Patrick Redmond — The Puppet Show

Pocket 2003 Paperback, 484pp. Does love have to be claustrophobic, greedy and possessive? This is the central question explored in Patrick Redmond's The Puppet Show. For Michael Turner, it is not until he meets Becky that he learns what it is to love and be loved. Between the children's home in the East End, where child abuse lurked in the guise of the 'kindly' Mr. Cook, and the foster home where his parents kept their distance, love was in short supply. Now, though, he has found it and--as a young lawyer on the brink of a successful legal career in the city--he is happy. Happy that is until he meets Max. Max is the father figure that Michael has always craved. But can Michael let Max into his life without compromising his love for Becky? Although some sequences in The Puppet Show are unconvincing, there is a darkening sense of apprehension as Max careers between overwhelming financial generosity and violence to get what he wants--emotional control and dependence. The Puppet Show is Patrick Redmond's second novel. Like The Wishing Game before it, this psychological thriller is compelling if a little inconsequential. But if it's a page-turner you're after, then this exploration of the vulnerable, hungry side of love will be ideal. --Jane Honey. (ISBN: 9780743461436). Good.