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For fans of Survivor and Less, this fast-paced debut novel shines an unflinching light on the drama of reality TV when a gay man returns to the cut-throat show he won in his youth after his adult life begins to unravel.
Following the car accident that ended his football career and left his body scarred, 22-year-old Luke Griffin joins the cast of Endeavor, a new competition-based reality show that pits the tabloids' darlings against one another in tasks of endurance and problem solving. At first, he thrives, effortlessly forming friendships and even a romantic relationship that he thinks will last a lifetime. But Luke has aspirations far bigger than the show's million-dollar prize, and soon a series of betrayals leads to irreversible tragedy, changing the course of his and his fellow contestants' lives forever.
Ten years later, Luke's world looks very different: he is now a father of two and the stay-at-home husband to America's only openly gay senator. When his husband's serial cheating is exposed, Luke impulsively joins the cast of Endeavor's latest season in a desperate bid to earn some fast cash. Back on set, he is confronted with everything he tried to leave in the past: bitter rivalries, shattered friendships, and crushing guilt, all of which threaten to tear down the walls he's spent a decade building. As Season 20 of Endeavor kicks off, Luke must give everything to the game, even as he finally learns what it means—and what it costs—to face the truth.
Combining the fabulous rivalries of The Traitors with the epic physical stunts of The Challenge, The Book of Luke offers a grounded portrait of what it means to reinvent yourself when no one will let you forget your past - especially if it's immortalized on streaming services.
"Reality TV devotees will eat this book up with a spoon. Add a sweet, unresolved romance for Luke, and it's a winning debut novel from Holder." —Library Journal (starred review)
"Holder's debut has everything reality TV fans crave: the archetypal competitors, the drama, a bag of snakes...[R]eaders will hold on tight for the ride." —Booklist
"This story of a man's reckoning with his past is fast, fun, and steamy to boot." —Kirkus Reviews
"Bold and provocative, The Book of Luke is equal parts satire and drama, told through the lens of a reality television contestant in the midst of a divorce from his husband. Holder writes with both wit and frankness as he navigates queer identity, reality television, and love. It had me laughing and tearing up—sometimes both at the same time." ―Lauren Ling Brown, USA Today bestselling author of Society of Lies
"A novel of quiet growth and resiliency against the wild and propulsive backdrop of reality TV. The most fun you'll have reading all year." ―Steven Rowley, New York Times bestselling author of The Celebrants
This information about The Book of Luke was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Lovell Holder is a filmmaker who has directed and co-written the feature films Lavender Men and Loserville. As a producer, his movies include The Surrender, Peak Season, Midday Black Midnight Blue, The End of Us, Working Man, and Some Freaks. A graduate of Princeton University and Brown University (MFA), he currently lives in Los Angeles, CA and Charlotte, North Carolina. The Book of Luke is his first novel.
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