A Premature Affair

It's September 1963 and post-war America is on the crest of a wave, with a young President and his beautiful wife in the White House. Adam, an aspiring young English writer, is comfortably ensconced in a school near Dallas, finding time to contemplate the world. But that world is about to change, blown apart by the arrival of Angela, a lovely young English red-head, by a budding friendship with enfant terrible, Bill, and thirdly, by an unexpected  commission from senior management to put on an ambitious school play. Add to this the dramatic events of November 22nd in Dallas.... 'The world grew up and became a sadder place.'

In A Premature Affair, Richard Joyce's new novel, readers are transported to North Texas in the 1960s for a story about the precarious and fragile nature of young love and early friendships. "A Premature Affair" depicts an abortive love affair between Adam, a young English writer/teacher, and his determined English girl-friend. The affair ultimately shatters, as the lovers are driven apart by their own selfish aims and flaws of character, as well as by the stifling pressures of parental consent and convention. In parallel, readers will watch the decline and ultimate destruction of one of Adam's friends and colleagues, Bill, destroyed by flaws in his own character and hidden external forces aligned against him. Joyce deals with timeless themes in A Premature Affair. "Young people still face the same inherent hazards in their lives and in the affairs of the heart as do the characters in this book," he says. "Although the external formats may be different today, the internal issues confronting people remain eternally the same." "The language is quite beautiful - fluid and poetic." Capel and Land, Literary Agents "The writing is strong and the plot intriguing." Futerman, Rose & Associates, Literary Agents