Book Reviews - 'Wild Roses' by Denn Killian Matthews

Following on from the themes of love tackled in his collection of short stories, Are You Ready For Love? Denn Killian Matthews, in his first novel, Wild Roses, addresses some of the wider themes of humanity, in all its sordidness as well as its sympathy and compassion.

The story follows the adolescent friendship of Joshua Haigh and Clarence Clarbourne, growing up in a small20town in Oregon. This friendship is marked by an asymmetrical devotion, bordering on a sado-masochistic bond: Joshua lives in the shadow of Clarence and adores him, while Clarence is sustained by a dominance that, at times, descends into disdain. The two find wives and go their separate ways, until Clarence contacts his old friend, offering him a job as a journalist. Here the relationship continues as before, only now, fuelled by inner tumult and alcoholism, Clarences’s controlling nature takes a psychotic turn. After one incident, Joshua commits the unthinkable: in self-defence he kills his best friend. Not knowing what to do, Joshua flees and embarks on a trip that takes him into Canada and brings him face to face with who he is and his conscience. En route he encounters a string of adventures and characters whose own flawed lives help him come to terms with his actions and give him the strength to surrender himself into the hands of justice – although he does not know what the outcome will be.

In Wild Roses the reader is introduced into a world where the superficial veneer of daily life is not all that it seems. The language used displays just enough variation from standard North American English to endow the speakers with a certain ‘apartness’. The people who Joshua meets and the situations that he has to deal with are intriguingly out of step with the ordinariness of daily life. This incongruity gives each event and occurrence an added, although unspecified significance to Josh’s journey, giving his story a meaning that outgrows mere events.

Wild Roses is an adventure story with humour and feeling, but more than this, it is an exploration of self-questioning.      A Fatal Friendship 
In Wild Roses, Denn Killian Matthews describes a young friendship that develops with such intensity that the outcome results in tragedy, guilt and utter despair.

What can it mean to somebody to kill his own best friend? To take the life from somebody who is so close that he has become part of your own identity? These are20the feelings of guilt, loss and need for atonement that Joshua Haigh has to try and resolve in Denn Killian Matthews’s first novel, Wild Roses.

The story begins in a small town in Oregon where Joshua Haigh befriends Clarence Clarbourne at High School. This friendship develops, but is never quite on equal terms. Josh is in awe of Clarence, his self-confidence, charm and magnetism, while Clarence demands such utter devotion from his friend that his attitude seems to be more one of disrespect or disdain than of friendship. The two young men find wives and go their separate ways, until Josh receives a call from Clarence offering him a job as a journalist. After accepting the job, their sado-masochistic relationship resumes and intensifies, only now, with Clarence’s growing inner troubles and alcohol dependency, his actions become psychotic. Tragedy strikes when Josh, acting in self-defence, is forced to kill his best friend.

Confused and lo st, Josh goes on the run, reaching Canada, in a deluded dream that he will find some sort of peace once he has reached Vancouver. On his trip he encounters a string of flawed characters and finds himself in bizarre and sometimes dangerous situations. Finally, at the end of his tether, he gives himself up to the police, not knowing what the outcome of his trial will be.

Wild Roses strips the surface off of middle America, revealing a dissonance between the harmony of daily life and the turmoil that lies beneath. Josh and Clarence’s peculiar relationship, the hidden back stories of the people who Josh meets en route, the irrational behaviour of Josh – all of these things testify to the existence of a world that we must all know exists but fail to acknowledge. The story of Josh and Clarence may seem straightforward to onlookers, but deep down there is intrigue and unrest that tells another tale.

Wild Roses is a work full of excitement and humour, but is also one that leaves the reader disconcerted at the perplexities that underlie seemingly everyday scenes.

                                                                 Francesco Bordo



               'The novel starts in Oregon, where Clarence Clarbourne and Joshua Haigh meet at the beginning of their senior year at high school. They are building up a solid, sensuous and pure friendship throughout university. Kelly becomes Josh’s idol  even though Kelly’s disrespect and digs hurt Josh, who tries to learn from them and grow strong. Kelly’s  ascendency over Josh is obvious until Josh falls in
 love with Nicole at university, his wife to be. About the same time, Kelly encounters Trish and they become a married couple.
                Kelly declines Josh’s invitation to attend his wedding but,
                unexpectedly, Tina, Kelly’s grandmother will honour Josh
                with her attendance and be the highlight of the party, as she
                would. Tina is one of the various characters in the novel, and
                what a character! ‘Terrible Tina’’s longing to stand out and
                unpredictability are remarkable, as shown in the scene of
                the grocery in which Tina courts a young student. Meg,
                Kelly’s high school sweetheart, arranges a ravishing séance
                of spiritualism.
                           Denn Killian Matthews depicts his characters with
                humanity and creates vivid relations between them. Josh
                will choose to follow Nicole to Illinois, where she will
                be the director of a library. One day, Josh receives a
                message from Kelly. Josh is carried into the past and
                stronger for his influence, Kelly will convince Josh to
                return to Oregon to become a journalist -- Josh’s dream.
                As during the radio days at university, Josh proves a
                quick learner, to Kelly’s discontent. When a grimy
                embezzlement case tarnishes Kelly’s image, it is 
                thanks to Josh that he will avoid being dismissed. 
                Kelly and Josh’s ‘faux pas’ as well as Kelly’s
                growing alcohol problem will cause Josh to do
                something which cannot be undone --  Josh
                will kill Kelly in self-defence. Panic-stricken, Josh
                becomes a man on the run, searching for relief in
                action. After a disappointing return to Illinois where 
                Nicole has replaced him, Josh will scour the roads
                through Canada. Along his journey, he’ll meet danger,
                women, and will commence a quest for forgiveness
                in a series of adventures. Faced with deception, Josh
                also has to face his conscience.  His adventures will 
                take him to Vancouver, where he gives himself up to
                the police, at the end of his tether. But what will the
               outcome of his trial be?  The narrative spreads with
               the characters in unison and  suspense and passion
               walk hand in hand. Josh, in his numerous experiences,
               acquires the power of differentiation and judgment
               while praising uniqueness.'

                                                       Gareth Russell

In Denn Killian Matthews's debut novel Wild Roses, an adolescent friendship takes on a sinister intensity as two young men become consumed by tragedy and despair.
Joshua Haigh is poised to kill his best friend, the man who has meant more to him in life than anyone else. But what has brought Joshua to this appalling conclusion, and what aftermath will he have to endure if he goes through with it? What can it mean to take the life of someone so close that they have almost fused with your own identity? Joshua Haigh will have to battle feelings of intense guilt, loss and a desperate need for atonement in Denn Killian Matthews's first novel Wild Roses.
Matthews skillfully analyses the long term development of the extremes of a twisted relationship and what happens when that relationship comes to a violent end.  Joshua Haigh is the submissive devotee and Clarence Clarbourne the arrogant, selfish, god-like figure controlling their partnership, a partnership skewered by fear, anger and the ego. The intensity of the men's adolescent union continues into adulthood, but it is quickly threatened by Haigh's growing desire for independence, something he cannot achieve whilst remaining in Clarence's shadow. But Clarence is not about to relinquish his absolute control over this all-consuming friendship.   Haigh's journey is an effort to break free from the shackles of this sado-masochistic union and Matthews's exploration of the corruption of a platonic relationship is both shocking and familiar.
Wild Roses reveals the secret turmoil that lies beneath the seeming serenity of life in Middle America and examines the destructive power of obsessive friendship. A disconcerting and unforgettable read, Wild Roses highlights the limits of pain and suffering a man can bear before he dramatically implodes with far reaching consequences.
                                                                                            Hayley Radford