Recently bereaved Jamie is staying at a rural steading in the heart of Scotland with his actor boyfriend Alex. The sudden loss of both of Jamie's parents hangs like a shadow over the trip. In his grief, Jamie finds himself sifting through bittersweet memories, from his working-class upbringing in Edinburgh to his bohemian twenties in London, with a growing awareness of his sexuality threaded through these formative years.
In the present, when Alex is called away to an audition, Jamie can no longer avoid the pull of the past: haunted by an inescapable failure to share his full self with his parents, he must confront his unresolved feelings towards them. In spare, evocative prose, Allan Radcliffe tells a wistful coming-of-age story and paints a tender portrait of grief in all its complexities.
'Equally heart-warming and sorrowful. Each and every sentence has been so elegantly penned' -The Scots Magazine
'Written with an honesty and understanding that is rare, it's a novel full of love, kindness, and compassion' -Skinny Magazine
'A rippling, multifaceted jewel of a novel - Poignant and compelling, it is resonant with vivid images' -Kevin MacNeil, author of The Brilliant & Forever
'Allan Radcliffe's debut touched my heart. Both insightful and observant, warm and infinitely relatable' -Henry Fry, author of 'First Time for Everything'
Author
About Allan Radcliffe
Allan Radcliffe was born in Perth, Scotland, and now lives near Edinburgh. His writing has won the Allen Wright Award and the Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award. With an MA from the University of Glasgow, he works as an arts journalist and editor, and is currently a freelance theatre critic and feature writer. His short stories have been published in anthologies including 'Out There', 'The Best Gay Short Stories' and 'New Writing Scotland', and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. 'The Old Haunts' is his debut novel.
