What readers say
3.75/5 ⭐️ this book is a reflection on getting older, wondering how we got to where we are. wondering who we have become. everyone in this story is an adult, yet still coming to terms with their sexuality and who they truly are. are you ever really quite sure of your sexuality? there’s these societal norms and constraints we must fit into- but whats wrong with fluidity? what’s wrong with not knowing exactly what you like? these characters all struggle with fitting into their designated boxes, heightened states of anxiety and paranoia throughout the entire novel for being “outed”, for their innermost thoughts, for experimenting as a kid and dwelling on the feelings that stem from it. individual trauma etched into the skin, the core, of a handful of characters. how they live with theirs varies from person to person. the novel is in third person POV but flicks back and forth observing multiple characters and side characters . phil, ed, ed’s wife maggie, phil’s lover keith. keith’s lover louis. ed’s brother, calum. phil’s mom rosaleen. way too many characters to keep track of, i ended up only really caring about what was going on between maggie/ed and phil/keith. i enjoyed the way that the author writes very much, but at times it felt like the characters were giving speeches that felt out of place, just for the sake of speaking on an opinion that the author had about a topic. which i completely respect, but it just felt out of context at some points. i loved the author’s appreciation(/ tangent) for lana del rey during the scene where two characters sing summertime sadness at a kareoke bar. i loved this quote about how what’s cool changes from day to do, place to place etc- “norms of what’s cool, beautiful, useful or revolutionary shift from day to day, from group to group,from borough to borough, and an interesting cultural trend in Hackney might be seen as naff and embarrassing in Lewisham.” what’s cool in new york may be lame in london, and what’s cool in london, may