An absolute classic. Boyd immediately places you right in the middle of the era, painting the time and space so clearly you could almost be standing in it. #NoSpoilers but this is a slow burn story, that builds to an absolute blaze and I loved every minute of it. Highly recommend.

A film being made in Brighton in 1968 connects our trio either directly or indirectly. Elfrida Wing is a novelist, her early successes earned her the accolade of being the ‘New Virginia Woolf’. She’s had writers block for ten years and so secretly (she hopes) drowns her sorrows, cleverly disguised vodka in a Sarsons vinegar bottle. She’s married to the philandering film director Reggie Tipton who prefers to go by Roderigo - we can understand why! The second of out trio is Talbot Kidd, a film producer of more than a dozen films, he’s married in name only. Our third is Anny Viklund, the American star of the brilliantly named film ‘Emily Bracegirdles extremely useful ladder to the moon’. The majority of the book looks at various forms of ‘Duplicity’ which the characters experience and the finale is their ‘Escape’. What a BRILLIANT book. 1968 was a cataclysmic year historically, a watershed between the old and ‘the times that are a’changing’ of the new and the characters in the book reflect this perfectly. The events of that year are intrinsic to the storytelling and are woven into the narrative organically which I really like as its clever storytelling. There’s everything from laws legalising homosexuality which of course makes the Brighton setting especially pertinent which we view through Talbots eyes to anarchy which is demonstrated via Anny. She is divorced from a convicted anarchist who is her nemesis that comes back to haunt her and she is forced to flee the film set and escape to Paris. She sees evidence everywhere of the May riots and becomes an unwilling political victim for which she pays a high price. The characters feelings are conveyed well and at times this is very intense. I especially love Elfrida, she’s irreverent and funny and I enjoy her obsession with Virginia Woolf. Sadly she’s at the end of her tether but she finds rehabilitation and rejuvenation in an unlikely place. Talbot seems naive and not worldly wise and in many ways he isn’t but as his producer partner Yorgos discovers he’s nobody’s fool. The characterisation throughout is excellent, they are all vividly portrayed from the blousy colourful old school actors to the new of Anny and her co-star Troy Blaze. I love how Talbot keeps hearing snippets of Richard Harris’ version of MacArthur Park which is about losing a chapter of part of your life which reflects what happens to the trio. Overall through the medium of the Brighton based film we have an excellent snapshot of an historic year. This is a clever and extremely well written book as you would expect from an author of the calibre of William Boyd. There are rich descriptions which capture the tumultuous times, the sex, drugs, political upheaval and the huge seismic change both politically and socially. The brilliant characters are an excellent vehicle for reflecting this important year. I loved it and this is one book I’ll remember for a long time. Highly recommended.

Trio feels like a very different book to his last two, Love is Blind and Sweet Caress. It seems much lighter in tone and I’m not sure how successfully the three story arcs work, it almost feels like three short stories that have become a novel. The novel follows three characters associated with a quirky English movie being filmed in late 60s Brighton. They are the principal actress who is trying to evade her dubious ex husband, the producer of the film who is trying to deal with his hidden sexual identity, and the wife of the director; she was once a successful author but is now an alcoholic who has written in years. The characters cross each other and sometimes interact, but only rarely. It gives the book a slightly disjointed feel, particularly as you sometimes switch between them in mid paragraph. I got to half way and couldn’t see where the book was going and why, from there some of the stories had an ending but others drifted away. It is an enjoyable book but I couldn’t get as involved with the characters as I usually do with William Boyd novels.. I’m a massive fan of his writing so it did feel a little disappointing.

In the summer of 1968, on a movie set in Brighton, a producer, a novelist and an actress’s lives become entangled with each other. Boyd carefully constructs a novel about double lives. On the surface all appears normal but underneath there are the most interesting secrets lives which creates the prefect duplicity. “Trio” also takes a wonderful satirical swipe at movie making in the 60’s. Psychedelic in every sense from film set to clothing, from life styles to fantastic descriptions of the lives of has been thespians and divas. I absolutely loved this book. It has the perfect blend of good storytelling, humour and a great tale of deceit, lies and secrecy. Once again a page turner from one of the best storytellers of contemporary English literature. Enjoy

William Boyd's writing is impeccable, full of humour with great story telling. Three people, three secrets. The year is 1968, Brighton, a story about a film director's wife, film producer and an actress. I would recommend this novel. I rate this 5 stars. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO READ AN ADVANCED COPY OF THIS NOVEL.