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The Passenger Seat
A searing examination of male friendship and the broader social implications of masculinity in an age of toxic loneliness
In a small town in North America, two boys, or men, embark on a vaguely charted road trip through the northern wilderness with little more than canned food and secondhand camping gear—and the rifle they buy on their way out of town for reasons neither seems able to articulate. The more they handle the gun, and the farther they get from their parents’ houses and their peers, girlfriends and online gaming, the grim future that awaits them in their nowhere town, the less their actions—and the games, literal and metaphorical, they play—are bound by the usual constraints. When Adam decides to harass a young couple they meet on the highway, the outcome is irreversible, and leads them even further down a road from which there’s no turning back.
A searing examination of male friendship and the broader social implications of masculinity in an age of toxic loneliness, The Passenger Seat introduces Vijay Khurana as an powerful new voice in fiction.
In a small town in North America, two boys, or men, embark on a vaguely charted road trip through the northern wilderness with little more than canned food and secondhand camping gear—and the rifle they buy on their way out of town for reasons neither seems able to articulate. The more they handle the gun, and the farther they get from their parents’ houses and their peers, girlfriends and online gaming, the grim future that awaits them in their nowhere town, the less their actions—and the games, literal and metaphorical, they play—are bound by the usual constraints. When Adam decides to harass a young couple they meet on the highway, the outcome is irreversible, and leads them even further down a road from which there’s no turning back.
A searing examination of male friendship and the broader social implications of masculinity in an age of toxic loneliness, The Passenger Seat introduces Vijay Khurana as an powerful new voice in fiction.
227 pages, Paperback
First published March 4, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews
March 22, 2025
I was pleasantly surprised by this thought provoking novel. Drawn in immediately by two underwhelmingly and dissatisfied youth, who were bonded together by this unease with life, a dissatisfaction, an awkwardness. These traits created a general malaise about what they were like as young men. Not likeable, but understanding why so.
Not unsurprising then they would end up on a trip, simply to take off, destination unknown. Purchasing supplies, a gun, leading the reader to prepare for drama to unfold.
The description of the boys cleaning their unclean bodies, the stench, the desire to be clean, and the imagery of the landscape built an unexpected and underrated tension.
One of the duo wanting to reach a body of water showed a desire for something good was a backdrop to a dense and depressing set of themes.
This story of competing manhood, the innocence of youth becoming disastrous was told in a removed yet interesting way. This was the surprising element for me as I was not able to attach emotionally to the characters in the way I normally do, but the character study was really interesting. This book won’t take you on a deep emotional journey in a conventional way, but it will show the introspection of two young men heading nowhere fast.
This is quality literary fiction which I tackled after reading the author’s wife’s book. They are so similar, quite eerie!
With thanks to Ultimo Press for my review copy.
Not unsurprising then they would end up on a trip, simply to take off, destination unknown. Purchasing supplies, a gun, leading the reader to prepare for drama to unfold.
The description of the boys cleaning their unclean bodies, the stench, the desire to be clean, and the imagery of the landscape built an unexpected and underrated tension.
One of the duo wanting to reach a body of water showed a desire for something good was a backdrop to a dense and depressing set of themes.
This story of competing manhood, the innocence of youth becoming disastrous was told in a removed yet interesting way. This was the surprising element for me as I was not able to attach emotionally to the characters in the way I normally do, but the character study was really interesting. This book won’t take you on a deep emotional journey in a conventional way, but it will show the introspection of two young men heading nowhere fast.
This is quality literary fiction which I tackled after reading the author’s wife’s book. They are so similar, quite eerie!
With thanks to Ultimo Press for my review copy.
December 12, 2025
In the summer of 2019 there was a manhunt across Northern Canada in search of two young men who appeared to have killed a young couple, and later an elderly biologist, for no reason at all. I was as transfixed as everyone else in the country, particularly by the faces of the fugitives caught on supermarket and gas station cameras. One was tall and good looking, the papers said he even had a girlfriend, which made this bromance/suicide mission so perplexing. The other was pale and delicate, boylike, and rather beautiful. Everyone knew at once he had to be the instigator.
I don’t follow true crime, and tend to forget such cases once they fade from media coverage, but not this time. These boys seemed to say something about the current moment, its violence and pointlessness. What though?
Australian writer Vijay Khurana fictionalizes the story and examines it through the lens of male friendship, and while it’s a complete downer of a book, it’s remarkably well done. Adam and Teddy are friends in their dead-end town. They have some difficulties and tragedies in their lives, though nothing you would think would drive a person to murder. They head out on a road trip; Adam wants to make it to Alaska and live there as a rugged and individualist manly man, and Teddy may think the whole thing is a bad idea, but it’s he, maybe on a whim, maybe as a game, who buys a gun.
We see the side of young manhood that typically gets excavated after a tragedy: the video games, the porn, hints of the manosphere in Adam’s references to “the book.” We also see the way it is impulsive. But what struck me more was the relative emptiness around these talking points. The lack… of proper communication, or intimacy, or hopes or expectations. Adam and Teddy seem to move through a flurry of nothing-much, and it strikes me that it’s the absence, rather than the violent inputs, that pushes them to obliteration. At one point Teddy observes a bear on the video screen of their victim’s camera, and rues that he and Adam haven’t seen any wildlife. And yet the wildlife was always there.
It would be too simplistic to say that contemporary masculinity offers only emptiness or carnage (and smells! A great many unwashed bodies in this piece) and yet it my readings of masculinity this past month I haven’t seen it offering much else. Adam and Teddy drive through an empty land, towards an empty fate.
I don’t follow true crime, and tend to forget such cases once they fade from media coverage, but not this time. These boys seemed to say something about the current moment, its violence and pointlessness. What though?
Australian writer Vijay Khurana fictionalizes the story and examines it through the lens of male friendship, and while it’s a complete downer of a book, it’s remarkably well done. Adam and Teddy are friends in their dead-end town. They have some difficulties and tragedies in their lives, though nothing you would think would drive a person to murder. They head out on a road trip; Adam wants to make it to Alaska and live there as a rugged and individualist manly man, and Teddy may think the whole thing is a bad idea, but it’s he, maybe on a whim, maybe as a game, who buys a gun.
We see the side of young manhood that typically gets excavated after a tragedy: the video games, the porn, hints of the manosphere in Adam’s references to “the book.” We also see the way it is impulsive. But what struck me more was the relative emptiness around these talking points. The lack… of proper communication, or intimacy, or hopes or expectations. Adam and Teddy seem to move through a flurry of nothing-much, and it strikes me that it’s the absence, rather than the violent inputs, that pushes them to obliteration. At one point Teddy observes a bear on the video screen of their victim’s camera, and rues that he and Adam haven’t seen any wildlife. And yet the wildlife was always there.
It would be too simplistic to say that contemporary masculinity offers only emptiness or carnage (and smells! A great many unwashed bodies in this piece) and yet it my readings of masculinity this past month I haven’t seen it offering much else. Adam and Teddy drive through an empty land, towards an empty fate.
March 16, 2025
Really smart. so many descriptions of smelly unwashed men. The feeling of ick lingers with me a few days after finishing this.
October 25, 2024
Before the review I would like to thank Biblioasis and Edelweiss for giving me a digital reviw copy of this book. I really enjoyed reading this book. Thank you.
This book is about friendship.
This book is about loneliness.
This book is about masculinity.
And about trying to impress others.
The spotlight is on two boys or men taking a road trip. It seems that they are best friends, but do they stay like that under all circumstances? What keeps them together? Do they even know each other that well?
The two boys or men have different views on their future, and they are constantly trying to impress each other while coming to terms with their own masculinity by testing boundaries. One of them wants to get away from the life he has known. The other just wants a fun and new experience with his friend. They want to get away from the town where they grew up, from their parents, from the people they know, and from the videogame. But they find themselves in a situation that quickly turns their life upside down. One mistake that will have consequences. That will change their whole future. But their problem is not only changing their plans or taking action. This event also causes rivalry between them, making them reconsider how well they can actually trust each other.
In this interesting and quite addictive novel, we can see how difficult it is to grow from a boy to a man and to please others while also sticking to your own wants. After all, this book is about human connections and, in a way, about life.
This book is about friendship.
This book is about loneliness.
This book is about masculinity.
And about trying to impress others.
The spotlight is on two boys or men taking a road trip. It seems that they are best friends, but do they stay like that under all circumstances? What keeps them together? Do they even know each other that well?
The two boys or men have different views on their future, and they are constantly trying to impress each other while coming to terms with their own masculinity by testing boundaries. One of them wants to get away from the life he has known. The other just wants a fun and new experience with his friend. They want to get away from the town where they grew up, from their parents, from the people they know, and from the videogame. But they find themselves in a situation that quickly turns their life upside down. One mistake that will have consequences. That will change their whole future. But their problem is not only changing their plans or taking action. This event also causes rivalry between them, making them reconsider how well they can actually trust each other.
In this interesting and quite addictive novel, we can see how difficult it is to grow from a boy to a man and to please others while also sticking to your own wants. After all, this book is about human connections and, in a way, about life.
January 1, 2026
Two teenage boys on the cusp of adulthood become friends and decide to go on a road trip. One talks about going to the arctic and never returning, the other thinks it's just talk and they'll drive and camp out and be back before school starts. But one has a nihilistic outlook and the other follows where he leads, which turns a few days's lark into a tragic and deadly journey.
This is an uncomfortable read and it's meant to be so. It's about how these boys, and later a pair of men, fail to move beyond posturing and dominance into the kind of connection that might lead to real friendship and how lonely it is. There's a lot to think about with this book, but the author handles the violence with an assured touch that makes the events hit with force, while not reveling in the the boys's actions.
This is an uncomfortable read and it's meant to be so. It's about how these boys, and later a pair of men, fail to move beyond posturing and dominance into the kind of connection that might lead to real friendship and how lonely it is. There's a lot to think about with this book, but the author handles the violence with an assured touch that makes the events hit with force, while not reveling in the the boys's actions.
July 11, 2025
Big thanks to Ultimo Press for sending us a copy to read and review.
A snapshot of the desire to escape hometown shadows, misadventure and perceived maturity as two guys embark on a journey that will change futures and create physical and emotional turmoil.
Adam and Teddy coupled with a huge dose of testosterone pack up and leave town.
Encountering a couple in an isolated camping area is a defining moment for the boys as ill fated decisions and actions erode trust and define destiny.
Aggression and ego illuminate a toxic element of masculinity and male influence.
You can run but not hide…..
Like a snowball gathering speed and extra baggage on downward roll the adage of one wrong decision comes into play.
This evocative story challenges the reader to understand what makes people act upon devious and miscreant urges while derailing the success of the original plan.
A snapshot of the desire to escape hometown shadows, misadventure and perceived maturity as two guys embark on a journey that will change futures and create physical and emotional turmoil.
Adam and Teddy coupled with a huge dose of testosterone pack up and leave town.
Encountering a couple in an isolated camping area is a defining moment for the boys as ill fated decisions and actions erode trust and define destiny.
Aggression and ego illuminate a toxic element of masculinity and male influence.
You can run but not hide…..
Like a snowball gathering speed and extra baggage on downward roll the adage of one wrong decision comes into play.
This evocative story challenges the reader to understand what makes people act upon devious and miscreant urges while derailing the success of the original plan.
July 7, 2025
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The cold-blooded murders we see on the news are always so shocking and we build these perpetrators up as monsters. In this book, we see that these acts can also be meaningless, impulsive, driven by a pathetic feeling of inferiority, a desire to impress. The victims aren’t even significant, the men-or-boys see them in a detached manner, as if playing a video game.
I do not personally believe that violent video games are responsible for gun violence because these games are played all over the world, yet gun violence is most prevalent in the US. That said, I think the book makes an interesting case for the idea that playing first person shooter games can facilitate the transition to holding and using a gun. We see this with Adam, whom the author tells us has played a lot of Patriot. Even though there are a lot of important rules for using a firearm that Teddy learned when he got his license, Adam quickly grows accustomed to it just relying on comparisons to his virtual experiences. I thought this was interesting.
Women in this book are insignificant. They are victims, catalysts, playthings or threats to ego. Even in the high adrenaline moments leading up to the gunshots, the woman is being objectified (pretty at first, and not so pretty upon closer inspection). As the men argue and struggle for dominance; the woman is an afterthought. She has no agency. Grace’s academic success only serves to make Teddy feel insecure and lost by comparison. Ron’s mother cruelly reminds him of his loneliness. Toxic masculinity (or whatever we are calling it these days) presents a world where these are the only roles for women.
Adam is made out to be the leader of the two, but we see most of his thoughts are not original, he is simply parroting ‘manosphere’ drivel. Teddy realizes this full well, but still goes along and follows Adam’s lead. I believe it is important that Teddy is the one that actually pulls the trigger and commits murder, not Adam. It reflects the reality we see constantly unfolding where the “thought leaders” radicalizing their audiences are rarely the ones who commit the atrocities.
I loved the ending; I think it drives home the main themes of the book. Throughout the story we learn that Ron is this mysterious man making Teddy’s mother happy and Teddy thinks she will surely end up running away with him. When we finally meet Ron, we see he is yet another example of a toxic white male who imposes himself on the women in his world (calling Elizabeth despite her pleas not to, insisting on saying hello to Grace and overstating their relationship, ruining the little girl’s bedroom with his filth and stench).
I do not personally believe that violent video games are responsible for gun violence because these games are played all over the world, yet gun violence is most prevalent in the US. That said, I think the book makes an interesting case for the idea that playing first person shooter games can facilitate the transition to holding and using a gun. We see this with Adam, whom the author tells us has played a lot of Patriot. Even though there are a lot of important rules for using a firearm that Teddy learned when he got his license, Adam quickly grows accustomed to it just relying on comparisons to his virtual experiences. I thought this was interesting.
Women in this book are insignificant. They are victims, catalysts, playthings or threats to ego. Even in the high adrenaline moments leading up to the gunshots, the woman is being objectified (pretty at first, and not so pretty upon closer inspection). As the men argue and struggle for dominance; the woman is an afterthought. She has no agency. Grace’s academic success only serves to make Teddy feel insecure and lost by comparison. Ron’s mother cruelly reminds him of his loneliness. Toxic masculinity (or whatever we are calling it these days) presents a world where these are the only roles for women.
Adam is made out to be the leader of the two, but we see most of his thoughts are not original, he is simply parroting ‘manosphere’ drivel. Teddy realizes this full well, but still goes along and follows Adam’s lead. I believe it is important that Teddy is the one that actually pulls the trigger and commits murder, not Adam. It reflects the reality we see constantly unfolding where the “thought leaders” radicalizing their audiences are rarely the ones who commit the atrocities.
I loved the ending; I think it drives home the main themes of the book. Throughout the story we learn that Ron is this mysterious man making Teddy’s mother happy and Teddy thinks she will surely end up running away with him. When we finally meet Ron, we see he is yet another example of a toxic white male who imposes himself on the women in his world (calling Elizabeth despite her pleas not to, insisting on saying hello to Grace and overstating their relationship, ruining the little girl’s bedroom with his filth and stench).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 26, 2025
This was a read like no other—intensely powerful and deeply uncomfortable - and one of the most unsettling reading experiences I’ve ever had.
From the very beginning, there is a foreboding dread that puts the reader on edge—almost unbearably so. We sense that violence is coming long before Adam and Teddy do.
As the story progresses and Adam and Teddy become increasingly filthy and unhinged, I felt both disgusted and disturbed. I didn’t feel warmth or emotional connection toward them, yet I was held tightly in their grip.
It was a strange paradox: I wanted to race through the story to avoid spending too much time with these characters, but I also found the narrative addictive to keep coming back to.
And I mean all of this as a sincere compliment to the writing. To provoke such strong and conflicting emotions is impressive.
The writing is particularly clever in its restraint. Quietly and deliberately, Vijay crafts a haunting exploration of toxic masculinity, hinting at the layered influences that shaped these boys. The shift in narrator at the end is another subtle play- a mirrored version of another dysfunctional male friendship, which adds a chilling symmetry. And the way we learn the boys' fate - again not overtly explained- is masterfully executed.
Overall, despite the constant state of tension and unease, a very impressive read.
From the very beginning, there is a foreboding dread that puts the reader on edge—almost unbearably so. We sense that violence is coming long before Adam and Teddy do.
As the story progresses and Adam and Teddy become increasingly filthy and unhinged, I felt both disgusted and disturbed. I didn’t feel warmth or emotional connection toward them, yet I was held tightly in their grip.
It was a strange paradox: I wanted to race through the story to avoid spending too much time with these characters, but I also found the narrative addictive to keep coming back to.
And I mean all of this as a sincere compliment to the writing. To provoke such strong and conflicting emotions is impressive.
The writing is particularly clever in its restraint. Quietly and deliberately, Vijay crafts a haunting exploration of toxic masculinity, hinting at the layered influences that shaped these boys. The shift in narrator at the end is another subtle play- a mirrored version of another dysfunctional male friendship, which adds a chilling symmetry. And the way we learn the boys' fate - again not overtly explained- is masterfully executed.
Overall, despite the constant state of tension and unease, a very impressive read.
December 30, 2025
The experience of reading The Passenger Seat is uncomfortable and disturbing, and yet I cannot stop thinking about it. Two 18-year old boys disaffected with life go on a camping road trip together, one of them thinks just for a few days, though the other wants to drive as far north as Canada goes and never go back. Vijay Khurana builds palpable tension between the two, as their inability to fully express themselves to each other, and their desire to prove themselves to each other, leads to horrific outcomes. Without pontificating about it, Khurana writes a damning portrait of the modern masculinity crisis, especially by pivoting the final section of this book to another set of disaffected male characters, whose circumstances differ, but only barely.
Khurana's writing is sparse and haunting, which is very fitting for his story. The book this most reminds me of is Herman Koch's The Dinner, which also disturbed me, but which touches upon a topic that we as a society seem unwilling or unable to truly face. I'm really looking forward to the Tournament of Book discussions for The Passenger Seat this year, and definitely recommend this book if you are okay with facing the worst of humanity head-on.
Khurana's writing is sparse and haunting, which is very fitting for his story. The book this most reminds me of is Herman Koch's The Dinner, which also disturbed me, but which touches upon a topic that we as a society seem unwilling or unable to truly face. I'm really looking forward to the Tournament of Book discussions for The Passenger Seat this year, and definitely recommend this book if you are okay with facing the worst of humanity head-on.
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November 19, 2025thoughts in issue 006 of The Whitney Review of New Writing !! Khurana's an amazing writer, and I'm looking forward to reading more from him in the future
December 26, 2025
The writing is excellent. The story is heartbreakingly violently tragic, about two young wasted lives.
January 4, 2026
It took me a bit to get used to the style but then I was captivated.
Also a later note after reading a lot of reviews on this. 1) interesting it’s based on a true story, and 2) it’s interesting (and scary) how much grace we give “boys gone wrong” or claim they were “wasted lives” when they actually killed people. The socialization of this gender issue is so much deeper than just toxic masculinity.
Also a later note after reading a lot of reviews on this. 1) interesting it’s based on a true story, and 2) it’s interesting (and scary) how much grace we give “boys gone wrong” or claim they were “wasted lives” when they actually killed people. The socialization of this gender issue is so much deeper than just toxic masculinity.
September 23, 2025
“The Passenger Seat” is a book that can be read on two levels. Taken literally it’s the story of two lonely guys who go off on a road trip and get into heaps of trouble.
The other level is more about being in “The Passenger Seat” - meaning riding along with someone else because you either don’t know or don’t want to drive. The ultimate lesson of this interpretation is that unless you drive, you will be taken for a ride, and possibly a bad ride. This is how I prefer to view The Passenger Seat – as something to avoid - and to remain in the driver's seat whenever I can.
This was not a likeable book. The two main characters were both dysfunctional and apart from the fun scene of jumping off a bridge into a deep pool. They didn’t have many good stories or redeeming features that I could relate to.
The story was tense and linear. You knew the boys were going to get into trouble, and that trouble only went from bad to worse. It was predictable.
That said, there was a definite leader and a clear follower in the truck, and later in the stolen vehicle. Adam was clearly the driver and mainly in control, while Teddy was mainly in the passenger seat, just along for the ride, and not caring to be in control.
All was heading towards a predictable but disastrous ending, when, with 25 pages to go in the book the author quickly departed from the main story and changed the narrative to concentrate on Ron, who up to then was a very minor character, whom the reader had heard from having an affair with Teddy’s mother, Elizabeth.
Up until this point, we hadn't really "met" Ron, but there was a clear reason for bringing him into the story at this time. (Spoiler alert – Don’t read on as it will ruin the twist in the story.)
Ron is very much like Teddy, in the sense that he’s also in the passenger seat, just along for the ride. Like Teddy, Ron hasn’t made many plans during his life and seems to have just followed others. In some ways Ron is what Teddy would likely turn into with age.
The results were not catastrophic, but being a passenger didn't work out for Ron as well.
With this twist, the book communicated an interesting message – about the advantages of being the driver vs. passenger in life. To me this was very clever, and helped give the book its title. Without the twist it would largely be a story of two lonely, teenagers.
I’d give the book a 4 out of 5 just for the ingenuity in pulling this off! Well done.
P.S., After writing my own review, I read other reviews below - as is my norm.
Many of the other reviews focused on “culture wars” and the awfulness of the boys - vs. the message of the book.
That's a common theme today. To view increasingly more things through the perspective of culture wars where there are only oppressors and oppressed.
It's unfortunate and I await a time when we are beyond this senseless view of the world.
The other level is more about being in “The Passenger Seat” - meaning riding along with someone else because you either don’t know or don’t want to drive. The ultimate lesson of this interpretation is that unless you drive, you will be taken for a ride, and possibly a bad ride. This is how I prefer to view The Passenger Seat – as something to avoid - and to remain in the driver's seat whenever I can.
This was not a likeable book. The two main characters were both dysfunctional and apart from the fun scene of jumping off a bridge into a deep pool. They didn’t have many good stories or redeeming features that I could relate to.
The story was tense and linear. You knew the boys were going to get into trouble, and that trouble only went from bad to worse. It was predictable.
That said, there was a definite leader and a clear follower in the truck, and later in the stolen vehicle. Adam was clearly the driver and mainly in control, while Teddy was mainly in the passenger seat, just along for the ride, and not caring to be in control.
All was heading towards a predictable but disastrous ending, when, with 25 pages to go in the book the author quickly departed from the main story and changed the narrative to concentrate on Ron, who up to then was a very minor character, whom the reader had heard from having an affair with Teddy’s mother, Elizabeth.
Up until this point, we hadn't really "met" Ron, but there was a clear reason for bringing him into the story at this time. (Spoiler alert – Don’t read on as it will ruin the twist in the story.)
Ron is very much like Teddy, in the sense that he’s also in the passenger seat, just along for the ride. Like Teddy, Ron hasn’t made many plans during his life and seems to have just followed others. In some ways Ron is what Teddy would likely turn into with age.
The results were not catastrophic, but being a passenger didn't work out for Ron as well.
With this twist, the book communicated an interesting message – about the advantages of being the driver vs. passenger in life. To me this was very clever, and helped give the book its title. Without the twist it would largely be a story of two lonely, teenagers.
I’d give the book a 4 out of 5 just for the ingenuity in pulling this off! Well done.
P.S., After writing my own review, I read other reviews below - as is my norm.
Many of the other reviews focused on “culture wars” and the awfulness of the boys - vs. the message of the book.
That's a common theme today. To view increasingly more things through the perspective of culture wars where there are only oppressors and oppressed.
It's unfortunate and I await a time when we are beyond this senseless view of the world.
April 24, 2025
In The Passenger Seat by Vijay Khurana, two American teenagers jump into a car and drive north hoping to leave their small town behind at least for a little while before their final year of school is upon them. They leave on a whim and with no clear sense of where they are going.
Adam and Teddy have an uneasy kind of friendship and this is tested as the journey progresses. Then one day Adam harasses a young couple they meet on the highway and it sets off a series of events that neither boy will be able to walk away from.
This was a quite perplexing read. The writing and dialogue is sparse and there is a lot left unsaid. I really couldn't see how the storyline would come together and well the ending really threw me. It leaves the two boys at a pivotal point with the next steps implied but certainly not certain and suddenly it shifts to a tangential character, one that we have head the name of but who is so unimportant to the storyline. Why? Why do we hear from him after the main plot is over?
Anyway I didn't mind reading this but it wasn't a favourite. Interestingly after I finished it I discovered that the author is the partner of Madeleine Watts, whose book Elegy, Southwest was released in March. Both books have a road trip through America as the central plot point. I enjoyed Elegy, Southwest more but would certainly read another book by Vijay Khurana.
Thank you to @ultimopress for my #gifted copy.
Adam and Teddy have an uneasy kind of friendship and this is tested as the journey progresses. Then one day Adam harasses a young couple they meet on the highway and it sets off a series of events that neither boy will be able to walk away from.
This was a quite perplexing read. The writing and dialogue is sparse and there is a lot left unsaid. I really couldn't see how the storyline would come together and well the ending really threw me. It leaves the two boys at a pivotal point with the next steps implied but certainly not certain and suddenly it shifts to a tangential character, one that we have head the name of but who is so unimportant to the storyline. Why? Why do we hear from him after the main plot is over?
Anyway I didn't mind reading this but it wasn't a favourite. Interestingly after I finished it I discovered that the author is the partner of Madeleine Watts, whose book Elegy, Southwest was released in March. Both books have a road trip through America as the central plot point. I enjoyed Elegy, Southwest more but would certainly read another book by Vijay Khurana.
Thank you to @ultimopress for my #gifted copy.
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March 14, 2025Fascinating subject matter - white cis straight masculinity (murderous, as it always is) - for those of us living on the outside of it, but handled rather unsuccessfully. The style is neither here nor there, neither distancing enough (psychotically flat would be most appropriate here) nor giving us any kind of interiority (stream-of-consciousness in whatever form to get us inside the characters' heads). It's not even analytical enough, and those late media additions are indeed too late. It is obvious that Vijay Khurana is as much on the outside looking in as I am, and that is simply no fun at all.
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May 21, 2025Masculinity really has the power to be corrosive. In your teenage years, it is formed by inheritance - your father, your friends, other male role models - you kind of pick and choose your values based on what has been absorbed by them. The thing about growing up in the realm of instant access is that you can find role models anywhere, and despite looking 'cool', what they are modelling is likely not what you should be looking for.
The Passenger Seat by Vijay Khurana is an eloquent novel about horrible circumstances. It is a story of friendship and emotional illiteracy, of masculinity ruining vulnerability. Somewhat a quiet book but still full of tension, we follow Adam and Teddy on a road trip that takes a morbid turn that the boys find themselves glorifying rather than regretting. Khurana has written this really interesting character study about the implications of not knowing what being a man could truly involve, instead having the boys buy into the violence and emotional disconnection of advertised manhood.
Written beautifully, eerily, and with thoughtful consideration, The Passenger Seat packs a punch that will leave you sitting uncomfortably as you flick through the pages.
Shout out to Ultimo for the copy AND for the gorgeous cover - this is one of the occasions where you can 'judge a book by its cover'.
The Passenger Seat by Vijay Khurana is an eloquent novel about horrible circumstances. It is a story of friendship and emotional illiteracy, of masculinity ruining vulnerability. Somewhat a quiet book but still full of tension, we follow Adam and Teddy on a road trip that takes a morbid turn that the boys find themselves glorifying rather than regretting. Khurana has written this really interesting character study about the implications of not knowing what being a man could truly involve, instead having the boys buy into the violence and emotional disconnection of advertised manhood.
Written beautifully, eerily, and with thoughtful consideration, The Passenger Seat packs a punch that will leave you sitting uncomfortably as you flick through the pages.
Shout out to Ultimo for the copy AND for the gorgeous cover - this is one of the occasions where you can 'judge a book by its cover'.
December 25, 2025
I gave "The Passenger Seat" four stars, not because I "enjoyed" it -- it is far, FAR too bleak for that -- but because I felt the author executed (no pun intended) well what he set out to do here.
I am aware that other readers responded to the book less positively than I did, in part because they were bothered by the final section of the novel that focuses on Ron, Teddy's almost-but-not-quite stepfather, and Ron's interactions with his only friend. I personally experienced this adult parallel to the unhealthy relationship between protagonists Teddy and Adam as an impactful coda. It underscored that the loneliness, alienation, and mutually reinforcing bitterness of some male relationships is a multi-generational phenomenon with destructive consequences for both the "friends" and those unlucky enough to enter their orbit.
As current events make all too clear, we desperately need a healthier, alternative vision of what it means to be a man and what it means for men to have genuine friendships with each other.
One final note: the examination of toxic masculinity in "The Passenger Seat" was, in my opinion, far more effectively done than in the over-praised, (inexplicably) Booker-prize winning "Flesh". But/and - now that I have read both of these books almost back to back, I have filled my quota of novels on this theme for ... at least a decade.
I am aware that other readers responded to the book less positively than I did, in part because they were bothered by the final section of the novel that focuses on Ron, Teddy's almost-but-not-quite stepfather, and Ron's interactions with his only friend. I personally experienced this adult parallel to the unhealthy relationship between protagonists Teddy and Adam as an impactful coda. It underscored that the loneliness, alienation, and mutually reinforcing bitterness of some male relationships is a multi-generational phenomenon with destructive consequences for both the "friends" and those unlucky enough to enter their orbit.
As current events make all too clear, we desperately need a healthier, alternative vision of what it means to be a man and what it means for men to have genuine friendships with each other.
One final note: the examination of toxic masculinity in "The Passenger Seat" was, in my opinion, far more effectively done than in the over-praised, (inexplicably) Booker-prize winning "Flesh". But/and - now that I have read both of these books almost back to back, I have filled my quota of novels on this theme for ... at least a decade.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 5, 2025
really good exploration on the toxicity of white masculinity in today’s day and age
December 27, 2025
3.5 rounded up
September 1, 2025
When The Passenger Seat by Vijay Khurana was pitched to me this past spring, I recall being immediately intrigued by its premise; the exploration of toxic masculinity, based loosely upon a horrific incident that took place in Canada a few years ago. I liked the idea of a creative interpretation of the situation; an imagining of what could have led to the tragic turn of events, and how the young men’s lives may have looked leading up to that fateful summer. Instead of sensationalizing the story, it carefully examines their circumstances, coming up with a searing look at the growing pandemic among youth: loneliness.
Plot Summary
Teddy and Adam are on the cusp on manhood, living in a small town, and enjoying their last few weeks of summer vacation before school starts up again. Both are frustrated by their lives; Teddy has a girlfriend that simultaneously frustrates and enamors him, while Adam is ashamed of his father’s poverty and listlessness. Although coming from a more stable home, Teddy is sickened by his parents denial; it’s obvious his mother is engaging in an ongoing affair while his father remains resolutely oblivious, even Teddy’s older sister is desperate to escape the charade and go away to university as soon as possible. Adam struggles with making friends, working a part-time job to keep himself out of the house and fed, but awkward around most of the kids his age, connecting only with Teddy. On a whim they decide to embark on a road trip north, hopefully ending up somewhere near Alaska. Teddy seems a bit more hesitant, but Adam is committed to never coming back, and for reasons somewhat unknown, they stop and purchase a gun at a hunting store, along with plenty of ammunition as they exit town. It’s not much of a spoiler to reveal that the trip takes a violent turn, and early on in the novel there is obvious foreshadowing that Teddy and Adam will become the subject of major speculation in the media. The majority of the book describes the road trip, but the last twenty pages push the reader into a jarring perspective; that of the man that Teddy’s mother was having an affair with.
My Thoughts
At the risk of sounding like a hand-wringing old woman, I will caution people in picking up this book if they already think ‘kids these days’ are a danger to themselves and others. Although it doesn’t directly point the finger at any one particular issue, first-person shooting games are most definitely a piece of this puzzle that Khurana references. Would it be unfair to label all ‘shooting’ gamers as potentially dangerous loners? Of course, but what this book is suggesting is not the games itself that are the problem, but the void of social skills these activities have filled for young men.
The novel actually begins with an almost heart-warming scene; two boys jumping off a bridge into cool water, playing outside together to beat the heat and laze away a summer day. But because we live solely in their interior lives, we are quickly alerted to the destructive thoughts that ping pong inside their heads. They are completely unequipped to recognize or communicate their emotions, both positive and negative. Instead, their internal dialogue is peppered with suspicions of one another, attempts to connect that are thwarted, and much anger and confusion. Their inner thoughts came across as odd, detached, and made me uncomfortable almost as soon as we meet these characters:
“Maybe it’s just him, maybe he’s a freak like everyone says. It isn’t the sort of thing he can talk about, to Teddy or anyone else…So much focus has been on the hazards of sex for women, and rightly so, that nobody, until now, has talked about what dangers it holds for men. He learned that from a streamer he follows, a guy who monologues while he plays and whose thinking seems sharpened by the mechanics of combat” (p. 45 of The Passenger Seat by Vijay Khurana, ARC edition).
The choice to end the book with the perspective of an outsider who played only a peripheral role to the boys’ lives seemed an odd one at first, I figured it was meant to lend the situation an air of seriousness not usually viable through a first person narration. Instead, I quickly realized the author was doing something much more impactful; he was drawing connections between a teenaged male friendship, and a similarly odd (although much less violent) friendship between two middle-aged men who do NOT play video games. My judgement of these friendships is of course skewed being female myself, and I did not recognize any kind of warmth in this story at all. That being said, I’m (desperately) curious to know a man’s perspective of this book – did you feel the men were portrayed unfairly? Did it oversimplify the challenges men face nowadays? Does it only reflect a very extreme kind of male friendship or psyche? I’m sure the answers to all those questions is ‘yes’ depending on who reads this and comments, but I’d love to hear from you guys regardless.
To read the rest of my reviews, please visit my blog:
https://ivereadthis.com/
Plot Summary
Teddy and Adam are on the cusp on manhood, living in a small town, and enjoying their last few weeks of summer vacation before school starts up again. Both are frustrated by their lives; Teddy has a girlfriend that simultaneously frustrates and enamors him, while Adam is ashamed of his father’s poverty and listlessness. Although coming from a more stable home, Teddy is sickened by his parents denial; it’s obvious his mother is engaging in an ongoing affair while his father remains resolutely oblivious, even Teddy’s older sister is desperate to escape the charade and go away to university as soon as possible. Adam struggles with making friends, working a part-time job to keep himself out of the house and fed, but awkward around most of the kids his age, connecting only with Teddy. On a whim they decide to embark on a road trip north, hopefully ending up somewhere near Alaska. Teddy seems a bit more hesitant, but Adam is committed to never coming back, and for reasons somewhat unknown, they stop and purchase a gun at a hunting store, along with plenty of ammunition as they exit town. It’s not much of a spoiler to reveal that the trip takes a violent turn, and early on in the novel there is obvious foreshadowing that Teddy and Adam will become the subject of major speculation in the media. The majority of the book describes the road trip, but the last twenty pages push the reader into a jarring perspective; that of the man that Teddy’s mother was having an affair with.
My Thoughts
At the risk of sounding like a hand-wringing old woman, I will caution people in picking up this book if they already think ‘kids these days’ are a danger to themselves and others. Although it doesn’t directly point the finger at any one particular issue, first-person shooting games are most definitely a piece of this puzzle that Khurana references. Would it be unfair to label all ‘shooting’ gamers as potentially dangerous loners? Of course, but what this book is suggesting is not the games itself that are the problem, but the void of social skills these activities have filled for young men.
The novel actually begins with an almost heart-warming scene; two boys jumping off a bridge into cool water, playing outside together to beat the heat and laze away a summer day. But because we live solely in their interior lives, we are quickly alerted to the destructive thoughts that ping pong inside their heads. They are completely unequipped to recognize or communicate their emotions, both positive and negative. Instead, their internal dialogue is peppered with suspicions of one another, attempts to connect that are thwarted, and much anger and confusion. Their inner thoughts came across as odd, detached, and made me uncomfortable almost as soon as we meet these characters:
“Maybe it’s just him, maybe he’s a freak like everyone says. It isn’t the sort of thing he can talk about, to Teddy or anyone else…So much focus has been on the hazards of sex for women, and rightly so, that nobody, until now, has talked about what dangers it holds for men. He learned that from a streamer he follows, a guy who monologues while he plays and whose thinking seems sharpened by the mechanics of combat” (p. 45 of The Passenger Seat by Vijay Khurana, ARC edition).
The choice to end the book with the perspective of an outsider who played only a peripheral role to the boys’ lives seemed an odd one at first, I figured it was meant to lend the situation an air of seriousness not usually viable through a first person narration. Instead, I quickly realized the author was doing something much more impactful; he was drawing connections between a teenaged male friendship, and a similarly odd (although much less violent) friendship between two middle-aged men who do NOT play video games. My judgement of these friendships is of course skewed being female myself, and I did not recognize any kind of warmth in this story at all. That being said, I’m (desperately) curious to know a man’s perspective of this book – did you feel the men were portrayed unfairly? Did it oversimplify the challenges men face nowadays? Does it only reflect a very extreme kind of male friendship or psyche? I’m sure the answers to all those questions is ‘yes’ depending on who reads this and comments, but I’d love to hear from you guys regardless.
To read the rest of my reviews, please visit my blog:
https://ivereadthis.com/
Read
January 11, 2026Mesmerizing, chilling book about male loneliness and isolation and radicalization. This book got under my skin and creeped me out. I probably spent as many hours thinking about it as I did reading it.
There is a POV shift at the end I initially thought was inventive but on further reflection I’m not sure it really worked. It reads like a long, unnecessary epilogue. Still, this was a good one.
There is a POV shift at the end I initially thought was inventive but on further reflection I’m not sure it really worked. It reads like a long, unnecessary epilogue. Still, this was a good one.
December 30, 2025
I can't believe the 2 protagonists never made out :(
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 21, 2025
Wow. What amazing character study work! This novel was intense, but it was the last 25 pages that really made this an excellent book. The title took on another layer of psychological complexity.
September 8, 2025
Shortlisted for the 2022 the Fitzcarraldo/New Directions/Giramondo Novel Prize, The Passenger Seat is a remarkable first novel by Australian-born author Vijay Khurana, based in Berlin and London. I knew very early in the book that it was going to explore the crude, violent story of two adolescent males, and I suspected that it was going to be like Brendan Cowell's How It Feels (2010), which I thought was a most unpleasant book. I was prepared to give up on The Passenger Seat promptly if so. But it is nothing like that at all. It is a skilful, sophisticated depiction of troubling aspects of contemporary masculinity, which I found unputdownable.
In an interview at Liminal, Khurana was asked about 'toxic masculinity', and had this to say:
Yes.
Adam and Teddy set off on a road trip north from small-town Canada. They don't have any plans, because 'you can't fail if you have no plans', and their motivation is simply dissatisfaction with their lives. Adam lives with his depressed single-parent father, and Teddy comes from a family fractured by infidelity where 'the only reason they haven't split up is because they'd have to talk to each other'. School is irrelevant and boring, and they objectify girls and speak in foul and boastfully untruthful ways about their attempts at relationships. Both of them play a video game called Patriot, which is notorious for its racism, sexism and violence.
From the outset, the reader questions which of these two is 'in the passenger seat' and which is the 'driver' of events. The narration alternates between both perspectives, with very occasional contributions from an omniscient narrator. Despite the friendship bond which impels this impulsive journey, they are deeply competitive...
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2025/09/08/t...
In an interview at Liminal, Khurana was asked about 'toxic masculinity', and had this to say:
I was interested in the way men often create or adopt narratives that may seem comforting but end up being harmful to themselves and people around them—especially when those narratives encourage them to think of themselves as tragic heroes and victims of injustice. It can happen in the context of ideology, and Adam in The Passenger Seat consumes things of that sort, including a book that is somewhere between self-help and a guide to manipulating people. But I think it goes beyond media and ideology.
The second part of the novel focuses on a character, Ron, who was only briefly mentioned in the first part. He has a tangential relationship to Teddy and Adam, and tells himself that he is a victim of their actions in a very specific way. But as the book draws to a close, we’re invited to question that narrative. I think there’s a similarity between Ron’s kind of narrativisation and the political narratives that Adam is buying into.
The question of there being a crisis in masculinity is also interesting to me. It’s so hard to argue against that being the case, but at the same time, ‘crisis in masculinity’ is inevitably a kind of short-hand, a simple label for a complex, intersectional and often ambiguous issue, and that’s something I was writing against with this novel. I think we need to keep hold of the complexity and the ambiguity, which is why I think fiction is a useful place to go to explore issues like this.
Yes.
Adam and Teddy set off on a road trip north from small-town Canada. They don't have any plans, because 'you can't fail if you have no plans', and their motivation is simply dissatisfaction with their lives. Adam lives with his depressed single-parent father, and Teddy comes from a family fractured by infidelity where 'the only reason they haven't split up is because they'd have to talk to each other'. School is irrelevant and boring, and they objectify girls and speak in foul and boastfully untruthful ways about their attempts at relationships. Both of them play a video game called Patriot, which is notorious for its racism, sexism and violence.
From the outset, the reader questions which of these two is 'in the passenger seat' and which is the 'driver' of events. The narration alternates between both perspectives, with very occasional contributions from an omniscient narrator. Despite the friendship bond which impels this impulsive journey, they are deeply competitive...
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2025/09/08/t...
July 20, 2025
This one surprised me. It’s a quiet book, but there’s this constant tension running underneath everything. It is like something could break at any moment, even though nothing really does in any dramatic sense.
There is a sense of slipping into the passenger seat of your own life without being conscious of it entirely but also desiring it.
The male characters are driven by the influence of others and the power they desire. The female characters, that are dotted throughout, are subtly more cautious. Which is very clever, given the themes.
There is almost physical discomfort in this book. You can feel the main characters awkwardness, their dirtiness, the fear, the power. I felt tense at times when the characters did.
There was a lot of depth to this novel.
There is a sense of slipping into the passenger seat of your own life without being conscious of it entirely but also desiring it.
The male characters are driven by the influence of others and the power they desire. The female characters, that are dotted throughout, are subtly more cautious. Which is very clever, given the themes.
There is almost physical discomfort in this book. You can feel the main characters awkwardness, their dirtiness, the fear, the power. I felt tense at times when the characters did.
There was a lot of depth to this novel.
April 19, 2025
.....📚 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 📚.....
The Passenger Seat is the searingly intense debut novel by author Vijay Khurana. What begins as a rite of passage for two dissatisfied youth morphs into a devastating and violent portrayal of masculinity gone wrong.
In a small town in North America, two boys, or men, embark on a vaguely charted road trip through the northern wilderness with little more than canned food and secondhand camping gear—and the rifle they buy on their way out of town for reasons neither seems able to articulate.
Escaping from their small-town existence, Adam and Teddy hope to leave boyhood behind, but as the journey progresses, their friendship becomes a struggle to prove themselves.
The more they handle the gun, and the further they get from their parents and their peers, girlfriends, online gaming, and the grim future that awaits them in their nowhere town, the less their actions are bound by the usual constraints. When Adam decides to harass a young couple they meet on the highway, the outcome is irreversible, and leads them even further down a road from which there’s no turning back.
The writing of this book is exquisite in its intensity and hypnotic menace. This is a story that will sit with me for a long time, and exposes the ways toxic masculinity so easily slides into unfettered violence and alienation into aggression. A very talented author, and very powerful read.
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Thank you to @ultimopress for this copy in exchange for my honest review.
The Passenger Seat is the searingly intense debut novel by author Vijay Khurana. What begins as a rite of passage for two dissatisfied youth morphs into a devastating and violent portrayal of masculinity gone wrong.
In a small town in North America, two boys, or men, embark on a vaguely charted road trip through the northern wilderness with little more than canned food and secondhand camping gear—and the rifle they buy on their way out of town for reasons neither seems able to articulate.
Escaping from their small-town existence, Adam and Teddy hope to leave boyhood behind, but as the journey progresses, their friendship becomes a struggle to prove themselves.
The more they handle the gun, and the further they get from their parents and their peers, girlfriends, online gaming, and the grim future that awaits them in their nowhere town, the less their actions are bound by the usual constraints. When Adam decides to harass a young couple they meet on the highway, the outcome is irreversible, and leads them even further down a road from which there’s no turning back.
The writing of this book is exquisite in its intensity and hypnotic menace. This is a story that will sit with me for a long time, and exposes the ways toxic masculinity so easily slides into unfettered violence and alienation into aggression. A very talented author, and very powerful read.
.
.
.
Thank you to @ultimopress for this copy in exchange for my honest review.
July 26, 2025
A few pages into this work I was seriously contemplating not finishing it as I found it almost claustrophobic but my rule is I have to read at least 5-10 pages before doing that, plus there was a whiff of promise. I did finish it though, its not an easy read but it is also intensely gripping and not finishing was not an option. Not because I suddenly found it easy but because it wouldn't let me. Its a book about violence in people that could be your neighbours, and people who, in other circumstances, would not have done the thing around which the action pivots. Its also a book about loss and despair. Its not the tragedy of Gaza or what is happening in America. Its a far lower level of awful but its impact is powerful, and, for me, all the characters and especially the central two are still moving and speaking in my mind the way good stories do for a long time after the credits come down or the last page is turned.
June 4, 2025
If you put a coming of age novel in front of me, I simply will be reading it. This one was oddly gripping, and I loved the relationship between the two main characters. There were so many little details of the mundane that proved just how much they cared about each other. BUT! What was the reason for no quotation marks. Call me a square but jeez it was hard to distinguish the dialogue sometimes! AND THE ENDING MADE ME WANT TO PULL MY HAIR OUT!!! WHO TF IS RON (I know who tf Ron is but why is Ron, ya know?)
June 17, 2025
This is my first review. I am pretty new to properly reading novels, but I have read over 20 books so far this year. This is my first 2 star rating. Obviously every other book has been 3 stars or better. I really got engaged in this book and was keen to know what happened to the two protagonists. Unfortunately, I thought the ending was annoyingly bad. You don’t fully find out what happens to the two boys, men. To quote another reviewer: “the ending was perplexing”. Not only was it perplexing but it ruined the book for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2025
4.5 🌟 rounded up
A slow moving but tense story about two boys, or men, growing up in the age of toxic masculinity, abd how that affects their relationship with each other, their families, and women. The story is visceral - the descriptions of the teens hygiene made me feel icky. But also, the tension is palpable throughout, even when they're just talking or driving.
A slow moving but tense story about two boys, or men, growing up in the age of toxic masculinity, abd how that affects their relationship with each other, their families, and women. The story is visceral - the descriptions of the teens hygiene made me feel icky. But also, the tension is palpable throughout, even when they're just talking or driving.
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