When Air Force Colonel Chad Ryan thwarted an attempt to assassinate the President of the United States, he was just doing his job. So the offer to join the White House staff that comes his way is completely unexpected. It's even more unexpected that his job seems to involve becoming friends with the entire First Family. But if that's what President Douglas Kearney expects, Chad will comply. It's easy to admire a man who is as confident and handsome as Doug, after all. But as the two spend more time together, Chad begins to pick up on some signals that make him wonder if the two might become more than friends. But if they do, what will that mean for Chad? For the President? For the President's family? For the country?

Hearing the concept of this book, it's very easy to write it off as something that could never happen. How ridiculous, right? But if one takes a moment to think about it, it's certainly within the realm of possibility. And the way the author has constructed this story, it definitely reads as believable. And now I find myself wondering when we'll see a gay relationship in the White House. It should only be a matter of time, after all... ( )

USAF Colonel Charles Ryan first gains the President’s attention when he takes an assassin’s bullet which was intended for the Chief Executive himself. The Colonel, commonly referred to as Chad, is offered a position on the White House staff as the President’s personal assistant. Chad is a gay man in his forties, and although he is open about his sexual orientation, he vows to not allow it to become a factor which would interfere with the performance of his duties.President Doug Kearney is fifty-seven years old and is married, the father of a teenage daughter. He is fit and youthful in his demeanor and appearance, and Chad soon realizes that he’s unable to deny the attraction he feels towards his new boss. The two connect and rather quickly form a bond, and this bond strengthens as they share a daily private swimming session at the White House pool.Eventually it becomes apparent to Chad that the feelings he has for the President are reciprocal. It is during a late evening swim that the President makes his first move, and the two become intimate with one another. By this time Chad has already developed a fondness for the President’s wife and daughter.Somehow the couple must find a way to maintain their relationship with one another in a manner which is discreet yet meaningful. This is no small task, being that the presidency is not a position which affords one any degree of privacy. Soon the White House staff, including the Vice President and First Lady, know about the President’s homosexual relationship. Ultimately it could have a catastrophic effect upon the President’s bid for reelection, not to mention the stability of his own family.Dear Mister President is a remarkably well-written story which I knew instantly that I would like. The author employs the use of an excessively rich vocabulary (sometimes too rich, to be honest…based upon my intellectual limitations), and his writing is meticulously edited. He writes exclusively in the central character’s point of view, though in the third person narrative. I’ve heard other authors and writing experts advise against the overuse of adjectives, and some even go so far as to suggest that adverbs should be avoided at all costs. Fitzroy’s writing proves that this sort of advice is absolute rubbish. Not only are his vivid and precise descriptions effective in painting extremely graphic portraits of the characters and events, but they set him apart as one of the best writers of gay fiction that I’ve ever encountered.The writing is so strong, in fact, that I’m inclined to rate the novel with five stars simply for this factor alone. The plot seems almost inconsequential. I would be remiss, however, if I did not address the plot issues which were evident to me. Firstly, I found some of the story to be a bit far-fetched, and I readily admit that this does go with the territory. We’re talking about a fictional novel, and often we do have to suspend disbelief in order to accept the premise of a story. But in particular, I felt the attitude of the entire team of White House insiders who were presented here was rather European, as opposed to American. I cannot see in our current political system, that a homosexual relationship which involved the First Family would ever be accepted, and it certainly would not be taken for granted in the manner in which it was presented here.Secondly, I could not figure out why the author never once mentioned political party. I cannot imagine political conversations within the Oval Office not referencing political party. It was clear that the President embraced the concept of diversity, and therefore I got a sense that he was politically liberal, yet his view of foreign policy left me mystified. Granted, the story is focused upon the relationship of Doug and Chad, and the politics are not essential to their relationship, but I felt it would have been far more realistic to say the words Democrat or Republican from time to time.Finally, I found it interesting that although the relationship of the central characters was undeniably an exchange of power, the author was adamant about the fact that their love making was not a matter of dominance and submission but rather a “surrender of equals”. Well, the two men were clearly not equals. Even their roles in the lovemaking process were not equal. Chad took a passive role in both oral and anal intercourse, yet mentally he dismissed the significance of this dynamic. I also was taken aback somewhat by the manner in which Chad at one point questioned the President’s confidence. He almost seemed to regard the man as being insecure and vulnerable, and it somewhat confused me.The ending left a lot of unanswered questions, and actually this is an element which I found very appealing. I like to imagine how I want their story to end, and I like writing my own happily-ever-after. It is not tidy, though, and some may find it to be a bit abrupt. Overall, I consider the book to be an amazing read. It is extremely well-written and edited, and I feel the connection shared by the central characters is incredibly powerful. I like the fantasy of a Gay President, and hopefully one day it will become a reality. Kudos to this author for opening our minds to the possibility. ( )

A fictional love story involving the US President is not a new plot, not even if it’s a man on man love story, but the originality here is in the tone of the story, that is dry and precise, but very romantic, and that is probably the most difficult thing, mixing two elements apparently non mixable.

When to Colonel Charles “Chad” Ryan is proposed to become the personal bodyguard of Mister President Doug Kearney, he wonders why such high professional job is offered to a middle level officer like him, but Chad is used to obey to higher order, and so he does this time. The fact that he is gay and instead the President is married and father, and so supposedly straight, is not in question, even if the President was not straight, in now way it would be possible for him to be interested in an average guy like Chad.

But as soon as Chad starts his new life, he realizes that he was set up: the President is way too much friendly, his wife as well, even the daughter treats him like someone of the family; and all people in official capacities around the President are “suggesting” to Chad to be “open” and “receptive” to the President’s advances. The story suddenly turns in one of those medieval historical plots where the innocent maid, with noble origins but no material substances, is offered as a cherished mistress to the king; it’s an important role, even a coveted one, and the feelings of the sacrificial lamb are not considered, after all, it’s only another high professional job.

Chad is not exactly the macho man hero that usually plays the role of the bodyguard; on the contrary he is an average and ordinary man caught in the middle of something bigger than him. He is aroused above the “peasants” by accident, when he saves the President’s life during an official visit, doing the job the Secret Services should do. It was not a heroic act, but more something done by instinct, and Chad is not expecting anything in exchange. Chad is really a good man, faithful and sweet, and he shines only of reflected light, when he is near Doug; otherwise he is always in the shadows.

From what I understood Doug is not a man in the closet, he married Kirsten really believing it was possible for him to conduct a straight life; Kirsten was aware of Doug’s bisexuality and was good with that. But now, at 56 years old, and with all the stress from being one of the most important man in the world, Doug is no more able to suppress his inner desires, and his friends, in according with his wife, plot to find him a right viable, someone who can play the spare wife role, and maybe, in the future, when the President will “retire”, completely substitute Kirsten in that role.

Kirsten is not embittered by all of this, she is neither resigned, she simply accepts the things as they are; Kirsten is more a best friend than a wife to Doug, and I think she entered this marriage with the same attitude, plenty aware that she would be not the one to share the second part of Doug’s life, and probably she neither wants it. She is not a career woman, but without doubt she is not even a woman happy to simply play the wife role. She wants more in life, she has expectations and aspirations, that can’t be replaced by Doug’s love, on the contrary of Chad, who would be entirely happy to fill his life with that love.

Even if dealing with international threatens and world shattering decisions, the novel well balance private and public life, and both are aware of the other: Chad knows that everything he will decide will influence not only his life, but also those of Kirsten and Berry, Doug’s life, and above all, those of the people Doug is running. Despite that, Chad and Doug’s feelings are not underestimated, and I can see an happily ever after out there. More, I wouldn’t mind to read about the next five years in those men’s life.

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