In a room in Soho, a man is turning gold. His flesh, his organs, even his beautiful eyes, are being transformed by some shocking human alchemy into precious deadly metal. And the path to this curious and frightening predicament has itself been filled with incredible moments. It began on South Ronaldsay amongst the singing seals and ancient ruins of Orkney. There a lad grew up with a rare gift for loving - something that proved much trickier than it sounds. He encountered misunderstanding, bullying, loss and heartbreak. And yet the physical heights he reached - and to which he brought others - went far beyond any normal sensual pleasure. This led to the sort of sex that made people see angels. This remarkable story about the power of love veers from stratosphere to gutter, from visions of Heaven to the all-too mortal yearning below for even just one glimpse of it.
Venus as a Boy
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Review
‘He conjures poetry out of desolation ... I urge you to read it’ -- Independent on Sunday
‘Incredibly vivid ... Sutherland has a way of diving into the heart of an individual that is enthralling’ -- Carrie O’Grady, Guardian
‘Intense and crackling with streetwise energy ... his writing is powerful, astute and full of promise’ -- Independent
‘It glistens with teasing self-confidence ... you end up hooked on the voice which leaves you stunned’ -- Tom Adair, Scotsman
‘What a strange and beautiful story this is ... raw and poetic, earthy and unearthly’ -- The Times
‘Incredibly vivid ... Sutherland has a way of diving into the heart of an individual that is enthralling’ -- Carrie O’Grady, Guardian
‘Intense and crackling with streetwise energy ... his writing is powerful, astute and full of promise’ -- Independent
‘It glistens with teasing self-confidence ... you end up hooked on the voice which leaves you stunned’ -- Tom Adair, Scotsman
‘What a strange and beautiful story this is ... raw and poetic, earthy and unearthly’ -- The Times
About the Author
Luke Sutherland is a writer and musician. He grew up in the Orkneys and now lives in London. He is the author of two other novels, Jelly Roll, which was shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award, and Sweetmeat.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 21 people found the following review helpful
By Paul Hine
Format:Hardcover
This book is a fairy story for the modern age.
This may sound like a cliche, but when I make this comment, I refer to fairy stories the way they used to be... a far cry from the Disney fairy stories where the virginal beauty marries the dashing prince and all is happy ever after. This is a darker story, rooted in misery and unhappiness, yet above this, Sutherland depicts a transcendence for his narrator.
Our narrator recounts a tragic life story from his death bed, where he is slowly turning to gold. A suggestion is made early in the book that this transformation may simply be the narrator's spin on the ravages of hepatic jaundice. Indeed, our Venus is a prime candidate for Hepatitis infection... He tells us of his ability to show people heaven through sexual contact, and we see him becoming a martyr to this cause, having a multitude of such encounters and thus endangering his own life.
Throughout, the reader is forced to question why a boy with such amazing powers is forced to live as a victim. Through offering his body, he hopes to recapture the heaven felt upon his first encounter. Perhaps his transformation is a reward for his sacrifice, offering him escape from his own misery.
Venus is a god for love; as such, the portrayal of this martyrdom calls to point the difficult lack of comment on sex and sexuality in Western religious and moral writings.
For a very short novel, very many such questions are thrown out. Readers may feel frustrated at the scarcity and simplicity of the answers that Sutherland offers, and yet more so at the simplicity of his portrayal of the love affairs within the story.
Yet its base, this novel remains just that: a story, not a discussion. It should be enjoyed as such: A fairy story depicting the incredible ugliness of human sin, misery, and futility, yet also the incredible and beautiful power of love.
This may sound like a cliche, but when I make this comment, I refer to fairy stories the way they used to be... a far cry from the Disney fairy stories where the virginal beauty marries the dashing prince and all is happy ever after. This is a darker story, rooted in misery and unhappiness, yet above this, Sutherland depicts a transcendence for his narrator.
Our narrator recounts a tragic life story from his death bed, where he is slowly turning to gold. A suggestion is made early in the book that this transformation may simply be the narrator's spin on the ravages of hepatic jaundice. Indeed, our Venus is a prime candidate for Hepatitis infection... He tells us of his ability to show people heaven through sexual contact, and we see him becoming a martyr to this cause, having a multitude of such encounters and thus endangering his own life.
Throughout, the reader is forced to question why a boy with such amazing powers is forced to live as a victim. Through offering his body, he hopes to recapture the heaven felt upon his first encounter. Perhaps his transformation is a reward for his sacrifice, offering him escape from his own misery.
Venus is a god for love; as such, the portrayal of this martyrdom calls to point the difficult lack of comment on sex and sexuality in Western religious and moral writings.
For a very short novel, very many such questions are thrown out. Readers may feel frustrated at the scarcity and simplicity of the answers that Sutherland offers, and yet more so at the simplicity of his portrayal of the love affairs within the story.
Yet its base, this novel remains just that: a story, not a discussion. It should be enjoyed as such: A fairy story depicting the incredible ugliness of human sin, misery, and futility, yet also the incredible and beautiful power of love.
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Nicky Stitch
Format:Paperback
Sadly I was not as impressed by this book as I thought I might be having read such golden reviews. (pardon the pun) I bought it because it sounded original, highly praised and I liked the title! but although a good, compelling story I was left feeling the beginning and end were the best bits. The middle was a bit too gritty for my taste, and why oh why does almost every contemporary book I read lately have to use the C word repeatedly? Overall I'm glad I read it but it won't be one of my favourites
13 of 17 people found the following review helpful
By maria1971
Format:Hardcover
Why haven't more people read and reviewed this book???
This is the story of a boy with a gift - the gift to touch people with love, giving them visions of heaven.
He is generous with his gift, offering his body up to be used and abused, perhaps because he knows how good receiving that love feels, having seen the visions once himself.
However, while he's able to give love to others, the love he desires remains elusive to him. Though he goes through life hopeful of getting that feeling back, we know it's too late as he is telling his story from his death bed where he is slowly turning into gold.
As another reviewer has commented, this book could well be a modern-day fairy tale, apart from that fairy tales are not usually associated with harsh reality and squalid backdrops.
Despite its sordid "surroundings", this is a beautiful book.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
This guest musician, honorary member of MOGWAI.
Last night (15-02-2011),
I saw MOGWAI play at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin; it was just brilliant, one of those absolutley amazing gigs that I know will stay with me forever,... Read more
I saw MOGWAI play at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin; it was just brilliant, one of those absolutley amazing gigs that I know will stay with me forever,... Read more
Published on 16 Feb 2011 by c
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing!
There is nothing that is not magical about this book. Along with the vein of tragedy that runs through it, Sutherland has "created" something completely extraordinary. Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2010 by RJLondon
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hell is nothing but our back kitchen
A strange and fascinating book indeed, right from the Orkney Islands, or something like that, from the far distant North of the United Kingdom, or Scotland if you want to be more... Read more
Published on 9 Aug 2009 by Jacques COULARDEAU
5.0 out of 5 stars
awesome
Yet again another fantastic book by Luke! He is a legend! Now I only have one book of his left to read :( I hope he is busy writing another :)
Published on 4 Dec 2008 by Gareth Mills
3.0 out of 5 stars
Bleak
It's difficult to know what to make of this story. It concerns a man named 'Desiree' who has sent various tapes and writings to the author of this book, so that he could tell his... Read more
Published on 11 Mar 2008 by J. Roberts
4.0 out of 5 stars
Everyone's love
Desiree's sexploitation spiral begins in Orkney, moves to Scotland and then on to London. Ending heaven knows where. Read more
Published on 7 Aug 2007 by Claptout
5.0 out of 5 stars
A compelling story of a search for meaning
A writer is approached by the friend of a dying man who claims to have known the writer in his childhood in the Orkney Islands. Read more
Published on 30 Aug 2005 by Semioticghost
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