Palace of Varieties cover

Palace of Varieties

by James Lear

This extremely graphic novel brims with male sex from the sordid to the sublime, in every position, place, and variety. Watch and enjoy as Paul Lemoyne leaves his humble home to begin a new life as a music hall stagehand, but soon discovers there are richer pickings to be had from the stage-door johnnies who haunt the Palace of Varieties Music Hall. And thus ensues our rake's progress from low-life prostitution to the salons and studios of Mayfair, from the bath-houses of Bermondsey to the rarefied circles of modern art. All the while behind each of Paul's outrageous sexual adventures lurks the mysterious figure of Albert Abbott, his lover, corrupter, and Svengali.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?