About the Book
Title: If I Should Stumble
Authors: Claire Davis & Al Stewart
Print Length: 118 pages
Publisher: Beaten Track Publishing
Publication Date: December 1, 2016
Categories: Gay fiction, romance, new adult, contemporary
Synopsis
Love is sure and timeless and forever. It whispers over the morning coffee and the last thought before sleep. Love is beyond hope, and cruel as life.
Kaz has been in the UK for almost a year, but the days pass by in an endless round of alcohol and nothingness. He has a story but no words good or bad enough to tell it, until one day, he is assigned a new peer mentor who asks him to help train a sponsored running team. Something that was stretched as old parchment breaks inside, and memories begin to re-surface.
Zack is overjoyed when his friend Adam asks him to be part of the sponsored run team trying to make money for the local homeless shelter. All day he makes cakes to lighten people’s load, but something is missing from his life. Then he meets the boy with eyes like the desert, and with every step he runs, Zack’s light burns away the darkness in Kaz’s heart.
As the race heats gets nearer, Tork, Adam, Zack and Jo realise that under Kaz’s careful programme, they have a chance to qualify and set right some of the wrongs of this world.
This book features the characters Tork and Adam from The Invasion of Tork and The Invasion of Adam.
Review
I’m always at a bit of a loss to explain just why I love these authors’ books so much, but it boils down to a few key things: Romance as secondary to plot, other types of relationships as equally important, and complex issues and themes. The stories may not be epic-length novels, but they say everything they need to.
If I Should Stumble is incredibly well-written. It’s emotional, and readers need to go in prepared for the heavy themes (particularly the struggles of refugees). But none of it is played up solely for the sake of tugging at heartstrings or preaching about current affairs. This is about finding hope even in despair and about learning trust even in the midst of fear.
What I like is that the story doesn’t shy away from tough subject matter. Kaz’s mental state is collapsing, and he’s doing everything he can to keep from going under. His life has been brutal, and he’s been forced to do battle to survive. His voice is unique, both in his perspective as a refugee and in the ways he tries to adapt and find his place in a society which is often hard to understand. Kaz’s drinking and his hoarding are both achingly real and brilliant metaphors.
I love Tork’s almost sideways kind of thinking and his shrewd mind in figuring out how to reach Kaz when others have mostly talked past or around him. Of course, I’m also thrilled to see that his “happily ever after” with Adam isn’t just a fairy tale ending. Adam is a nice bit of snarky comic relief, and of course, he has layers too that we see peeled back. I’d love to know more about Jo as well; I get the sense there’s more to her than we see here.
We only get to see Zack through Kaz’s eyes, and I think that’s fine. I’m not sure the story would have worked with alternating points of view. It could easily have become too much about him. I love Kaz’s internal dialog about Zack and the sweet way their relationship moves. Maybe one day, we’ll see how they turn out together the way we’ve gotten to see Adam and Tork.
There are so many levels to the storytelling that it’s impossible to go through them all here. While there are adults who might object to the language, the brutality of Kaz’s experiences, and the implied (though not ever explicit) sensuality, I am not one of them. I would not hesitate to give this to young adult readers. They can typically handle far more than we give them credit for, and there’s so much depth in this story which deserves to be read and discussed.
For exceptional writing, characters who feel real, and hope shining through, this gets 10/10 fountain pens.
Purchase Links
Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes | GooglePlay
About the Author
Al Stewart and Claire Davis write about people who are not perfect. Claire embraces the dark side, and Al the good side of the force. Their work is there for a fusion of both, mixed often with kink and humour.
Social Media
Website | Goodreads – Claire Davis | Goodreads – Al Stewart | Facebook | Beaten Track
Interview
It’s a huge honor to chat with Al Stewart and Claire Davis about writing, life, and their current project. Welcome! Let’s talk a little about If I Should Stumble.
What inspired you to write this story?
Claire : That’s a really big question but I’ll try. The story was based on real accounts of children and young adults who were forced to leave their country because of war, bigotry, fear, and through family breakdown. Specifically, because of LBGT issues.
Al: It’s a story of now – of our time – of the events happening all over Europe regarding politics – war – poverty – but underneath all these massive things there are the people. Our story is one voice – not written to condemn – only to say ‘ hear me.’
Claire : It was also a way for the characters of Tork and Adam to shine. I am a firm believer in the power of ordinary people to overcome adversity and make things happen. It was not enough to simply leave them with a HEA. I wanted more for them than that.
Al: Because it’s all we can do. Proceeds ( if there are any) from Stumble will go to a charity specific to young people refugees.
AM says: Wow, you guys. I’m really glad you wrote this, and I do hope it strikes a chord for people.
Is there a character you feel especially connected to? Why?
Al: Kaz being thrown out by his family because of religion is something I can relate to.
AM says: I am unbelievably sorry. As a parent, I don’t understand families that do such a thing.
What was the hardest part of writing this?
Claire: I think it’s always tempting with YA to leave alone the most difficult themes because many readers simply do not want to go there. But in Stumble, to do the story of Kaz justice, there was no way we could. So we tried to create a slow unravelling and to suggest by imagery the depths to which Kaz had to sink. The balance was very difficult to get right and even now I wonder if we did.
I think we also know that Stumble may get harsh criticism for touching on sensitive issues.
Al: The coach flashbacks.
AM says: I thought you guys got that stuff really well. I wish more YA authors would take those risks, and I think it’s only adults who get touchy. Kids want more, and they can tell when adults are coddling or sheltering them.
Choose a favourite line or short passage. What do you like about it?
Claire :
What he ought to be was an asset and a team played—or was it player? He needed to accept the difficulties and do it anyway, if he was ever to find a future. Or, at least, that was what Luca had said—something like that. Kaz had to take his destiny in both hands, and stop feeling sorry for himself.
All he needed was the baby buggy parked against a row of bins.
What I love about this passage … it reminds me of the gap that often exists between workers and clients. All the workers in the story are trying hard to help Kaz, but they don’t really listen. All he wants is the buggy, all he wants is the pain to stop.
AM says: Oh my goodness, that scene was gut-wrenching.
Tell us a little about any upcoming projects
Al: To write something happy ! 😀
AM says: Ha! I’m sure you can do it.
Word sprints
Al:
Plotter or pantster? Bit of both. We have a rough outline but the means of writing it is revealed as we go. For this story, it was the swimming noodle that did it 😀
What genre do you like to read? I love lit fiction best of all, and actually I hardly read any MM Romance any more. I’m a glutton for old stuff, too.
Do you write full time? God, no. I have two jobs to pay the bills. Sadly we make very little money from writing.
Morning person or night owl? Morning person. I’m always awake by 5AM.
Who has inspired you the most? I think the people I come across every day.
Tell us a bit about your cultural, ethnic, religious, and/or spiritual background and how it informs your writing.
Claire: My background is working class poor. I had bad experiences of religious intolerance at a young age and honestly I struggle to understand how ancient doctrines can ever be more important than people. I see a lot of ‘religious’ people who never think about LGBT issues, but to me religion is a club that excludes. At work, I see the damage of this on a daily basis.
What cultural value do you see in storytelling?
Claire: I think there is massive cultural value in storytelling. A good example of this is how many readers remark on the Britishness of our stories. One reader said they had no idea there were such things as food banks ( from The Invasion of Tork). I don’t see it as my job or responsibility to inform, more my good fortune.
I try very hard not to preach, even when I want to. I suppose what I hope is to take readers through a human experience they wouldn’t otherwise have had.
How do you hope your writing influences other people?
Al: I hope that readers can be themselves and that our books can give them some strength to feel ok with whoever they are. I do get pissed off at all the perfect gay men in MM romance books, well you won’t see any in ours. We have had some very touching reviews and comments about how our books affected readers. I hope I show that kindness and acceptance are always possible and that no-one is better than you.
AM says: The “ideal man” type appears in both m/m and m/f, and it’s a lot of why I don’t read a whole lot of either. I’m with you—I want some imperfection, some genuine human-ness.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and you’re both more than welcome here any time. I’ll be sure to keep readers informed of any new releases.
