Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “The Pharmacist” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

The Pharmacist

Justin David (Goodreads Author)

3.90 · Rating details · 30 ratings · 8 reviews

The Pharmacist is a powerful story of Billy, a young man drawn into the sphere of Albert — The Pharmacist — a compelling and damaged older man and drug dealer. As their relationship grows, fuelled by Albert's strange narratives and his endless supply of narcotics, the foundations of Billy's own life shift and change. Alive with the strange twilight times between day and ni ...more

Get A Copy

Kindle Edition, 128 pages

Published June 1st 2014 by Salt Publishing

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about The Pharmacist, please sign up.

Be the first to ask a question about The Pharmacist

Lists with This Book

Gay Fiction by Men

445 books — 202 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.90 ·

Rating details

· 30 ratings · 8 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of The Pharmacist

Mar 11, 2020 Col rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020, d

Synopsis/blurb.....

Twenty-four-year-old Billy is beautiful and sexy. Albert – The Pharmacist – is a compelling but damaged older man, and a veteran of London’s late ’90s club scene. After a chance meeting in the heart of the London’s East End, Billy is seduced into the sphere of Albert. An unconventional friendship develops, fuelled by Albert’s queer narratives and an endless supply of narcotics. Alive with the twilight times between day and night, consciousness and unconsciousness, the foundati ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Mar 05, 2020 Emma rated it it was amazing

This was an intense, intoxicating read. It takes you on a trip of erratic ecstasy, pleasure and lust. When you experience the comedown you feel dazed and bewildered asking yourself, did that all really just happen? Did you feel that? Was it real? You must have felt that?

The story follows Billy, a 24 year old artist struggling to find inspiration to paint his next work of art. When we are first introduced to him he is watching an old man buying flowers. Billy is captivated by him and appears to b This was an intense, intoxicating read. It takes you on a trip of erratic ecstasy, pleasure and lust. When you experience the comedown you feel dazed and bewildered asking yourself, did that all really just happen? Did you feel that? Was it real? You must have felt that?

The story follows Billy, a 24 year old artist struggling to find inspiration to paint his next work of art. When we are first introduced to him he is watching an old man buying flowers. Billy is captivated by him and appears to be witnessing a sly drug transaction. As the story unfolds they quickly meet face to face and we learn that the old man’s name is Albert Power and he lives in the same block of flats as Billy. They soon embark on an affair together and Billy’s world begins to crack and crumble around him as his lies and addictions catch up with him.

Albert was fascinating to read. He is an older gentleman that has been bruised and broken by love. As I learned more about him I felt my heart break for his unfortunate misfortunes. I was also curious about his own little business dealing drugs and was extremely knowledgable on the matter. You wouldn’t have suspected such an older man to be involved in drugs but he does. I admire how David breaks the taboo, shocking and intriguing the reader into submission. He takes the reader off guard multiple times as you witness scenes you didn’t think you could imagine. Albert doesn’t conform to any normal code of behaviour and Billy likes that about him. There is a lot to Albert that remains unknown as he only gives Billy a vague idea of his former life, he’s done a bit of acting, singing and managed a restaurant in soho. He doesn’t go into detail and expand so when we learn of how he has been burned by love, it breaks you. I was a mess and the ending just cut even deeper. Truly heartbreaking.

Billy in comparison to Albert is the polar opposite, he is inexperienced and reckless. Before they met he had never taken an E and quickly becomes reliant on them to escape from his reality. While his boyfriend Jamie appears to be doing well and putting his job first, Billy is struggling to paint and is falling down a dark hole. It is this conflict that gently pushes Billy into Albert’s embrace. Before they meet officially face to face Billy becomes obsessed with Albert, noting the times he leaves and returns to the flat along with what he’s wearing. This is a small red flag to the reader that Billy is an addict. He needs to be addicted to something, his art, drink, his lover, anything that will cause him to avoid facing up to what he is running from. He drinks to escape and later admits to Albert that painting helps him find out who he is, he can step back and look at a fragment of his life then he can put it down and say he knows that now and leave it alone. It’s extraordinary character development as they have endless layers to them exposing their vulnerabilities.

Set against London’s East End David paints the scene vividly. The inner workings of what happens behind closed doors as you lose yourself to the booming bass amongst the mass of flesh, all dancing as one is hypnotic. You immerse yourself into the scene as David’s writing style is electric. He goes through the motions from the highs to the lows. The way he writes Billy’s first time taking an E is mind-blowing. You can feel the blood pumping, the itchy, the erratic thoughts and the pleasure. It’s a surreal experience.

I give The Pharmacist By Justin David a Five out of Five paw rating.

At the heart of The Pharmacist is a love story. When these two characters meet and spend time together there is a strong, passionate connection. This book will not be everyone’s cup of Earl Grey as it deals with sensitive subjects and has graphic sex scenes. But it is such an electrifying read that I recommend everyone should try it at least once. It’s a story of love, lust, passion and addiction. The characters are mysterious to follow as you feel yourself being pulled further and deeper down the rabbit hole the more you read. It’s an experience that you will struggle to forget and admittedly won’t want to. ...more

flag Like · see review

Apr 16, 2020 Steph Warren rated it really liked it

*I received a free ARC of this novella with thanks to the author and Nathan at Inkandescent. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*

The Pharmacist is a short, contained story, but incredibly powerful.

With a very limited number of characters and settings – mainly Billy and Albert, and their respective flats – there is an intimate, almost claustrophobic feel to the story, which mirrors the unhealthy and isolated nature of the character’s relationships with each other.

At first, I assume ...more

flag Like · see review

Nov 29, 2020 Simon Howard rated it really liked it

This 2014 novella was featured somewhere—I can’t recall where—as one of a pair of books to read together, the other being Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones. I haven’t read that just yet!

The Pharmacist focused on Billy, a man in his 20s, who falls into a friendship with Albert, an older gay man who lived in a flat in the same building. As their friendship developed, Albert introduced Billy to illicit drugs, and their relationship became closer and more complex.

I enjoyed this for the contrast between Bi ...more

flag Like · see review

Apr 15, 2020 NeilN rated it it was amazing

When it comes to the overcrowded marketplace for gay relationships, I tend to be cautious. But The Pharmacist by Justin David has truly blown me away. It’s funny, sexy, thought provoking, truthful, surreal and haunting. The writing is filled with wit and tenderness. It’s right up there with Edmund White, Neil Bartlett.

Justin David has the ability to present characters with a brutal truthfulness that reminds me of Edward St. Aubyn. It’s really something special. The novella is agile as a gazelle. ...more

flag Like · see review

Aug 25, 2020 Ken Cook rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Thought provoking read

This story is quite deep. The author presents what might be considered a romance, drawing the artist and his upstairs neighbor carefully, slowly walking towards the conclusion. London, at least the maisonette and the club, become visual components of the plot. Quite moving.

As I am a gatherer of books, I collect books and ebooks from a variety of sources: Goodreads wins, BookBub, BookFunnel, Riffle, Prolific Works, emails from authors and publishers, and others. I do lose tr ...more

flag Like · see review

Jan 11, 2019 Snoakes rated it it was amazing

Shelves: won-or-blagged

The Pharmacist is a short and intense read about a short and intense relationship. Billy is an artist whose creativity is given a boost when he starts an affair with the much older Albert. Albert himself is the pharmacist of the title - a regular fixture on the local club scene in his panama hat and with his never-ending supply of a wide range of narcotics.
Unflinching, sticky, trippy and tender, the dialogue crackles and the writing is excellent.

flag Like · see review

Oct 19, 2014 Helen rated it it was amazing

I was recommended this book by a friend and found it a very engaging read, so much so I finished it in one sitting. Great writing style, I only hope the next one is longer.

flag Like · see review

Karmagirl rated it it was amazing
Jun 01, 2016

Shaun rated it really liked it
Aug 05, 2014

Joe Mateo rated it it was amazing
May 06, 2019

Josh rated it really liked it
Apr 06, 2015

Benedicta Norell rated it really liked it
Oct 23, 2014

Anna rated it did not like it
Nov 23, 2014

Jthbooks rated it really liked it
Feb 03, 2020

Patricia Braz rated it it was amazing
Aug 16, 2016

Joshua rated it it was amazing
Dec 17, 2018

Kit Waal rated it really liked it
Jun 25, 2015

Ellison rated it it was ok
Jan 21, 2019

Heather Ellis rated it really liked it
Apr 16, 2016

BringMeMyFix rated it liked it
Sep 02, 2018

Helen rated it liked it
Sep 12, 2015

Daniel Garlick rated it it was amazing
Nov 01, 2020

Ant rated it really liked it
May 05, 2020

Alice Ralph rated it liked it
Jan 03, 2016

Biljana rated it it was ok
Oct 01, 2017

Mrs K Rudduck rated it it was ok
Feb 24, 2016

Sophie Cayeux rated it really liked it
Jul 11, 2015

M Lee rated it liked it
Sep 06, 2020

Mark Ramsden rated it it was amazing
Apr 16, 2019

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend It | Stats | Recent Status Updates

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

About Justin David

Justin David

92 followers

JUSTIN DAVID is a writer and artist living and working in East London. After graduating from the MA Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths College he completed a London novel, ‘The Pharmacist’, set in Shoreditch, about pleasure seekers derailed and looking for love in the wrong place.

His debut novella, The Pharmacist, will be released on June 1st by SALT Publishing as one of the first acquisitio ...more