Everything That Made Him Up

A snapshot of two weekends, Everything That Made Him Up is an erotically charged glimpse into the lonely lives of two small-town boys who took different paths after high school, only to bump into each other by chance years later.

Declan Martin left Umberton with two middle fingers in the air after graduation, his sights set on the glimmering skyline of Chicago. But after too many drinks one night, the nostalgia of youth called him home—for an alumni banquet in honor of his high school cross-country team.

Ten years ago, there’d been a boy, scared and confused, sitting next to Dec on the van ride home from a meet—a boy named Mason Ford. Dec and Mase knew each other, but they didn’t really know each other, and a missed opportunity on that van ride left Dec pining for something he didn’t understand, pining for Mase.

Dec didn’t expect to see Mase at the banquet, and Mase didn’t expect the only motel in their sleepy hometown to be booked up. So, after a rowdy reception that sparked too many memories, Mase reluctantly accepts Dec’s offer to let him crash in his room at the motel.

Ten years is a long time, and Dec sometimes wondered if he’d dreamt up Mase’s advance on the van all those years ago. But when Dec wakes in the middle of the night to feel Mase’s body quietly curling around him, he realizes the move hadn’t been a figment of his imagination after all.

What transpires is an unexpected and eye-opening weekend together, unveiled on the spiral of a steamy, coming of age tale about two star-crossed boys—one desperate for connection and one begging for acceptance—who can’t seem to figure out what they want under the chugging weight of unspoken words and emotional baggage.

Sexy, raw, and passionate, Everything That Made Him Up is Vance Anthony’s fourth book and second full-length novel.