The Boy

A man combs the London slums for the foster child who destroyed his family in this overwrought, strangely original debut. Haunted by the disgrace of his father's alcoholism, Birmingham's Sean Kennedy grows up determined to distinguish himself in liberal politics and enters government as a social worker. After a secret transgression demolishes his self-respect, he atones by taking Durward--the charismatic, orphaned adolescent son of a client--home to live with his wife and children. Durward, however, proves to be a supremely troubled youngster with several personalities and identities. After causing the Kennedy family irreparable harm, he runs away for a life of prostitution. Sean's hunt for the boy leads him to the Churchill Home for Boys in Battersea, where Sean tries to piece his own life back together by having a love affair with one of the eccentric employees before finally facing his sociopathic foster son. Murr's characters seduce each other and explain themselves with operatic gusto: they seem to communicate in arias. This is especially true of the epicene, Nietzsche-spouting Durward, a pied piper who, wherever he roams, charms men, women and children into high-camp crimes of passion. As in old-fashioned gothic novels, the implausibility of the plot and characters reflect a compelling psychological truth that lurks somewhere beneath the clunky melodramatic machinery. If the results are sometimes messy, they never fail to interest or intrigue. Author tour; rights: Ellen Levine; British rights: Fourth Estate; German rights: Luchterhand. (May) FYI: Born in London and of Irish and Lebanese descent, Neem currently lives in Houston.