Title: Passing Through
Author Name: Jay Northcote
Publication Date & Length: March 4, 2015 – 176 pgs
Don’t waste a chance at happiness…
Leo is a lonely workaholic with no time for romance in his life. His job in London takes all his energy and commitment. When he goes to Cornwall to stay with his terminally ill uncle, Edwin, love is the last thing Leo expects to find.
Tris lives in a cottage on Edwin’s land. Gay, but still half in the closet, he and Leo bond over their affection for Edwin, and the pull of attraction between them proves too strong to ignore. In Tris’s arms, in the wilds of Cornwall, Leo finds a peace he’d forgotten existed.
On his return to London, Leo finds himself grieving for more than just the loss of his uncle. When some unexpected news gives Leo the chance to return to Cornwall, he’s afraid it will be too late to rekindle things with Tris. But having learned much from his stay with his uncle, Leo doesn’t want to look back and wish he’d done things differently.
It’s time to seize the day—if it’s not already too late.
Jay Northcote is such an amazingly versatile writer. This is much more mature, much more considered and poignant writing than her more recent stories and I absolutely loved it. Northcote captures Cornwall’s wild beauty and the complexities of family relationships in a way that reminds me of Rosamund Pilcher or Mary Wesley.
Leo is a typical London workaholic who returns to Cornwall to care for his dying uncle, Edwin. This story is filled with both Leo and Edwin’s memories as both men relive the choices and experiences that have shaped their lives. Edwin’s lodger, Tris provides assistance for Edwin and a romantic interest for Leo.
There is something very timeless about Leo’s soul searching in this story. As Edwin’s life story begins to resonate with Leo, he re-evaluates his own priorities and values. Tris and Edwin’s relationship is convenient at first, but as the men live together, caring for Edwin, the connection becomes increasingly intimate.
As in any Jay Northcote story, there are some exquisite sex scenes, but this is more the story of Edwin’s death, a story of choosing to live and die well, without regrets. This is a truly beautiful story.
Sarah
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Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England, with her amazing, occasionally ridiculous husband, two noisy-but-awesome children, and two cats.
Jay comes from a family of writers, but she always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed her by. She spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content. One day, she decided to try and write a short story–just to see if she could–and found it rather addictive. She hasn’t stopped writing since.
Jay writes contemporary gay romance, usually set in or near her home town of Bristol. She enjoys the challenge of bringing the men in her head to life through her words.
