What do you think?
Rate this book
Ollie Always
Named after the main character in his mother’s infamous Oliver novels, Ollie’s been fighting his fictional namesake his whole life. It’s a battle for identity he is slowly and inevitably losing. Ex-army PTI Tom knows all about battles—the real ones that break soldiers. When he volunteers to help with the Oliver situation, Ollie hears more in the offer than Tom apparently intends, for Tom quickly informs Ollie that he’s married. Which is absolutely fine, because Ollie isn’t gay—that’s Oliver. Tom and Ollie discover fairly swiftly that there is often a very fine dividing line between fact and fiction.
217 pages, ebook
First published January 15, 2016
7 people are currently reading
754 people want to read
About the author
John Wiltshire
29 books820 followersJohn Wiltshire is the fictional persona of the author of the More Heat Than The Sun series. After spending twenty-two years in the military perfecting the art
of looking busy whilst secretly writing, John left as a senior officer
when a hastily dug tunnel was ready for use. Now living in New
Zealand (at least until enough money can be raised to leave) John has no plans to return to the army. Unless the world situation gets considerably worse, that is.
of looking busy whilst secretly writing, John left as a senior officer
when a hastily dug tunnel was ready for use. Now living in New
Zealand (at least until enough money can be raised to leave) John has no plans to return to the army. Unless the world situation gets considerably worse, that is.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews
February 9, 2016
*3.5 stars, rounded up for making me cry in a good way*
Ollie Always was my first experience with John Wiltshire but I guarantee you that it won't be my last.
This book really stood out among other books in the M/M genre. First of all, the writing was beautiful, just dreamily romantic and very atmospheric. I was right there with these guys in the New Zealand countryside, and I got right into the zone with this story.
My 3.5 stars is pretty deceptive because this book was something special. Though the overall tone was serious and angsty, it had some really funny parts and some great dialogue between the two MCs. It was an interesting mix of romance and literature, with a plot line that I found to be extremely well conceived.
The first part of the story, until about 60%, actually, was a solid 3-stars. Though the writing was flowing and lovely, I found the pace to be a bit off and Ollie's whole "I'm attracted to guys but not gay" thing to be confusing. I still adored the concept of the plot-line, but I found that my mind wandering a bit and I wasn't sure where the story would lead.
Now, maybe I'm just not the most perceptive person, but I found this book to be anything but predictable. From 60% to about 80%, I was riveted and near crying at all times. I actually read that section while I was at the gym, and I spent that time exercising and wiping tears off my face like a crazy person. That part of the book was 5-stars for me. It was exciting, uplifting, heart-breaking... everything.
After the high of that part of the story, the ending just seemed to peter out a bit. I was happy to see the progress of Ollie and Tom, but it grew a little long-winded, IMO.
I found this book to be such an interesting character study. I could spend ages just thinking about the relationship between Ollie and his mother, or Tom and his coping mechanisms. The characters were really well done and very multifaceted.
For those reader who love sex-on-page, don't look to this story. While sex acts are alluded to, they are described more in the style as if this book was a non-romance fiction that just happened to have a short sex scene: the details are glossed over, and what is included in mostly referred to in metaphors.
Also, for those of you afraid from the blurb, this book had no cheating, just an FYI.
Ollie Always was a beautiful, complicated story about two men finding themselves and making a lot of mistakes along the way. I think it was a very worthwhile read, and it put John Wiltshire on my to-watch list.
**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
Ollie Always was my first experience with John Wiltshire but I guarantee you that it won't be my last.
This book really stood out among other books in the M/M genre. First of all, the writing was beautiful, just dreamily romantic and very atmospheric. I was right there with these guys in the New Zealand countryside, and I got right into the zone with this story.
My 3.5 stars is pretty deceptive because this book was something special. Though the overall tone was serious and angsty, it had some really funny parts and some great dialogue between the two MCs. It was an interesting mix of romance and literature, with a plot line that I found to be extremely well conceived.
The first part of the story, until about 60%, actually, was a solid 3-stars. Though the writing was flowing and lovely, I found the pace to be a bit off and Ollie's whole "I'm attracted to guys but not gay" thing to be confusing. I still adored the concept of the plot-line, but I found that my mind wandering a bit and I wasn't sure where the story would lead.
Now, maybe I'm just not the most perceptive person, but I found this book to be anything but predictable. From 60% to about 80%, I was riveted and near crying at all times. I actually read that section while I was at the gym, and I spent that time exercising and wiping tears off my face like a crazy person. That part of the book was 5-stars for me. It was exciting, uplifting, heart-breaking... everything.
After the high of that part of the story, the ending just seemed to peter out a bit. I was happy to see the progress of Ollie and Tom, but it grew a little long-winded, IMO.
I found this book to be such an interesting character study. I could spend ages just thinking about the relationship between Ollie and his mother, or Tom and his coping mechanisms. The characters were really well done and very multifaceted.
For those reader who love sex-on-page, don't look to this story. While sex acts are alluded to, they are described more in the style as if this book was a non-romance fiction that just happened to have a short sex scene: the details are glossed over, and what is included in mostly referred to in metaphors.
Also, for those of you afraid from the blurb, this book had no cheating, just an FYI.
Ollie Always was a beautiful, complicated story about two men finding themselves and making a lot of mistakes along the way. I think it was a very worthwhile read, and it put John Wiltshire on my to-watch list.
**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
January 11, 2024
Unique and a bit surreal but a fabulous experience nevertheless.Excellently written (duh) and quite entertaining yet I can’t say I loved the romance or any of the characters very much. Loved the humor and I liked Ollie but that’s about it. Don’t ask me why was this book a fabulous read though because I couldn’t explain. It’s all those things combined,I guess: the whacky plot with twists and turns, the setting (New Zealand) ) , very interesting characters albeit not very likable , the emotions and the emotional moments and of course the writing.
January 19, 2016
4.5 stars
This is much different from the author's other books, yet with a romance that was just as appealing to me.
This is mostly Ollie's story and he has his flaws. Ollie has struggled his whole life to separate and distance himself from his mother's literary creation, Oliver Fitzroy. He doesn't always know where Oliver ends and Ollie begins and neither does anyone else in his life, which has had a hugely damaging effect on him. This becomes clearer when one understands more about what happens in the Oliver Fitzroy stories. Believe me.
Enter Tom. Tom's a former soldier and personal trainer who grew up poor and in care. He's a flawed man as well, not above doing most anything for the permanence of a home. But yet ...
Both English ex-pats, they meet as neighbours in New Zealand and their relationship evolves as Tom agrees to train Ollie. But there are many twists and turns along the way and things aren't always as they seem. And then there's Ollie's mom. Yikes.
The romance had a very slow burn. Which is always my favourite. There is a lot of personal growth (on both sides) that needs to happen before these boys are ready for each other. Even though Ollie is 25, I feel like this story is in many ways his coming of age story. He's got to come to terms with his past before moving on.
The setting itself - New Zealand - felt like its own character in this book. In my opinion, the author's love-hate relationship with New Zealand really stood out throughout. In fact, the whole story had a very personal feeling to it being that the author himself is a former soldier like Tom, a writer like Ollie and a English ex-patriot living in New Zealand. Of course he says that that's where the resemblance stops ...
Overall, a lovely romance with a touching story of personal growth. Although much different than his other books, the writing itself has a very John Wiltshire-feel so likely will still appeal to most of his fans.
This is much different from the author's other books, yet with a romance that was just as appealing to me.
This is mostly Ollie's story and he has his flaws. Ollie has struggled his whole life to separate and distance himself from his mother's literary creation, Oliver Fitzroy. He doesn't always know where Oliver ends and Ollie begins and neither does anyone else in his life, which has had a hugely damaging effect on him. This becomes clearer when one understands more about what happens in the Oliver Fitzroy stories. Believe me.
Enter Tom. Tom's a former soldier and personal trainer who grew up poor and in care. He's a flawed man as well, not above doing most anything for the permanence of a home. But yet ...
Both English ex-pats, they meet as neighbours in New Zealand and their relationship evolves as Tom agrees to train Ollie. But there are many twists and turns along the way and things aren't always as they seem. And then there's Ollie's mom. Yikes.
The romance had a very slow burn. Which is always my favourite. There is a lot of personal growth (on both sides) that needs to happen before these boys are ready for each other. Even though Ollie is 25, I feel like this story is in many ways his coming of age story. He's got to come to terms with his past before moving on.
The setting itself - New Zealand - felt like its own character in this book. In my opinion, the author's love-hate relationship with New Zealand really stood out throughout. In fact, the whole story had a very personal feeling to it being that the author himself is a former soldier like Tom, a writer like Ollie and a English ex-patriot living in New Zealand. Of course he says that that's where the resemblance stops ...
Overall, a lovely romance with a touching story of personal growth. Although much different than his other books, the writing itself has a very John Wiltshire-feel so likely will still appeal to most of his fans.
May 29, 2016
I had heard that a lot of this book drew on the author's own experiences, so at times I was distracted by wondering which bits were autobiographical and which just drew on thoughts and experiences.
In the end, I relaxed and took the story as it came. And there were many things to like about this book. First off, the scene where he manipulated the "meeting" was hilarious as were the books titles that followed.
Then there is Ollie. I felt for him trying to find a place for himself given the overwhelming (even if loving) presence of his mother. It's like I imagine many children of celebrities feel and why so many of them have troubles finding their own paths in life.
I loved how Ollie eventually found a way to come to terms with his Oliver namesake via Freddy.
And of course there is a dog. And a loveable one at that. I loved the way he leaned on people and how Ollie unabashedly used him to further his goals.
Don't expect lots of hot sex scenes, this is more two men finding a way to be together. Tom/Skint is a proud man. I loved the scene in the shearing shed he'd been living in, and the way Ollie reacted.
There were definitely echoes of Nik in Ollie and Ben in Tom, but these were more real and hence, more fragile versions.
This was the narrator discovering that "Once the me, me, me of life had ceased, hearing other people's pain became a great deal easier."
There were lovely digs at the reality of living in picture postcard New Zealand's remoteness. The temperature of the water, the cost of living.
I highlighted a couple of sections, but will probably see more when I re-read it as it is definitely worth it.
It's lovely to have another stand alone from John even though I am waiting with bated breath for Book 8 of More Heat than the Sun.
This is not the gut wrenching high octane emotions or dramatic events. This is life. I absolutely loved the way Ollie fantasized about a "rose-cottage, sugar-coated fantasy" where he could "Cook them both breakfast and slip into Tom's room, be welcomed into bed with a grumpy but secretly very-pleased-to-see-him pat of encouragement on the sheets to crawl in alongside Tom and they could sit there eating, perhaps reading the papers..." OR... and you'll have to read it to discover the alternative.
And if JW is wondering what book to write next, those children's books sounded good. Kids books without the moral message or at least have it very well hidden. We need more books with heroes like Miles/Freddy. Raoul Dahl made a fortune with books bucking the "system" perhaps there is room for more. Or maybe we need a series of adventures with three legged Bartleby and his pedigree-in-disguise mutt partner. Gay dogs. Yep, I'd buy that!
In the end, I relaxed and took the story as it came. And there were many things to like about this book. First off, the scene where he manipulated the "meeting" was hilarious as were the books titles that followed.
Then there is Ollie. I felt for him trying to find a place for himself given the overwhelming (even if loving) presence of his mother. It's like I imagine many children of celebrities feel and why so many of them have troubles finding their own paths in life.
I loved how Ollie eventually found a way to come to terms with his Oliver namesake via Freddy.
And of course there is a dog. And a loveable one at that. I loved the way he leaned on people and how Ollie unabashedly used him to further his goals.
Don't expect lots of hot sex scenes, this is more two men finding a way to be together. Tom/Skint is a proud man. I loved the scene in the shearing shed he'd been living in, and the way Ollie reacted.
There were definitely echoes of Nik in Ollie and Ben in Tom, but these were more real and hence, more fragile versions.
This was the narrator discovering that "Once the me, me, me of life had ceased, hearing other people's pain became a great deal easier."
There were lovely digs at the reality of living in picture postcard New Zealand's remoteness. The temperature of the water, the cost of living.
I highlighted a couple of sections, but will probably see more when I re-read it as it is definitely worth it.
Tom did release Ollie's hand then, but only apparently to pat the dog. Ollie began to see a pattern here-stressful question...dog. He foresaw Bartleby being very well patted for a few more days and nights yet.And this: As he says "He hadn't proved himself entirely reliable since he'd met Tom over shit, and parted over vomit."
It's lovely to have another stand alone from John even though I am waiting with bated breath for Book 8 of More Heat than the Sun.
This is not the gut wrenching high octane emotions or dramatic events. This is life. I absolutely loved the way Ollie fantasized about a "rose-cottage, sugar-coated fantasy" where he could "Cook them both breakfast and slip into Tom's room, be welcomed into bed with a grumpy but secretly very-pleased-to-see-him pat of encouragement on the sheets to crawl in alongside Tom and they could sit there eating, perhaps reading the papers..." OR... and you'll have to read it to discover the alternative.
And if JW is wondering what book to write next, those children's books sounded good. Kids books without the moral message or at least have it very well hidden. We need more books with heroes like Miles/Freddy. Raoul Dahl made a fortune with books bucking the "system" perhaps there is room for more. Or maybe we need a series of adventures with three legged Bartleby and his pedigree-in-disguise mutt partner. Gay dogs. Yep, I'd buy that!
April 30, 2016
4.5 wonderful beautiful unique stars on Prism Book Alliance®
Ollie. Always. And Tom. With tea and shortbread biscuits. These two, their personalities erected brick by brick, with humor, and pasts and many other things that intrigued me, all made me want to get to know them. Mission accomplished in getting me interested in this story from page one.
Despite both the main characters holding things close to their respective vests, I felt the heart of this story, right there out in the open, ready to be experienced, willing to share itself. The cool thing about this, despite the obvious, is that the depth of characterization was also held at a distance, slowly but surely revealed as the story began to unfurl. There was so much more going on here than initially indicated. It got me energized.
Ollie is living life from a very painful place as this story opens and, based upon what we learn, it’s not a surprise and it informs a lot of his decisions, as well as explaining his way of thinking. He’s endured, suffered, and survived a lot in his 25 years on this planet, and I understood the coping mechanisms he’d put in place to handle life. (~more on this later) These two lines efficiently describe his state of mind, much better than I just did.
Ollie had been coming here during the long school holidays since he’d started at his prep school, so if he’d wanted to, he could have thought of it as home. Nowhere was home, so he didn’t.
The “here” is New Zealand, and prep school was a number of years ago but that experience shaped much of his emotional state of mind from an early age. On the outside Ollie appears to be living life on his own terms. On the inside, that’s not the case. Tom might be the first person to be seeing this truth of Ollie’s. This truth is a constant connection maintained throughout the story, even in the worst moments. And I am fortunate to have gotten the chance to witness this journey of theirs as they try to work through it all
As usual, Wiltshire incorporates a twist or ten in this story like he’s done in many other of his books I’ve read. The first one is rather a doozy, opening many doors, to the past, to the future, and to the possibilities that might exist. The scope of my comprehension of this story expanded and left me pondering many a ‘what if?’. These two people were going to make each other work for this potential friendship (and more? I wasn’t at all sure) and their truths. It looked like they were going to discover that neither of them had adequate defenses against each one’s ability to break through to the other.
I could have highlighted all of chapter nine. Just to give you an idea of how many tendrils are swirling around beneath the surface nearly the entire way through this book. Jussayin’.
~ here’s the more: practically unbeknownst to himself, Ollie is wide open for love, for connection, for exploration and emotional bravery, and he’s been searching for that unconditional consideration that is for him, not a character in a book that is a poor reflection of what others see in Ollie. Further, he and Tom have all of this in common, but originating from a completely different life as lived so far. How do I know this? Because of Wiltshire and his fabulocity with the emotional twisty turns that made my mouth drop open and my heart leap into the stratosphere.
There are some scenes that were muddy in their structure and intention, feeling underdeveloped or uncertain in their purpose. There were also some instances where it almost felt like I was getting Tom’s point of view, his feelings about whatever was going on, which isn’t really possible since this story is told as Ollie’s experience, alongside his footsteps, his demons and revelations. I think it came down to odd sentence structure, causing a head tilt here and there.
But listen, this story. ~ takes a deep breath ~ it got me. It’s gutwrenchingly real with passages that felt almost dreamlike, ethereal while delivering undeniably earthbound emotional punches. Ya know, right to that gut. No matter any stumbling blocks along the way, this is unmistakable Wiltshire storytelling with the surprises, the depth of emotion (I know, I keep using this word, but there is a lot of it in this book), the connections that come barreling around their corners and knocked me over, performing literary 360’s like a pro thrasher. I love when I have to work for my stories and to understand the characters. I don’t like being spoonfed and Wiltshire doesn’t engage in such tomfoolery.
He gives us gems like this:
He hadn’t had to return, but he’d wanted to. Being brave, he’d discovered, wasn’t all about looking forward and facing challenges head on. It was also about checking back and making sure that those behind you fared well too. Never leave stragglers. Never cause collateral damage. He needed to finish with New Zealand properly and bury the ghosts of his abortive attempt to find a world big enough to escape cowardice. No world that big would ever exist.
Letmejusttellyou, not long after this thought process of Ollie’s, I experienced one of the swooniest swoony swoon worthy lines of prose I’ve ever read. Ever. I actually felt a bit lightheaded due to the lack of oxygen from the swoonage. Wiltshire, he’s a romantic! My proof is this book. I mean, before I read the line, which I know you’ll know which one I mean when you read this book, I was going to say this story isn’t a romance. But it is. It’s just not conventional. What I’m really saying here is this is (unfortunately) unconventional for the literary world but couldn’t be more tried and true for the real world: love is messy, the past providing companionship into any new encounter, any new relationship, working hard to try and protect the heart, attempting to deny a starting chance. This is the journey on which Ollie and Tom find themselves.
Ok, I could keep going on and on and on. I need a book club for this one. Book club anyone?
I wana talk about the stuff and the things, all the things, and the title, and the omg and…
ETA: March 2016 Recommended Read on PBA
Ollie. Always. And Tom. With tea and shortbread biscuits. These two, their personalities erected brick by brick, with humor, and pasts and many other things that intrigued me, all made me want to get to know them. Mission accomplished in getting me interested in this story from page one.
Despite both the main characters holding things close to their respective vests, I felt the heart of this story, right there out in the open, ready to be experienced, willing to share itself. The cool thing about this, despite the obvious, is that the depth of characterization was also held at a distance, slowly but surely revealed as the story began to unfurl. There was so much more going on here than initially indicated. It got me energized.
Ollie is living life from a very painful place as this story opens and, based upon what we learn, it’s not a surprise and it informs a lot of his decisions, as well as explaining his way of thinking. He’s endured, suffered, and survived a lot in his 25 years on this planet, and I understood the coping mechanisms he’d put in place to handle life. (~more on this later) These two lines efficiently describe his state of mind, much better than I just did.
Ollie had been coming here during the long school holidays since he’d started at his prep school, so if he’d wanted to, he could have thought of it as home. Nowhere was home, so he didn’t.
The “here” is New Zealand, and prep school was a number of years ago but that experience shaped much of his emotional state of mind from an early age. On the outside Ollie appears to be living life on his own terms. On the inside, that’s not the case. Tom might be the first person to be seeing this truth of Ollie’s. This truth is a constant connection maintained throughout the story, even in the worst moments. And I am fortunate to have gotten the chance to witness this journey of theirs as they try to work through it all
As usual, Wiltshire incorporates a twist or ten in this story like he’s done in many other of his books I’ve read. The first one is rather a doozy, opening many doors, to the past, to the future, and to the possibilities that might exist. The scope of my comprehension of this story expanded and left me pondering many a ‘what if?’. These two people were going to make each other work for this potential friendship (and more? I wasn’t at all sure) and their truths. It looked like they were going to discover that neither of them had adequate defenses against each one’s ability to break through to the other.
I could have highlighted all of chapter nine. Just to give you an idea of how many tendrils are swirling around beneath the surface nearly the entire way through this book. Jussayin’.
~ here’s the more: practically unbeknownst to himself, Ollie is wide open for love, for connection, for exploration and emotional bravery, and he’s been searching for that unconditional consideration that is for him, not a character in a book that is a poor reflection of what others see in Ollie. Further, he and Tom have all of this in common, but originating from a completely different life as lived so far. How do I know this? Because of Wiltshire and his fabulocity with the emotional twisty turns that made my mouth drop open and my heart leap into the stratosphere.
There are some scenes that were muddy in their structure and intention, feeling underdeveloped or uncertain in their purpose. There were also some instances where it almost felt like I was getting Tom’s point of view, his feelings about whatever was going on, which isn’t really possible since this story is told as Ollie’s experience, alongside his footsteps, his demons and revelations. I think it came down to odd sentence structure, causing a head tilt here and there.
But listen, this story. ~ takes a deep breath ~ it got me. It’s gutwrenchingly real with passages that felt almost dreamlike, ethereal while delivering undeniably earthbound emotional punches. Ya know, right to that gut. No matter any stumbling blocks along the way, this is unmistakable Wiltshire storytelling with the surprises, the depth of emotion (I know, I keep using this word, but there is a lot of it in this book), the connections that come barreling around their corners and knocked me over, performing literary 360’s like a pro thrasher. I love when I have to work for my stories and to understand the characters. I don’t like being spoonfed and Wiltshire doesn’t engage in such tomfoolery.
He gives us gems like this:
He hadn’t had to return, but he’d wanted to. Being brave, he’d discovered, wasn’t all about looking forward and facing challenges head on. It was also about checking back and making sure that those behind you fared well too. Never leave stragglers. Never cause collateral damage. He needed to finish with New Zealand properly and bury the ghosts of his abortive attempt to find a world big enough to escape cowardice. No world that big would ever exist.
Letmejusttellyou, not long after this thought process of Ollie’s, I experienced one of the swooniest swoony swoon worthy lines of prose I’ve ever read. Ever. I actually felt a bit lightheaded due to the lack of oxygen from the swoonage. Wiltshire, he’s a romantic! My proof is this book. I mean, before I read the line, which I know you’ll know which one I mean when you read this book, I was going to say this story isn’t a romance. But it is. It’s just not conventional. What I’m really saying here is this is (unfortunately) unconventional for the literary world but couldn’t be more tried and true for the real world: love is messy, the past providing companionship into any new encounter, any new relationship, working hard to try and protect the heart, attempting to deny a starting chance. This is the journey on which Ollie and Tom find themselves.
Ok, I could keep going on and on and on. I need a book club for this one. Book club anyone?
I wana talk about the stuff and the things, all the things, and the title, and the omg and…
ETA: March 2016 Recommended Read on PBA
January 12, 2017
**** 4,5 stars ****
------------------------------------
"What do I need to do to make you stay, Ollie?" (...)
"Tell me that you'll always be here if I do." (...)
"I think I've been telling you that since we met... Ollie-Always."
------------------------------------
Ah, this was such a great book! Complex characters, slow build, twist and funny moments!
The books starts out one way and you kinda think were the story is going, but then Wiltshire does a number on me and surprises me, typical his Wiltshire Way, and makes the book even better than I imagined myself. I love that about Wiltshire!
Would have loved a more epic sweep you off your feet ending, but the way it ended felt more realistic. Not everything is a quick and easy fix. I'm so happy about how it all turned out.
Loved it!
Recommended!
Would have loved a more epic sweep you off your feet ending, but the way it ended felt more realistic. Not everything is a quick and easy fix. I'm so happy about how it all turned out.
Loved it!
Recommended!
May 14, 2016
Ollie Always
By John Wiltshire
MLR Press, 2016
Cover by Molly Wright
ISBN: 978-1-60820-999-6
Four stars
Wiltshire writes such interesting, offbeat stories. He pushes the romance genre to its edge, sometimes beyond my own personal comfort zone – he’s familiar with the kind of gay men I’ve spent most of my life avoiding. But he also presents you with challenges in his books: you have to learn to love these folks even though you want to despise them. “Ollie Always” is also filled with a kind of wry, dark humor that gives it a sense of being a stage play, or possibly a television series. There are twists and turns and little, pointed surprises that keep you on edge. Wiltshire writes romance, but it’s not easy romance.
Ollie Fitzroy is a victim of his mother’s success. Writing as Ronnie Fitzroy, she has made untold millions, pretty much guaranteeing that her son would never want for anything; except, of course, for any sense of self-identity other than through his frankly creepy avatar in her Oliver novels. Tom Collins, on the other hand, has never had anything at all, except for the army, and for that reason his sense of self is as badly stunted as Ollie’s. Both men deny that they’re gay, each for his own reason. Ollie does so in defiance of his mother, who invented Oliver before Ollie was born; Tom simply has no idea of what love is, and is simply lost.
Set for the most part in New Zealand, Wiltshire’s narrative is woven more tightly than it feels. He paints a vivid sense of place, giving the reader cinematic images of New Zealand’s beauty, while also making clear its profound physical isolation from the rest of the world. Although the author lives in New Zealand, he is not a native, and he seems to use the locality as a metaphor for both Ollie and Tom’s emotional dislocation.
One of the biggest surprises in the book is that the bad guys aren’t, in the end, as bad as one thinks. The corollary lesson in Wiltshire’s tale is that if you hide from the world you’ll never come to understand its complexities. Each of us bears the burden of engaging the world if we hope to survive in it.
By John Wiltshire
MLR Press, 2016
Cover by Molly Wright
ISBN: 978-1-60820-999-6
Four stars
Wiltshire writes such interesting, offbeat stories. He pushes the romance genre to its edge, sometimes beyond my own personal comfort zone – he’s familiar with the kind of gay men I’ve spent most of my life avoiding. But he also presents you with challenges in his books: you have to learn to love these folks even though you want to despise them. “Ollie Always” is also filled with a kind of wry, dark humor that gives it a sense of being a stage play, or possibly a television series. There are twists and turns and little, pointed surprises that keep you on edge. Wiltshire writes romance, but it’s not easy romance.
Ollie Fitzroy is a victim of his mother’s success. Writing as Ronnie Fitzroy, she has made untold millions, pretty much guaranteeing that her son would never want for anything; except, of course, for any sense of self-identity other than through his frankly creepy avatar in her Oliver novels. Tom Collins, on the other hand, has never had anything at all, except for the army, and for that reason his sense of self is as badly stunted as Ollie’s. Both men deny that they’re gay, each for his own reason. Ollie does so in defiance of his mother, who invented Oliver before Ollie was born; Tom simply has no idea of what love is, and is simply lost.
Set for the most part in New Zealand, Wiltshire’s narrative is woven more tightly than it feels. He paints a vivid sense of place, giving the reader cinematic images of New Zealand’s beauty, while also making clear its profound physical isolation from the rest of the world. Although the author lives in New Zealand, he is not a native, and he seems to use the locality as a metaphor for both Ollie and Tom’s emotional dislocation.
One of the biggest surprises in the book is that the bad guys aren’t, in the end, as bad as one thinks. The corollary lesson in Wiltshire’s tale is that if you hide from the world you’ll never come to understand its complexities. Each of us bears the burden of engaging the world if we hope to survive in it.
December 13, 2016
It's hard to come up with a new, never-used backstory that can carry both humor and angst. This one is an imaginative success, as Ollie's problems arise from his mother's writing career. He has spent his life dealing with a mother who has a hard time separating life from fiction, and who loves her fictional creation as much as her flesh-and-blood son. It's not just the fact that she named Ollie after the sexually-precocious boy in her books, but that she keeps pulling his life into that fictional world, combining him and his namesake, while keeping him at emotional arm's length. Her attention is definitely on fictional Oliver. She would say she loves Ollie, but she has very little idea of who he is, separate from the character she has created on the page.
Ollie has run to New Zealand, ostensibly to write his own book, but really to escape the wreck of his young life, and the enormous shadow Oliver casts. Book Oliver is beautiful and experienced, seductive, witty, brilliant, and gay. Ollie would prefer no points of resemblance, but he can't avoid his good looks, and he's having to dive deep into denial to avoid the gay. When he sees a handsome stranger jogging by every day, his interest is intense, but so is his avoidance. As a result, their meeting is the beginning of a messy, frustrating, and fitful friendship full of half-truths. Some of which would make a cat laugh, and others of which could just make a reader cry.
For me, the humor and emotion are uneasy bedfellows in this story. There's great atmosphere and language, and interesting if somewhat polarized characters, but I was tugged in different ways by the moments of real angst, and the bursts of darkish situational comedy. Without settling into either mode, I was left with admiration for the author's imagination, but felt a bit distanced from the story. But then, I'm not a huge fan of romcom, so I was left wishing that the guys' emotions weren't sidetracked by more slapstick moments. Still, an enjoyable read with skilled storytelling and a vivid sense of the New Zealand location.
Ollie has run to New Zealand, ostensibly to write his own book, but really to escape the wreck of his young life, and the enormous shadow Oliver casts. Book Oliver is beautiful and experienced, seductive, witty, brilliant, and gay. Ollie would prefer no points of resemblance, but he can't avoid his good looks, and he's having to dive deep into denial to avoid the gay. When he sees a handsome stranger jogging by every day, his interest is intense, but so is his avoidance. As a result, their meeting is the beginning of a messy, frustrating, and fitful friendship full of half-truths. Some of which would make a cat laugh, and others of which could just make a reader cry.
For me, the humor and emotion are uneasy bedfellows in this story. There's great atmosphere and language, and interesting if somewhat polarized characters, but I was tugged in different ways by the moments of real angst, and the bursts of darkish situational comedy. Without settling into either mode, I was left with admiration for the author's imagination, but felt a bit distanced from the story. But then, I'm not a huge fan of romcom, so I was left wishing that the guys' emotions weren't sidetracked by more slapstick moments. Still, an enjoyable read with skilled storytelling and a vivid sense of the New Zealand location.
July 28, 2023
4.5 stars from me, a lovely slow-burn romance between two guys who both deserved more from life.
Ollie, the main character and from whose POV the story was told, suffered from being his mother's muse for her pornographic series of gay books..even though there was a chance he possibly wasn't gay. Oliver Fitzroy, the slutty main character, was always better than Ollie at everything, and needless to say, Ollie had an inferiority complex the size of a house cos everyone thought the books were based on him. When staying at his mother's house on New Zealand's South Island, ostensibly to write a book, Ollie notices a good looking guy running past the house (which is in the middle of nowhere) every day, decides to ambush him and get to know him better. Little does he realise that he already knows the guy from way back when, and life will start to become far more complicated.
If I have a teeny, tiny criticism of the story, it's that I think Tom could have been 'fleshed out' a little more. I loved Radulf's nemesis, hated the mother although she apparently did everything she did cos she loved her son and Ollie's ideas for his stories were spectacular, and guess what...a John Wiltshire story with hardly any sex!! I WILL make it to NZ one of these years...congrats John.
Ollie, the main character and from whose POV the story was told, suffered from being his mother's muse for her pornographic series of gay books..even though there was a chance he possibly wasn't gay. Oliver Fitzroy, the slutty main character, was always better than Ollie at everything, and needless to say, Ollie had an inferiority complex the size of a house cos everyone thought the books were based on him. When staying at his mother's house on New Zealand's South Island, ostensibly to write a book, Ollie notices a good looking guy running past the house (which is in the middle of nowhere) every day, decides to ambush him and get to know him better. Little does he realise that he already knows the guy from way back when, and life will start to become far more complicated.
If I have a teeny, tiny criticism of the story, it's that I think Tom could have been 'fleshed out' a little more. I loved Radulf's nemesis, hated the mother although she apparently did everything she did cos she loved her son and Ollie's ideas for his stories were spectacular, and guess what...a John Wiltshire story with hardly any sex!! I WILL make it to NZ one of these years...congrats John.
January 29, 2016
I practically inhaled this book.
If it hadn't been for pesky work today I would have read it in one sitting.
Ollie, dear. I loved you to bits you complicated, wounded, funny, beautiful soul. So glad you got your HEA.
I dunno. I'm all out of words.
Wiltshire's words are so so good, though.
Highly recommended.
If it hadn't been for pesky work today I would have read it in one sitting.
Ollie, dear. I loved you to bits you complicated, wounded, funny, beautiful soul. So glad you got your HEA.
I dunno. I'm all out of words.
Wiltshire's words are so so good, though.
Highly recommended.
July 26, 2018
I wouldn't even know how to begin to review this book.
The only words that come to mind are original, unusual, surprising, dysfunctional and beautiful.
I thought I knew where the story was headed and I was right, but then it took me completely in another direction. Even if I didn't always liked the MC(s), I kind of loved it and I'm sure I won't forget this book anytime soon.
The only words that come to mind are original, unusual, surprising, dysfunctional and beautiful.
I thought I knew where the story was headed and I was right, but then it took me completely in another direction. Even if I didn't always liked the MC(s), I kind of loved it and I'm sure I won't forget this book anytime soon.
January 27, 2016
Great observational humour, the very best kind of humour IMHO.
The two stand alone novels that J.W. has penned to date are both similar in observational humour and both have an undercurrent of deep sadness, or is that just me and Ollie?
"Ollie had spent his formative years reading a great deal into a single word and a well-placed comma. But perhaps he'd read more into those author's choice of words than they had intended."?
Yes, like everyone else that has expressed their opinions on this novel, I laughed out loud at the lavatorial humour, "Scat for beginners" and "Adventures in Shit" but then the twist-to-the-tale and we learned of the years of adoration Tom had/has been suffering and I wanted to cry. In fact I wanted to cry several times through out this story for both main characters. How pleased was I that they got their HEA even though I was convinced until the very last minute that it was going Tits Up.
This is a "Home-is-where-the-heart-is" novel essentially.
There are some lovely humorous digs at the Gay/m/m genre through out this book; personally I can't wait to read about Frederick Wentworth doing it with James Benwick on the Cobb, and yes.....a lot of literature in this genre is "porn masquerading as art" this is especially true of Ronnie's novels which seem to be verging on paedophilia, and not in the style of "Death in Venice" I might add. (You'll have to read about Ronnie, she's just too bloody "gorgeous" a-multi-layered character, which becomes apparent at the end of the novel - not the shallow lesbian-in-Paris chic in Querrelle-style pants as we initially are led to believe) - Hysterical! (I have a favourite Aunt who styles herself just like this).
Great story, great characters, great writing, I even got to use my on-line Kindle dictionary a couple of times.....always good to learn some new vocabulary).
I am still chuckling at the "he liked shortbread" and Ollie's fertile imagination "gagged and tied". Brilliant!
(A quick p.s. JW's novels always have the most tasteful and evocative covers).
The two stand alone novels that J.W. has penned to date are both similar in observational humour and both have an undercurrent of deep sadness, or is that just me and Ollie?
"Ollie had spent his formative years reading a great deal into a single word and a well-placed comma. But perhaps he'd read more into those author's choice of words than they had intended."?
Yes, like everyone else that has expressed their opinions on this novel, I laughed out loud at the lavatorial humour, "Scat for beginners" and "Adventures in Shit" but then the twist-to-the-tale and we learned of the years of adoration Tom had/has been suffering and I wanted to cry. In fact I wanted to cry several times through out this story for both main characters. How pleased was I that they got their HEA even though I was convinced until the very last minute that it was going Tits Up.
This is a "Home-is-where-the-heart-is" novel essentially.
There are some lovely humorous digs at the Gay/m/m genre through out this book; personally I can't wait to read about Frederick Wentworth doing it with James Benwick on the Cobb, and yes.....a lot of literature in this genre is "porn masquerading as art" this is especially true of Ronnie's novels which seem to be verging on paedophilia, and not in the style of "Death in Venice" I might add. (You'll have to read about Ronnie, she's just too bloody "gorgeous" a-multi-layered character, which becomes apparent at the end of the novel - not the shallow lesbian-in-Paris chic in Querrelle-style pants as we initially are led to believe) - Hysterical! (I have a favourite Aunt who styles herself just like this).
Great story, great characters, great writing, I even got to use my on-line Kindle dictionary a couple of times.....always good to learn some new vocabulary).
I am still chuckling at the "he liked shortbread" and Ollie's fertile imagination "gagged and tied". Brilliant!
(A quick p.s. JW's novels always have the most tasteful and evocative covers).
May 18, 2016
This is a gorgeous book and I loved it. I've loved everything I've read by John Wiltshire. It's an unconventional love story (in that lovely John Wiltshire way) and an emotional rollercoaster ride. This book runs the gamut, feeling-wise--it's cheerful, funny, horrific, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and filled with both profound joy and the deepest misery. I was looking forward to this one partly because it takes place in New Zealand, which is where both I and John Wiltshire live. I was delighted by the vivid and affectionate portrayal of this country, and I found that even the many little digs were done in a fond and playful way. The physical setting is almost another character in itself and plays a big role. This story is beautifully written and the writing is smart and evocative and packs an emotional punch. The characters are full of depth and are so well-developed and complex and flawed--they're loveable, though maybe not always likeable initially. This is a romantic, wonderfully funny, heartwarming story that's full of real-ness and surprises and is very moving and fairly dark at times. It's maybe more of a bildungsroman-type novel than a romance, though it has a gorgeous love story at its heart. I enjoyed reading this so much. It's a satisfying story and a real treat. Oh, and because it's a John Wiltshire book, there is a very charming dog.
January 26, 2016
I don't have a problem saying I was hesitant about reading this book. John Wiltshire is a new-to-me author, and that's always a tiny bit nerve-wracking. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE finding an author I've never read and enjoying their work. But, it's always a crapshoot. And it makes me nervous.
This? My mind is bent. It has been twisted into new and--what I thought--impossible shapes by this story.
So, Ollie/Oliver/Ollie Always is a thoroughly lost soul with too much privilege to see a clear path (rich, trust-fund kid, over educated, never had to work, etc., etc., and etc.).
His mother reads as a sociopath the likes of Mommy Dearest without the no more wire hangers incident.
But she invoked a different concept of the closet for me in this book....
Ready?
Ollie's denial of being gay because it's what his mother wants him to be.
One more time. Lemme rearrange the words and change them up a little. We'll see if that helps.
His mother wants him to be gay; therefore he feels he must rail against it and simmer away in denial and self-loathing.
Well, if that ain't a newfangled twist in Romance Land...
Mommy Dearest shapes Ollies world by a successful career of writing a series of books based on a fictional character of the same name. Their lives are so parallel the real Ollie has a hard time knowing what's real and admitting/owning who he really is.
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Real Ollie, or fictional Oliver. Who did what? Which memories are true? Which ones belong to fake Oliver?
What is pure fiction versus engineered reality versus authentic reality?
How does a person figure out who they are in this world with that kind of Truman Show bullshit?
It doesn't help that mother's elitist acolytes are just as indulgent to her whims and so absorbed with keeping their noses firmly planted up her arse they can't be bothered to know the real Ollie.
Kiss, kiss. A treat, as always, to see you darling.
It also doesn't help that mother's books are so popular that nearly everyone Ollie meets seems to know him. Oliver. The fiction one.
And how many times do you have to hear a thing before it becomes your reality?
See?
MIND. BENT.
Tom, the love-interest. I liked him perfectly well and can't think of a better counter-point to the utterly lost Ollie.
But brew another cuppa tea and have another biscuit becuase Tom's got a past and secrets, too. Oh yeah, he does.
My only slightly mild grumble is that it felt as though these guys fell into their *thing* way too quickly...a matter of days, to be precise. Then there was so much of the back and forth with the denials, supplication, and miscommunication, then a long stretch of time where they were apart.
Things happen and the truth reshapes during their separation. Time marches on, waits for no man, and all that jazz.
But! I can't really complain about that a whole lot. There were twists and turns I didn't see coming that did a fine job of broadening my understanding of how all of theses pieces were coming together.
This was not an easy happliy ever after for these heroes.
And that's the kind of story that gives me immense satisfaction.
The writing was fluid and sublime with dashes of British humor that crept up with perfect timing, garnering chuckles that felt inappropriate and cleansing at the same time. I've got scads of passages highlighted simply becuase they were amusing.
Conclusion: I enjoyed this, far more that I thought going in. A definite win.
Also posted on BackPorchReader.com.
This? My mind is bent. It has been twisted into new and--what I thought--impossible shapes by this story.
So, Ollie/Oliver/Ollie Always is a thoroughly lost soul with too much privilege to see a clear path (rich, trust-fund kid, over educated, never had to work, etc., etc., and etc.).
His mother reads as a sociopath the likes of Mommy Dearest without the no more wire hangers incident.
But she invoked a different concept of the closet for me in this book....
Ready?
Ollie's denial of being gay because it's what his mother wants him to be.
One more time. Lemme rearrange the words and change them up a little. We'll see if that helps.
His mother wants him to be gay; therefore he feels he must rail against it and simmer away in denial and self-loathing.
Well, if that ain't a newfangled twist in Romance Land...
Mommy Dearest shapes Ollies world by a successful career of writing a series of books based on a fictional character of the same name. Their lives are so parallel the real Ollie has a hard time knowing what's real and admitting/owning who he really is.
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Real Ollie, or fictional Oliver. Who did what? Which memories are true? Which ones belong to fake Oliver?
What is pure fiction versus engineered reality versus authentic reality?
How does a person figure out who they are in this world with that kind of Truman Show bullshit?
It doesn't help that mother's elitist acolytes are just as indulgent to her whims and so absorbed with keeping their noses firmly planted up her arse they can't be bothered to know the real Ollie.
Kiss, kiss. A treat, as always, to see you darling.
It also doesn't help that mother's books are so popular that nearly everyone Ollie meets seems to know him. Oliver. The fiction one.
And how many times do you have to hear a thing before it becomes your reality?
See?
MIND. BENT.
Tom, the love-interest. I liked him perfectly well and can't think of a better counter-point to the utterly lost Ollie.
But brew another cuppa tea and have another biscuit becuase Tom's got a past and secrets, too. Oh yeah, he does.
My only slightly mild grumble is that it felt as though these guys fell into their *thing* way too quickly...a matter of days, to be precise. Then there was so much of the back and forth with the denials, supplication, and miscommunication, then a long stretch of time where they were apart.
Things happen and the truth reshapes during their separation. Time marches on, waits for no man, and all that jazz.
But! I can't really complain about that a whole lot. There were twists and turns I didn't see coming that did a fine job of broadening my understanding of how all of theses pieces were coming together.
This was not an easy happliy ever after for these heroes.
And that's the kind of story that gives me immense satisfaction.
The writing was fluid and sublime with dashes of British humor that crept up with perfect timing, garnering chuckles that felt inappropriate and cleansing at the same time. I've got scads of passages highlighted simply becuase they were amusing.
Conclusion: I enjoyed this, far more that I thought going in. A definite win.
Also posted on BackPorchReader.com.
May 27, 2016
Oh my! A total melodrama!
Ollie life going down step by step!
This book is a rollercoaster!!
Fun , angst. , romantic, decadent , exiting , sad, then fun again and go on…
I hate Ollie’s mother! Seriously she’s totally crazy :( and made Ollie's life a nightmare!! And then I need to believe she made all for him? Oh gosh NO!! All the books issues? Sick!
I'm happy at least that we have a HEA for Ollie! Poor boy :”(
Ollie life going down step by step!
This book is a rollercoaster!!
Fun , angst. , romantic, decadent , exiting , sad, then fun again and go on…
I hate Ollie’s mother! Seriously she’s totally crazy :( and made Ollie's life a nightmare!! And then I need to believe she made all for him? Oh gosh NO!! All the books issues? Sick!
I'm happy at least that we have a HEA for Ollie! Poor boy :”(
January 17, 2016
I believe that I am incapable of reading a John Wiltshire novel without completely gushing about it afterward. I loved Ollie Always. It felt so personal and heartfelt. As I've come to expect with JW's writing, it was intelligent and romantic with characters you can't help but fall in love with. Really quite an experience and I can't recommend it enough.
January 29, 2016
I really do adore this authors work, it is such good reading. Very angsty, romantic and I can't wait for more.
January 19, 2016
3.5 stars
Review @Ohmyshelves Blog
Conflicted, Bewilderment, Unexpected Emotions are some of the terms that I would use to describe this book. I really like John Wiltshire's writing alot, and I found it hard at times to read this and not compare Ollie & Tom to Nik & Ben. I seen alot of similarities between the two, but these are different characters. It feels very personal to the author, almost like he wrote a bit of himself in the story. I kinda think both characters show similar traits of him. I applaud him for putting himself out there like that. Romance plays an almost back burner to this story. I don't know how I feel about that yet, but I'm glad with the finished product is. I do think this might be the closest we will get to getting a contemporary novel from Mr. Wiltshire. It surprised me, the lack of gore and pain that is. It was a refreshment from all the pain from his other series.
My biggest issue with the story is the nonstop internal monologue that Ollie was having with himself. I was yearning for the dialogue between the two. Even when times I felt like they were speaking in riddles and I couldn't get clarity from the situation. I really would have liked their to be just a tad less Ollie's mind and more communication between him and all the characters. Ollie and Tom are very complex characters. I'd also start off saying it's not romance story to me. I would define it as Self-Discovery. That's what happened between these two guys. Ollie has been competing against Oliver his entire life. I felt pity, contempt towards that situation. It took Ollie 27 years to figure out Ollie. I can't say much without giving up the plot, but Ollie is such a sweet person that the I feel like no was looking out for him. It might seem selfish to say that seeing the lengths that his mother went through, and maybe because I'm not a mom yet, but that seems so harsh then talking it out with him. It seems like Ollie craves a relationship with his mom, and the only way for her to pay attention to him is by him acting out. Ollie has to come to terms with his sexual identity, grief, and finding himself.
I need to come to terms wit my feelings regarding Tom. I feel like his role in the story was rather cliche, but he was just as messed up as Ollie. He frustrated me so much sending out these mixed signals. I can see why Ollie had some of those internal thoughts and day dreams. I don't know if I like these two together. I think both guys are dealing with personal demons and sexuality is playing such a big character in this book, that I don't feel like they are appreciating each other.
Veronica Fitzroy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want to say she's the worst mother ever, but I can't!!! She was infuriating at the least, at best she was protecting her kid. I was unexpectedly gut punched at 70%. Out of nowhere I was crying tears, that letter that she sent Ollie was so heartbreaking and I think Ollie definitely needed to hear and know those things. I really had hope that we would have had a conversation between those two. I think Ollie needed to hash things out with her before he could truly be happy. Those are just my thoughts. After all of this I'm still unsure if I like the story at all. I'm okay with the HFN, but with so many thoughts in this book I kinda want an epilogue. I think we need one giant therapy session with lots of tears and tissues!
**Special thanks to John Wiltshire and MLR Press for allowing me to review this book for an unbiased rating and review**
Review @Ohmyshelves Blog
Conflicted, Bewilderment, Unexpected Emotions are some of the terms that I would use to describe this book. I really like John Wiltshire's writing alot, and I found it hard at times to read this and not compare Ollie & Tom to Nik & Ben. I seen alot of similarities between the two, but these are different characters. It feels very personal to the author, almost like he wrote a bit of himself in the story. I kinda think both characters show similar traits of him. I applaud him for putting himself out there like that. Romance plays an almost back burner to this story. I don't know how I feel about that yet, but I'm glad with the finished product is. I do think this might be the closest we will get to getting a contemporary novel from Mr. Wiltshire. It surprised me, the lack of gore and pain that is. It was a refreshment from all the pain from his other series.
My biggest issue with the story is the nonstop internal monologue that Ollie was having with himself. I was yearning for the dialogue between the two. Even when times I felt like they were speaking in riddles and I couldn't get clarity from the situation. I really would have liked their to be just a tad less Ollie's mind and more communication between him and all the characters. Ollie and Tom are very complex characters. I'd also start off saying it's not romance story to me. I would define it as Self-Discovery. That's what happened between these two guys. Ollie has been competing against Oliver his entire life. I felt pity, contempt towards that situation. It took Ollie 27 years to figure out Ollie. I can't say much without giving up the plot, but Ollie is such a sweet person that the I feel like no was looking out for him. It might seem selfish to say that seeing the lengths that his mother went through, and maybe because I'm not a mom yet, but that seems so harsh then talking it out with him. It seems like Ollie craves a relationship with his mom, and the only way for her to pay attention to him is by him acting out. Ollie has to come to terms with his sexual identity, grief, and finding himself.
I need to come to terms wit my feelings regarding Tom. I feel like his role in the story was rather cliche, but he was just as messed up as Ollie. He frustrated me so much sending out these mixed signals. I can see why Ollie had some of those internal thoughts and day dreams. I don't know if I like these two together. I think both guys are dealing with personal demons and sexuality is playing such a big character in this book, that I don't feel like they are appreciating each other.
Veronica Fitzroy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want to say she's the worst mother ever, but I can't!!! She was infuriating at the least, at best she was protecting her kid. I was unexpectedly gut punched at 70%. Out of nowhere I was crying tears, that letter that she sent Ollie was so heartbreaking and I think Ollie definitely needed to hear and know those things. I really had hope that we would have had a conversation between those two. I think Ollie needed to hash things out with her before he could truly be happy. Those are just my thoughts. After all of this I'm still unsure if I like the story at all. I'm okay with the HFN, but with so many thoughts in this book I kinda want an epilogue. I think we need one giant therapy session with lots of tears and tissues!
**Special thanks to John Wiltshire and MLR Press for allowing me to review this book for an unbiased rating and review**
January 22, 2016
I wondered why an author with an incredibly popular series (More Heat Than the Sun) would want to spent time writing a different novel. Now I know. This was a departure from the insanely good plot-driven novels about Nik and Ben, and turned out to be a very thought-provoking story about growing up and forging your own way in life, which still had all the John Wiltshire brilliance I've come to rely on.
Ollie and Tom could not be more different, one rich and drifting almost aimlessly, trying to write a novel; one impoverished and trying to earn his living as a carpenter (apparently). It seems impossible that they could have anything in common.
This is the sort of novel you can curl up with and just indulge yourself.
Seriously, five stars is not enough to rate this delightful story.
I adore Ollie.
Sequel ... ? Please ... !
Ollie and Tom could not be more different, one rich and drifting almost aimlessly, trying to write a novel; one impoverished and trying to earn his living as a carpenter (apparently). It seems impossible that they could have anything in common.
This is the sort of novel you can curl up with and just indulge yourself.
Seriously, five stars is not enough to rate this delightful story.
I adore Ollie.
Sequel ... ? Please ... !
May 28, 2019
Loved the writing, the humour, the romance, basically, loved everything. I also found it very unique, which explains why it's now in my favorites shelf.
April 4, 2016
It is difficult to begin what promises to be a very clumsy review in an endeavour to do what should be adequate justice to the author's work, a herculean task if ever there was one. The experience of reading Ollie Always closely resembled sitting on Princess Wharf in Auckland, gazing lyrically over the stunning awe that seawater inspires in one's mind. It is a pleasure that could not possibly be more organic, a joy that incites speechlessness and soft whispers of pitifully exclaimed joy, which ought to form more coherent sentences, but here goes nothing.
The reader sets off on this journey with Ollie, always Ollie, as an unsuspecting spectator and quickly transforms into one of his pall-bearers and ardent advocates by the time the first chapter is read. It is difficult not to root for such thinly-veiled and adorable innocence, one that is often missing in those who are caged by their own cynicism, especially across Aotearoa. Beauty beckons from every sentence that drives the narrative forward, in a way that is accessible as it is vividly imagined, calling upon the notion that the author is extraordinarily adept at connecting with raw human emotion at its most fundamental source, where novels derive the best of their talents.
It must be said that the book was difficult to put down. It came across as compulsively readable, and furthermore resonated with a particularly English upbringing. It brought home the idea that different wealth backgrounds didn't necessarily mean people couldn't coexist in a relationship. The tale deftly wove the setting, the sights, the sounds, the smells and the tastes of its characters into the reader's received experience, seamlessly relating the fiction to reality.
Embedded within this mix, one could find many points of irritation as well. The masculine tendency to lean toward whatever was easiest, like alcohol, felt reasonably accurate from the perspective of English lived experience, but stung nonetheless given how much you wanted the characters to move on. It was a difficult experience to watch the characters find themselves in what other reviewers have described palpably as a 'slow burn'. An equally gripping emotion was the joy in watching their journey to being comfortable with each other.
The lovemaking is utterly divine, for want of less lofty terminology, because it accurately encapsulates the stream of consciousness that flows through men when engrossed in intimacy. It lays deliciously bare the electrically-charged emotional roller-coaster that relationships between men can sometimes be, with all the angst of miscommunication. Moreover, it strips away at the superficial formality to reveal the hidden gems of human potential underneath, which augments an already dizzying masterpiece to an altogether more enriched sphere. The story grounds the reader in the earthy grittiness that surrounds MM relationships, which is a fulfilling experience largely because of the author's immense skill in steering the plot so well.
I have never found it difficult to fall in love with an author's work, but it is seldom as exciting or as immersive an experience as it was with this book. I could not recommend it more candidly to everybody who ever thought that happy endings are more than possible, and effectively inviting in the most domesticated way conceivable. I am moved by the experience of this book to the extent following which I can hardly contemplate how I will be able to read something different tomorrow. My procrastination about making any tangible progress on assignments drove me to this book, and I feel tremendously fortunate to have come across it to begin with.
The reader sets off on this journey with Ollie, always Ollie, as an unsuspecting spectator and quickly transforms into one of his pall-bearers and ardent advocates by the time the first chapter is read. It is difficult not to root for such thinly-veiled and adorable innocence, one that is often missing in those who are caged by their own cynicism, especially across Aotearoa. Beauty beckons from every sentence that drives the narrative forward, in a way that is accessible as it is vividly imagined, calling upon the notion that the author is extraordinarily adept at connecting with raw human emotion at its most fundamental source, where novels derive the best of their talents.
It must be said that the book was difficult to put down. It came across as compulsively readable, and furthermore resonated with a particularly English upbringing. It brought home the idea that different wealth backgrounds didn't necessarily mean people couldn't coexist in a relationship. The tale deftly wove the setting, the sights, the sounds, the smells and the tastes of its characters into the reader's received experience, seamlessly relating the fiction to reality.
Embedded within this mix, one could find many points of irritation as well. The masculine tendency to lean toward whatever was easiest, like alcohol, felt reasonably accurate from the perspective of English lived experience, but stung nonetheless given how much you wanted the characters to move on. It was a difficult experience to watch the characters find themselves in what other reviewers have described palpably as a 'slow burn'. An equally gripping emotion was the joy in watching their journey to being comfortable with each other.
The lovemaking is utterly divine, for want of less lofty terminology, because it accurately encapsulates the stream of consciousness that flows through men when engrossed in intimacy. It lays deliciously bare the electrically-charged emotional roller-coaster that relationships between men can sometimes be, with all the angst of miscommunication. Moreover, it strips away at the superficial formality to reveal the hidden gems of human potential underneath, which augments an already dizzying masterpiece to an altogether more enriched sphere. The story grounds the reader in the earthy grittiness that surrounds MM relationships, which is a fulfilling experience largely because of the author's immense skill in steering the plot so well.
I have never found it difficult to fall in love with an author's work, but it is seldom as exciting or as immersive an experience as it was with this book. I could not recommend it more candidly to everybody who ever thought that happy endings are more than possible, and effectively inviting in the most domesticated way conceivable. I am moved by the experience of this book to the extent following which I can hardly contemplate how I will be able to read something different tomorrow. My procrastination about making any tangible progress on assignments drove me to this book, and I feel tremendously fortunate to have come across it to begin with.
February 3, 2016
10 stars...5 stars aren't enough.
I started this book early early this morning..finished just now. Its cliched to say I couldn't put it down..I could have but I didn't want to so I didn't.
I loved every single second of Ollie Always...from the first line to the last line. I laughed, I cried, was outraged, was devastated, swooned, swayed with John's pure magical writing style. Magical romance filled with words and phrases I have no idea what they mean until I look them up haha I guess I am a little like Tom in that regard but like Tom I am completely in love and soldiered on learning new fabulous words as the story went on.
Ollie Ollie Ollie my gosh I adore this character. Every single thing about him, I just adored.
I didn't think it possible that he could write characters that I would love as much as Ben and Nik. I was wrong so wrong.
I started this book early early this morning..finished just now. Its cliched to say I couldn't put it down..I could have but I didn't want to so I didn't.
I loved every single second of Ollie Always...from the first line to the last line. I laughed, I cried, was outraged, was devastated, swooned, swayed with John's pure magical writing style. Magical romance filled with words and phrases I have no idea what they mean until I look them up haha I guess I am a little like Tom in that regard but like Tom I am completely in love and soldiered on learning new fabulous words as the story went on.
Ollie Ollie Ollie my gosh I adore this character. Every single thing about him, I just adored.
I didn't think it possible that he could write characters that I would love as much as Ben and Nik. I was wrong so wrong.
January 23, 2016
Very different to John's other books, but there was still a deep underlying theme of Ollie finding himself. Some Of the things i loved were how Oliie goes off in his head imagining all these different scenarios, none of which are true, the humour, and of course the dog!
Some quotes
"ideas_for_the_book.doc. It was still depressingly blank. Had he honestly hoped some inspiration would hit him whilst perusing cats sitting in circles or standing on their hind legs? No, he’d prayed the page might magically fill itself rather than nagging him, a tiny blue and white source of pain at the bottom of his screen."
"He should have got a three-legged dog earlier, he realised. He was now merely an accessory for Bartleby’s adventures."
Some quotes
"ideas_for_the_book.doc. It was still depressingly blank. Had he honestly hoped some inspiration would hit him whilst perusing cats sitting in circles or standing on their hind legs? No, he’d prayed the page might magically fill itself rather than nagging him, a tiny blue and white source of pain at the bottom of his screen."
"He should have got a three-legged dog earlier, he realised. He was now merely an accessory for Bartleby’s adventures."
February 5, 2016
4.25 stars.
This book was such an emotional roller-coaster. It made me laugh, it made me sad, outraged, sick, it made my heart ache and warm.
It was totally unique, and then predictable, and then unique again.
It was hard to believe and it was OTT, and then it was all too realistic.
I don't know how to feel about it. I don't really know how to rate it.
But I fiercely loved Ollie...so wanted to hug him and protect him from the incredibly cruel world.
This book was such an emotional roller-coaster. It made me laugh, it made me sad, outraged, sick, it made my heart ache and warm.
It was totally unique, and then predictable, and then unique again.
It was hard to believe and it was OTT, and then it was all too realistic.
I don't know how to feel about it. I don't really know how to rate it.
But I fiercely loved Ollie...so wanted to hug him and protect him from the incredibly cruel world.
July 17, 2021
I finally got to reading this yesterday and absolutely devoured it...I'm a little tired this morning as I stayed up quite late to finish it (certainly a sign of a good book).
What can I say really...loved it. Beautifully written, wonderful story and great characters. Drama that didn't feel contrived...great, great stuff!
What can I say really...loved it. Beautifully written, wonderful story and great characters. Drama that didn't feel contrived...great, great stuff!
October 15, 2018
Lovely contemporary romance about a writer-wannabe who probably would be wiser if he'd stay as far away from books as possible. Ollie is already the product of a life haunted by his famous-author mother's fictional character with the same name. In a vain attempt to distinguish himself, he is Ollie, Always, a name his mother and her friends totally ignore.
Ollie is almost the quintessential poor little rich boy. He feels useless existing on his mother's money. He's got horrible memories of his posh boarding school where he was mercilessly bullied. He is tired of being viewed as the sexually precocious gay hero of his mother's books to the point of denying his own sexuality. In short, he is messed up. But maybe not as messed up as he thinks, when he meets the handsome runner who starts going by his little house in a sparsely populated part of New Zealand.
The meeting is funny. Ollie has a very wry and self-deprecating humor, and there were some hilarious passages. There was also some angst, a little twist or two, and I shed a few tears, but this is a romance and both our heroes pull themselves out of the bad times and work towards their happiness, and it is joyous!
This book was a splendid surprise. Lots of fun. Great bits on writing and funny concepts. Interesting characters. All totally memorable. I loved it.
Ollie is almost the quintessential poor little rich boy. He feels useless existing on his mother's money. He's got horrible memories of his posh boarding school where he was mercilessly bullied. He is tired of being viewed as the sexually precocious gay hero of his mother's books to the point of denying his own sexuality. In short, he is messed up. But maybe not as messed up as he thinks, when he meets the handsome runner who starts going by his little house in a sparsely populated part of New Zealand.
The meeting is funny. Ollie has a very wry and self-deprecating humor, and there were some hilarious passages. There was also some angst, a little twist or two, and I shed a few tears, but this is a romance and both our heroes pull themselves out of the bad times and work towards their happiness, and it is joyous!
This book was a splendid surprise. Lots of fun. Great bits on writing and funny concepts. Interesting characters. All totally memorable. I loved it.
February 5, 2017
I devoured this book in a matter of hours. It has been... quite a journey.
I don't even know where to begin with this one.
I already knew that I loved the author's writing having already read most of the More Heat Than the Sun series by him, but this book was on a completely other level. It was just so hearbreakingly, stunningly beautiful and eloquent, so wonderfully thought-out, every little piece just fell into place as you read on... gosh, it was just amazing. I was even truly shocked by the revelation about one of the characters - and it was so fucking simple, should have been so obvious, but I was just so utterly engrossed in the story that the little hints never really registered, until, boom, there goes my heart, bye-bye.
Ollie and Tom... just come here and let me love you both, forever and always.
This book made me laugh, made me cry and made me hope, tore me up and sewed me back together with its wonderful words. It was strange and weird in places, but it was just the right amount of crazy, just a little something special that made it all the more memorable.
Definitely something worth checking out, highly recommended!
I don't even know where to begin with this one.
I already knew that I loved the author's writing having already read most of the More Heat Than the Sun series by him, but this book was on a completely other level. It was just so hearbreakingly, stunningly beautiful and eloquent, so wonderfully thought-out, every little piece just fell into place as you read on... gosh, it was just amazing. I was even truly shocked by the revelation about one of the characters - and it was so fucking simple, should have been so obvious, but I was just so utterly engrossed in the story that the little hints never really registered, until, boom, there goes my heart, bye-bye.
Ollie and Tom... just come here and let me love you both, forever and always.
This book made me laugh, made me cry and made me hope, tore me up and sewed me back together with its wonderful words. It was strange and weird in places, but it was just the right amount of crazy, just a little something special that made it all the more memorable.
Definitely something worth checking out, highly recommended!
January 22, 2016
I gave this one a 5-star rating and then came back to review it properly because I wanted to read it for a second time. This was a novel of slowly revealing identity and it needed a second reading to fully appreciate all the little hints and details I missed the first time around. Fans of John Wiltshire won't be disappointed in this novel, as a lot of his familiar themes are there: great main characters, witty dialogue, great plot, and a cute dog. But I think this might bring some new fans in as well. It's not overtly gay, in that the main characters are both men, but there is no sex (nothing more than you'd find in any YA novel these days). And being men isn't the point of this book for me, it's about what it means to be human, to find your place in the world and to defy certain expectations and carve a new route for yourself - I guess to write your own story.
I absolutely loved this novel, and when I need a story to return to when I'm sad or lonely, this will be the one that I'll turn to.
Loved it. I'm so glad I discovered this author.
I absolutely loved this novel, and when I need a story to return to when I'm sad or lonely, this will be the one that I'll turn to.
Loved it. I'm so glad I discovered this author.
September 26, 2021
Ollie, the main character, drinks wine from a pint glass at 10 am, eats nothing but shortbread, wallows in self-pity, procrastinates by watching cat videos, stalks the postman because he's lonely, and when he tries to orchestrate a meeting with his crush, he pulls a muscle and ends up with feces smeared all over his hand. Basically, me in five years. Only this book has character development, and my life doesn't.
And, of course, Ollie Always(I love love love this title) introduced me to The Big Book of Lesbian Horse Stories, which I'm now saving money for. (I'm only half-kidding, I kind of want to have that on my bookshelf)
"I think the world has a habit of falling in love with Mr. Thomas Collins, and I was no exception. But I wanted that love for you."
And, of course, Ollie Always(I love love love this title) introduced me to The Big Book of Lesbian Horse Stories, which I'm now saving money for. (I'm only half-kidding, I kind of want to have that on my bookshelf)
"I think the world has a habit of falling in love with Mr. Thomas Collins, and I was no exception. But I wanted that love for you."
January 28, 2016
I loved this story. I got lost in the words and immersed in his clever deliveries. I LOVE all of John Wiltshire's books but this one now has a special place in my heart.
I loved this story. I got lost in the words and immersed in his clever deliveries. I LOVE all of John Wiltshire's books but this one now has a special place in my heart.
I loved this story. I got lost in the words and immersed in his clever deliveries. I LOVE all of John Wiltshire's books but this one now has a special place in my heart.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews