This book was quite simply beautiful. I think I may have held my breath throughout the entire novel.
A very simply told story of the great teenage love affair of the narrators life. From watching Thomas across the playground, to Thomas initiating contact to the sex that occurs within hours, it is exciting, erotic and yet still a coming of age study of young manhood, sexuality and learning that adult paths diverge and the level playing field of school, which keeps children of all backgrounds and abilities together for so many years is fleeting.
The novel is primarily told from the narrators perspective, as events unfold in the mid 1980’s in a sleepy French village; but also from his meeting aged 40 a young man who is the image of his former lover, Thomas.
I read this book in one sitting and was so sad to reach the end of it.

Let's get this bit over and done with. Yes, it's translated by Molly Ringwald - she of The Breakfast Club - but, tbh, I hardly noticed that it wasn't naturally written in English so I guess it's a big thumbs-up from me with regard to her translating skills. As to her interpretation, well, I have no idea, I can't read the original to compare.
Secondly, this book is only split up into a few chapters, each depicting a time change. Indeed, chapter two starts at about 67% but, each chapter is split up into sections which are easily identified, so there are natural breaks for you to pop the kettle on or whathaveyou! If you think of each chapter as a Part and the breaks as chapters then you'll get on just fine.
So, famous author Philippe is being interviewed about his latest book at a hotel. He looks up and sees a familiar face, one from his past. This triggers a long trip down memory lane as we go back into his past, his schooldays, to the time he met Thomas who he went on to love and lose. It's beautiful, it's tragic and heartbreaking, at the same time, completely intimate. Forbidden love - indeed, the love that dare not speak its name - at school, in the 80s, in a rural part of France. The dice did not fall well for young Philippe and his first love. And then, so many years later, to see that familiar face. And what that meeting triggers. Oh my days!
How much of this book is real, maybe none, maybe parts, maybe more, I don't know but the author has definitely written from the heart. Whether names and events have been changed to protect the innocent or if none of this really happened, well, it doesn't matter. What matters is that all the way through it felt real. It came alive from each and every page. The love, the secrecy, the what if... The knowing that what they had was fleeting as Philippe was never going to stay and Thomas couldn't leave... Gosh was I in a right mess when I finished the book. Reminded me of how I felt when I read The Front Runner (Patricia Nell Warren) for the first time. It's catapulted itself into my top 10 books of all time (and I read more than 300/year and am quite old already so it has a lot of competition) and is one that I will definitely re-read - a much shorter list.
I almost wish I was more proficient in French than just my O'Level so that I could read this story exactly as the author wrote it. Maybe one day...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

LIE WITH ME – PHILIPPE BESSON

I read this novel in advance of publication through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

If you prefer novels with explosions and action heroes or overwrought prose like some I have reviewed recently, this novel is not for you.

Translated from the French by Molly Ringwald, this is a novel that starts even before you realise that it is the novel you are reading, and is written with understated prose, weaving a simple story with extraordinary dexterity and aplomb.

The tale is written in the first person by a well-known author, looking back over his life, and in particular his relationship in his teens with another boy and how that relationship affects the remainder of their lives. The layers of wisdom and emotion that are portrayed through simple words, elegantly told, create a level of sophistication that few authors ever obtain. Brilliant.

A beautifully written novel narrating the love affair between Philippe and Thomas set in the 1980’s. They meet at school. Philippe is intelligent and shy whereas Thomas is quiet, handsome and popular with the girls.

Philippe is attracted to Thomas and can’t keep his eyes off him. Thomas invites Philippe out for lunch he explains that he cannot fight his feelings for him, this is the start of their sexual liaisons, meeting up secretly afraid of other people’s homophobia.

This is such a beautiful moving memorable story. Although it is a short novel, it is full of emotion and passion and will tug at you’re heart strings!! I read it feeling the overwhelming emotions of first love, the words jumped out of the page straight to my heart, the ending made me quite tearful!!


Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

I wasn't sure what to expect of this short novel - the endorsements from other writers, the prizes and the fact it is translated by Molly Ringwald (yes, her of 'Breakfast Club' fame and a personal favourite of mine) all seemed to suggest that it was worth a go.

This is the story of a love affair between two teenage boys at school in France in 1984. Much of the early part of the novel is set in this time period as the boys become involved in a relationship and grapple with first love. The narrator, Phillipe, then leaves the small town and we see him in his future life as a famous writer. A chance encounter with a young man outside a hotel many years later brings the past back into sharp focus for Phillipe and we see how that first love affair has shaped the lives of the two lovers.

It's a beautifully written account of a first, passionate relationship, made all the more poignant by the fact that this is a love that is frowned upon by 1980s French society at a time when AIDS was coming to the fore. The need to hide their relationship impacts the two lovers and creates tragic circumstances. It's a vividly rendered account of being in love for the first time, with all the insecurities and strong emotions that brings.

I would recommend this novella to those who enjoy reading about first love, nostalgia and desire. It also gives an interesting insight into the experiences of gay men who were forced to keep their desires secret even as they were facing the AIDS epidemic, although this isn't written directly as a comment on society; it is much more personal than that. Phillipe is a frank, engaging and likeable narrator and you cannot help but be pulled along in his story.

The big question about this book is whether it is fiction or autobiographical. Middle aged writer Philippe has a chance encounter with a young man in Bordeaux, which leads him to remember the short but passionate love affair with a boy from school when he was 17. The boy, Thomas, insisted that the relationship be kept totally secret, as he was afraid of people knowing he was gay. This is a short novel, beautifully written and totally heart wrenching. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

DNF @ 45%. I really tried with this one. It sounded like it would be something I would enjoy; two male teenagers who are in their final school year, swept up in a hidden romance and having to meet secretly in order to satiate their burning passion for each other. Sadly, and I admit I'm likely more to blame than the book, I had to finally give up at the almost halfway point after almost falling asleep twice.

There's no doubt that this book is beautifully written, but the longwinded descriptive passages are just a little too wordy for me, instead distracting me from the meat of the story.

This is a short novel, at only 160 pages, so perhaps I should have just pushed though to see what everyone is loving about this book.
(As a sidenote, I have also not read Call Me By Your Name, which is another well-received book by the same author (that was also adapted into a movie).

If I get the chance to go back and try to read this again at some point in the near future, I'll be sure to do.

The setting itself is glorious though. Being born in the 80s I tend to get a little nostalgic at times. It's a shame I couldn't enjoy the lyrical style writing. But for those who like Phillip Besson's previous novel it's likely a no brainer to pick up.

A beautifully written book about youth, first love and the shame of having to hide it. For me it read almost as if it was a memoir, and it could be. I did at times find it a little slow and very resemblant of Call Me By Your Name. It is still a book I thoroughly enjoyed and would recommend to others. The tenderness and love that shines through this story should be felt by every person at least once in their life and no one should ever have to feel the shame of that bittersweet first love.

I loved this book!
From the first sentences I knew I was reading a French novel. What is it that gives this special feeling? The language is lyrical, the feelings are described without shame, the details of an inner world are given their due importance. I love France and I very much liked this French view of the world of teenage love and sexual exploration.

Two boys, Philippe and Thomas, fall in love in rural France. They have to be cautious, careful, hidden. Even from themselves.

Years later Philippe, now a famous author, has a chance meeting with someone who brings this past story back to life.

I loved everything about the writing - the descriptions, the conversations, the complex feelings described with great understanding and even love. There is no judgement - just acceptance and love.

I also liked very much the theme of leaving home versus staying where you are. It was developed very naturally and gently and I felt it deepen my understanding of why some people leave, and others stay.

A sensitive account of two teenage boys discovering their sexuality and the subsequent events. Gently told with exploration of prejudices they encountered.

An emotive novel about first love and loss. Beautifully written and subsequently translated from the original French text which flows well even in translation. The descriptions of the French countryside transport the reader there. It is a short book but packed with emotions and the difficulty of homosexual love in the early 1980s.

A beautifully written love story. This is a really well written novella about the love between 2 boys.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Lie With Me, Philippe Besson

Genre: LGBTQIA, Literary Fiction

When I started this I wasn't sure if I'd like it, the description is pretty short on info, but its not a long read and something just drew me to it.
I thought for maybe the first 25% I'd made a mistake, I didn't really like the way it read, mostly long monologues by the author interspersed with short snippets of dialogue between him and Thomas.
I struggle with that kind of read, for me dialogue telling the story works best, the show not tell approach, and yet as I continued I became engrossed in what was happening, worried for the boys, emotionally invested in the story. First Love is hard, and what they had and the need for secrecy made it harder.
I appreciated as I read more that actually this approach was the best way to tell the story and by the end I was in tears, its so incredibly sad.

I wasn't – still aren't – sure if this was really an autobiography, the book is dedicated to Thomas Andrieu, the name of Phillipe's lover, and set in the village where he grew up. Someone on goodreads says its actually autofiction, short for autobiographical fiction, or fictional memoir. Apparently that's very popular in french fiction.
If even a bit of it is true then what a sad tale, I'm so incredibly sorry for what the characters went through.

Whatever, its an amazing story, very moving and I'm so glad I did read it. Even if it made me cry at the end.
Its a story that could be mirrored today, but back in the 1980's homosexuality was still very much hidden by far too many people, too scared to live their lives the way they wanted, and sometimes I'm not certain we've really progressed that much.
Though we like to think we are liberal minded just think of the furor when a footballer, or someone in another popular “mans” sport comes out. Think of the homophobic chants on the terraces, the people facing abuse every day. If you live in a small village or town think of how hard it is to be different, how just maybe its easier to live a lie, rather than face daily contempt and bigotry, possibly within ones own family....One day.
Anyway, I understood why there was all the secrecy but at the end all I could feel was how sad, the loss of potential happiness, the lives that could have been lived, the happiness Thomas and Phillipe could have had, and that's kind of why it made me so choked, so sad. Just the waste of lives that never had a chance.

Stars: Five, despite my misgivings its an incredible read.

ARC via netgalley

This is a fantastically evocative novel, albeit a very slim one, about homosexual love in France in the 1980s. It sounds cliche but the narrator falls in love with a boy he thinks is out of his reach; he fantasises about him and the more he does this, the more isolated he becomes from reality. However, one day, the boy approaches him - and what begins is a sexual relationship which changes both boys' lives.

Molly Ringwald's translation is excellent - it captures life in provincial France; the issues the boys would have faced, not just from others, if they found out, but from themselves as well. As the novel develops, the boys' separation increases. Years pass and the ending, although very sad, is probably all too true for many people around the world in the 21st Century.

Philippe Besson's novel is beautiful. At times, it is a little unclear, and perhaps implausible, but overall, a really good, thought-provoking read.

A short and heart-breaking story of the love between teenagers Philippe and Thomas, that changes them both and shapes their futures. When they go separate ways, decades go past without any knowledge of the other. But a chance meeting opens up old stories…

A beautiful translation - I loved the page with the varying description of seven slightly different interpretations of love – the translation is smooth and natural, great credit to Molly Ringwald for such flawless work.

Highly recommended, sad, and a heart-breakingly beautiful piece of writing.

The author is quoted as saying “I wanted to write a sadness.” He has certainly achieved that in the most elegant, graceful and moving manner. This is the story of a secret first love between two teenage boys, one of whom realises that they have no future together.

The novel opens with a chance meeting between the narrator, Philippe, a successful novelist, and a young man, Lucas, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Philippe’s first love, Thomas. This prompts Philippe to recount the events of 1984, when he was seventeen and Thomas eighteen. Philippe was a studious and clever boy, son of a teacher. Thomas was a farmer’s son and resigned to the fact he too will become a farmer and be contained within his current environment. Very early on in their relationship Thomas says, “….you will leave and we will stay.” Throughout that summer they conduct a clandestine relationship which is described in poignant detail. Thomas, in particular, is scared of their association being discovered.

When the narrative moves to the present day and Philippe’s encounter with Lucas, who actually is Thomas’ son, we gain a further understanding of how Thomas has led his life. The secrets he has kept and the sacrifices he has made. The ending is so, so, heart-breaking.

The novel vibrates with loss and unbearable yearning. It reflects on a love which, at the time, must remain hidden and the sorrow that creates. It may or may not be a memoir but is it searingly beautiful with the most lyrical of prose. The translation from the original French is stunning.

Thank you to NetGalley and John Murray for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lie With Me is the gorgeous story of Philippe and Thomas who fall in love but have to keep their relationship secret as the 1980s were not exactly kind to the LGBT community.

Years later Philippe bumps into someone who looks exactly like Thomas: his son.

When the past meets the present Thomas begins to confront all of his unanswered questions that have plagued his life and his career.

I really loved Lie With Me. I won’t lie, I initially wanted to read it because it had been translated by Molly Ringwald (and I love Molly Ringwald) but this became irrelevant when you feel the pulse and the heart of this writing ooze from every page.

It is beautiful.

Read it now.

Lie With Me by Philippe Besson is available now.

For more information regarding Molly Ringwald (@MollyRingwald) please visit www.iammollyringwald.com.

For more information regarding Penguin (@PenguinUKBooks) please visit www.penguin.co.uk.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this book as I went in more or less blind.

It’s written like a memoir entirely in first person. I’m not even sure of the name of the main character so I’ll call him Philippe. It felt autobiographical.

The writing is quirky with the story following the thought process of Philippe as he remembers falling in love in his youth with the quiet and enigmatic Thomas. Thrown into the story of young and secret love is observations about Philippe’s life in France in the 1980s. Helping at the harvest and making cognac. Going to church against the wishes of his father. Holidaying at St Georges De Didonne. It’s beautifully observed.

Young love is hard and mostly heartbreaking. The anguish of Philippe and Thomas is oh so painful and oh so doomed. I’m left with a sad heart and a feeling of wanting to watch The Wounded Man.and Call Me By Your Name.

An unforgettable, exquisite and powerful award winning French novel by Philippe Besson, translated by the famous actress, Molly Ringwald, that reads and feels like the most intimate of memoirs. For such a short novel, it is achingly beautiful, lyrical, and intensely heartbreaking, a portrayal of the emotional, heady feelings of first love. A fragile, forbidden, repressed covert gay relationship set in the 1980s in a rural small town in France. Philippe is having a tough time in high school for being smart and perceived as effeminate, and drawn towards the more popular Thomas Andrieu, a farmer's boy with his future life mapped out in front of him. He has little idea that Thomas feels the same way about him until the two have lunch and embark on a sex driven affair that will haunt and have everlasting repercussions.

Philippe and Thomas are under no illusions, they both know right from the very start that their relationship is temporary and will not endure, but this in itself lends a passion, poignancy and urgency to their love. Years later, in the present, Philippe is a well known writer, who encounters a young man that inescapably reminds him of his first love, Thomas's son, Lucas, from whom he learns of Thomas's life after school and his family. This is a painfully tragic, profoundly moving and eloquently expressed story of hatred, thwarted love, loss, homophobia, regrets, masculinity, memory and class that will stay with you long after you have finished reading the last page. Highly recommended big time! Many thanks to Penguin UK for an ARC.

This is very short, more of a novella. There are no sub-plots, just the basic story of a love affair between two adolescent boys and how it affects their respective later lives. There is an ambiguity as to whether it is autobiographical or not. Thomas continues to torture himself and hides his true nature, whereas Philip comes out and has a successful life as an author. The translation by Mollie Ringwald, mostly flows well, although I did find one or two awkward sentences. I found the story poignant and believable.