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Disappoint Me is an assured and captivating sophomore novel, a worthy albeit significantly darker follow up to Bellies. Nicola Dinan makes solid use of a dual POV/timeline, oscillating between 31 year old lawyer Max in the present day, a trans woman who spends her days impersonating a robot working as in-house counsel at a tech company and flashbacks from the past of Vincent, Max’s new straight laced boyfriend as he traveled through Thailand on a gap year over 10 years earlier. In the present, Max adapts to the growing pains of a burgeoning relationship - trying the heteronormativity of a life with Vincent on for size, while also navigating complex relationships with childhood friends, her parents, and her flailing workaholic brother. In the past, Vincent meets and has an immediate connection with Alex, a beautiful woman who discloses only that she has come to Thailand for necessary surgery. The two later rendezvous with Vincent’s friend Fred to attend a Half Moon party, a meet up that ultimately has harrowing, long lasting consequences.

Dinan shines at writing a motley crew of complex characters, and I loved the development of Max and her messy friends and family. The subject matter is quite heavy, dealing with themes of addiction and transphobia, but these topics are deftly handled, harrowing but depicted in a manner that‘s unflinching yet never salacious. The story also ends a hopeful note, leaving the reader confident in the belief that people can heal and grow, that one need not be defined by horrific yet decidedly youthful ignorance.

Many thanks to Random House/Netgalley for the arc. Please pick this one up! Now more than ever it’s vital in these dark times to read and amplify queer fiction.