Goldenboy

by Michael Nava

Book Overview

By the beginning of "Goldenboy," Henry has become sober, finding spirituality in his recovery while becoming further engaged in gay activism. He decides to assist a Los Angeles attorney who is dying... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1555833667
• ISBN13: 9781555833664
• Release Date: July 2000
• Publisher: Alyson Books
• Length: 215 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Golden Boy

A well paced mystery. From a different viewpoint, I think this is the first time the main charactor has been gay, Catholic and Hispanic, in any book that I have read. Henry Rios does guilt very well. A great combination of logic and emotion. He makes for a great champion of the little guy. And that includes himself.

Surprisingly good

I was given this book as a gift and was apprehensive for two reasons: 1) I'm not a fan of mystery novels and 2) I worry that I won't be able to connect with older gay fiction books (this was originally published in 1988) since so much has changed in the last few decades. Thankfully, both of those fears were put to rest. Nava's storytelling ability is great - he doesn't abuse metaphors or go on and on with meaningless details. (As I assume is typical in the mystery genre) most everything that is mentioned has some sort of tie-in with the story. The dialogue was realistic and while the story wouldn't be considered 'ground-breaking', it did keep my interest and I felt had enough plot-twists that I didn't see coming. I would easily recommend this book to anyone looking for a light/quick read. I'll definitely be picking up the next in the series.

Excellent Follow-Up

When Nava's hero, attorney Henry Rios, is called upon by a friend to defend a young man accused of murder, even the reader is surprised by the ensuing unfolding drama. All the evidence supports the young man's guilt; supposedly, the youth was driven to the act by a blackmailing colleague who threatened to expose the youth's homosexuality. That's just the tip of the iceberg. Seemingly inocuous characters soon reveal their predatory and sinister natures. Good. This compiles a logical and completely plausible pool of possible suspects.On the plus side, Henry falls in love (in REAL love) with a young man named Josh, who simply accepts Henry for being Henry, and goes to bat for him in every situation. Isn't that we all want? Regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or orientation, it's a sweet love story played out in real time, and is not overtly sexual or pejorative. It's just a part of their lives.First-rate storytelling, good dialogue, and an actual interest in determining who committed the crime makes this novel a worthy and compelling read.

As Good As It Gets

This novel is as good as any mystery I have read, as good as anything Joseph Hansen, a master of the genre, ever wrote. Mr. Nava's narrative is seamless, his style sparse; but we know with brief descriptions everything we need to know about his characters. Mr. Nava never adds superfluous verbage to show off his knowledge of other novels, poetry and literature in general, something that many mystery writers seem not to be able to avoid-- they often want to show off their English degrees.Additionally, there are no cardboard characters here. Mr. Nava makes statements about homophobia, gay relationships, coming out issues, self-hatred and AIDS without preaching. A friend who is a therapist swears that the scene when Henry meets his new, younger lover's parents for the first time is totally accurate. When Henry tells Larry goodbye as he leaves for Paris for treatment for HIV-- shades of Rock Hudson?-- we are treated to writing both as poignant and good-- and often better-- as anything writers who attempt to write serious gay literature have accomplished. With the right cast, this novel would make a great movie.

The second, and perhaps best, book in a terrific series

This is my favorite so far in the Nava cycle of Henry Rios mysteries, and I've read them all except the last one. It's a pleasure watching Nava get to know Henry better and present him to the readers in all his very real complexity, dignity, and self-doubt. Many of the supporting characters are also well-drawn. Finally there is Henry's budding romance with young Josh, as exquisite a treatment of male love as one's likely to find in popular fiction. Goldenboy is pure enjoyment all the way.