English language
Published Sept. 16, 2024 by Faber & Faber, Limited.
Edward is living in a world he can't afford and to which he doesn't belong. To camouflage himself, he has catered to his friends' fetching drycleaning, sorting flowers for premieres. It's a noble effort, really - anything to keep his best pals Robert and Stanza happy. In return, his proximity to them might sponge the shame of his birth and violent past cleanly away.But the chink in his armour is his painfully unrequited love for Stanza. When he realises Stanza and Robert are an item, Edward is pushed too far. His little acts of kindness take a sinister turn, giving way to the unspeakable brutality Edward fears is at his core.Are there limits to what he will do for his friends? Are there limits to what he will do to them?
Literary thriller which is interested more in demonstrating a (often boring) mastery of English than anything else.
For example:"The fug of evening heat, deoxy genated by too much conversation, was now crackling above the chocolate and the olive oil parfaits."
This emphasis on language makes it tediously heavy with the intrigue starting well, getting lost in the middle to make a comeback for the last section.
