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Circuit
The weekend before Pride in London and Bear is ready to spend it partying with his cadre of friends. Sniping, drinks, drugs, and casual sex ensue, but he's really thrown a curveball when a bomb is detonated in the nightclub he was running late to, killing his friends and many others. And then his night resets. Now he's stuck reliving the same night out, trying to figure out how to stop the attack and save his friends.
158 pages, Paperback
Published August 1, 2022
3 people are currently reading
129 people want to read
About the author
James Berry
2 books77 followersBorn and raised in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, he has spent the last six years in London. Although he feels South London is the best place to be in the capital, he's currently based in Wembley.
Most, if not all, of his writing focuses around gay men and their relationships and with at least one fantastical element usually thrown in there. His favourite books to read are horror, romance, and the absurd, and that follows into his writing too.
His debut novella, Circuit, was published in December 2020. He is currently working on my next publication, but he pays the bills with restaurant work.
Most, if not all, of his writing focuses around gay men and their relationships and with at least one fantastical element usually thrown in there. His favourite books to read are horror, romance, and the absurd, and that follows into his writing too.
His debut novella, Circuit, was published in December 2020. He is currently working on my next publication, but he pays the bills with restaurant work.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 22, 2020
A thrilling plot with a supernatural twist.
The setting is the London Pride in July, the crowd is handsome muscled circuit boys who come to London to party - and hook up.
This is the story of 'Bear', one of those handsome party people who jump from bed (or toilet stall) to bed, especially during the London Pride weekend when 'new meat' is available in abundance.
Bear's day starts with a sex date, followed by a meeting with his friends before they start their clubbing night through London. At the height of their wild night, a terror attack drowns a buzzing gay night club in blood, and one heart beat later...
Bear finds himself balls deep in his morning hook up at the beginning of the day!
He remembers the events, but believes them a dream of some kind, until tragedy unfolds a second time and lands him back at the beginning of the day.
Sounds familiar?
I really liked the plot and the resolution to the time loop. Quite an imaginative concept.
I'm not a big fan of the circuit party scene and the promiscuous adventures that some Pride tourists embark on. Bear was a bit of an anti-hero, I liked how he was a shady 'circuit slut' himself, coming into a totally unexpected position, questioning his life.
I just wish the sentences were a bit less complex :-)
All in all, an impressive debut novella, it definitely caught my interest.
4 stars
The setting is the London Pride in July, the crowd is handsome muscled circuit boys who come to London to party - and hook up.
This is the story of 'Bear', one of those handsome party people who jump from bed (or toilet stall) to bed, especially during the London Pride weekend when 'new meat' is available in abundance.
Bear's day starts with a sex date, followed by a meeting with his friends before they start their clubbing night through London. At the height of their wild night, a terror attack drowns a buzzing gay night club in blood, and one heart beat later...
Bear finds himself balls deep in his morning hook up at the beginning of the day!
He remembers the events, but believes them a dream of some kind, until tragedy unfolds a second time and lands him back at the beginning of the day.
Sounds familiar?
I really liked the plot and the resolution to the time loop. Quite an imaginative concept.
I'm not a big fan of the circuit party scene and the promiscuous adventures that some Pride tourists embark on. Bear was a bit of an anti-hero, I liked how he was a shady 'circuit slut' himself, coming into a totally unexpected position, questioning his life.
I just wish the sentences were a bit less complex :-)
All in all, an impressive debut novella, it definitely caught my interest.
4 stars
January 31, 2022
I came across this book through pure happenstance. I noticed the author talking about some of my favorite books on twitter and his pinned tweet mentioned that his book has:
💣 High stakes chaos?
♾ Time loops?
🏳️🌈 Messy gay frenemies?
🍆 Porny nightclub sex?
If you know me, you know that heavily overlaps with my taste in media. It was on Kindle Unlimited and I immediately decided to check it out. no regrets, it was very entertaining to read.
I felt the exhaustion of the MC when he kept resetting back to the same day (and the same position, like my god, talk about a compromising position, practically a new fear for me if i were ever to hypothetically be stuck in time loops. Nadia from Russian Doll just had to stare into the mirror when she reset.)
I loved how the ending was wrapped up, this book packs a punch for just an 80-page story. definitely highly recommended.
I'm rating it 4 stars cause i was still a bit momentarily lost at times and maybe the book could be improved with a bit more editing? but that's just nitpicking. honestly, check this out for a short interesting read.
💣 High stakes chaos?
♾ Time loops?
🏳️🌈 Messy gay frenemies?
🍆 Porny nightclub sex?
If you know me, you know that heavily overlaps with my taste in media. It was on Kindle Unlimited and I immediately decided to check it out. no regrets, it was very entertaining to read.
I felt the exhaustion of the MC when he kept resetting back to the same day (and the same position, like my god, talk about a compromising position, practically a new fear for me if i were ever to hypothetically be stuck in time loops. Nadia from Russian Doll just had to stare into the mirror when she reset.)
I loved how the ending was wrapped up, this book packs a punch for just an 80-page story. definitely highly recommended.
I'm rating it 4 stars cause i was still a bit momentarily lost at times and maybe the book could be improved with a bit more editing? but that's just nitpicking. honestly, check this out for a short interesting read.
February 9, 2022
Graphic but a good sci-fi thriller
With a social message and intense scenes from the infamous circuit parties found during Pride for a segment of gay men, this novella flips the script on its head when Bear (the narrator) is enjoying the Pride festivities in his hedonistic ways when a terrorist attack occurs killing his friends and resulting in a time loop that starts up again from where the story starts - at 5pm when he just finishes up at a hookup. From there the story stretches into weeks as Bear attempts to figure out why the attacks occurred and how to stop them.
At first reading about the parties, the wild sex and drug use was incredibly discomforting, but once the time loops started I appreciated Berry and his writing style, and I also appreciated the twists that he threw in the novella that made it incredibly enjoyable.
With a social message and intense scenes from the infamous circuit parties found during Pride for a segment of gay men, this novella flips the script on its head when Bear (the narrator) is enjoying the Pride festivities in his hedonistic ways when a terrorist attack occurs killing his friends and resulting in a time loop that starts up again from where the story starts - at 5pm when he just finishes up at a hookup. From there the story stretches into weeks as Bear attempts to figure out why the attacks occurred and how to stop them.
At first reading about the parties, the wild sex and drug use was incredibly discomforting, but once the time loops started I appreciated Berry and his writing style, and I also appreciated the twists that he threw in the novella that made it incredibly enjoyable.
April 10, 2021
Ever wonder what would happen if the movie Groundhog Day was done with circuit gays? Well, Circuit is your answer! LOL
Our unlikely hero, Bear, is all about the sex, the clubs, and a bunch of life's other pleasures. Until one day a terrible thing happens and he has no choice but to keep reliving it over and over again.
While the first quarter of the book is a myriad of sexual trysts that kind of all blend into one, the rest of this novella comes together in this thrilling race against time to stop a terror attack at one of London's major gay nightclubs during Pride weekend. With my nails bitten down to the base and my bum on the edge of my seat, I was sucked into the story and its characters immediately. I loved how Bear was able to find a resolution to the never-ending time loop he found himself in and the almost seamless character development.
The descriptions were complex and detailed - though some were Brit-centric so I had to do a bit of a Google. They sometimes ran-on for too long as well but not enough to pull me out of the story.
I am just so so impressed with this debut novella from such a lovely human! If you're looking for a good thriller/mystery and don't mind a bit of R-rated scenes, Circuit is definitely for you. :)
Our unlikely hero, Bear, is all about the sex, the clubs, and a bunch of life's other pleasures. Until one day a terrible thing happens and he has no choice but to keep reliving it over and over again.
While the first quarter of the book is a myriad of sexual trysts that kind of all blend into one, the rest of this novella comes together in this thrilling race against time to stop a terror attack at one of London's major gay nightclubs during Pride weekend. With my nails bitten down to the base and my bum on the edge of my seat, I was sucked into the story and its characters immediately. I loved how Bear was able to find a resolution to the never-ending time loop he found himself in and the almost seamless character development.
The descriptions were complex and detailed - though some were Brit-centric so I had to do a bit of a Google. They sometimes ran-on for too long as well but not enough to pull me out of the story.
I am just so so impressed with this debut novella from such a lovely human! If you're looking for a good thriller/mystery and don't mind a bit of R-rated scenes, Circuit is definitely for you. :)
May 28, 2021
Obviously I didn't see whatever everyone else who read this book saw. It took me a long time to get into this book and the fact that it's very short meant it was almost over by that point. It just didn't really work for me.
May 17, 2021
A different type of mystery story, with a bit of other worldliness thrown in, in a Groundhog Day trope.
Bear is a main character that initially doesn’t engender much sympathy as he cruises from one hook up and drug hit to another. Then things get weird when it all happens again.
So then most of the book is then Bear, and eventually his ex Nico appears who is in the same time loop, trying to work out how to stop the murder of most of the people in a gay club.
It’s a bit like the film where they keep relearning how to kill the aliens, just with more sex!
Not sure how Bear gets to 2 years later - I think everything happened from clues given - but suddenly Nico’s reappearance says the loop is still going.
Nico’s ultimate change to the cycle is the one that allows it all to be resolve without bloodshed but leaves Bear with 2 years to love again!
Interesting, and I always like to read Brit authors.
Bear is a main character that initially doesn’t engender much sympathy as he cruises from one hook up and drug hit to another. Then things get weird when it all happens again.
So then most of the book is then Bear, and eventually his ex Nico appears who is in the same time loop, trying to work out how to stop the murder of most of the people in a gay club.
It’s a bit like the film where they keep relearning how to kill the aliens, just with more sex!
Not sure how Bear gets to 2 years later - I think everything happened from clues given - but suddenly Nico’s reappearance says the loop is still going.
Nico’s ultimate change to the cycle is the one that allows it all to be resolve without bloodshed but leaves Bear with 2 years to love again!
Interesting, and I always like to read Brit authors.
August 3, 2024
I have to search myself to find the words on how I feel about this book. From the first few sentences I was instantly hooked on Berry’s use of the English language and the incredible sentence structure. I didn’t want this to end. This was a fever dream and I loved every second.
June 6, 2021
3.5 stars
January 5, 2023
Oh man, that was GOOD. Bit of a slow start to get hooked in, since Bear and his friends are admittedly insufferable, but man dos it deliver in the end. I am such a sucker for time loop stories.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews