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A review by unfetteredfiction
Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones
4.0
“Even sudden things have a history behind them. Maybe it’s the sudden things that have the most history. Sooner or later I was going to have to respond to excitement and danger. It was just a question of when and how I was going to do it. Sooner or later I was going to have to answer the call of the live rail.”
- Adam Mars-Jones, Boxhill: A Story of Low Self-esteem
This book took me by surprise. It was unique and different and has left me wondering about a lot of things…
Colin meets Ray, falls over him, on Box Hill, where the bikers congregate, and the rest is history.
I have so many questions about this relationship, about the nature of it and if they were truly happy. At times, I think so, as much as anyone else can be. I think what they have suits them and bears it’s own special fruit, and other times I’m reminded of the works subtitle, and feel rather unsure. Is this what Colin really wants, does he know what he really wants, is this something I could ever understand?
From the outset, Colin let’s us know that the relationship has a clear and all-encompassing power dynamic, which controls near enough every element of their lives. Ray doesn’t let Colin in his bed, he doesn’t allow him in his flat between certain hours, and sex is something to which Ray appears to see as his entitlement, which Colin readily gives. I don’t know enough about the intricacies of BDSM relationships and lifestyles to know whether this fits into that box fairly, or whether there is damage being done. Does Ray care about Colin’s safety? He appears to. Colin undoubtedly loves him and often appears to appreciate the power being taken out of his hands, or was this something he felt he had to accept? The sex is explicit too, and often aggressive, so I guess this is a CW.
The story covers a significant amount of Colin’s life, from his being eighteen to his forties. I appreciate that Colin’s narration shares his unanswered questions with us, gives us his side of the story without being able to delve too deeply into Ray’s frame of mind. I feel like another book could be written from Ray’s point of view, although perhaps it’s best that we try our best to make our own conclusions, in life we often have to. As an outsider looking in we will never really know what bonds people in their unique ways, if they are truly happy, and the boundaries of human relationships.
- Adam Mars-Jones, Boxhill: A Story of Low Self-esteem
This book took me by surprise. It was unique and different and has left me wondering about a lot of things…
Colin meets Ray, falls over him, on Box Hill, where the bikers congregate, and the rest is history.
I have so many questions about this relationship, about the nature of it and if they were truly happy. At times, I think so, as much as anyone else can be. I think what they have suits them and bears it’s own special fruit, and other times I’m reminded of the works subtitle, and feel rather unsure. Is this what Colin really wants, does he know what he really wants, is this something I could ever understand?
From the outset, Colin let’s us know that the relationship has a clear and all-encompassing power dynamic, which controls near enough every element of their lives. Ray doesn’t let Colin in his bed, he doesn’t allow him in his flat between certain hours, and sex is something to which Ray appears to see as his entitlement, which Colin readily gives. I don’t know enough about the intricacies of BDSM relationships and lifestyles to know whether this fits into that box fairly, or whether there is damage being done. Does Ray care about Colin’s safety? He appears to. Colin undoubtedly loves him and often appears to appreciate the power being taken out of his hands, or was this something he felt he had to accept? The sex is explicit too, and often aggressive, so I guess this is a CW.
The story covers a significant amount of Colin’s life, from his being eighteen to his forties. I appreciate that Colin’s narration shares his unanswered questions with us, gives us his side of the story without being able to delve too deeply into Ray’s frame of mind. I feel like another book could be written from Ray’s point of view, although perhaps it’s best that we try our best to make our own conclusions, in life we often have to. As an outsider looking in we will never really know what bonds people in their unique ways, if they are truly happy, and the boundaries of human relationships.