The Disappearers — Marlon James

Kingston, 1988. Eight men who are strangers to one another start rehearsing a play, and the only thing they hold in common is that all of them are gay. A mob finds them. One dies. James gives his sixth novel to what the survivors do next, which is where it gets hard: some chase retribution, some vanish, some decide nothing happened. Booker longlisted on July 28, his third nomination. The room is correct.