3 3/4 stars

For a first book this is a really, good, fast read. Almost too fast as there were certain things I wish Rice had explained more clearly - like Brandon's fury (we're never really given a glimpse into his thinking, so he comes off as a stereotyped bullying high school jock with religious delusions), Meredeth's actions in high school and why Abigail's husband was so desperate to get away from her that he stuck her in a mental hospital after their younger son dies. There were little things which could have been better dealt with.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed this book, so no big complaints. It's a keeper and I will definitely be reading it again. ( )

Didn't grab me, had the vaguest idea of what was going on by the end of the book

Didn't grab me, had the vaguest idea of what was going on by the end of the book

http://www.literaryfeline.com/2011/07/from-archives-mini-reviews-from-may.html ( )

Up to the time they entered their teens, Brandon, Greg, Stephen and Meredith were close friends, doing everything together, but that all changed as they moved on to high school when Greg and Brandon, now popular sports jocks turned on Stephen and Meredith became for a time little more than a bystander.

In their childhood Brandon and Greg did things with Stephen they would now rather forget, Stephen however has grown to accept the very things that frightened him when he thought about other boys. To make matters worse, while Brandon and Greg, now well built muscular youths have the physical power over the slender Stephen, and as Greg tries to ignore what he had with Stephen and now dates Meredith, it seems Stephen has an even stronger power over his two one-time friends. A power Greg would prefer to ignore but ultimately, and disastrously, cannot, whereas Brandon actively pursues his hatred and directs it at the entire gay community with tragic results.

Meredith, for her part, while secretly knowing all along what took place between the young Greg and Stephen, and after she overcomes her own problems, sees the truth of the situation and becomes a crucial support to Stephen and also to Greg's mother, who is inflicted with more than her fair share of trouble. That is not to say the the other excessively wealthy parents of our four youngsters escape, money certainly does not buy peace of mind.

Fortunately for Stephen his power to bring out the true nature of other men works both ways, just as Greg is unable to accept what Stephen stirs in him, there are those who, seemingly straight, respond positively and act upon their feelings; Stephen can find devoted lovers.

The Density of Souls is a powerful, complex and thought provoking novel, yes it may be a little over-wrought and extreme at times, but this is not to detract from it. This is my second Christopher Rice novel and I am now a dedicated fan greatly impressed by his ability to create and control complex plots and loving his more appealing characters. (I hope he does not desert this form altogether.) ( )