Summerabbacat

I am keen to learn more about Jack and his history. In some respects he reminds me a little of Otis; his child-like innocence and complete lack of pretence. Did he have a difficult and unpleasant childhood like Otis, one which saw him withdraw into himself? He is an enigma @Laura S. Fox, full of contradictions. Theo's continuing reluctance to engage in any kind of meaningful way with either Jack or Vince until the very end of this chapter was becoming very tiresome. Doris, who had a great love of animals, particularly dogs, has the perfect "remedy" for Theo's intransigence (and I don't mean spaying).

An excellent choice to start your collection. I have many albums by RS on CD and 4 on vinyl (which I also have on CD). It is hard to believe he is now 80 years of age, and will be 81 in 11 days.

I neglected to mention how much I enjoyed Rod's playful teasing of Liam and his wry sense of humour, particularly the following: “And hey,” he added, mischief slipping back into his tone, “next time you go hiking with Adrian, bring him to dinner. Sean will want to interrogate him.” I nearly choked. “There’s not going to be a next time.” “Uh-huh,” Rod said. “I’ll start setting the table.” The easy friendship between the two and between Sean and Liam has no doubt been one of the few things which he has continued to enjoy after the death of Kevin.

I was not sure if most would realise Michael was also a song recorded by Suzi. It was her least successful single in Australia, #100 for 1 week only. Clearly the song made very few Aussies Rock Hard (a #9 hit in 1980/81 in Australia). I had forgotten Stumblin' In, which was very remiss of me because Smokie were hugely popular in Australia too, and yes, @Summerabbacat liked their music immensely, and this duet between Suzi and Chris Norman was massively successful in Australia too. It appears Delinquent Donnie, formerly The Wild One, is no longer Too Big for his boots. Perhaps juvie was like Devil Gate Drive, a place where he had to plead with his bigger and tougher tormentors, I know Your Mama Won't Like Me and I May Be Too Young, but please don't Tear Me Apart. Suzi had quite a large lesbian following in Australia. I remember lining up with a lesbian colleague from work many years ago when she was getting her copy of Suzi's autobiography signed by Suzi for her then girlfriend. The queue had quite a few lesbians amongst those keen to have Suzi sign their copy. Suzi did not bat an eyelid when my colleague told her it was for her girlfriend who was a huge fan. You may be surprised to know @Lee Wilson that the first record I ever bought for myself, at the age of 10, were three 45's. Can The Can and 48 Crash by Suzi (both of which were massive hits in Australia) and My Coo Ca Choo by Alvin Stardust. Even more surprising, the first album I ever bought was Welcome To My Nightmare by Alice Cooper on cassette. I can still remember, even though it was over 50 years ago, that it cost me $3.99, which was not an insignificant amount of money then. My love for all things disco (almost) and ABBA occurred shortly thereafter.

It appears Jack has inherited his bigoted views and his intellectual capacity from his mother, Marjorie. The police report and video will likely mean nought to her, a conspiracy against "decent God-fearin' folk by dem goddamned faggots". Of course, neither Jack nor his mother, would appreciate the delicious irony of Jack referring to Donald Gray as Delinquent Donnie. To quote Suzi Quatro (who was enormously popular in Australia @Lee Wilson, unlike the USA), The Race Is On. If Michael's times keep on improving, he could well become a Daytona Demon. Luckily, the head-to-head struggle between Michael and Max did not result in a 48 Crash in the last few metres of their race. Michael's pre-race protein shake, courtesy of Stephen, may prove to be a "winning formula", a natural "performance enhancing drug". Let us hope he administers it more carefully than Luca Fernandez.

Let's hope it is not Aunt Daphne and Uncle Graham. Industrial strength Fleet enema saline solution (with a drop or more of something to give a good burn or stinging sensation, for days afterwards).

Aunt Daphne, what an insufferable battle-axe. Part Venetia Murray, part Sheila (Ralph’s mother, whose family name I cannot remember) and part Connie (Colin’s mother, whose family name I also cannot remember). I hope she choked on her damn pasta (which I rather like). Louis’ refusal to bend to Aunt Daphne’s whims has had a positive impact in kick-starting something more than friendship between him and Charlie. I just hope Aunt Daphne does not pressure Graham to demand Charlie pay back his loan from them immediately. It seems such a move would be consistent with her arrogant petulant persona. Perhaps Louis can suggest to Thomas Englert that Aunt Daphne may know of the whereabouts of the allegedly stolen statue. You have created a right cow in Aunt Daphne @Robert Hugill. Hopefully someone will deliver a powerful bitch slap or more to her before the story’s end.

Words of wisdom for Liam from Dionne, well before her foray into the "Psychic Friends Network" and bankruptcy: Great song penned by Isaac Hayes. Hideous album cover with Dionne dressed in the fur of an unknown number of dead animals.😠😠😠😠 This story is developing at a leisurely pace, much like many of your other stories @ChromedOutCortex. I for one, appreciate this greatly.

Allegedly so @centexhairysub. I am pleased I am not the only one who is suspicious of what her "real" motive(s) might be. If she is so keen to "make it up" with Rick and put right her past wrongdoings, why has it taken effort on Rick's part to reconnect with her. To quote this great funk song from Chocolate Milk from 1975:

It appears @Mark Ponyboy Peters that we readers are a bunch of "nervous nellies", so Jimmy and Shane WILL have their phones with them at all times, except when they are in the bathroom, but only the one at home.

OMG I had not thought of this @chris191070, but it is a distinct possibility. Corcoran/Cochran may be far more involved in Jarvis' business than as a client for the services his boys provide.

Corcoran, or Cochran as he is now known, is at least one step ahead of the police. Infuriating as it is, it does not appear they had anything they could charge him with. As I have commented before, he is certainly brazen, one might even say cocky, and hopefully it is this cockiness which will result in him making a mistake which will lead to his whereabouts becoming known to the police. If not, Rick may have to use himself as bait to lure him out into the open, something which I vaguely recall Rick has contemplated before, or am I getting this mixed up with another story I am reading @Mark Ponyboy Peters? For a brief moment when Rick tried to contact Shane and Jimmy to return to the picnic spot and they did not respond, I feared someone might have taken them. Rick needs to read the riot act to them and insist they have their phones with them AT ALL TIMES until the investigation is over and all guilty parties either incarcerated or dead.

"They" say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, but I doubt Luca's "mishap" was its intent. We have all likely heard of colonic irrigation. Perhaps Darren may have "discovered" a new procedure, endoscopic irrigation, or a new weight loss method, the seminal slimming programme. In all seriousness, Esteban is, and was remarkably chill given the cause and extent of Luca's vomiting. I daresay semen may not be on Luca's menu for some time yet.

Jacy Elliott has a "gift", a gift we readers have only had a brief glimpse of, a "gift" which he has only just begun to experience, a "gift" which he does not yet fully understand or can articulate. The author @Josh Aterovis has a "gift", one which we privileged readers have experienced on a number of occasions now, one which he has been able to articulate time and time again, one which we look forward to him favouring us with again, with the "sequel" to this story in which Jacy Elliott will play a part in a Killian Kendall mystery. Bring it on bon vivant of Baltimore.

This story was not an easy read. At times it, or at least one or more of its characters, was frustrating, irritating or downright infuriating, which of course made it so very believable and real. It was not all sunshine and lollipops, with an abundance of "lows", but the less frequent "highs" soared and were a joy to behold. Emotionally charged and provocative, ultimately this arduous read turned out to be a very rewarding and uplifting read. Superbly written @ChromedOutCortex.

Although Dean irritated me so and quite often, I always hoped he would find the courage to stand up and be counted. We can blame his father as the source of at least some of Dean's angst, his bigoted views and indoctrination of Dean with his toxic masculinity having a negative impact on Dean's psyche. However, Dean's mother should not be let off scot free either. Her husband was an insufferable oaf, but she just left and made no attempt to ever contact either of her sons again. She well may have suffered at the hands of her husband literally, but in my view she is a selfish coward who also had a significantly negative impact on Dean. She may have passed away after leaving, but if not, she is not forgiven by me for her abandonment of both of her sons. A very satisfying conclusion to this story @ChromedOutCortex, with a realistic portrayal of the effort both Dean and Kris had to put in to make their relationship work. It was not all sunshine and lollipops for quite some time, something which I, at least, found very believable.

Rather than "stepping back and breathing" I just swear. If I "stepped back" I would never get anything done as I would be too busy stepping back. 10,000 steps per day, easy peasy.

More top 10 glory @Mark Ponyboy Peters for this story for the month ending 26/12/25. #6 on the 'Most Read Adventure' and #3 on the 'Most Read Mystery' "charts". On the latter "chart" it is joined once again by @Paladin's What Brings Us Together - Part 2, making its 7th appearance, including an appearance for every one of the last 6 months. A very impressive achievement by both you Aussie "giants" of the GA universe. I may have to write to Albo to let him know, perhaps an AM at least is deserved for "service in a particular locality or field of activity or to a particular group".

Another top 10 placing @Paladin. #6 on the 'Most Read Mystery' "chart" for the month ending 26/12/25, moving up from #9 on the same "chart" for the month ending 28/11/25. Prior to this it was #5 (24/10/25), #6 (26/09/25), #6 (22/08/25), #7 (23/05/25) and #6 (25/04/25). I think the Maestro sums it up best @Paladin. This story, and by default its author, has got:

I am very familiar with his reactions too @ChromedOutCortex, which is why I feel quite comfortable in judging him for it. If he is anything like me, age will not improve the situation, although he will be more aware he is behaving irrationally, and sometimes even petulantly.

"I was acting on the instructions of the school board . . . it was important that the school, and the diocese, avoid any hint of . . . scandal . . . at all cost. Daniel Corcoran was dismissed immediately, and a settlement was subsequently reached with the victim and his family." Danny as Jimmy and Shane know him. Danny is not really an alias, it is merely the conventional abbreviation of his given name. Rick, Robbie and Casey have one thing in common, they are all blonde, seemingly Corcoran's preferred look. AC Barrett also reportedly likes young blondes. Coincidence? It probably is, but my prior speculation Corcoran may have been a victim of sexual abuse himself at the hands of AC Barrett is not completely ridiculous I don't think. So often one reads of serial paedophiles, child rapists, child killers who were themselves victims of horrendous sexual abuse as children, more often than not at the hands of their father, uncle or trusted family friend. Could this be the link, might Corcoran be the nephew of AC Barrett perhaps, and might Corcoran have been blonde as a child/teenager? Tom's reaction to Rick's revelation of his repressed memory of an assault at the hands of Corcoran did not surprise me at all. Tom has not to date articulated much about how he felt about his son's murder. I suspect he has suffered extraordinarily in silence, likely far more aware of what may have happened to his son than what Beth was. I think the capture of Corcoran will be cathartic for Rick, Tom and Beth, and strengthen their bond even more. Superb chapter @Mark Ponyboy Peters. Not a red mullet in sight I don't think. Events which were seemingly unrelated are revealing connections, even if only tenuous at the moment. I am probably wrong, but I sense there is a connection between AC Barrett and Daniel Corcoran.

Very intriguing @Gary L. It appears Gerardo may be a double agent, a closet-case working for Franco's despicable Guardia Civil. Was it merely coincidence he went into a gay bar in which Joaquin, the son of a very wealthy and presumably influential man, was drinking and socialising, or was he instructed to ensure Joaquin (Ximo) was removed from the bar and placed in a safe environment. The tension is palpable @Gary L.

Howzat! Was it only Child’s Play or was it Summer Love @Mark Ponyboy Peters? I think it’s only a Matter Of Time before Cameron Lewis moves into the Slipstream of Life in this new town. Will Cam be High Rollin’ or will Tom Madden show him a Silvery Moon or ask him to Rock Me Gently? Will Cam’s mother Cassandra Lewis, a former Magazine Madonna and friend of Primrose Peters, instigate a relationship between her son and Tom, her words of encouragement to her son, You’ve Got The Gun, baby boy? Will it finish with Cam and Tom each saying to the other, So Glad You’re Mine because there is Only One You? I for one, hope you will consider developing this single innings into a full test match @Mark Ponyboy Peters, even if it means more games of cricket. Perhaps you can introduce some characters with cricket-inspired names e.g. Chappell Walters, Mallett Thomson and Marsh Lillee, offspring of idiot parents who think they are so hip saddling their children with ridiculous given names.

Dean has done it again, flown off the handle without giving Kris an opportunity to provide a full explanation. Hopefully, he will calm down as he did with Markus, return to Kris and give him a chance to explain. Or, perhaps as @Philippe has suggested, Mamma will have to intervene and read Dean the riot act.

Declan becomes more obnoxious with each passing chapter. Grant silenced him with a valid question. I wonder if Declan's first reaction will be to lie and deny any sexual contact with Oliver. It will not surprise me if he does. If I was in Oliver shoes I would be hoping he does, to save myself from the embarrassment of having it known I had any sexual experience with the obnoxious little creep. I doubt Oliver will boast of his sexual exploits on the weekend with James.