I have been meaning to read this book for about 5 years having read a review in the Gay Times shortly after it was first published - and it has been lurching in a dark corner of my Amazon account until a few weeks ago when I finally brought it to take with me on holiday.
As after all that time the weight of expectation was heavy - and I am glad to report that the book did not disappoint.
It is a fable, a modern fairy tale, and in a complex way the ending is a happy one. Like that best fairy tales, through its fantasy and otherness the story manages to bring into sharp focus some truths about life and yourselves. There is a lot of darkness in the story but there is light too and the interplay between the two is the centre of how believable the story - these are extraordinary yet immensely authentic characters.
I loved this book but I also had a weird sense of de ja vu as though I knew the story even before it unfolded - since getting home I have googled it and while there was a play adapted from the book I am pretty sure I never saw it so I am at a lost to explain that feeling - maybe that is just a sign of brilliant writing.
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