Fall by West Camel

Twins Aaron and Clive have been estranged for forty years. Aaron still lives in the empty, crumbling tower block on the riverside in Deptford where they grew up. Clive is a successful property developer, determined to turn the tower into luxury flats.

But Aaron is blocking the plan and their petty squabble becomes something much greater when two ghosts from the past – twins Annette and Christine – appear in the tower. At once, the desolate estate becomes a stage on which the events of one scorching summer are relived – a summer that changed their lives forever.

Evocative, thought-provoking and exquisitely written, Fall is an unforgettable story of friendship and family – of perception, fear and prejudice, the events that punctuate our journeys into adulthood, and the indelible scars they leave...

About the author

Born and bred in south London – and not the Somerset village with which he shares a name – West Camel worked as an editor in higher education and business before turning his attention to the arts and publishing. He has worked as a book and arts journalist, and was editor at Dalkey Archive Press, where he edited the Best European Fiction 2015 anthology, before moving to new press Orenda Books just after its launch. He currently combines his work as editorial director at Orenda with editing The Riveter magazine and #RivetingReviews for the European Literature Network.

He has also written several short scripts, which have been produced in London’s fringe theatres, and was longlisted for the Old Vic’s 12 playwrights project. His debut novel, Attend was published in 2018, and was shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize and longlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award. His second novel, Fall will be published in December 2021. Follow West on Twitter @west_camel and on his website www.westcamel.net.

Review

’Fall’ is a masterpiece of sublime writing, vivid descriptions, complex characters and a study in social history and commentaries. Even after a couple of weeks the story still sits in my mind, I’m contemplating the characters and the story, weighing up its narrative and understanding it’s complex interwoven threads of truth.

I have always been fascinated by the motivation and thought processes that the original designers of these ‘utopian’ estates had. I studied the social history of these monoliths of modernity - the loss of communities, lack of services, remoteness from the city centres. However, a lot of this does not factor into ‘Fall’ as the designer in this case thought about these problems and even moved into the estate to prove a point. But… this is not a normal estate. Hidden passages, twisty staircases and private areas. For West to come up with these ideas shows an inquisitive mind and a creative eye for details.

This is also reflected in his characterizations - the portrayal of the twins, in particular, is a highlight. I must say that Aaron was the character I identified with the most. The isolation of this life, the estrangement from his twin Clive. What has caused this huge rift? Why did he never leave the flat which he grew up in? The juxtaposition of their relationship compared to the girl twins illuminated the shades of difference between the two groups. I also loved how the location became a character of its own. It was as if it was pulsating off the page, you could smell the pee in the lifts and the thought of being the only resident left was unsettling and confronted you straight on with the issue of gentrification and the next stage of urbanisation.

This is one book that I would willingly say that I would reread in the near future as I believe that on a second read you would realise that there was hidden plot points, a reflection on the estate with its hidden tunnels and passages. God, I would love to explore this estate - it sounds like a great adventure.

Simply stunning.