12-04-2025, 03:29 PM
Subsequent chapters follow the adventures, familial, social and sexual, of young Ben Kingsley (no, not that one) as he grows through his early and mid teens. He is exploited by men and older boys, but retains a fierce love for his Mum that helps him develop a resilience he didn't know he had.
It seems to have been stitched together by the author from a series of vaguely related stories, and given some sort of connecting narrative to try to hold them together. Unfortunately, Kent has let himself down with this one (or at least his publishers have) by failing to check continuity, leading to some irritating lapses. For example, Ben starts as an 11-year-old in the first chapter, and although two or three years pass over as many chapters, he's 11 years old again in a subsequent chapter, in spite of having had a couple of birthdays. I suppose publishers of this genre have less to spend on editors or proof-readers, and perhaps a target market that has other priorities than coherent narrative.
As is usual with Kent, men who want boys are presented as Bad People, but boys who want other boys are (mostly) Good Guys. There's little room for nuance in this binary world, but Kent seems to take it all - and himself - fairly seriously. This is his introduction: