A truly original literary mystery A humane work that really seeks to understand Like the best really serious novels it s profoundly uncomfortable avoids easy dramatic answers and forces you to really think and question yourself as much as its own narrative Luke Kennard author of The Transition S was a good person Such a good person They all told me that so it had to be true S is unique It seems that most people think so his mother his sister his best friend but relative strangers too In fact they and others all have much to say in the inquiry into S When prompted when the tape recorder in front of them clicks a succession of family friends and professional contacts in turn describe his shapeshifting charisma All struggle to account for the enigmatic figure who has wandered through their lives doing some good things and some bad Yet as they talk it becomes apparent that they are not so much telling his story as they are their own of their common need for love touch retribution closure Together their tissue of voices reveal the complexity of care In a series of intimate snapshots charting the relations of one ordinary yet extraordinary man Clinical Intimacy explores the emotional conditions and moral consequences of a li