- Paperback: 278 pages
- Publisher: Paradise Press (24 Oct 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0952596490
- ISBN-13: 978-0952596493
- Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 2.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,387,554 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Goodmans Hotel
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Product Description
Review
It had never occurred to me to run a gay B & B, and now it is too late; but Alan Keslian s cautionary and amusing tale and the engaging characters involved gave me a happy account of what I may have missed. --Ned Sherrin
... examines how gay men fit into the straight world. --The Pink Paper
Part of the fascination of this book is the convincing picture it presents of the ultra-conformist milieu of a City accountants, and the tension thus created for the central figure, Mark. From the first page, when he is on holiday with his boss, the latter s wife and her female friend, his gay orientation forces him into subterfuge to gain fulfilment. Back in London, he is forced to steer an uneasy course through office politics. A high achiever, he is constantly discomposed by the need to adopt a front for his colleagues. When, almost by accident, he does come out to his boss, Peter, it is deceptively easy deceptively, because Mark is then made aware of the likely antagonism of the old fogies who run the firm. Keslian presents relationships outside the office as even more uncertain, though generally more authentic. Lack of communication twice almost destroys the central love relationship. Its initial restoration coincides with Mark s decision to turn his back on the increasingly bitter internal politics of the City firm and become involved in the running of a gay hotel. As he begins his new life, he reflects: That world, in which general social good meant nothing, where men were ranked entirely according to money and position, now seemed horribly obsessed with the superfluous and pretentious. You may have guessed that Keslian is too good a writer to bestow all the honours on the gay world. Discovery of something discreditable in his lover s past provokes the opposite reaction: All the warmth and colour my new life appeared to contain had existed in my imagination. For a second time the relationship almost founders. It takes a mugging to bring Mark back to his senses, though he is helped by Darren, a boy to whom he has been kind. It is in fact one of the underlying truths in this perceptive novel that ordinary human decency is a greater source of happiness in life, whether gay or straight, than searing passion. If the reader was ever under the illusion that running a gay hotel was a passport to paradise, he will soon become disillusioned the guests that pass through the portals of Goodmans Hotel pose more problems and cause greater mayhem than all the joyous encounters put together. This many-faceted saga is recounted in meticulous and compelling detail. The cast of characters in a wide-ranging novel the accountant, the electrician, the gardener, the waif, the boys from the North confound once and for all the idea that there are such things as gay stereotypes. In doing this the book reveals its greatest quality its truth to life. --Graham Robertson
... examines how gay men fit into the straight world. --The Pink Paper
Part of the fascination of this book is the convincing picture it presents of the ultra-conformist milieu of a City accountants, and the tension thus created for the central figure, Mark. From the first page, when he is on holiday with his boss, the latter s wife and her female friend, his gay orientation forces him into subterfuge to gain fulfilment. Back in London, he is forced to steer an uneasy course through office politics. A high achiever, he is constantly discomposed by the need to adopt a front for his colleagues. When, almost by accident, he does come out to his boss, Peter, it is deceptively easy deceptively, because Mark is then made aware of the likely antagonism of the old fogies who run the firm. Keslian presents relationships outside the office as even more uncertain, though generally more authentic. Lack of communication twice almost destroys the central love relationship. Its initial restoration coincides with Mark s decision to turn his back on the increasingly bitter internal politics of the City firm and become involved in the running of a gay hotel. As he begins his new life, he reflects: That world, in which general social good meant nothing, where men were ranked entirely according to money and position, now seemed horribly obsessed with the superfluous and pretentious. You may have guessed that Keslian is too good a writer to bestow all the honours on the gay world. Discovery of something discreditable in his lover s past provokes the opposite reaction: All the warmth and colour my new life appeared to contain had existed in my imagination. For a second time the relationship almost founders. It takes a mugging to bring Mark back to his senses, though he is helped by Darren, a boy to whom he has been kind. It is in fact one of the underlying truths in this perceptive novel that ordinary human decency is a greater source of happiness in life, whether gay or straight, than searing passion. If the reader was ever under the illusion that running a gay hotel was a passport to paradise, he will soon become disillusioned the guests that pass through the portals of Goodmans Hotel pose more problems and cause greater mayhem than all the joyous encounters put together. This many-faceted saga is recounted in meticulous and compelling detail. The cast of characters in a wide-ranging novel the accountant, the electrician, the gardener, the waif, the boys from the North confound once and for all the idea that there are such things as gay stereotypes. In doing this the book reveals its greatest quality its truth to life. --Graham Robertson
The Pink Paper , 20 January 2002
a serious literary venture... examines how gay men fit into the straight world.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Uneventful,
This review is from: Goodmans Hotel (Paperback)
This book wasn't terrible. It was fairly well written and the writing flowed nicely but I found it incredibly dull. It wasn't that I disliked the characters or anything but I just found myself not caring what happened to any of them. I finished the book, I would never abandon something unless it was dreadful, but I can't say that I enjoyed it. If you like quiet, unassuming novels where nothing very much happens then you could do worse than this one but if you're expecting fireworks and excitement then it's not for you.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A refreshing change from the usual gay novel,
By A Customer
This review is from: Goodmans Hotel (Paperback)
I was recommended to buy this book following the receipt of a flyer. What I found particularly refreshing was that this was no "ordinary" gay novel. It has a good plot, and an excellent mixture of humour, sadness and realism, while leaving all the sexual encounters very much to the imagination. All in all, a very plausible plot and a very readable novel
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good read,
By
This review is from: Goodmans Hotel (Kindle Edition)
Mark, gay, is in his thirties, a computer specialist working on the support team of a prestigious London firm of accountants. Unsurprisingly in such a stuffy firm he is not out about being gay, although he is other elsewhere open about his sexuality. He is a rising star in the firm and a favourite of Peter, the ambitious young partner who enlists Mark's help in his campaign against "the old codgers", the stuffy reactionary older partners. Soon Mark is promoted to head his department, but when office politics begin to threaten any hopes of a peaceful life Mark is ready to look elsewhere for employment.
He does not need to look far, the opportunity is there waiting for him. Through his new boyfriend, Tom, he has met Tom's friend and benefactor the older Andrew, gay owner of a local garden centre with a sideline in property development. Andrew had already suggested to Mark that the dilapidated Goodmans Villa, a large Victorian semi-detached house would make an ideal gay hotel. Mark decides now is the time to take up the offer. Mark takes us through his rise within the firm of accountants, his meeting with Tom and Andrew, and the eventual opening of the hotel. It is not until halfway through the story does Mark get to open his hotel, and much of the lead up to that centres on his work with long passages about his work and computing, although not entirely. There is the charming encounter with George, about twenty years, the slightly retarded son of the hotel proprietress in France, who open-mindedly is happy to allow his fraternisation with Mark. We also discover how he meets Tom, Mark's complete opposite, the rough speaking relatively uneducated electrician/plumber, and follow their up and down relationship. Then there is Darren, the delightful eighteen year old runaway waif, one of the existing tenants of Goodmans Villa and who stays on to be taken under Mark's protective wing. There are a few amusing episodes involving guests at Goodmans Hotel, and a few more dangerous incidents Mark finds himself involved in. But against the background of all that happens over two of three years of Mark's tale we follow Mark's relationship with Tom. A love affair but not without problems, while they are open with each other it eventually comes out that there is something Tom has kept back, when it comes out Mark worries about its implications, can he continue the relationship? This is a generally good read, it does get somewhat bogged down in the first half with rather too much talk of computers and work politics, but that is offset to an extent with Mark and Tom's growing relationship. Matters do improve considerably in the second half of the book. The main characters are very appealing: Mark himself is very likeable, open and fair-minded, Tom's rough gentleness is endearing, Andrew is a thoughtful and caring man, and young Darren is a beauty in his spindly teenage gawkiness and enchanting manner.
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