The humour is sometimes strong enough to get you laughing outloud – from Adam’s crazy haircuts, Jason’s goofy attempts at impressing Claire, or even in the midst of Bryan's suicide:
He couldn't believe it. Please let it be a piss-take, please. But it wasn't. He managed to keep listening as the rest of the travesty played out.
His favourite song by his all-time favourite band had been raped! Desecrated! Mollocated! Violated! Buggered up! Ruined! No, not ruined obviously, there was still the original, but he knew he would never be able to listen to London Calling again without this tragic mockery springing immediately to mind.(11)
But underneath the humour, there is transformation. Claire, Adam, and Jason all grow throughout the course of the novel, and Bryan's very believable depression is handled with sensitivity, providing a thoughtful foil to the lightheartedness of the interactions. The balance between the shallow and financially driven world of the recording industry, and the serious emotional toll of this loss on Bryan's family is handled deftly, never giving in to sentimentality.
Each chapter begins with a quotation from one of Bryan’s songs, and although the poetry itself isn’t strong, it does help to keep Bryan at the centre of the reader’s focus. Though the book is never sad as such, the reader's privy perspective from the novel’s start creates a poignancy that underlies the zany. Will You Love Me Tomorrow is an easy, fast paced read, full of funny twists and pithy insights. There’s a musical spring to Gillan’s style that belies the seriousness of his topics, covering a broad range of topics including the impact of depression and death on friendship, love, how we move on past tragedy, the music industry, art versus public relations, and family jealousy.
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