I never imagined that someone who looked like Nate would be the guy that I would walk toward adulthood with, but here he was. Three-plus thousand miles from Baltimore, in a dusty desert town, pale as a burrito wrap, almost as tall as my door frame, and hotter than the weather. Nate. It’s been twenty years since Nate and Kiyana were high school sweethearts. After an abrupt ending during their senior year, they both drift separately through life, a shell of their former selves. A surprise encounter brings the two back together for a weekend at a remote cabin. Is it enough to rekindle the spark of life within them both? Or is it a last, dying gasp at rekindling an energy that deserted them both years ago?
More Beautiful Than the Stars is a second chance love-story carrying the beautiful message that it’s never too late for love.
Hi there, I’m Riley, transgender author and aspiring Instagram star (not really, but it would be cool). And, yes, I’m writing my bio in 1st-person because I’m that awesome.
If you enjoy queer lit with lots of angst, heart, and mostly happy endings, you’ve found the right place. I started writing when it dawned on me that I was a girl trapped in a ridiculously large male body. It took me until I was 33 to figure this out, but I’m a slow learner so whatever.
On my very first night of writing, when I was huddled over a legal pad in the feeble light of a Himalayan salt lamp, I met Maddie, my main character in “I Love You Just the Way You Are.” I would come to realize later that she was a part of my subconscious that I had buried long ago. When I was a teenager, I used to wear makeup and dress fem, but that all came to an end when I was bullied pretty harshly. Somehow, I forgot about who I was and tried to be an adult dude. Needless to say, I was depressed for most of my early adulthood. Then, finally, my egg cracked and it was like someone opened a door to Heaven. And I’ve been writing every day since.
My overarching goal is touch your heart with my words. I want you to reach the last page of one of my books with wet cheeks and a sense that while the world isn’t a perfect place, there is hope, and finding true love is possible.
When I’m not crying in front of a computer screen while dragging my characters through hell only to (maybe) give them a cute ending, I enjoy hiking and watching Minecraft streamers with my 10-year-old son. Like, literally, I enjoy laying horizontally on the couch and consuming digital content. I’m a product of my times and I refuse to apologize.
Follow me on Instagram (@rileyrianbooks) and TikTok (@riley_rian_books) to stay up to date with my latest shenanigans.
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