Yale’s career (working in development for the Brigg Gallery at Northwestern University) begins to flourish when Fiona’s great aunt, Nora Lerner, offers a large donation of artwork to the gallery. He often makes Yale feel guilty for even the most fleeting attractions to other men. Charlie is a possessive partner and a staunch advocate for protected sex and monogamy. Later, Charlie hears a rumor that Yale retreated upstairs to have sex with Teddy, and doesn’t seem to trust Yale when he denies this rumor. When Richard shows a photo slideshow of Nico with his friends, Yale is overcome with emotion and retreats to mourn alone a room upstairs. There, Yale gathers with Fiona his partner, a British man named Charlie Keene who runs a publication called Out Loud Chicago Nico’s widowed partner, Terrence a handsome PhD student named Teddy Naples a dashing political activist named Asher Glass and a flirty, light-hearted young actor named Julian Ames. Though Nico’s family holds a traditional funeral at a church, most of the people closest to him-including Fiona-hold their own life celebration at the home of gay photographer Richard Campo. The novel begins on the day of Fiona’s brother Nico’s funeral. The Great Believers alternates between the narrative of Yale Tishman-a gay man living in Chicago in 1985-and Yale’s friend, Fiona Marcus, who reflects on her memories of Yale and his friends 30 years later.
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