Trials, Temptation and Triumph - Intro to Ch 12
Well, here we are, three and a half years later. I'm not sure if anyone is still interested in reading this, but I'll post it and see what happens.
I'm calling this the end of TTT. It is, in one sense, the end of Charlie's journey and it's the point at which his life diverges sharply from that depicted in "Lost" so it's a good place to stop. Maybe one day I'll write the third novel that takes place in 2015-16 (don't hold your breath).
Under the cut is a brief outline for DDD & TTT that will bring you up to speed if you haven't read them in a while.
DDD & TTT summary (to the end of Ch 11)
DriveShaft was a four-piece band comprising Liam Pace (rhythm guitar, lead vocal), his younger brother Charlie Pace (bass, also principal songwriter), Charlie's long-time friend Patrick Gleason (drums) and Adam "Sinjin" St John (lead guitar). The Pace family also comprises mother Meg, father Mike, and three siblings: Theresa (Tessa), Bridget (Biddy) and Kevin. Tessa trained as a nurse and works at St Thomas' Hospital, London; Biddy studied languages at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, spending her third year in Switzerland; and Kevin attends the local high school.
Rory McManus is the son of Frank "The Man" McManus, a minor criminal in Glasgow. Rory and his father don't get on, mainly because Rory is gay. Rory was sent to Manchester in 1998 to manage a cleaning business that Frank had taken over in payment of a debt; he was also instructed to set up a loan-sharking business, which he did, very successfully. Rory has two assistants: Chris Morrison, from Glasgow, and Ken Godfrey, from Manchester. Both sides of the business are doing well.
In the summer of 1999, Liam Pace got the band into debt with a music store. When Rory bought the debt, Liam wasn't able to manage the repayments and as a result Charlie ended up as Rory's rent-boy for a month. They fell in love, of course, but pride made the path difficult for them until they finally got together properly in late September.
DriveShaft got a recording contract in September 1999, recorded their first album in a week, and by Christmas were at the top of the charts. Several tours followed, both UK and international. After DriveShaft's first tour ended in May 2000, Charlie moved in with Rory, and they were happy for a couple of years.
Trouble began in early 2002 when Charlie followed Sinjin and Liam into heroin addiction during a European tour. Liam's girlfriend had a baby in May as their tour was ending, and none of them had enough material for a third album in spite of studio time having been booked. Rhythm Records, their label, was taken over in June 2002 and the band was dropped shortly thereafter. After an abortive attempt to manage themselves, Liam announced that he would be moving to Australia after his wedding in November, effectively killing the band.
At Liam's wedding, Rory found out about Charlie's addiction and attacked Liam. Rory attempted to get him into a residential detox and rehab programme, just before New Year's Eve 2002, but Charlie refused to go. Charlie moved to London, refusing all contact with his family or Rory. His life spiralled down from there -- he received a suspended sentence for DUI and heroin possession, then ended up in the clutches of Tuomi Saastimoinen, who held him captive for a couple of weeks, raping and beating him, until he managed to escape and return to Manchester.
Rory got him treated for pneumonia and put back on methadone. The two of them worked hard to rebuild their relationship, even going so far as to see psychologists. Rory took Chris and Ken to London where they killed Tuomi. After the body was found, the police questioned Charlie as a matter of routine, but no one made the connection to Rory.
As Charlie got better, he started composing again. In April 2004, he was offered the opportunity to record some songs at a local studio. After enlisting Pat's help with arrangements, he had a 5-track EP made and started to get a few gigs around Manchester and surrounding towns.
In early August Charlie was approached by a recording company representative who wanted DriveShaft to reform. Now Charlie is agonising over whether or not to tell the others about the offer.
This entry was originally posted at http://alassenya.dreamwidth.org/101327.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
I'm calling this the end of TTT. It is, in one sense, the end of Charlie's journey and it's the point at which his life diverges sharply from that depicted in "Lost" so it's a good place to stop. Maybe one day I'll write the third novel that takes place in 2015-16 (don't hold your breath).
Under the cut is a brief outline for DDD & TTT that will bring you up to speed if you haven't read them in a while.
DDD & TTT summary (to the end of Ch 11)
DriveShaft was a four-piece band comprising Liam Pace (rhythm guitar, lead vocal), his younger brother Charlie Pace (bass, also principal songwriter), Charlie's long-time friend Patrick Gleason (drums) and Adam "Sinjin" St John (lead guitar). The Pace family also comprises mother Meg, father Mike, and three siblings: Theresa (Tessa), Bridget (Biddy) and Kevin. Tessa trained as a nurse and works at St Thomas' Hospital, London; Biddy studied languages at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, spending her third year in Switzerland; and Kevin attends the local high school.
Rory McManus is the son of Frank "The Man" McManus, a minor criminal in Glasgow. Rory and his father don't get on, mainly because Rory is gay. Rory was sent to Manchester in 1998 to manage a cleaning business that Frank had taken over in payment of a debt; he was also instructed to set up a loan-sharking business, which he did, very successfully. Rory has two assistants: Chris Morrison, from Glasgow, and Ken Godfrey, from Manchester. Both sides of the business are doing well.
In the summer of 1999, Liam Pace got the band into debt with a music store. When Rory bought the debt, Liam wasn't able to manage the repayments and as a result Charlie ended up as Rory's rent-boy for a month. They fell in love, of course, but pride made the path difficult for them until they finally got together properly in late September.
DriveShaft got a recording contract in September 1999, recorded their first album in a week, and by Christmas were at the top of the charts. Several tours followed, both UK and international. After DriveShaft's first tour ended in May 2000, Charlie moved in with Rory, and they were happy for a couple of years.
Trouble began in early 2002 when Charlie followed Sinjin and Liam into heroin addiction during a European tour. Liam's girlfriend had a baby in May as their tour was ending, and none of them had enough material for a third album in spite of studio time having been booked. Rhythm Records, their label, was taken over in June 2002 and the band was dropped shortly thereafter. After an abortive attempt to manage themselves, Liam announced that he would be moving to Australia after his wedding in November, effectively killing the band.
At Liam's wedding, Rory found out about Charlie's addiction and attacked Liam. Rory attempted to get him into a residential detox and rehab programme, just before New Year's Eve 2002, but Charlie refused to go. Charlie moved to London, refusing all contact with his family or Rory. His life spiralled down from there -- he received a suspended sentence for DUI and heroin possession, then ended up in the clutches of Tuomi Saastimoinen, who held him captive for a couple of weeks, raping and beating him, until he managed to escape and return to Manchester.
Rory got him treated for pneumonia and put back on methadone. The two of them worked hard to rebuild their relationship, even going so far as to see psychologists. Rory took Chris and Ken to London where they killed Tuomi. After the body was found, the police questioned Charlie as a matter of routine, but no one made the connection to Rory.
As Charlie got better, he started composing again. In April 2004, he was offered the opportunity to record some songs at a local studio. After enlisting Pat's help with arrangements, he had a 5-track EP made and started to get a few gigs around Manchester and surrounding towns.
In early August Charlie was approached by a recording company representative who wanted DriveShaft to reform. Now Charlie is agonising over whether or not to tell the others about the offer.
This entry was originally posted at http://alassenya.dreamwidth.org/101327.html. Please comment there using OpenID.