Rory's Boys - Alan Clark

‘My story was more complex than I had known it to be...'

Rory Blaine is a very successful advertising executive in London who discovers the grandmother he has been estranged from for many years is now close to death. He reluctantly visits her and whilst there meets Vic d'Orsay, a popular singer now in his seventies but still going strong. When his grandmother passes away, Rory is surprised to inherit his grand familial home, Mount Royal in Hampstead, a place that holds many memories for him, but which he has also not seen for many years. When he takes possession, Vic appears again and suggests an idea for the future role of the place, and a brilliant plan is born; 'Mount Royal was about to become Britain’s first residential home for gay men.’

Rory has turned 45 and when he experiences unexpected rejection in his personal life he begins to think about his life, what happened in the past, where he is now and what might lay ahead. Openly gay, he wonders if there will ever be a man who he can spend his life with, whether he can move beyond promiscuity and brief affairs and short-lived (albeit very pleasurable) gratification, on to finding something lasting.

This novel has a first person narrative from Rory throughout, in the form of a record of thoughts and events as suggested by his therapist. This allows the reader a very intimate look at his life, his innermost thoughts and fears, and his relationships, throughout the story, and has the feel of a very personal tale. 

I enjoyed this novel a lot; I thought the writing was very honest and moving at times, and also funny, entertaining and witty; some bits really made me laugh and reading other parts I felt very sad. It is frank and open about sex, casual encounters and gay relationships.

This story felt so real, at times Rory's pain was strong, the loneliness after being disowned at a young age by his grandmother, the only family he really had left, and his difficulties in coming to terms with himself, as well as with getting older, finding his place in the world, and accepting his past if he is to move onwards. Vic offers him valuable advice about forgiveness that was based on his own very difficult experiences, which are revealed in the novel through a very well written encounter that exposes the awful bigotry and ignorance of some in society.

                                  

Vic is a charismatic, affable and layered character. Rory observes of him that ‘he certainly wasn’t like elderly men were supposed to be. It had obviously never occurred to him to disengage with the world, to step back and leave life to the younger generation. He never stood on his dignity either so somehow, however he behaved, he kept it.’

There are some very touching friendships that grow and evolve over the course of the novel, with some characters, especially Elspeth, coming into their own as the story progressed. In fact, when I had finished reading the book, I realised I really would miss some of these characters, so vividly had they been drawn by the author.

Some of the elderly gay characters have evidently had to hide their sexuality from most of those around them for much of their lives, indeed, as mentioned in the novel, for some of them, they could remember when their love was considered a crime. I had never thought about the lack of places for older gay people to be able to live where they would be accepted and cherished rather than judged and questioned, and I thought it was brilliant to see this idea being discussed in fiction. 

The wealthy older men who come to reside at Mount Royal in its new life as a residential home are the 'Rory's Boys' of the novel's title. There are some fascinating, entertaining and endearing characters amongst them. One of the larger-than-life residents remarks that ‘we are each of us surprising and fascinating till our last breath', a line that I loved.

There are plenty of twists and turns within the plot too, some that I guessed at and some that certainly took me by surprise.

This is a really good first novel; the author imbues his prose with honesty, compassion, poignancy and humour, and has crafted an entertaining plot and some great characters.

Source - I was kindly sent a copy of this novel to read and review.

Publisher - Bliss, an imprint of Arcadia Books
Visit the author's website here

Lost and Found - Tom Winter

‘It often appears as if some people spend their entire lives trapped, going round and round in circles but never arriving.’

Carol is deeply unhappy. She doesn’t love her husband Bob anymore and she struggles to understand her teenaged daughter at all. She feels her life is just passing by, that she has wasted it and that she has to do something about it. Matters are complicated when Bob discovers he is ill. Her friend Helen suggests writing it all down in a letter to at least express all she is feeling and get it out. Unsure about the idea at first, eventually she decides to do just that, and then sends the letter out into the world. She writes of the guilt, despair, frustration and sadness at her life and relationships.

Meanwhile, Albert works at the post sorting office. He is a widower and is very close to retirement. His only real company is his cat Gloria. He is assigned to spend his remaining days at work in the room where the undeliverable mail ends up. One day whilst he is sorting through this mass of post without a home, he finds an envelope with a smiley face drawn on it, and he can’t help himself, he opens it and starts reading, and so the lives of our two lonely protagonists are linked. Carol’s letters, which are incorporated into the novel, become a reason for Albert to go on; he is intrigued by the person who could have written these words.

I felt very sad for Albert’s loss of his wife and the way it has dominated his life from then onwards, rendering him lonely. Carol seems equally lonely, despite having family around her, she doesn’t connect strongly with any of them and longs to escape. Through her honesty in the letters she writes, her true feelings are revealed. The complicated feelings she has for her husband are well expressed in a great passage where she likens her emotions to being on a plane: ‘I know I’ve said I don’t love my husband and I’m leaving him…but that doesn’t mean I don’t love him in broader, more general terms. It’s sort of like…like being on a plane. …Let’s just say our marriage was a very, very long flight and now the plane has crashed. The fact that I regretted getting on the plane, hated most of the journey, and now find myself in a place I don’t want to be doesn’t seem to matter any more. The point is, we survived. It’s hard not to feel a bond with someone when you’ve been through an experience like that.’

This is a story of guilt, regret and longing, of love and great loss, and loneliness that will make you ponder, but injected with a wit that will make you smile too. The author has written a moving, realistic and bittersweet tale detailing the highs and lows that befall people and the sadness that can blight our lives, yet the sense that there is always a connection to be made with someone, somewhere. I liked the little illustrations heading up each chapter too, each being related to the story.

I enjoyed reading this debut, I found it honest and stark at times, and at other times poignant, and I also find it amusing and sweet in parts. I felt that there were many aspects of the story and the characters that people might identify with. 

Published by Corsair

Thanks to the publisher for kindly sending me a copy of this novel to read and review. 

You can follow the author on twitter @wintrybits