Tim on Broadway


Fiction - Drama
288 Pages
Reviewed on 03/31/2016
Buy on Amazon

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Author Biography

Rick Bettencourt hails from Massachusetts’ North Shore. In 2014, his novel Tim on Broadway was nominated for a Lambda Literary Award. Bettencourt’s collection of short stories (Not Sure Boys), published in 2013, received five nominations from the M/M Romance Group on Goodreads. His short story Pitch Black ranked third in a 2009 contest with Writer’s Digest.

He lives in Florida with his husband and their dog Bandit.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

Tim on Broadway is a new adult fiction novel written by Rick Bettencourt. Tim’s been in a sort of limbo lately. He was fired from his job at the Good Barn and is coasting on unemployment, and he’s not gotten over feeling bereft and guilty after the death of his beloved mother. His best friends are Dixie, his rescue cat, and Julia, his best friend since they were growing up in Salem, Mass. He lives in Manhattan now, and while she’s still living in New England, the two of them talk constantly together over the phone. When she asked him to guess who was having a comeback concert, Tim never dreamed that it would be Carolyn Sohier. He and his mom loved Carolyn, particularly her singing, and he still vividly remembered the two of them trying to get to see her during the filming of the ill-starred Witches of Salem. And while the concert would be held miles away on an island off of Bar Harbor in down east Maine, Tim would still go in a heartbeat. That is, if Javier pays him back the money he owes him which he needs to buy tickets. Julia’s not too impressed with Javier, whose sexual encounter with Tim in the walk-in beer fridge at the Good Barn resulted in Tim losing his job. She doesn’t believe that Javier ever intends to pay that money back either, but despite Julia and Tim’s misgivings, the forces that be might conspire to get Tim to the concert.

Rick Bettencourt’s new adult fiction novel, Tim on Broadway, is a heartwarming and entertaining novel about a young gay man’s coming of age at the ripe old age of twenty-eight. Along the way, the overweight and relatively reclusive former momma’s boy falls in love with a straight hunk named Javier, who oddly enough seems not to notice the hefty stomach that figures so large in Tim’s psyche, and who may just be gay himself. I loved watching Tim and Jav as they navigate the city and then head up to down east Maine, one of my favorite places on earth. Tim and Jav’s budding romance is classy and sweet, and an utter joy to read about. Bettencourt’s plot is sumptuous and heady, and, at times, the stuff that dreams are made of. His characters zing and literally pop out from the page, from the mysterious truck-stop Bill and Father Al at St. Charles, a gay-welcoming neighborhood Catholic church, to the marvelous Downeasters living on Summerwind Island who soon become family to the young couple. I loved every minute I spent reading this book and was thrilled to read that a prequel is in the works. Tim on Broadway is a book to sing about, and to most definitely put at the top of your reading list. It’s most highly recommended.

JJ Phillips

Tim on Broadway by Rick Bettencourt is a gay drama about self-confidence, friendship, and love. Tim is an overweight gay man and lacks a lot of self-confidence. His passion is the theater and especially Broadway musicals. He loves past and present divas and spends as much time around theater and drama types as he can, which leads to him meeting Javier, a sexually confused but hunky man about the same age as Tim. The two become friends and begin an incredible friendship that promises to teach Tim something special about life. Tim helps Javier with his money issues and Javier reciprocates the favor by helping Tim meet one of his favorite divas. The two have a special bond that just might go beyond friendship if both men can come to terms with who they are. They need to have the confidence in themselves to love what they have become.

Tim on Broadway is a sweet romance that can teach us a thing or two about love and self-confidence, regardless of whether the reader is gay or typically reads gay romance. This story is so much more than just a romance between two men. It is a story about growing up and finding peace with oneself. It is about learning who you are as a person and who your friends are. Bettencourt does a really nice job of creating a world for Tim to explore and discover himself in. I wish everyone had such a place to find self-discovery so that they can experience the peace and love that Tim so rightfully desires.

Renee Taylor

Rick Bettencourt has written a beautiful drama in Tim on Broadway about a not-so-typical main character. Tim is overweight, twenty-something, and a virgin. He can’t keep a job and feels responsible for the car accident his mother was in. But his love of the arts and theater gets him through life. When he meets Javier, his life changes. Javier is handsome but sexually confused, so they start out as friends. Tim agrees to help Javier with some of his financial problems and Javier, in return, gives Tim a theater-inspired gift that is the best thing that ever happened to Tim. The best thing to ever happen to him besides Javier, that is, especially as the two drift further and further away from the friendship zone and closer into the type of healthy, supportive relationship they both deserve.

I really enjoyed Tim on Broadway, but you don’t have to be gay or a lover of the theater to enjoy this book! It is fun, entertaining, and funny. I loved the theater humor that Bettencourt peppered throughout this story. Being a fan of theater will definitely help you love this book, but it is just as meaningful and inspiring for those who aren’t blessed with a love of the theater. I loved the message that Bettencourt shared in this book about love, especially loving oneself. It is important to have confidence in who you are and the person you’ve chosen to be, and I think that message is depicted loud and strong with Tim and Javier.

K.C. Finn

Tim On Broadway is a gay romance drama by author Rick Bettencourt in the magical realism genre. Timothy Benton is overweight, to such an extent that he has lost all of his self-esteem. After recently losing his mother, Tim works hard to overcome his grief by burying himself in a new temp job, but life is getting tougher by the minute. This is when Tim’s life mingles with that of Javier Rodriquez, a handsome and apparently straight co-worker from South America. But there’s more to Javier than meets the eye, and he is only the catalyst for the much wider journey that Tim is about to take. Self-discovery, self-improvement and self-confidence are all on the cards, with a little psychic magic thrown in for good measure.

Tim is an utterly charming character, and so much more relatable than most leading males of the genre. His adoration for Broadway and cabaret fills the novel with delightful and authentic references that really bring out his personality, so much so that readers can see beyond his outer looks. It’s inspiring to see Tim take pride in himself, with or without Javier’s help, and when the central characters do begin to really understand and appreciate one another, it only gets better. Author Rick Bettencourt’s prose is sharp and highly engrossing, making Tim On Broadway an un-put-down-able read from start to finish. LGBT fiction fans who are looking for something truly unique will not be disappointed by this timeless tale of loneliness, pro-activity and achievement. Bravo.

Emily White

Rick Bettencourt’s Tim on Broadway starts with Tim, a gay man whose only physical encounter with another person involved the exchange of money. He wants acceptance and love almost as much as tickets to see his favorite singer perform live. He loves everything about the theater and Broadway musicals, but his biggest passion is for the divas of today and yesterday, especially “the Greta Garbo of Divas,” Carolyn Sohier. Javier Rodriguez is a Venezuelan hunk who is out of Tim’s league. But Javier has some issues and needs help, and Tim is happy to be the friend that Javier needs. Javier is sexually confused and is trying to borrow money to terminate a pregnancy that he is responsible for. To repay Tim for his kindness, Javier scores tickets for Tim to see his goddess and makes Tim the happiest man alive.

Rick Bettencourt did a nice job with Tim on Broadway. It is a wonderfully sweet romance about two people who come together despite their differences. They are confused, lack self-confidence, and are frustrated with their current situations, but because of the strength that Bettencourt gives them (and the strength they derive from their friendship) they are able to overcome their life’s obstacles and see the beauty of the future. I was so happy that Bettencourt gave these characters a real chance at happiness because I felt that this story had a lot of comparisons to life and I like to think that we all have a happy ending just waiting for us around the corner, if we are brave enough to go after it.