[.ca] The Lodger: Sharing Can Be Murder (ISBN 1902852400)

From Amazon.co.uk:
With his first novel The Lodger, Drew Gummerson accomplishes something that is rarely seen in modern gay fiction; a well rounded story with believable characters and a plot that is not punctuated by long, detailed sex sessions. His story centres around Honza, a struggling gay freelance writer who reluctantly takes on a lodger to help him pay his bills. Enter Andy, a beer-swilling, couch-dwelling slob who couldn't be more different to Andy if he tried. They're not perfect flatmates but a mutual respect and friendship is born between Andy and Honza; a bond that is tested to its limits when Andy drunkenly confesses to murder. What could have descended into a 'cuckoo in the nest' drama actually plays out a whole lot differently with Andy and Honza attempting to piece together the truth about what Andy actually did and it's here that the novel is most effective. Gummerson clearly realises that the key to a novel is conflict and it is this that keeps the relationship of the two leads interesting and the action moving along nicely. Gummerson also doesn't desert his supporting cast or the sub-plots, all of which work together to propel the main storyline, rather than hinder it. As a first novel, it is still a little rough around the edges and the narrative could have done ideally with a couple more polishes, but these are minor quibbles about what is otherwise a first rate and rather original thriller. Gummerson knows how to tell a tale and if he can keep up this quality, he's certainly going to be a big new name in gay fiction.--Jonathan Weir

You WILL love this book!:
O.K. I don't want to write this review in too gushing a manner but I really did love it! The characters were intriguing and the story compelling. I read 'The Lodger' over a period of only two evenings (another attack of 'couldn't put it down' syndrome) and even found that the story's main characters (Honza the writer, his nephew Nicholas and his lodger Andy) invaded one of my dreams on the first night after I'd started reading this humorous and emotive tale of a man just looking for an 'easy' life. This book is highly recommended. I'm just trying to work out how many friends and relatives I can get away with buying this for as a gift for Christmas...

Suspiciously over-rated...:
... If you like predictable, slow paced cliché riddled gay literature then this is the book for you. If not then save your time and money. As soon as The Lodger arrives on the scene then the ultimate ending is not too hard to work out, but takes a long time to arrive. My biggest problem with this book was my dislike for Honza the main character. Why someone who is so self possessed, shallow and vain is so well liked by family, neighbours, shopkeepers and the local drag queen did not make sense. Also irritating was the nephews incessant addressing Honza as Uncle. This is all dished up against the usual background of Steps, drugs and sex in toilets. I was looking forward to this book but was sadly disappointed.

Pure Entertainment:
Larry Bailey, The Open Book Ltd, Sacremento Drew Gummerson was a delightful discovery. His latest book "The Lodger" is a book to read when you want to read a fun novel, just for the pure pleasure of reading. What makes Drew Gummerson's work so enjoyable is his great timing in setting up scenes, situations, and characters well in advance of the punch lines and "troubled" conclusions. This book is really a well-orchestrated comedy, drama, suspense and love story. There were some situations in "The Lodger" that left me laughing and rolling on the floor, while other sections kept me reading as fast as I could, flipping through pages to end the suspense of the immediate story line's subplot. "The Lodger" revolves around a main character named Honza Drobrolowski. Honza is gay, a writer by profession, living in Derby, England, but has been a little slow in getting his work published. In order to makes ends meet, he is forced to sub-rent a room to a lodger (room mate to US). Trying to keep his writing on a regular schedule, he picks the applicant (Andy) with the least interest to him: straight, works as a hauler (moving man), keeps to a strict schedule (goes to work, comes home, drinks beer, watches television, and goes to bed). Slowly, Honza's world starts to un-wined: his sister (who we discover is really a whore) and his nephew (who he absolutely adores and keeps on weekends) are moving to London; he can't get his book published; and his lodger, who has become a steady, lovable person through his simplicity, reliable, and unassuming roommate, comes home drunk, very late, one evening and announces while passing out on the bed "he really didn't mean to kill him". Drew Gummerson's book, "The Lodger" is pure entertainment; it doesn't get much better than this!

Makes You Want to Get a Lodger:
Drew Gummerson's novel "The Lodger" is an enjoyable book. There is a predictable style to it that probably is the author's intent. It's easy to get "involved" with the characters. I found myself waiting for the commute home to immerse myself back into this book. This novel reads very easily and the pages practically turn themselves. I highly recommend it.

Astounding:
Renting out a room can be hell, especially when you're used to living on your own. There's something very threatening about letting a lodger into your private space, never quite knowing if they are who they say they are. What if they turn out to be a serial killer? Or worse, straight? Such a dilemma faces Honza Drobrolowski, a freelance writer whose commissions aren't enough to pay off his mounting credit card bills. Reluctantly he decides to let out his small spare room. After rejecting a dippy hippy and a fellow gay man called David (who, in a brief but graphic sex scene, it becomes clear is of rather Goliath proportions), Honza eventually settles on a skeletally thin haulier called Andy. Unlike the art-house film loving Honza, Andy has simple tastes: he slobs on the sofa in front of soap operas and football, resting a can of beer between his legs and moving occasionally to fart the Match of the Day theme tune. Bizarrely, Honza finds himself liking Andy more and more, probably because he's like a grown-up version of the landlord's four-year-old nephew Nicholas, who visits every weekend while his prostitute mother is turning tricks. Nicholas and Andy get on like a house on fire, and Honza finds himself settling into an unexpected life of domesticity, despite having to explain to all and sundry that Andy is just 'the lodger', and not 'the LODGER lodger'. This life of bliss starts to crack when Andy returns from a drunken night out with his "mates", and confesses to Honza that he's killed a man. From that point on, one expects the novel to turn into a murder mystery, or one in which the lodger turns out to be exactly the sort of blood-crazed axe man that Honza feared when he first let out the room. It doesn't. Instead, we continue following these two amiable people getting on with their lives, with the mystery of Andy's alcohol-induced half-confession playing only slightly on Andy's mind. It's a brave decision on the part of the author, but a very successful one. We all imagine that our own lives could be more thrilling than they actually are, but to be able to replicate that in a novel without the reader feeling cheated is a rare feat. The thrill, once Andy reveals the true nature of his secret and he and Honza set out to right the wrong, lies not in 'whodunit' style mystery, but the tensions of whether these two likeable characters will be able to emerge with their friendship intact. The subplot about Honza's sister running off to London with her son in tow is deftly handled, and the heartbreak Honza feels at the thought of losing access to Nicholas is all too palpable. The Lodger is Drew Gummerson's first novel, and an astounding, deservedly confident one it is too. Combining moments of high class wry comedy with well-observed sideswipes at the nature of being gay in Britain today, it deserves to be on everybody's bookshelf.