Alternatives to Sex: A Novel [Paperback]

Stephen McCauley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 9, 2007

Boston real estate agent William Collins knows that his habits are slipping out of control. Due to obsessive-compulsive daily cleaning binges and a penchant for nightly online cruising for hookups, he finds his sales figures slipping despite a booming market. There's also his ongoing struggle to collect the rent from his passive-aggressive tenant and his worries about his best friend, Edward, whom he's certainly not in love with. Just as he decides to do something about his life, he meets Charlotte and Samuel, wealthy suburbanites looking for the perfect city apartment. "Happy couple," he writes in his notes. "Maybe I can learn something from them." What he ultimately discovers challenges his own assumptions about real estate, love, and desire; and what they learn from him might unravel a budding friendship, not to mention a very promising sale.

Full of crackling dialogue delivered by a stellar ensemble of players, Alternatives to Sex is a smart, hilarious chronicle of life in post-traumatic, morally ambiguous America -- where the desire to do good is constantly being tripped up by the need to feel good. Right now.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

McCauley's latest blunt and funny novel lays bare the inner life and obsessive-compulsive behavior of William Collins, a gay 40-something Boston realtor who struggles to give up trolling the Internet for impersonal sexual liaisons. Taking stock of the year following 9/11, William attributes his promiscuity to "posttraumatic self-indulgence" and unsuccessfully attempts to trade one addiction for another: cleaning house (not always his own). When affluent straight couple Charlotte O'Malley and Samuel Thompson arrive at his office, prowling for a new home, William hopes he can close the sale and wonders if he can look to their marriage as inspiration for a long-term relationship. While McCauley entertains with a motley group of supporting characters, the novel pivots on William's close friendship with Edward, a flight attendant. Hoping to preserve their relationship by keeping it romance-free, William tries to deny his feelings for the ever-patient Edward. McCauley (True Enough) delivers the promise of emotional progress for his flawed, charming protagonist in this clever take on the desire for love, sex and real estate.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Bookmarks Magazine

Stephen McCauley, author of books including The Object of My Affection (1987), has written perhaps his best novel to date. A mix of satire, moral ambiguity, and insight into human foibles, Alternative to Sex also contains raw nakedness as William searches for meaning in his life. William's characterization as a softhearted, sharp-witted, and neurotic gay man—and his touchingly chaste relationship with Edward—rang true with critics, as did the "loony and delicious" cast of secondary characters (San Francisco Chronicle). Only the San Francisco Chronicle voiced minor complaints about the superfluous 9/11 angle, a predictable love affair, and characters appearing from McCauley's previous work.
Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (January 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743453190
• ISBN-13: 978-0743453196
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,146,381 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightfully entertaining novel., April 1, 2006

By 

I. Sondel "I. Sondel - lover of the arts" (Tallahassee, FL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Alternatives to Sex: A Novel (Hardcover)

I've been meaning to read Stephen McCauley (the author of "The Object of My Affections") for years. Happily, "Alternatives to Sex" has proven a great place to start. A social commentary and observational portrait of a forty-something gay man, this is the sort of novel once referred to as a comedy of manners.

At forty-four William Collins has discovered that his well appointed life, though expertly decorated and certainly clean (he's an obsessive compulsive), is both sterile and empty. William seems emotionally adrift, looking for sex in all the wrong places when what he's obviously seeking is love and companionship. He resolves to give up anonymous sex and focus on his professional and spiritual lives.

As a real estate agent William is a bust in a booming market. However, it is through his Boston real estate office that we meet most of the characters that populate McCauley's wonderfully inventive narrative. Most notably we meet Edward, a flight attendant prone to panic attacks since 9/11, who finds that unrequited love truly is a bore, and though he's got it pretty bad, he's ready to give up all hope that his friendship with William will ever blossom. So, though love may be just around the corner, our hero is just myopic enough that he has to walk around the block a dozen times before he stumbles upon it. It is to the author's credit that we as readers don't mind taking the walk with these characters, and hoping that William will open his eyes to the happiness right in front of him.

"Alternatives to Sex" is most decidedly an entertainment, the kind of novel Mrs. Smiley (from "Cold Comfort Farm") might refer to as amusing and diverting, so good it has inspired me to look for other books by McCauley. I can't think of higher praise than that.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant Page-Turner, June 20, 2006

By 

Richard Nelson (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Alternatives to Sex: A Novel (Hardcover)

This book definitely has its moments. The characters are cleverly drawn, from the neurotic narrator, William, to his fastidious flight attendant friend, Edward, to pugnacious ex-marine and professional motivator Marty.

There are moments of delicious irony, like when William talks to a real estate client about a salacious book she wrote about female sexuality that sold well because of its clever title, Come Again. Clearly McCauley chose his title for the same reason, though for me it had the effect of drawing a few vexed looks from people who saw me reading it.

And there are moments of profundity, appropriate as this is, more than anything else, the story of William figuring out what really matters. (He begins the book addicted to internet-arranged trysts and ends it with a notion of what it means to love someone.) His talks with his mother about the nature of love add up to an important lesson.

Just don't slow down! If you do, you'll figure out what's coming, and once you do you'll also begin to notice that there aren't enough pages left for it to happen. That's because it doesn't--McCauley chooses to end the book on the verge of the development it leads up to, rather than giving the reader the satisfaction of witnessing it. Perhaps this is meant to tell us that the journey to understanding what matters is more important than the destination, but it makes turning the last page a bit sad.

Nevertheless, this is a quality novel, but light enough to be perfect for summer. Definitely recommended, especially if you're looking for an interesting plot, pleasant but slightly warped characters, and plenty of wry humor.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just wonderful!, August 11, 2006

By 

D. Bradbury-Powell (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Alternatives to Sex: A Novel (Hardcover)

The only bad part of this novel is that it ends. Had read all Mr. McCauley's other novels, and adored them. This one seems more mature and developed than the other books. I'm a sucker for characters in ruts that evolve and "grow-up" (as a character in the book, Marty, would say) and this novel did not disappoint. It's true that there weren't many suprises, but who needs those, in real life we figure out what others should do long before ever they do. The narrative is somehow a page-turner, yet moves slowly enough to flesh out so many realistic supporting characters as well. It was thrilling and heartwarming to witness William's transformation to adulthood without having morality crammed down our throats. I look forward to Mr. McCauley's next book.