The Golden Ass

"The Golden Ass" weaves together several storylines and characters. The main character Martin, an Irishman teaching in Paris, takes a sabbatical from marriage and family life to confront his demons of sexual confusion and PTSD arising from his period as a monk. Guilt-ridden, pursued by rumours of criminality, he travels through Europe to Rome, where he meets Hilary, an angelic rent boy in his twenties. They begin a whirlwind affair. Martin's wife, Sarah, goes in search of him."The Golden Ass" it alludes to the ancient Roman novel of the same name which was the story of a man turned into a donkey. Similarly in O'Driscoll's work the protagonist undergoes personal and psychological transformation. Early reviews of the novella has described it as "Disturbing, heart-warming and with generous amounts of darkly funny moments."