Married a second time was not the answer, so M.C. has transferred the stress to the pen and keyboard. Writing erotic stories - some loosely based on his and "her" life as well as stories involving aspects of the LGBT community, a community and lifestyle he has come to privately embrace. M.C. Questgend is a pen name used to protect his privacy and anonymity. The intent was to write stories that entertain, inspire and motivate - which are as much sensual and heartwarming as they are sexual and explicit.

@mcquestgend
http://www.mcquestgend.com

Reviewed by Sally