Helpful Score: 1
There are far too few gay-oriented serious novels so the tendency is to be grateful for what is rather than quibble about what should be, but this book has an ad hoc thrown-together plot that covers far too great a range of the improbable. There is an attempt to embed or situate the gay characters in a larger straight world, but the effort feels artificial and awkward.
All in all this book was a disappointment that I nonetheless read through to end, hoping for more.
All in all this book was a disappointment that I nonetheless read through to end, hoping for more.
A historical novel set against the background of McCarthyism. It's a bit wooden but the political observations woven into the narrative make it worth reading and it does bring to life the anxiety of the time when people in government were afraid of being outed as communists, or even worse, homosexuals.
Set in Washington, D.C. during the McCarty era, a very disturbing view of American politics and society. There are few nice characters but the book is full of some fascinating ones. It is a sad book in many respects about what people will do for power and prestige. But it is a hard book to put down.
