Sorry all, a bit behind today, so I'm just gonna give you today's review!

Famous Last
by lomax61

Reviewer: Talo Segura
Status: Complete
Word Count: 92,849

This book, published in November 2020 is set in contemporary Britain during the pandemic, something which the author handles well. It has a very British tone with expressions such as, "Freezing his bollocks off..." and, yes it's the winter, the story takes place over a few months leading up to Christmas and the New Year.

Mr Lomax (the author) has a narrative style which elaborates not only his characters' thoughts and emotions, but their expressions, "Welcome surprise melted away his pissed-off mood. When he read the words again, pleasure curled in his stomach and his heart rate sped up. Of its own volition, a smile pushed its way to the surface and fixed itself on his face. Looking into space, he fanned himself with the card."

Some of the metaphors, which flow thick and fast, bypassed me, "I'll Jamie Lee Curtis him if he tries anything." 

I certainly liked our protagonist, Spencer, how he comforted himself and wrestled with his own insecurities. He is the sort of guy you would enjoy being with and perhaps sharing a laugh together, but he doesn't give anything of himself away, so was always just the person you met and you never felt anything more.

When Spencer's dad starts asking about boyfriends and thinking Spencer must, like all gay men, hook up on Gumblr, which Spencer corrects him on, Grindr, it gets more hilarious still. "Your brother used to have a waiting list courtesy of his straight one, Tinkler.”
“Tinder!” said Spencer, horrified at the thought of an app by the name his father supplied." That made me laugh, I think our author has a wicked sense of humour.

“So what do you make of the Sugar Boys?”
“Sugar Boys?”
“Tate and Lyle.”
Spencer had choked on his tonic water. He hadn’t made the connection to the sugar company." Nor did I until it was made clear and caused yet more humour, although I should add that in Britain Tate and Lyle is to sugar what Hoover is to vacuum cleaners.

The descriptions conjure up the exact picture and even (for me) provide education, having never encountered "mocktails" before, well not the word to describe the drink, although eminently suitable as an epithet.

"Five of them shared a table overlooking the seafront—Peony happily agreeing to join them—as the foul-weathered light show playing out over the English Channel occasionally dragged their attention away from conversation. His brother sat with his arm protectively around Peony the whole time as she sipped on her pomegranate mocktail..."

Whilst swept along with the unrolling story, carried on the waves of clever conversation and sharp observation, one nevertheless feels at pain to discover any deeper emotional connection. The characters are very real, representative of the host of people we encounter in our lives, but we only get the gloss and hardly touch any depth. Take the quasi suicide evoked when Spenser first meets Marshall, it was nothing more than a pretence play in a superficial world which leaves you wondering if anyone is affected by anything. Don't read that wrong, it's immensely entertaining, well written, and easy to read, it simply throws up a whole question about the lives these people are living. Later, as the romance builds, things get notably more dramatic, it is a slow build up, but along the way somewhere, I think everyone starts rooting for Spencer.

When the author tells us about Killian's brilliant piece for the magazine and his use of malapropisms, one of the examples quoted is simply hilarious, "a former Tory minister decrying the Chinese authorities for banning the people of Hong Kong from enjoying 'universal suffering’ like the rest of the civilised world."

When Joe turns up at the Bangladeshi restaurant, looking the worst for wear, it becomes apparent that there is a deeper emotional drama running through the story. There is more to this tale than a simple budgeoning romance in the glamourous, but rather superficial world of lifestyle magazine publishing.

It would be an aweful pun to say we reach the climax of the story in the middle of the book, I say this only because I have my reservations about the place of graphic sex scenes. Lines like, "I want you inside me." which come as a relief to our handsome and debonair Marshall, are somewhat cringe-worthy. Then the graphic detail, "...he gasped aloud when a new coat of cooling lube pressed into his entrance. ...switching to a couple of fingers to loosen him up, gently but firmly twisting and probing, before adding another, ...maintaining the eager kissing until Spencer felt ready to come unglued." For me, the author came a little unstuck himself by indulging in the quasi-porn which, although at least one reader found it "hot," I'm sure others skipped through. My point is not with the graphic nature of the scene, but rather with having virtually a whole chapter of sex. A bit too much!

Mr Lomax himself told me what he expected from a review and I believe I have fulfilled all requirements, like Spencer, perhaps I should get the job? "People often think the reviews are simply a reviewer's personal opinion about a production, which, in fairness, is what they generally are. But a true theatre review is created to guide somebody who is considering seeing a play, to give them background; an outline of the plot, about the historical setting, cultural significance, and relevance, and about some of the characters. Criticism should form only a small part of the review and, in my opinion, be wholly substantiated."

If I have to sum all this up, and I do, I would label it light entertainment in the very best tradition. The kind of book you can take on holiday or read on the way to work. The observation and characterisation is great, the dialogue spot on, and the descriptive narrative welĺ drawn. It is most definitely of our time, the twenty-twenties, and the handling of the global health crisis is perfect. Like the whole story, it is there in perfect measure, as is the the very ordinary British family and the totally believable working life of Spencer. There is glitz, glamour, and celebraties, drama and angst, but above all there is romance, because this is after all a romance novel. It is superbly done, what more could you want? Go read it, and enjoy yourself.

Category: Fiction  Genres: Romance  Tags: mature adult, adult, urban, europe, anal, light-hearted, 20th century, christmas.  Rating: Mature