I MIGHT BE IN TROUBLE

When a one-night-stand dies in his bed, a struggling writer sees a way to resuscitate his career.

In his first book for adults, having written two YA novels, Aleman creates a protagonist with an autofictional vibe—David Alvarez, the 28-year-old gay Latine author of two books—and places him in a gleefully cooked-up situation. After a roaring success with his debut and a wholesale flop with his second book, Alvarez learns from his agent, the soigne Stacey Hixon-Jones, that his publisher has passed on his third manuscript. Broke, friendless, and lonely, he turns to Grindr to drown his sorrows and meets up with what seems like the man of his dreams. The charming, handsome, slightly older guy who invites him to the Plaza Hotel and escorts him around town on a boozy, thrilling date seems like he could fill the hole left by the loss of his erstwhile partner, Jeremy, a casualty of David's absorption in his career drama. Unfortunately, in the morning, the dream date appears to have expired—and David doesn't remember whether he murdered him or not. In a panic, he calls Stacey, who pops over with dollar signs in her eyes. Surely they can turn this dead body into a bestseller! As they execute Stacey's bizarre idea for next steps, things get crazier and campier by the minute, sometimes staying on the funny side of ridiculous and sometimes…not. The plot keeps thickening, that's for sure, and contrasts a bit uncomfortably with the earnest portrayal of David's emotional landscape; his father, stepmother, and half brother in New Jersey could be characters from a different novel.  

For fans of Grant Ginder and Jean Hanff Korelitz, Aleman could be a writer to watch.