True Love: A Novel - Hardcover

Gerard, Sarah

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 006293743X ISBN 13: 9780062937438

Publisher: Harper, 2020

Synopsis

One of today’s most provocative literary writers―the author of the acclaimed Sunshine State and Los Angeles Times First Fiction Award finalist―captures the complicated and confused state of modern romance and the egos that inflate it in an edgy and vibrant novel, with shades of Fleabag and My Year of Rest and Relaxation, that follows a young woman's search for belonging and love through a series of unstable and unfulfilling relationships with emotionally unavailable young men.

Nina is many things: a writer, a romantic, and a loyal friend to an incestuous crew of Florida locals all floundering through the complex politics of modern life. She’s also an addict, a cheater, and a liar. She’s looking for love. She deserves it. 

From the burned-out suburbs of Florida to the anonymous squalor of New York City, Nina seeks romantic possibilities and pursues any man she thinks might be able to fulfill her and provide her with the self-worth she is unaware she so desperately lacks. Among them are Mission and his pet rat, both of whom are looking for a place to call home (maybe Nina can help?); Seth, an artist whose latest show is comprised of three Tupperware containers full of trash; and Aaron, who doesn’t believe in a closed-door bathroom policy. There are also those Nina turns to for help: Juniper, the white, dreadlocked hypnotherapist; Odessa, her oldest friend and master of the back-handed compliment; and the unnamed analyst who has perfected the art of total silence in their sessions―except to arrange payment at their end.

Nina’s quest for romantic and sexual fulfillment is at once darkly comedic, acerbically acute and painfully human. Whether pursuing abusive relationships, dissociating during sex, or self-abusing in myriad ways, Nina’s quest is at once a scathing critique of contemporary society and a tender examination of our anguished yearning for connection in a world in which we are fundamentally, existentially alone.

About this title

About the Author

Sarah Gerard is the author of the novel Binary Star (Two Dollar Radio), which was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Award for First Fiction and appeared on best book of the year lists for NPR, Vanity Fair, Buzzfeed, and Flavorwire. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, Paris Review Daily, Vice, BOMB, and other publications. She teaches writing in New York City.

Review

“Gerard’s prose is unlabored, flatly observational, and the interwoven mini stories are at once tender and cold, exhilarating and regrettable―each undermining the one that precedes it.” (Nicole Rudick, Paris Review, on Sunshine State)

“The distinct nature of Florida and its undeniable, magnetic weirdness shines through somewhere in each essay. Yet, despite its title, that enigma of a state isn’t the focus. Gerard takes a magnifying glass to powerful characters, herself included, and the underlying truths she unravels could apply to any number of Americans. The reader becomes invested in the characters’ lives, at times torn between empathy and disdain, but nonetheless needing to know what becomes of them.” (Becca Godwin, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, on Sunshine State)

“One of the themes of ‘Sunshine State,’ Sarah Gerard’s striking book of essays, is how Florida can unmoor you and make you reach for shoddy, off-the-shelf solutions to your psychic unease.... The first essay is a knockout, a lurid red heart wrapped in barbed wire.... This essay draws blood.” (Dwight Garner, New York Times, on Sunshine State)

Edition details

• Publisher: Harper
• Publication date: 2020
• ISBN 10: 006293743X
• ISBN 13: 9780062937438
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224