This Is Not a Lie

A closeted guitarist. A new frontman. One shot at fame. And a lie that will destroy them both.

In 1984, St Kilda is the beating heart of Melbourne’s rock scene, and Joel Reed is determined to claim his place in it. A gifted guitarist and songwriter, he has followed his sister to the bohemian beachside suburb with one ambition: to become a star. On stage, he is fearless. Off stage, he is hiding a truth that could destroy everything.

Joel’s band is on the brink of success when they’re forced to audition for a new frontman. Then Harry Engel walks in — charismatic, unconventional, impossible to ignore. Joel falls hard. But in a world of hard rock bravado and unforgiving fans, desire is dangerous. One confession could cost him the band, his dream, and the fragile identity he has built to survive.

So Joel keeps the lie alive.

Until tragedy makes it clear that silence was never protection — only a slow kind of ruin.

Raw, intimate, and unflinching, This Is Not a Lie is a contemporary LGBTQ literary novel about ambition, secrecy, and the cost of living in fear of being seen.

• Format: novel

• Genre: contemporary LGBTQ literary fiction

• Themes: identity versus performance, shame and secrecy, truth versus self-perception, masculinity and vulnerability, the cost of ambition, belonging

• Content note: novel contains explicit sex scenes, adult language, drug use, violence, death

• ISBN Paperback: 978-0-6454801-9-1

• ISBN Ebook: 978-0-6454801-8-4

• Pages: 350

• Publisher: (first published by Dixi Books UK). New edition published by The Pynk Sphynx

FAQ

Is this a romance?
It contains romantic elements, but it is primarily a gritty contemporary drama about identity, ambition, and the cost of truth.

Is it tragic?
Yes. This is not a light love story. It explores trauma, obsession, and the consequences of deception.

Where is it set?
Melbourne, Australia, during the 1980s rock scene.

Is this book intended for mature readers?
Yes. The novel contains explicit sexual content, adult language, drug use, violence, and emotionally confronting themes.

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