We Two Boys Together Clinging

This book, the eighth in the series "David and Jonathan" continues the story of the Singleton-Scarborough clan. It describes the first three years of undergraduate study of David and Jonathan's youngest adopted son, Tommy. Tommy chooses, perhaps unwisely, to go to his father's old college, Saint Boniface's in Camford, in spite of the fact that it is only a few minutes walk from his home. He is to study classics for his first two years at university followed by a further two years majoring in Italian. In his first year he adjusts slowly to college life and has problems with his sexuality, for by the second term of his study he is emotionally involved with both a man and a woman. Eventually it becomes apparent that the woman just wants to add Tommy to her list of male conquests, whereas his male friend Martin has fallen in love with him. Eventually Tommy decides that he is bisexual, but with a strong preference for men. He succumbs to Martin's advances and they become an item, and move out of college into a rented apartment for their second year. This book overlaps in time with the seventh book in the series, and from time to time we are kept up-to-date with the happenings to other members of the family. Dom Overton's grandfather dies and Dom (the civil partner of Sandro Overton-Mascagnoli, the biological brother of Luke, Tommy’s adoptive brother) becomes Earl of Batley. Late in the story Tom Appleton's father dies, with Tom (Luke’s civil partner) having finally become reconciled with him before he lost consciousness and died of lung cancer. In their second year the boys have to work hard because their first university examinations take place after five terms. Tommy then begins the Italian part of his course, which necessitates him spending the whole of his third year at the Italian university of Padua. This is not such a challenging experience as it might be for some boys, as Tommy has relatives in the nearby in the nearby city of Trabizona: his brother Luke and partner Tom and their family. He also has an aunt who is Sandro's and Luke’s mother also living in northern Italy, so he settles in quite rapidly to his studies in Padua and becomes friendly with a gay boy, Matteo who lives in the same student apartments. Visits are made in the story to various interesting places in England, Belgium and Italy, and Tommy manages to have sex in most of them. Tommy ultimately passes his exams in Padua and returns to Camford for his final year.