The Consequence of Skating
A compelling meditation on media influence and social isolation, Gillis’ fourth novel explores the struggle for redemption and acceptance in a world saturated by information. Ten months out of therapy for dope abuse, once-promising actor Mickey Greene works the off-season late shift at an amusement park in the small but prominent art town of Aldwich. A pop-conscious news junkie, Mick bides his time ice-skating while he obsesses over former girlfriend Darcie and dreams of producing Harold Pinter’s play Moonlight, which he is convinced will resurrect his acting career. He soon befriends Cam, a 12-year-old ice-skater without parental constraint; begins dating a successful local singer; and keeps tabs on his mysterious friend Ted, who has turned a personalized porn program into a dangerous political forecaster known as G.O.D. As Mick establishes an improvised family to help him repair the mistakes of his past, he soon realizes that nothing can prepare him for his greatest challenge yet—success. Meticulous and provocative, Gillis’ tale is a sure-footed display of the heart’s ability to reclaim itself, one step at a time. --Jonathan Fullmer