Summerhouse
A Gay Thriller
In Yiğit Karaahmet’s gripping thriller Summerhouse, love slips into betrayal on a picturesque Turkish island.
Fehmi and Şener live a beautiful life on Büyükada. Their forty-year romantic partnership is known to everyone on the island as a friendship. Their relationship is somewhat strained: The two men are radical opposites on topics including idealized gender roles and health. When a new family moves into the mansion next door, Fehmi and Şener face a catastrophe so large their relationship may not survive.
Fehmi is cast as rebellious and in denial about his aging body. In contrast, Şener is rigid in his routines and his insistence on living a frugal lifestyle. As events unfold, both change. Fehmi’s sudden infatuation with the new neighbor boy, Deniz, causes Şener to undergo a radical shift, becoming despondent, bedridden, and filled with righteous jealousy. After a fierce crime of passion, Şener shifts into problem-solving mode, while Fehmi fears retaliation and loses some of his ungovernable nature. Both men’s arcs highlight their capacity for transformation.
The plot is suspenseful and fast-moving, its palpable tension initiated by the arrival of Deniz. As the men cope with Deniz’s presence, their private contemplations on love, individuality, and deception propel them toward action. After a death, Fehmi and Şener grapple with the outcome of their salacious impulsivity while a neighbor grows suspicious. In an unconvincing ending, hearing a song and recalling the way Fehmi looked on a certain night are cause enough for the neighbor to feel she solved the crime.
Confusion and fear fuel unthinkable actions in Summerhouse, a riveting thriller about a love triangle turned lethal.
Reviewed by
Jennifer Maveety
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
