- Published: 17 May 2022
- ISBN: 9781496733528
- Imprint: Kensington
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 304
- RRP: $32.99
After Francesco
A Haunting Must-Read Perfect for Book Clubs
- Published: 17 May 2022
- ISBN: 9781496733528
- Imprint: Kensington
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 304
- RRP: $32.99
Praise for Brian Malloy and After Francesco
* A Minnesota Book Awards Finalist *
* A 2021 Great Group Reads Selection *
* OPRAH DAILY Best LGBTQ Books of the Year *
* LAMBDA Literary Most Anticipated Books *
* A BookBub Book to Read for Pride Month *
“The thing about love stories is that they never truly end, especially true when a relationship ends in tragedy, when the surviving partner is forced to go on while the ghost of their lover lingers…Like Rebecca Makkai's The Great Believers, author-activist Malloy's newest novel is a heartrending portrayal of the realities of healing.” —Oprah Daily, Best LGBTQ Books of 2021
“In this highly recommended novel, the pain and rage felt by Kevin and those in the trenches with him is palpable and uncomfortable and real. So too is the love and warmth of spirit they manage to nurture in order to survive.” —Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Heart-breaking, gut-wrenching, yet somehow also sweet and funny, After Francesco is a must-read…a universal tale of grief and resilience.” —Bonnie Kistler, author of House on Fire
“Tender…filled with humor, grief, heartbreak, recovery, the endurance of love and, eventually, hope.” —The St. Paul Pioneer
Press
“Set against the worst of the 1980s AIDS epidemic, this heartfelt novel isn’t just moving—it’s healing… Although the tragedy and heartache that Kevin endures brought us to tears more than once, Malloy also conveys joy, humor, and a beautiful sense of gay culture and community. After Francesco is a gorgeous and cathartic read that will enrich the way you understand a painful moment in American history.” —Apple Books, Best Books of the Month
“[After Francesco] is not dark and gloomy; it comes with quite a lot of humor, rays of bright sunlight, and an overall feeling that there’s nothing more powerful than love, life, and hope…a truly amazing book.” —Rainbow Book Reviews
“With characters who are flawed and funny, courageous and fearful, Brian Malloy tells a story that could serve as a guidebook on how to love, how to fight for those we love, and how to honor those we’ve lost without losing ourselves. Beautifully written and infused with sly humor, After Francesco is a love letter to life.” —Lorna Landvik, author of Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons
“With wit, compassion and vivid atmospherics of the era, Malloy has written an inspiring story of a defining era of loss…All the issues of this era a powerfully conveyed in Malloy’s fictional narrative in his elegiac remembrance of a shared tragic past. But it is also filled with humor and the pathos of raw emotion of Kevin’s unfiltered grief…After Francesco is a potent reminder that we can never forget the generation we lost. And we can never stop fighting for our lives against all odds. The anti-LGBTQIA+ hate that spiked during the AIDS years is a fever that is once again as twisted new LGBTQIA+ discrimination bills are being pushed through state legislatures, the halls of congress, and the courts across the land.” —The New York Journal of Books
“Furious, funny, and beautiful, After Francesco immerses the reader in the crisis of the AIDS epidemic in 1980s in New York.
Brian Malloy has created a cast of characters so memorable—so vividly witty and aggrieved and brave and bewildered—you’ll never want to put this novel down.” —Julie Schumacher, author of Dear Committee Members
“This is a character I trust completely as a reader, a character who accesses sharp gallows humor as readily as tears, a character both insecure and brave, a character who effortlessly evokes the 1980s East Village he loves but despises. This book centers around a convincing love story, something uncommon enough, but more than that it’s a book about the strength of friendships that are forged in the face of so many enemies and threats. Honest, sarcastic, bighearted—you’ll wish it didn’t have to end.” —John Brandon, author of Further Joy