- Paperback: 336 pages
- Publisher: Kensington Publishing; New edition edition (10 Feb 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0758204086
- ISBN-13: 978-0758204080
- Product Dimensions: 23 x 15.5 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 410,489 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"Entertaining...Ford handles his broad, diverse cast with aplomb, and his knowing sense of humor and emphasis on the positive make this novel as a warm and inviting as a group hug."
Product Description
The sweeping new novel from the Lambda award-winning author of "Last Summer". A local bar in a small New York town is the focal point for the lives of its gay community: a hub to which a diverse group of men gravitate to play out their dreams and desires...Mike Monaghan is the bartender at the Engine Room, a meeting place for the small but thriving community of gay men in Cold Falls, New York. As Mike pours beer, wipes glasses and hears everything, he is witness to the men who come through his doors looking for what they need: sex; direction; friendship; spiritual fulfilment; and love. People like: Stephen Darby - as an accountant, he knows many secrets. But Stephen has his own secret - one he has never been able to share with anyone close to him. Pete Thayer - playing it straight, Pete takes out his frustrations on transmissions and engines during the day and spends his nights trying to quench his needs through anonymous sex. John and Russell - the golden couple in town with the ideal relationship everyone wants. But behind the scenes their storybook marriage is on the verge of facing some explosive trials. Father Thomas Dunn - more and more the gentle priest is feeling a need to express the secret desires that conflict with his devotion to the church. His faith in tailspin, he is beginning to question what he really wants from life. Simon Bird - a fixture in town, an old queen everyone finds amusing and entertaining. Still mourning the loss of his longtime lover, Simon yearns to find love and a place in a culture that worships youth and beauty.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Looking For It; is a complex and stunningly penned novel by Michael Ford. After reading `Last Summer' I jumped at the chance to buy and read his other novels.
The story is centred around some prime characters: A barman who listens to everyone's problems - but no one listens to his. A priest who finally realises that God may not be enough. A homophobic young man who can't admit he's gay. The golden couple, whose lives are far from perfect. An old queen whose trying to grasp life without his dead husband. A fun loving man who really just wants someone to love him. An accountant whose afraid that being gay will disappoint his family.
All these characters are rich with personality and emotion. They all have a reason to be in the story. Ford has a way with creating fantastic characters and even better stories.
There are certain scenes that I found disturbing; but these scenes I found both upsetting and amazing. It shows you the writer has done his job in getting a response out of me. His scenes were so vivid and real. I felt the emotions of all the characters and for that I was immensely thankful for.
The downsides of the book? I felt some chapters (near the beginning) were long winded at times. I also felt that some characters didn't get enough "limelight." But other than those two points, I found this book interesting and thrilling, both rich in story telling and writing.
The story is centred around some prime characters: A barman who listens to everyone's problems - but no one listens to his. A priest who finally realises that God may not be enough. A homophobic young man who can't admit he's gay. The golden couple, whose lives are far from perfect. An old queen whose trying to grasp life without his dead husband. A fun loving man who really just wants someone to love him. An accountant whose afraid that being gay will disappoint his family.
All these characters are rich with personality and emotion. They all have a reason to be in the story. Ford has a way with creating fantastic characters and even better stories.
There are certain scenes that I found disturbing; but these scenes I found both upsetting and amazing. It shows you the writer has done his job in getting a response out of me. His scenes were so vivid and real. I felt the emotions of all the characters and for that I was immensely thankful for.
The downsides of the book? I felt some chapters (near the beginning) were long winded at times. I also felt that some characters didn't get enough "limelight." But other than those two points, I found this book interesting and thrilling, both rich in story telling and writing.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I have read a previous book by this author, and enjoyed it, so was anticipating this book. I was not disappointed. The characters are good, mostly well-rounded, within the confines of the literary genre this represents. The character of the local "tough", with repressed sexuality, struggling to come to terms with his own desires, but locked-in to the cycle of denial and violence, is very well handled. The "coming-out" scene is also very moving - towards the end of the book, short and very movingly handled. I would recommend this book without reservation.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
17 reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Yes, dark in spots, but realistic for a small town.
8 Aug 2004
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Except for his other novel, "Last Summer," Michael Thomas Ford is known primarily for his compilations of his humorous essays, such as "My Big Fat Queer Life" and "That's MR. Faggot to You!" Perhaps looking to distance himself further from his humor essays, his second novel, "Looking for It" comes off as rather dark in spots, though overall realistic and with a positive message.
The novel tells us about a group of gay men in a small upstate NY town. The main character is Mike, bartender at The Engine Room, the only gay bar in about a two hour radius; Mike is kind of a free spirit who has no long term plans or any conscious desire to settle down. On the other end of the spectrum is Stephen, a closeted accountant whose sex life is solely imaginary with online partners, and Thomas, a closeted Episcopal priest dealing with feelings he had thought were successfully repressed. Add in a mature gay couple whose relationship is trying to survive the "seven year itch," and a wise old queen named Simon who has resogned himself to be alone since the death of his longtime partner, and you have most of the characters for the novel's coverage of developments in their lives between Halloween and New Years of a recent year. There are some steps forward, some steps backward, and some tough decisions that could affect their makers for many years to come. The "dark" part of the story comes mostly from the involvement of an additional character, a self-hating "straight" men using violence to deal with his homosexual urges, preying upon the insecurity of gay men he encountered at a porn cinema and via the internet.
I thought the story was somewhat predictable, though the characters were original, portrayed well and put in realistic situations for small town living. The overall message is a positive one, of "community" and entended families, although it also seems to suggest that gay men, at least in small towns such as this, really don't know what they want out of life, even if it is in front of their eyes. I give this one four stars out of five, including extra credit for recognizing all gay men don't live in big cities or gay "meccas" like P-Town and WeHo.
The novel tells us about a group of gay men in a small upstate NY town. The main character is Mike, bartender at The Engine Room, the only gay bar in about a two hour radius; Mike is kind of a free spirit who has no long term plans or any conscious desire to settle down. On the other end of the spectrum is Stephen, a closeted accountant whose sex life is solely imaginary with online partners, and Thomas, a closeted Episcopal priest dealing with feelings he had thought were successfully repressed. Add in a mature gay couple whose relationship is trying to survive the "seven year itch," and a wise old queen named Simon who has resogned himself to be alone since the death of his longtime partner, and you have most of the characters for the novel's coverage of developments in their lives between Halloween and New Years of a recent year. There are some steps forward, some steps backward, and some tough decisions that could affect their makers for many years to come. The "dark" part of the story comes mostly from the involvement of an additional character, a self-hating "straight" men using violence to deal with his homosexual urges, preying upon the insecurity of gay men he encountered at a porn cinema and via the internet.
I thought the story was somewhat predictable, though the characters were original, portrayed well and put in realistic situations for small town living. The overall message is a positive one, of "community" and entended families, although it also seems to suggest that gay men, at least in small towns such as this, really don't know what they want out of life, even if it is in front of their eyes. I give this one four stars out of five, including extra credit for recognizing all gay men don't live in big cities or gay "meccas" like P-Town and WeHo.
15 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Keep looking for it...
28 Oct 2004
Format:Hardcover
I've enjoyed Michael Thomas Ford's writing in the past, but this story is poorly written, poorly edited and extremely shallow. I couldn't help but think that Ford was just cranking out a story to meet a deadline. There's no depth of character in any of the main figures. The story line seems to serve no purpose other than to connect the over abundant and graphic sex scenes, some of which are extremely brutal. If your looking for a good story with believable characters...keep looking for it.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Another Great Book by Michael Thomas Ford
19 Sep 2004
Format:Hardcover
I really liked this book. I found it an intense and page turning drama. Michael Thomas Ford seems to have a knack for writing drama's that have large casts and mutiple storylines and he blends them together magically. This is the story of John and Russell a couple who decides to split after seven years, Simon an older man dealing with the death of his long term lover and moving on, Thomas a priest dealing with his sexuality and his future in the church, last but definitely not least Mike a bartender who is looking for love and possibly a career change. Throw into the mix Pete a mechanic who has some anger management issues, a man who enjoys sex with men but who is adamently not gay. This book is very dark compared to 'Last Summer' and the authors humorous essays, and that is what I liked about this book. I loved the fact that it was dark and not merely a light fluffy romance, it had romance but it also had a sadistic violent edge that kept me up late into the night reading to discover what is going to happen next. I really liked 'Last Summer' but felt that this book is much better and I am anxiously looking for to Michael Thomas Ford's next fiction effort.
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