I hate to say this is like most contemporary gay fiction being written today, but it is. This isn’t a bad thing, in fact, it’s great that fiction can center more on our own families, as well as our nuclear families, and just talk about everyday life, its problems, and events common to most of us, whether we are gay or straight. This is an interesting read, a very quick read, and a pleasant way to spend a few hours. The story centers around Clu, a man who’s in his 30’s, and his return home to a small town in Texas, called Grit. He returns home with his psychic lover of eight years to help his mother, who’s sick with cancer, thru the last days of her life. The story goes off in many directions,but the theme is whether a man from the big city, of course, Manhattan, can really go home and find peace & happiness in his old home town. Will he & his partner, Chris, be accepted back home by friends and relatives now that he is openly gay? Clu relationship with his partner also gets tested when a blond, muscle hunk named Preston enters the picture. Anyway, you get the picture here. A light, easy read, but a book that has some muscle to it, and one that proved to be interesting enough for me to really enjoy it. I especially related to his loving and very caring feelings toward his mother, and how much they bonded near the end. I was touched by Jack Sibley’s sensitive writing of this very special time that Clu spent with his mother. I experienced the same feelings when my own mother had cancer. A touching story, and one I definitely recommend!!

I have to say that based on previous experience with Kensington, the publisher of this book, I didn't expect something engaging and well-written, but I enjoyed Any Kind of Luck thoroughly. I agree with other reviewers that the story is full of eccentric, generally likable characters. Clu, the main character, frequently gets self-righteously angry at the sometimes less than enlightened locals, and at one point I have to say I thought that Clu went a little far. His problems with his temper seem a little out of place considering his generally congenial and considerate personality. Also, his partner Chris starts to drift from Clu as the book progresses, and unless it's Clu's irritability that bothers Chris, Sibley doesn't make it clear (to me anyway) why Chris might be falling out of love. There are some fantastic turns of phrase, and I envy Sibley's ability to weave so many plot lines into a cohesive and very satisfying novel. Sibley also details the contradictions of contemporary rural Texas in fascinating and humorous ways.

Having never heard of this author but having read the reviews of the book, I figured I'd squeeze in one more fluff summer read before the weather turns cold and my reading more introspective.

I was not disappointed. For anyone who has enjoyed books by Robert Rodi, Doug Guinan, or the other "Gay Light" authors, this book is a must-have. Anyone can imagine the humor of two gay men who move from the ultimate chic locale (NYC) to hick Texas - it's a given.

There's plenty of camp, plenty of humor, a bit of preaching thrown in (how could a queen from NYC move to the sticks in TX and NOT preach?) and a colorful cast of characters.. all in all a very enjoyable book. Look forward to next summer - hopefully Mr. Sibley will have another one out in time!