Book Review: The Back Passage by James Lear

[erastes]

Thoroughly enjoyable.  This book very clearly makes the point that gay historical fiction needn't be po faced, full of deep meaningful literary merit and serious as hell.  This is a romp, from start (hero found groping his friend in an understairs cupboard) to the finish which I won't spoil. Imagine how I squeed when I read the first page and found that it was set about 10 miles from where I sit right now, on the North Norfolk coast in 1925.



There's a lot of sex in this book, and I mean a LOT. This is the kind of book where the reader can be happy that there's sex in every chapter and it isn't boringly escalated, you know what a mean, starts with a grope, moves on to a blow job, then a 69 and so on  - the Hero "Mitch" takes advantage of every opportunity.

And there's PLENTY of opportunity. Even though you must suspend your belief at the door, although, to be honest, a remote Norfolk aristocratic family - I wouldn't be at all surprised if this house set-up hadn't actually happened, so it's actually quite plausible and the reasons for why everyone seems to be gay are very cleverly explained.  It's not just the power of Mitch's sex-appeal that gives him the sex-filled week of his life!

It's a classic who-dunnit, too. Big house in the middle of no-where with a cast of larger than life characters, unexplained murder and it could be any one of the occupants, like all of Christie's stories I was hopelessly led down one blind alley (cough) after another, suspecting everyone in turn and happy doing so.

What I particularly liked was the lovely little touches of the language. When Mitch talks he says ass, and when Boy Morgan speaks he says arse.  I heartily approve of this.

I also liked the fact that Mitch isn't some Gary-Stu private dick (although his dick is anything but private...) solving everything. He's just nicely curious, and is not averse to asking questions and using other methods to get what he wants.  He doesn't get it right all the time too, in fact I loved the fact that when he's listening to one of the witnesses he frankly says "I couldn't help but think that Sherlock would have already grasped the salient point" (paraphrased)

There was a kink too far with some watersports, but it was very very mild, as if Lear was simply trying it out, and didn't squick.  The sex itself is graphic, along the same graphic level as say - Alyson's short story collections - some euphenisms, but nothing along the line of shitter or fuck tube. He calls a cock a cock and that's good with me.

So all in all, recommended.  I dislike asking an author for a sequel, but, in Mitch, he has a character who could cheerfully go on to other gay mysteries.  I shall go and seek Lear's other works now, and will look forward to his next.  A nice afternoon's read, which got me hot and made me smile too.

And really - any writer who uses whence and glabrous is always going to win my heart...

Comments

[zehavit-lamasu.livejournal.com]

Brilliant - this is the second recomendation for this book I recieved in the last 10 days. I am moving it to the top of my TO READ pile . Now I only need a quiet time to read :) .

[ansley-vaughan.livejournal.com]

Yes, I liked this -- took it on holiday, and it made me laugh. A very clever pastiche.

But to read this author at his best, get 'The Palace of Varieties' - a slightly more serious but no less entertaining book.

[katjak.livejournal.com]

Uhh, I didn't even know that there was a new book from Lear, and almost one year old new it was, too. And there's going to be another novel from him in end of May! Thanks for the review -- although I carefully skipped most of it in order to not spoil the fun. ;)