Breaking up is hard to do, especially when it's a split between close male friends in their 20s. In Binchy's astutely observed American debut, the pair in question is David and Alex, Dubliners whose long bond is tested by romantic rivalry and the strains of encroaching adult responsibilities. At a college party, the sight of Camille sends the introverted David to seek help from his charming, more socially adept pal. The contrast between the two men is perceptively drawn by Binchy, a nephew of Maeve, who proves himself a lucid chronicler of the buddy relationship, which starts to fall apart when Alex moves in on Camille himself. Meanwhile, David scores a good job in an established bank while Alex flounders at school and seems unable to make the transition to grownup. David, now more confident and assertive, acts on his attraction to Camille, and the men's friendship's bittersweet, evocatively described dissolution completes a phase of David's life in a way neither the protagonist nor the reader might have expected at the novel's start.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
In his American debut, Irish novelist Binchy (nephew of acclaimed author Maeve Binchy) puts a decidedly darker spin on the coming-of-age of twentysomething Irish lads. David, always focused and organized, has just graduated and is about to start a promising career with a major bank. His best friend, Alex, is not quite as driven, verging on flunking out of university. When it comes to women, though, Alex is a complete success, relying on his good looks and charm to seduce one girlfriend after another. So when David becomes completely smitten with Camilla, it seems only natural to him to rely on Alex’s easy way with people to help make the all-important introductions and subsequent plans for get-togethers. What he doesn’t anticipate is that Alex will misread David’s intentions and take Camilla for himself. Now David is forced to play the role of the couple’s best friend, even while he seethes about what he perceives to be an injustice. In a novel that is more bitter than sweet, Binchy writes with a slow-burning intensity about social isolation and loneliness, workplace politics, and romantic triangles. --Joanne Wilkinson
Review
“Binchy writes with a slow-burning intensity about social isolation and loneliness, workplace politics, and romantic triangles.” (Booklist)
From the Back Cover
Bestselling Irish author Chris Binchy makes his American debut with a wonderfully charming and bittersweet story of friendship, love, and second chances.
When the bright but tongue-tied David sees the magnetic Camille at a party, he plays it safe, asking his smooth and charming best friend, Alex, to make the introduction. But even though David was the one to notice Camille, it's the ever-confident Alex who makes the first move on her. As David watches his best friend walk away with the girl of his dreams, he becomes painfully aware of just what he has lost through his hesitant, overcautious approach to life.
Shedding his disappointment, David leaves home in search of a new beginning. But neither distance nor time can erase the memory of Camille. Buoyed by his newfound self-assurance and a fresh perspective, David is ready to try again. He will face the would-be love of his life and act on his feelings, whatever the cost to his friendship with Alex.
What happens when love gets in the way of lifelong friendship? How far will a good guy go to win the love of his life? In the tradition of Nick Hornby, Roddy Doyle, and Michael Chabon, Chris Binchy delivers an addictive tale of looking back and looking forward. This funny and wise story interweaves the suspense of unforeseeable futures, unknowable circumstances, and irreversible mistakes; the misfortunes of bad timing; and the power of love.
About the Author
Chris Binchy is the author of People Like Us, Open-handed, and The Very Man, which was short-listed for the Irish Novel of the Year Award. He lives in Dublin, Ireland.
