Stag Hunt
by Anthony McGowan 
 

A macho stag do, made up of southern ex-public schoolboys plus one token northerner who went to state school, takes place at a private house in the wilds of Cornwall.

 

One of the group is out for revenge, and McGowan provides enough character traits that made me think it could be any of them. They have a grudge against the group (bar Matthew who is a late invitee) due to being raped by the other men when they were at school, which was a practise actively encouraged by their pervy Latin teacher who meets a sticky end in the first part of the book.

 

All of the men have secrets and demons, which are told from the point of view of narrator Matthew (the token northerner) and also each of the other characters. Instead of being confusing, this technique works well, with clear voices and detailed back stories for each. The story also flips between their schooldays, to the recent past, to the present, which is also easy to follow, but very intricately plotted.

 

McGowan explores class and the male psyche very well, with details that are well researched - myths and legends, military references - and a heavy dose of machismo that you’d expect from a bunch of fellas with numerous hang ups ring true.

 

It’s mysterious and dark and violent and totally gripped my imagination with the possibilities that this story presented and would make an ace film.