I, like so many others, have constantly chased the high I feel when reading books by bestselling author Sally Rooney. She has a way of making the most mundane subject matter fill you with such emotion as each book portrays the spectrum of human connection and interpersonal relationships.
The same can be said about her newest release, Intermezzo, which is about two brothers who have very little in common: Peter who is a successful lawyer in his thirties trying to juggle relationships with two different women, and his younger brother Ivan who is a competitive chess player in his twenties beginning a relationship with an older woman.
Peter and Ivan have their differences, but both are struggling with their grief in the wake of their father’s death. Rooney’s fourth novel, Intermezzo, is an exquisitely moving story about grief, love and family that will have you wanting more from this global phenomenon. But while you wait for her next masterpiece, here are some other books with a Sally Rooney feel that might scratch that itch.
One Day by David Nicholls
After only one day together, Dexter and Emma cannot stop thinking about each other. Over the next 20 years, snapshots of their relationship are revealed on the same day — July 15th — every year. Both separate and together, they will face fights, hope, laughter and tears as Dex and Em come to terms with the nature of life. And as the years fly by, the true meaning of one particular day is revealed.
Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors
British painter Cleo finds herself in New York, still working out her place in the city that never sleeps with only a few months left on her student visa, when she meets Frank. Twenty years her senior, Frank is a self-made man whose life is filled with all things Cleo lacks.
In order to give Cleo the freedom to paint and be happy in NYC while she applies for a green card, Frank offers to marry her, but their impulsive marriage sets their lives and the lives around them on a path no one could have predicted. Each chapter explores their marriage and the lives of their very entertaining cast of friends. Cleo and Frank discover the trials of marriage and mental illness in this hilarious yet heartbreaking and deeply moving tale.
Boy Parts by Eliza Clark
Irina has been exiled from the art world. So on “sabbatical” from her dead-end bar job she begins taking explicit photos of the average-looking men whom she finds on the streets of Newcastle and convinces to model for her. Her talent hasn’t gone unnoticed, and Irina has been invited to show her work at a London Gallery.
This is the chance she has been waiting for to revive her career and claw her way out from under the addiction to drugs and alcohol she’s fallen into. Unfortunately, this news has the opposite effect, sending her into a self-destructive tailspin. Boy Parts is a dark comedy fearlessly exploring sexuality and gender roles of the 21st century.
Talking at Night by Claire Daverley
Will and Rosie meet as teenagers and are opposite in just about every way. Rosie is an overthinker and Will is her twin brother’s wild and unpredictable friend. Both are drawn to each other, so over late-night phone calls and secret walks home Will and Rosie start to get closer.
Until, one day, tragedy strikes and the future they thought they had together is shattered. Much like when they were teens, Will and Rosie are continuously drawn together again and again over the years trying to rekindle what might have been. Talking at Night is a poignant and emotional story of first loves, loss and about that one person that you just can’t seem to shake.
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue
Rachel is a student working at a bookstore when she meets James. Shortly after meeting, James invites Rachel to be his roommate and they start building a friendship that changes the course of their lives forever. Rachel and James run riot through the streets of Cork trying their hardest to maintain a bohemian existence even though the threat of financial ruins looms over their heads.
Now thick as thieves, when Rachel confesses her love for her married professor Fred, James devises a plan for a reading at their local bookstore so Rachel can begin seducing him. But Fred has other desires. This is the start of a series of secrets and compromises that will intertwine James, Rachel, Fred and his wife. The Rachel Incident is a brilliantly funny novel about friends, unrequited love, and the chaos that comes with any coming-of-age story.
Ghosts by Dolly Alderton
Nina Dean is an independent woman who isn’t bothered by the fact she isn’t in a relationship. She has a great apartment, is working on publishing her second book, and has a wonderful group of friends that keep her social calendar full. Finally, by downloading a dating app, she accomplishes the impossible: she has a perfect first date with a handsome man with a stable job named Max. Immediately, Nina and Max have undeniable chemistry filled with witty conversations: they both hate sports and love crappy music. So, the end and fade to black, right? Wrong.
When Max ghosts her out of nowhere, Nina is now forced to deal with issues she’s tried to hard to ignore: Her father’s worsening dementia and her mother’s denial, her editor hates her new book idea, and her oldest and best friend is suddenly icing her out. Ghosts is a movingly relatable story of modern relationships of all kinds that is somehow both cynical and sincere.
