Riptide

Benson employs surfing as a metaphor in his compelling new novel (after Odo's Hanging), transforming what might have been a formulaic coming-of-age tale into an intense, even transcendent, examination of a young man's struggle to establish his identity while facing the loss of both parents. On his 19th birthday, in an English seaside town, Duncan Blaine gets a clue to the whereabouts of his mother, Diana, who, nine years earlier, left him to be raised by relatives when a tragic accident took the life of her husband. After meeting Diana in a Cornish resort, Duncan is introduced to the new man in her life, a cardiac surgeon with whom she intends to live in Canada. Distraught at the prospect of yet another separation, Duncan attempts to reconcile with his mother while conducting a passionate affair with an employee of the inn where he is staying. As Diana questions her decision to once again leave Duncan, Benson lets the chilling denouement reveal itself in wry, gentle fashion, adding graceful comic details and a series of charming secondary characters. The author's major strength is character development, however, and his acute expressions of interiority are what bring both Duncan and his story to full life. The surfing passages are particularly rich; deep and laced with symbols, they provide evocative insight into Duncan's feelings regarding his sexuality and the loss and separation that have defined his young life. Three of Benson's four previous novels have won literary awards (the Guardian, the Encore and the Somerset Maugham); this fifth may do the same. (Sept.)