Counterparts (Royle novel)

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Counterparts, published in 1993, is a novel by Nicholas Royle. It follows two troubled main characters: Gargan, a tightrope walker who hurts himself in his sleep, and Adam Midwinter, an actor struggling with his sense of identity. The story blends waking life with dream-like horror, making it hard to tell what’s real. Its vivid, unsettling imagery—blood-soaked baths, strange bodily harm, and jarring sensory moments—creates a mood of existential unease. Yet the book invites empathy as Gargan and Midwinter search for meaning and healing in their chaos.

Gideon Kibblewhite reviewed Counterparts for Arcane magazine, giving it 8 out of 10 and calling it “a strange, brave and well-written psychological mystery,” though he warned, “don’t give it to your mother for Christmas.”