Buried on Sunday

Phillips's praised Sunday's Child introduced gay, middle-aged Geoffrystet Chadwick, a Montreal lawyer who relates the dizzy doings in this sequel. Meeting Catherine Bradford, a dear friend he hasn't seen in years, Chadwick can't resist an invitation to a weekend at her home in the boondocks, however much he loathes house parties. Expecting boredom, he experiences shock instead, sparked by the sudden recognition of Catherine's new husband, Mark Crosby, as the great love of Chadwick's youth. The arrival of Larry Townsend (``the Jekyll and Hyde of faggotdom'') is another blow to Chadwick, who isn't pleased by any of the company, except Catherine. The dicey situation goes completely wrong, though, when a trio of armed bank robbers bursts in, holding all present as hostages. During the ensuing tense hours, drunken Larry's scatological jokes don't help. Neither do chance visitors, a homophobic couple, handy victims for Larry's tongue lashings. There are so many twists in this Canadian caper, and so many nonstop quips, that the central action suffers. The crises test the fortitude of each character, some failing but Catherine shining as a splendid heroine. (June)