Leading Man
My fourth novel LEADING MAN is out now.
Here’s the cover!
I don’t care where you get it from – support an indie if you can! – but here are links to Waterstones, Bert’s Books, Lighthouse Books and Amazon
Maybe we should talk about the plot! I love this book so much.
“Leading Man follows Leo, a thirty-something drama teacher in Edinburgh. Leo’s content to be in the background, letting his, louder, more charismatic best friends shine.
But, suddenly, he is forced to step into the role of leading man. A handsome love interest steps out of the wings, Leo’s pushed to his limits by his overenthusiastic new boss and – strangest of all – he begins to question whether the friends he loves so dearly have been holding him back.
If he’s to get everything he’s ever wanted, Leo will need to face his past, and the future, head on. But he might not like everything he sees.”
Sounds good, right? Right!
I really wanted to go deep on how even the strongest friendships can be unfulfilling for some of us, and the secrets we keep even from our closest allies. I also wanted to pull apart the romantic ideal and introduce a bit of reality to that swoony, heady love we think we’re all searching for. But most of all, there are some proper zingers here. I love putting words in my characters’ mouths and the central relationship between the three friends is spiky and joyous. This is a hugely fun book, but there’s weight and complexity.
Vibe-wise, it shares a lot of DNA with my debut The Last Romeo, so if you were a fan of that one, you might like this one too. But there are flashes of The Magnificent Sons and The Fake-Up in there too. I guess I have a style, why fight it?
I really hope you love Leading Man as much as I do.
Early reader reviews said:
“This is easily one of the best books I have ever read. This is the kind of book you recommend to everyone you know, because it is a gem, and they will find something in it.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️”
“You really care about [Leo], his choices, the people he ends up with. And there are twists and turns galore, even in the final pages of the story. Six stars out of five.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️(⭐️)”
“I like when I do not expect what’s going to happen, and I GASPED several times while reading Leading Man.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️”
“Leading Man is funny, heartfelt and full of meaning. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️”
There’s a cool playlist of music featured in the book, too:
4 Comments
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Any idea when Leading Man will be available on amazon.com for readers in the US? Amazon.co.uk would not permit me to purchase the Kindle version through the link you provided. It said I was in the wrong region or country; it certainly feels that way to me in recent years. How did they know???
Hello! I’m afraid that’s not up to me. A publisher in the US would have to buy the rights but so far no deal has been done. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Hopefully that will change soon!
Hi Justin,
I’m almost done with the book and must say this is one of the best I read in really long time. (I read a lot, mostly thrillers but queer, modern, relatable pieces are my go to recently).
I would like to point out the characters who, I feel, I got to know so well thanks to your writing, that I will actually going to miss them 😀 It made me think about my own life, partner, friends and the way how secrets can ruin friendship (although usually temporarily – my own experience when I was coming out).
Leo is very complex character, Harvey’s character became an interesting journey, where I didn’t know what to think.
I hope something new will come soon as I really enjoy your style of writing, your characters and the flow of the story. It makes me think a lot.
Thank you again 🙂
Thank you very much, Marek. I’m so happy to hear that. I love this book so it’s been wonderful to see it finding its audience. Good news re next novel: it’s coming September 2025.