It took me a little while to get into this book, but when I did, I couldn't stop. For a little while I couldn't see what the point of the story was. The 1980s and especially Conservative politicians, and rich families weren't something that I thought interested me, but although that's the decade this book is set in, and that's the backdrop to what happens, it isn't about that at all. It's about thinking that you are accepted and welcomed, and then suddenly those that you thought loved you, turning and suddenly you can see them for what they are. Hollinghurst's language is beautiful - nearly every line is a treat - and his writing so subtle that he lets the reader work things out all by themselves. Wonderful stuff.
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