{"product_id":"in-spite-of-you-by-patrick-lenton","title":"'In Spite of You' by Patrick Lenton","description":"\u003ch4 data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"652\"\u003eHumiliation as both tragedy and social performance.\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"652\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eThe setup is deceptively simple: Jeremy has been publicly dumped by his boyfriend for a younger, hotter man, and decides the only reasonable response is to become hotter, more successful, and more emotionally devastating than everyone around him. Naturally, this goes badly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"652\"\u003eIt sits somewhere between queer romantic comedy and millennial revenge fantasy, moving with the pace and sharpness of someone spiralling in real time while still trying to sound clever at the group chat. But what gives the novel its texture is that it never fully commits to cynicism or sincerity. Instead it hovers in that deeply contemporary emotional register where therapy language, self-branding, activism, dating apps, climate anxiety, casual narcissism, doomscrolling and genuine loneliness all bleed into one another.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"652\"\u003eThe dialogue is fast, acidic and very funny in a specifically Australian way — people weaponising irony because they’re terrified of saying anything directly. Lenton is especially good at social scenes where everyone is simultaneously trying to perform ethical correctness, desirability and emotional maturity while quietly losing their minds underneath. \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA strong pick for readers of contemporary queer fiction, millennial satire, messy interpersonal dynamics, and sharply observed social comedy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1916\" data-end=\"2161\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePaperback edition published by Pantera Press in 2025. Near-fine condition with only minimal shelf wear. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"bower studio","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44600376524883,"sku":null,"price":17.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0689\/0268\/2707\/files\/Yourparagraphtext-2026-05-12T154527.761.png?v=1778564739","url":"https:\/\/bowerbooks.com\/products\/in-spite-of-you-by-patrick-lenton","provider":"bower books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}