Review by Eric Page
In his audacious debut novel Isaac, Curtis Garner crafts an unflinching exploration of queer coming-of-age in the digital era, offering a meditation on masculinity, desire, and the complex choreography of first love. Through protagonist Isaac’s journey from casual hookups to an intense relationship with the older Harrison, Garner excavates the tender territories of identity formation with remarkable precision and grace.
The novel’s strength lies in its sophisticated examination of contemporary masculinity. Through Isaac’s navigation of dating apps and sexual encounters, Garner interrogates how digital spaces both liberate and constrain young queer men’s understanding of themselves. The prose is alive with corporeal awareness, deploying visceral, sensual language that transforms the body into a landscape of both pleasure and vulnerability. This embodied writing style serves as more than mere aesthetics—it becomes a powerful lens through which Garner explores the intersection of physical and emotional intimacy.
The author’s treatment of family dynamics, particularly Isaac’s relationship with his mother, provides a nuanced counterpoint to the central romance. These domestic scenes ground the narrative in a deeper emotional reality, offering moments of tenderness that contrast powerfully with the novel’s more turbulent passages. While the unexplored relationship with Isaac’s father Aaron feels like a missed opportunity, this absence perhaps speaks to the larger themes of masculine presence and absence that ripple through the text.
Garner’s portrayal of Isaac’s relationship with Harrison offers a careful examination of power dynamics and desire. The author resists simple moralisation, instead offering a complex portrait of how vulnerability and agency intertwine in relationships marked by age differences and experience gaps. The toxic elements of their dynamic are rendered with psychological acuity, while never losing sight of the very real attraction and emotion that draws Isaac into Harrison’s orbit.
The novel’s frank treatment of sexuality and violence might challenge some readers, but these elements are handled with purpose and artistic integrity. Rather than sensationalise, Garner uses these moments to illuminate deeper truths about intimacy, consent, and self-discovery. The writing is particularly effective in capturing the intensity of adolescent experience—where every emotion feels heightened, and each decision carries the weight of destiny.
Most impressive is how Garner navigates the novel’s conclusion, offering neither fairy-tale resolution nor tragic cautionary tale. Instead, we’re given something more honest: a portrait of ongoing growth and self-discovery that acknowledges both the significance and the impermanence of formative experiences. This nuanced ending honours the complexity of queer identity formation while pointing toward the possibility of healing and continued evolution.
Isaac announces Garner as a significant new voice in queer literature, one who understands that the most affecting stories about identity are those that embrace complexity and resist easy answers. Through its vivid sensual language and psychological depth, the novel makes a vital contribution to contemporary discussions about masculinity, sexuality, and the enduring human need for connection in an increasingly digital world.
Out now £10.99
For more info or to order the book see the publisher’s website here:
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