Dangerous Ground

I was sure I must have started reading the wrong book in this series, because the beginning is liberally peppered with references to prior events and discussions that I was not privy to. I was like Donny from the Big Lebowski:

Donny: What?Walter Sobchak: Were you listening to The Dude's story?Donny: I was bowling.Walter Sobchak: So you have no frame of reference here, Donny. You're like a child who wanders into the middle of a movie and wants to know...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vGK008c_rA

I mean, it's not even confirmed that Will is openly gay until 30% into the book, even though it's a previously known fact to Taylor. What's the reason for making the reader unsure? I had a difficult time connecting with these characters because I felt lost for so long. I kept wondering why I should care what happened to them.

Even after some details of the past were revealed, the book didn't hold my interest. There were countless times that I found myself reading the same sentences over and over again and still having no idea what I'd just read because I was thinking about something else. The story's not awful, but it's certainly nothing special.

The good thing about this book is that it's fairly short, even though it didn't seem like it at times. I've heard the rest of the series is better, so let's hope this one is just a fluke. I have faith, because I've liked all the other Josh Lanyon books I've read.