Hello, dear readers, Nathan here! So, you may or may not know that I love books, but yes, I LOVE books and my ‘to be read’ pile is getting out of hand (of course, that still doesn’t stop me from buying more, because there are so many interesting and wonderful books out there waiting to be read). So, when I saw a lot of people reading a book called ‘The Outrage’ on one of the Facebook pages I follow, I was intrigued and knew to had to get it. Some of you might call me shallow, but the cover drew me in first of all. Then, I read what it was about – and I knew instantly that it was the book for me and would be shooting up the pile really quickly.
But, before we begin the story we’re greeted with the foreword by Jay Hume, where he educates and highlights the history of LGBT rights over the last 50 years. The story you are about to read about is taken from William Hussey’s experience of growing up in a Thatcher Tory party, which brought in the infamous section 28, where no LGBT history books/fiction/films were taught in schools or available in libraries. It’s important for us to all keep educating on human rights being denied to many LGBT people across the world, where being gay is still punishable by death, illegal in public such as Dubai, and recently where Poland banned pride.
The time came to start it and I wasn’t disappointed: Life in the outrage is set in the future, where being gay is banned and punishable by castration, prison, or even death! And not to be overly dramatic, but life in The Outrage is something that could easily happen during our lifetime (and in some places on this earth, it IS happening!)
The story follows Gabriel, our gay rule breaker who falls in love with the wrong guy (haven’t we all been there). But in a time of The Outrage, falling in love with the handsome Eric, who just happens to be the chief inspector at Degenerate Investigations, probably isn’t the smartest move.
All films are banned unless they are made by the Protectorate and life is pretty tough if you’re a ‘degenerate’. It takes a spark in our hero Gabriel to take a stand against oppression. It’s never going to be easy though.
I really enjoyed this book. The characters are relatable and there’s so many twists and turns to keep you hooked from start to finish. William Hussey has written a beautiful piece of LGBTQ+ literature but it can easily be enjoyed by anyone. The story flows along nicely and, although it can get violent, it’s written in a way that describes what happens but with not too much gore.
It’s thought provoking and gives the reader an insight to how life was before and how life could quite easily go in the future if we’re not careful. I would highly recommend this book. A lovely thought provoking read!
Check out William Hussey on
Twitter @WHusseyAuthor
Instagram @whusseyauthor
Other books by William Hussey are Hideous Beauty (which will be making it’s way onto my pile very soon).
Written by contributor Nathan Warren
