The Edge of the World by Garrett Leigh

I'm not really sure how to summarize my thoughts about this book. I liked it, enjoyed both our MCs and yet I didn't LOVE it. There was something a bit too melancholy about it. These two were in a constant struggle, firstly with themselves and their bodies and secondly with gifting themselves the possibility of a friendship that might lead to so much more.

Shay Maloney is the singer in a pirate/folk-rock band "Smuggler’s Beat’s". When his manager offers him to be a part of a documentary about his roots he accepts mostly because it was easier at the time to just agree than put any thought to the matter. So when Ollie Pietruska a Freelance filmmaker currently working for Sky appears while he is on tour he doesn't know what he thinks of the whole thing, especially when it turns out he isn't making the documentary about the parents who raised Shay, but on his REAL parents and ancestors.



Shay and Ollie see something in one another from the start. There is interest there but Ollie is very "hot-cold". He wants Shay but he has too many things on his plate at the moment and besides being with a guy is not something he can even consider (after what he went through recently). What can he even offer Shay? Yet it doesn't matter because Shay wants him exactly like he is. He doesn't push, he doesn't take anything more than Ollie is offering. He is there for him. Silent yet wanting. With every conversation, every kiss, the connection between them builds and it gets harder and harder for Ollie to push Shay away, and harder for Shay to stay away and not ask, maybe even beg, for more.

While Ollie's aches are mentally on the inside, for Shay who is Diabetic the aches are physically on the outside. Shay's condition is managed, yet things doesn't always work as they should and he finds himself needing the help of others and learning to accept Ollie's help when he offers. It gives a different duality to their relationship as Ollie battles his body on the outside, and Shay battles with his mind with his need to be in the mercy of others. 

Around the tour, the music, the relationship buildup there is the story of Shay's past dating before the first world war. It started quite interesting but as the story came to a close I'll be honest I was quite disappointed. It was kind of anti climatic. Though it did make a connection to another book by Garrett. There is also another mild link to a book about another musician "Lucky Man".

So what can I say? I really enjoyed the back and forth between Ollie and Shay. There was something truly beautiful in how they accepted each other, and how the duality between their life situations made them more accepting of one another. It was backwards in some ways and similar in others. Anyhow they fit perfectly and though they could never fix each other they were able to bring each other to want so much more for themselves as individuals as well as a couple.

Rating: ★★★★

E-Book Edition

212 pages

Read on: 4-5 April 2020