Books: 789

“The Build-A-Boyfriend Project”
Mason Deaver
Avon
$18.99

Lying’s rarely good, to others, or oneself. Eli Francis is a slow learner. But stuck as an assistant at Vent, never a writer as he’s been promised, Eli’s desperate for change. When his roommates fix a blind date with shy, awkward Peter Park, the results are so awful that Eli’s boss spots an article. Eli’s to use simulated dates for a humorous piece. Eli agrees, but secretly begins another, chronicling Park’s raising as a queer Korean in a small, Alabama town, while realizing his own growing feelings for Peter. But the editor’s obtained the faux “Build-a-Boyfriend” piece. It’s just what he wanted, and Peter recognizes himself as Eli’s bumbling Galatea “boyfriend.” Trust: Difficult to build, even harder to mend once shattered. Will the pieces come together?

“A Queer Case: A Selby Bigge Mystery”
Robert Holtom
Titan Books
$18.99

Bank clerk Selby Bigge looks to be just another worker ant among London’s toilers, retiring daily to his shabby bedsit. And he is — until nightfall, when he joins other queer denizens trolling in the shadows. One evening’s encounter is with Patrick, son of banking millionaire Sir Lionel Duker, and suddenly Selby is immersed in an entirely new world; dining at the Ritz on foods he’s never tasted, lavish birthday parties at the Duker family mansion on Hampstead Heath with the aging Sir Lionel and his splendid young wife, Lucinda. (Do you spot a thickening plot?) A strangled corpse in the billiard room makes everyone a suspect, and Selby is motivated to find a killer to protect his own secrets. London, October 1929 … what might next go awry?

“Rough Pages”
Lev A.C. Rosen
Forge
$2.99

The disappearance of two middle-aged bookshop owners endangers Andy Mills’s adopted family and can scotch the nearly-completed adoption of baby Rina. It’s the early 1950s; homosexuality was a crime, gay publications were deemed immoral across the board, and mailing such material by subscription was a federal offense. Lavender House butler Pat, a volunteer at Walt’s bookshop, now fears for the whole family; many suddenly have much to lose. Andy’s search reveals that the shop’s been entered, and the subscriber list is missing. Further exploration indicates a mysterious memoir with Mafia connections, and a leeching lady reporter appears who can embroil Andy with his ex-police chief boss, reveal his whereabouts to all the boys in blue, and destroy Andy’s happy life at the Ruby, patron Elsie’s San Francisco gay club.

“E is for Edward: A Centennial Celebration of the Mischievous Mind of Edward Gorey”
Gregory Hischak
Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers
$60

If you aren’t yet acquainted with “E,” here’s a golden opportunity. Issued by the Edward Gorey Charitable Trust and produced in creative partnership with The Edward Gorey House (the said “E”’s former home in Yarmouth Port, Mass.), of which writer Hischak is the curator, and in which materials in this book are curated. If you don’t know Gorey’s books (yet), you’ve unknowingly seen his art — on book jackets, intros to TV shows, on stage in scenic designs. Among his 100-plus books? “The Gashlycrumb Tinies,” “The Hapless Child,” “The Doubtful Guest,” “The Curious Sofa,” “The Willowdale Handcar.” So much darkness and uncertainty gathered in one volume to accompany through these darkling, uncertain — and far less humorous — days. At 5.56 pounds, it’s cheaper than chuck eye steak.