Review: An absolute heart wrenching read.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 24, 2013
Laurie Boris's latest novel, Siding Past Vertical is a novel about love, not the slushy happy ever after sort of love but real love; the sort of love that confuses us, or that we are often blind to.Sarah's love life is complicated. Her latest boyfriend, Jay is a junkie. He keeps her dangling with promises guaranteed to be broken. The problem is that Sarah is besotted with him and is prepared to take all sorts of risks to stay with him. Sarah takes him back time after time only to be let down. She lets off steam by talking to her best friend and confidante, Emerson who she met and once loved when they were at university and who lives miles away in Syracuse.It soon becomes apparent that Emerson still loves Sarah deeply. He is always there for her and continues to hope that she will return to him. Sarah however, appears to only love him like a brother. On paper, Emerson is exactly what Sarah needs. He is kind, works as a nurse with elderly patients by day, and is a writer, although Sarah disapproves heartily of some of his writing.Sarah loses her job and following further heartache caused by Jay, she has her flat broken into. Terrified, she turns to the only person she can truly trust--Emerson. He travels down to rescue her, with his new polite flatmate, the naive Rachid.What follows is a beautifully crafted work following these three characters and their relationships.  It is alive with emotion. Laurie E Boris is a skilled writer who drags the reader effortlessly into their lives. Emerson desperately wants Sarah to come back into his life. Meanwhile, Rachid, betrothed to a woman he has never met, also falls under Sarah's spell. Sarah, confused by emotions, begins yet another journey down a destructive path, this time taking those who care most about her along with her.Sliding Past Vertical is a love story. It is about unrequited love, love rediscovered and of love complicated by man's own complexity. Love bruises and damages but also is fundamental to the lives of the characters in this novel as it is in our own lives.Laurie E. Boris gives us an insight into the complex world of human emotions. This is a book that is difficult to put down. Sliding Past Vertical is a deep, touching story that makes plays with your emotions. An absolute heart wrenching read.I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a frank and honest review.