The Mating Habits of Stags

Ray Robinson

Midwinter. As former farmhand Jake, a widower in his seventies, wanders the beautiful, austere moors of North Yorkshire trying to evade capture, we learn of the events of his past: the wife he loved and lost, their child he knows cannot be his, and the deep-seated need for revenge that manifests itself in a moment of violence.

On the coast, Jake’s friend, Sheila, receives the devastating news. The aftermath of Jake’s actions, and what it brings to the surface, will change her life forever. But how will she react when he turns up at her door?

The Mating Habits of Stags is a journey through a life of guilt and things unsaid – and as beauty and tenderness blend with violence, Robinson transports us to a different world, subtly exploring love and loss in a language that both bruises and heals.

An early version of the story was released in 2016 as the short film Edith, starring Peter Mullan and Michelle Fairley, which was Bafta-longlisted for Best British Short Film.

’It’s a one-off. What makes it so special is Robinson’s descriptions of nature. Poetic and beautifully brutal — no “hello, trees” mimsy. The dialogue is no-nonsense Yorkshire demotic. A heady mix’ Robbie Millen, The Times

‘A taut, spare story of survival that turns on its heel to become something altogether braver, rarer and more precious’ Melissa Harrison

‘A wonderfully empathetic account...full of candour, lyricism and compassion’ The Spectator

‘Rich, compelling stuff’ Metro

‘A stunning novel. Ray Robinson is a wonderful writer. Raw, lyrical, and intensely moving’ Essie Fox

‘This extraordinary novel gets under the skin from the first paragraph. Hope and humanity emerge against the odds in a bittersweet and starkly beautiful tale that lingers long in the memory’ Yorkshire Post

Paperback: 224pp

Published: Lightning (April 2020)

ISBN: 9781785631382