Nothing But The Truth

Samuel Lock was born in 1926. He has worked as a painter and stage designer, and as a scriptwriter in documentary cinema. He is the author of five plays and two previous novels, one of which, As Luck Would Have It, won the Sagittarius Award.

Samuel Lock's first novel, AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, was acclaimed by the critics as one of the most strikingly original first novels for years and went on to win the Sagittarius Award. NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH, Lock's new novel, shares many of its qualities - an exact but curiously mysterious prose style, superb evocation of a time and place (in this case Chelsea's King's Road in the fifties), and range of deliciously eccentric characters. It is the story of Jason Callow, a mildly successful novelist, estranged from his wife and children. As Jason struggles to comprehend and overcome the inner crisis that grips him, he is observed by his neighbours, his family, his friends, all powerless, it seems, to alter the inexorable course of his destiny.

The Whites of Gold

'Memories and passions are powerfully evoked-Edwin's story is atonce disconcerting and memorable' Sunday Times

When Edwin Carpenter runs away from a brutal father and a rural life, he plans to begin a new life in 1950s Chelsea. But he has a terrible secret, a gripping compulsion: he steals, obsessively, without interest in financial gain, and stores the stolen possessions in his flat. Slowly Edwin struggles to cure himself, and with the help of his lover tries to reconcile himself with his past.

Sam Lock

Samuel Lock

When Richard agrees to share a flat with Chuck, his life takes a strange new lurch. Chuck is enormous, ebullient, and more than a trifle camp. He's also violently jealous of Richard and his growing friendship with George. . . Set in the bedsitter world of South Kensington in 1950s, AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT is a strikingly original first novel, told in a voice unlike any you have encountered in modern fiction. Since first publication in 1995, it has gained an extraordinary reputation and went on to win the Sagittarius Award for 1996. 'Strange and compelling' Edmund White OBSERVER 'Very odd and original' Alan Hollinghurst HAMPSTEAD &amp; HIGHGATE EXPRESS (Books of the Year). 'A hilarious book. . . 'Rachel Cusk TIMES (Books of the Year) 'Vivid and peculiar. . Lock writes almost as elegantly as Alan Hollinghurst. . . . AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT is memorable. ' Kate Kellaway, OBSERVER

Sam Lock

Books by Sam Lock

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