Chemistry

The Webb family seems genetically disposed towards medicine. Don, the eldest brother, runs a small town pharmacy. Penny, the abused wife, neglectful mother and firebrand sister, is a doctor. And Jamie, the youngest son, who hasn't been back to their small town in New Zealand for twenty years, has been self-medicating with heroin for longer than seems physically possible. Sally and Shane, a couple of heroin addicts who live in the same small town, become entangled with the Webbs through Don's methadone clinic. And then Jamie moves back, setting off a chemical reaction in his dysfunctional family which can only have one conclusion. As the plot spirals into sexual blackmail and murder, Wilkins explores the nature of chemical dependency and the powerful, often sinister ties that bind families and small town neighbours together. Written with the empathy of Anne Tyler, enlivened by the reckless energy of Irvine Welsh, Chemistry fulfils the early promise of this young New Zealand writer who won numerous awards for his first novel, The Miserables.