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If I Had Died Last Summer
Richard returns with his second offering. A heterogeneous collection of short stories. Once more, drawing on the past, having rifled through old papers and manuscripts from his youth. Various scribblings of ideas, some fully formed short stories, a couple even previously entered into writing competitions.
However, this time, each idea has been revisited. Half-finished ones completed. Completed ones reviewed with older eyes. Some have been modernised, a couple left firmly set in the past. And the title story, If I had Died Last Summer , is an entirely new creation from his adult mind. As is the tale that completes the collection. Both are emotionally challenging creations.
So, what might you expect to follow on these pages?
It seems Richard had quite an active imagination in his youth. There are tales of time travel, horror, and adultery. A foray or two into the supernatural. A story of corporate jealousy and a somewhat embarrassing and misogynistic attempt at erotica. And halfway through, there is even an attempt to reimagine a literary classic!
All in all, a plethora of stories covering murder, mystery, sex, greed, tragedy, and downright betrayal, ranging in length from flash-fiction to the cusp of a novella.
In sympathy with the style found in Echoes of a Boy , Richard has capped each tale with a small footnote, explaining a little history of the piece. And, as a gay author, you can expect a thread of homosexuality throughout. But this is not gay fiction. This is just fiction with some gay characters. Just like everyday life.
Happy reading to all!
However, this time, each idea has been revisited. Half-finished ones completed. Completed ones reviewed with older eyes. Some have been modernised, a couple left firmly set in the past. And the title story, If I had Died Last Summer , is an entirely new creation from his adult mind. As is the tale that completes the collection. Both are emotionally challenging creations.
So, what might you expect to follow on these pages?
It seems Richard had quite an active imagination in his youth. There are tales of time travel, horror, and adultery. A foray or two into the supernatural. A story of corporate jealousy and a somewhat embarrassing and misogynistic attempt at erotica. And halfway through, there is even an attempt to reimagine a literary classic!
All in all, a plethora of stories covering murder, mystery, sex, greed, tragedy, and downright betrayal, ranging in length from flash-fiction to the cusp of a novella.
In sympathy with the style found in Echoes of a Boy , Richard has capped each tale with a small footnote, explaining a little history of the piece. And, as a gay author, you can expect a thread of homosexuality throughout. But this is not gay fiction. This is just fiction with some gay characters. Just like everyday life.
Happy reading to all!
225 pages, Hardcover
Published April 26, 2022
4 people want to read
About the author
Richard Godfray-Hoare
6 books9 followersRichard currently lives in Burford, Oxfordshire, with his husband, Scott.
Despite a long-held ambition to be a writer, crafting many a story in his late teens/early twenties, life seemed to take a different direction for the next thirty years or so.
COVID lockdown, and some mid-life crisis self-questioning, presented the opportunity to try again, and through his debut novel "Echoes of a Boy", Richard has crafted an exceptional concept piece. A fictional whodunit interlaced with a biographical commentary.
Richard's second offering, "If I Had Died Last Summer", is a collection of short stories again drawn from his youth, although we are also treated to a number of new creations.
And now we have his first complete novel, "Enigma: A Twisted Tale of Love and Magic". A different genre again, telling the tale of a schoolboy romance between Patrick and Craig, which blossoms over the years along with Patrick's increasing magic skills. There is a tragedy to be overcome along the way when their relationship is discovered by Patrick's religious parents, but nothing compared to the developments following Patrick's stunning audition on Future Stars, a TV talent show he has been desperate to showcase himself on.
Richard continues to write engaging, memorable stories, and although his new offering takes us once more in a different direction, it is undoubtedly in his unique style. Clever, twisted, and attempting to place his LGBTQ+ characters at the heart of mainstream fiction. Enjoy!
Despite a long-held ambition to be a writer, crafting many a story in his late teens/early twenties, life seemed to take a different direction for the next thirty years or so.
COVID lockdown, and some mid-life crisis self-questioning, presented the opportunity to try again, and through his debut novel "Echoes of a Boy", Richard has crafted an exceptional concept piece. A fictional whodunit interlaced with a biographical commentary.
Richard's second offering, "If I Had Died Last Summer", is a collection of short stories again drawn from his youth, although we are also treated to a number of new creations.
And now we have his first complete novel, "Enigma: A Twisted Tale of Love and Magic". A different genre again, telling the tale of a schoolboy romance between Patrick and Craig, which blossoms over the years along with Patrick's increasing magic skills. There is a tragedy to be overcome along the way when their relationship is discovered by Patrick's religious parents, but nothing compared to the developments following Patrick's stunning audition on Future Stars, a TV talent show he has been desperate to showcase himself on.
Richard continues to write engaging, memorable stories, and although his new offering takes us once more in a different direction, it is undoubtedly in his unique style. Clever, twisted, and attempting to place his LGBTQ+ characters at the heart of mainstream fiction. Enjoy!
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