Sliding Past Vertical by Laurie Boris

AMAZON UK
AMAZON US

And another winner by Laurie Boris.

Who, out of Sarah, Emerson, and Rashid, will surface unscathed from their pools of unfortunate choices, wrong decisions, and tragedy?

If you’re thinking, goodness, am I going to enjoy a book which seems to be tinged with doom and gloom, let me assure you right now, yes, you will.

When Sarah finally fleas the evils of her latest unsuitable partner, she heads for the only place she knows she will find solace. Her dear friend, Emerson, whom she met at college, years before. They fell in love. She fell out of love. Or did she? Emerson, however, never stopped loving her and could only stand by while she made endless disastrous choices of subsequent partners. Good old Emerson. Always there for her, always supporting her, always Emerson. His mundane job in an old people’s home is supplemented by his writing of ‘those’ sorts of stories for a men’s magazine, which in turn supplements his aspirations to become a serious writer. If only Sarah could always be around.

Rashid is his housemate. A brilliant researcher from India, constrained by the rigours of his culture. A constraint which ultimately threatens to break the tenable link between the three.

Once again, Laurie throws every last drop of emotion and credibility into her characters. What emerge are people, not characters. They’re real. You want to reach out to them and say ‘No! Please! Don’t do that!’ You feel you know them, you care about them, and want to help them.

It’s an intense novel that sucks you in from the start and doesn’t let you go until the final word. Excellent.