Review: Love and other complications
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 23, 2013
Beau Garon De La Nuit (‘beautiful boy of the night) is the moniker of a writer who places his first work before us in a unique style of writing a topic that hosts several aspects of social class dichotomies that persist in this time of ‘equality.’ The book is immensely readable, not only for the content which is a very well crafted story of a love affair fated by class distinctions, but writing in the format of email ‘letters’ adds just that extra contemporary spark of underlining the certain degree of momentary or instant infatuation developing on a rough sea of reality that internet and social media have imposed on us: meet, speak and act fast, disparage later.The two writers and thus characters of this story to whose lives we have privy via reading their constant email correspondence are Charles, a elegant, ‘older’ British aristocrat whose promiscuity and playing out of passion in a society that still prefers proper dating is limited to hired men of the night, AKA hustlers. His current dalliance is with a young, handsome but ‘low born’ product of the wrong sector of British citizenry named Edward. Edward supports himself on the street as a hustler and becomes one of Charles’ procurements. But there is a definite attraction and eventual love between these disparate men, and Charles introduces Edward to the finer things in life that money can buy, including trips to all the finer spots in the world of luxurious living. But as time advances Charles’ eye wanders and his inclination to purchased evenings continues. Edward, now appearing as a class gentleman hunk likewise has ‘evenings away’ and as the story progresses the frequent times apart make the schism more pronounced and Edward misses the ‘being kept’ aspect of Charles’ relationship. Demands are placed on Edward hat he cannot meet and Charles grows aloof in his response to Edward’s monetary requests, watching what is likely a repeat performance he has grown to expect.Is it a love story? Of course it is a love story! Roles and reactions may be different than most but the passion is conveyed with a fine ear for sensual language without becoming raw. For this reader this is a very fine start and It looks as though (from the words at book’s end that the adventures will continue. Handsomely written by a fine new author. Grady Harp, November 13