THE GIRLS

literary historical novel: THE GIRLS by debut novelist Sarah Gardam takes as its backdrop the true story of the island of San Domino, and weaves a powerful and mesmerising narrative around the fate of the 45 men sent there, seen through the eyes of Francesco, who leaves behind a dark secret on the main land.

In 1939 in fascist Italy a group of 45 gay men from Catania were labelled "a sexual aberration", expelled from their homes and imprisoned on the island of San Domino. The few villagers who lived on the island and witnessed their arrival referred to them as ‘the girls’; exotic and mysterious creatures, from whom they were kept segregated. The island was a strange mixture of imprisonment and escape: the men lost their families and their careers, but gained freedom from restrictive social mores. Some weren’t gay, some were, some would never come to terms with the disgrace, and others wept when WWII signalled the end of their expulsion.

THE GIRLS by debut novelist Sarah Gardam takes as its backdrop the true story of the island of San Domino, and weaves a powerful and mesmerising narrative around the fate of the 45 men sent there, seen through the eyes of Francesco, who leaves behind a dark secret on the main land.

The novel opens in 1940 with the discovery of a body shattered on the cliffs of the island. We do not know who the body belongs to, nor how it got there: did the prisoner choose the cliffs as his way out? Or did someone else make that decision for him?

Moving back to 1939, we follow Francesco and the other men as they land on the island. Francesco’s former lover Emilio is constantly agitating for revolution, and escape, and Francesco’s childhood friend Gio jealously watches their relationship rekindle. Locked in spartan dormitories, taken away from family and their real lives, resentment and bitterness between the men grows each day, forcing Francesco to question who he can really trust, and if he will make it off the island alive.

Part love story, part literary thriller, THE GIRLS is a powerful exploration of sexuality and desire, of hidden passions and the secrets we keep locked within our souls. The novel is evocative and moving, transporting you to a hot and sultry island, where love and death go hand in hand. THE GIRLS has shades of the Savage Garden, of Patrick Gale and of At Swim, Two Boys.

Sarah Gardam is in her 30s and lives in London, where she works as an Earth Science Communicator at the Geological Society of London. She has also written pieces for the Guardian, The Vagenda, and Pen Pusher magazine, and been shortlisted in the London Fringe Festival short story competition. This is her first novel.