Call Billy: 07899 232007
by Sam McColl
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Pub Date May 28 2018 | Archive Date Jun 19 2018
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Description
An evocative and gritty Scottish family drama
Edinburgh is meant to be a new start for the Gillespie family. Rachel has enrolled as a mature student at the university, while Andrew is spending more time with the kids. But Rachel’s ‘new start’ morphs into ‘new affair’ with fellow student Ryan. Or is it Stevie?
Either way, her lover is not what he seems. When his past surfaces in the guise of a name on Rachel’s library ticket, the affair turns nasty. And then her teenage daughter unwittingly discovers the deceit and the family begins its spin into free fall.
About the author
Sam McColl was born into a family hushed by the threat of violence. Orphaned at 12, unable to grieve or understand her stolen childhood, she continued to recreate it – until she got help. Since then, she became part of the Anti-bullying Network, Scottish Schools Ethos Network and The Parent Teacher council as well as a Lay Inspector for Scottish schools. She has three grown children and lives with her husband in Edinburgh and Tarbert.
The book was partly funded by a New Writers’ Bursary from the Scottish Arts Council.
Advance Praise
“McColl’s work has intense clarity and compassion – Call Billy is a brave work of social realism.” C. M. Taylor, Shed Books
“McColl’s work has intense clarity and compassion – Call Billy is a brave work of social realism.” C. M. Taylor, Shed Books
Available Editions
EDITION | Ebook |
ISBN | 9780995702608 |
PRICE | £4.99 (GBP) |
Links
Featured Reviews
Andrew and Rachel are married with children Abi (15) and Callum (5). Rachel is into parties and takes courses at the University. A party is thrown by the family and many students, friends their age with parents begin to arrive.
However, Rachel is interested only when Ryan arrives. Liz, Rachel's mom, forgot her purse and comes back to the house the following day. At this time, Andrew tells Liz that her husband, Carl, abused Rachel and her sister. This becomes an awful shock to Liz who soon has a series of mini-strokes, causing her to go haywire. At uni, Rachel sees Ryan meet up with Billy. Who is he? I suppose since Rachel introduced herself to Billy and took his phone number - on her arm - someone. (?) Rachel sleeps with Ryan and when he sees the phone number for Billy, he goes quite insane. He beats Rachel up so badly that she is hospitalized. Regardless, Rachel admits her feelings for Ryan and moves to her friend Dawn's yucky basement. India, their niece, visits with her parents and stays there to work with Andrew, David and their boss. Rachel knows that Ryan is having relations with others but will do whatever it takes to have a part of him. (Ryan shows Rachel how illegal drugs can intensify the mood.) Although Rachel goes back to her family after the hospital, she eventually returns to Dawn's basement with her daughter, Abi, who now is dating wilder Ash. Rachel brings home a selection of men, quits school, drinks and does drugs. Liz moves in with Andrew and his family and we are treated to a bit of humor on the staircase. Andrew, somehow, moves on with Megan. Still martried, he proposes to her and she accepts.
David makes a shady deal with fake soil samples for half a million dollars so a theme park can be built. Andrew finds out and has the "real" samples evaluated.
All of the characters are selfish, if not self-indulgent. For good measure a bit of wry humor is thrown in. The final chapters really make this book! Surprises are on the way!
Rachel and Andrew are married with two children, Abi, 15 and Callum, 7. The couple moved from Oban to Edinburgh for a fresh start. This has not proved altogether successful.
Rachel is very unlikeable, a full-time university student, has addiction problems and lusts after fellow addict and student, Ryan.
Andrew is weak, self-centred and only slightly less hopeless as a parent than Rachel.
However, even though the two main characters are flawed, there are traits about them that make them fascinating and utterly compelling to read about.
Between Rachel, Andrew and the other supporting characters it makes Call Billy a must read.
Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
It's a well told twisty book peppered with surprises here and there so definitely pick this up and prepare to be well entertained. Happy reading!
The main characters of this novel set in Edinburgh, are married couple Andrew and Rachel who have two kids and they are meant to be enjoying their fresh start in a new city, but all too soon Rachel falls into bad habits and begins to indulge in parties and getting a little too friendly with some other students (one in particular!) on her course at the local Uni.
Several parties, deceptions, infidelities and shocking twists later, Rachel is neck deep in an affair with a drug addict called Ryan who in some mysterious way has a connection with "Billy". When Rachel sees Billy's number on a library book all hell seems to break loose.
A lot of dark and gritty subject matter but I found this book very readable.
ALSO - I called the number on the front cover and you get to listen to a rather strange but cool message that's totally linked to the story! What a great gimmick!
All of the characters in this novel have quite a dark side and could be described as selfish, if not vindictive, but this makes the nasty shocks that come all the more palatable.
If you like your books dark and bleak with nasty shocks, you'll want to pick up this one!