In Plato's Symposium, Aristophanes says that humans were
originally two bodies melded together, two parts of a
whole. When the gods split humans in two, they were left
longing for their other halves. Since we are half of what
once was a whole person, we spend the rest of our lives
looking for the missing part of us. Erik Fiskare begins
his first year of college at Lancaster University and
majors in lighting and set design. When he meets Daisy, a
dancer major at the school, he feels that he has finally
met his other half.
Suanne Laqueur gives us an intense and realistic love story
in this book unlike any other. As Erik and Daisy explore
each other physically and emotionally, their relationship
is sometimes sweet and romantic and other times it is raw
and savage. But these lovers are the perfect fit for one
another, and they accept each other unconditionally, flaws
and all.
It is obvious from the beginning that something tragic will
happen to this seemingly perfect couple. Suanne Laqueur
provides the reader with subtle imagery and dialogue that
hints at the events that will befall Erik and Daisy. I
kept frantically turning the pages of this book to find out
who would survive and how the characters would cope and
move on from a tragedy. I tried to read this book slowly
and savor it but the gripping plot kept pulling me back to
it again and again.
The language and diction of THE MAN I LOVE is lyrical and
melodic. I have rarely felt such a vivid myriad of
emotions when reading a book. I was elated when Erik and
Daisy were in love but thrown into the depths of despair
when they become victims of a tragic event. Finally, I was
anxious and even nauseous when Erik goes through intense
therapy and tries to get beyond his suffering.
Suanne Laqueur also provides us with a rich and in depth
cast of characters that include not only Erik and Daisy but
their friends and family as well. Will, who is Daisy's
dance partner, is one of my favorite characters in the
book. He has a witty and sarcastic sense of humor and
makes no apologies when he experiments with his sexuality.
We cannot help but like and admire his confidence and
casual acceptance of who he is.
We are also introduced to David, Erik's lighting design
partner, who can be mean spirited and is clearly fighting
his own emotional issues. Erik's mother and brother, who
love and support Erik without being overprotective, are
characters who also face their own problems that they must
bravely overcome.
Finally, THE MAN I LOVE is one of those books that makes us
think about important themes and issues long after we have
closed the last page. Can we ever truly overcome or forget
traumatic experiences in our past? Would we throw
ourselves in the way of danger to save the life of someone
we love? Should we let our past drag us down into a never
ending pit of unhappiness and despair or should we accept
help and try to move forward? Do not let the fact that
this is a long novel discourage you from reading it. I was
very disappointed when THE MAN I LOVE ended and I cannot
wait to see what else Suanne Laqueur has in store for her
readers.
"You never got over her. You just left." Erik Fiskare once had the bravery to make a gunman stand down. Now he lacks the courage to confront his own past. As a college freshman, Erik is drawn to the world of theater but prefers backstage to center stage. The moment he lays eyes on a beautiful, accomplished dancer named Daisy Bianco, his atoms rearrange themselves and he is drawn into a romance both youthfully passionate and maturely soulful. It is a love story seemingly without end. But when a disturbed friend brings a gun into the theater, the story is forever changed. Six lives are lost and Daisy is left seriously injured, her professional dreams shattered. Traumatized by the experience, the lovers spiral into depression and drug use until a shocking act of betrayal destroys their relationship. To survive, Erik must leave school and disconnect from all he loves. He buries his heartbreak and puts the past behind. Or so he believes. As he moves into adulthood, Erik comes to grips with his role in the shooting, and slowly heals the most wounded parts of his soul. But the unresolved grief for Daisy continues to shape his dreams at night. Once those dreams were haunted by blood and gunfire. Now they are haunted by the refrain of a Gershwin song and a single question: is leaving always the end of loving? The Man I Love explores themes of love and sexuality, trauma--physical and mental--and its long-lasting effects, the burden of unfinished business and the power of reconciliation. Through Erik's experience we reflect on what it means to be a man, a son and a leader. A soul mate, a partner and a lover. What it means to live the truth of who you are and what you feel. What it means to fight for what you love.
Excerpt
In the wake of passion, time and space reassembled. Erik held tight to Daisy, rocking her in his lap, stroking her head on his shoulder. He could feel her heart pounding against his, the last little trembles of love making her body twitch. “I love us,” she whispered. He smiled, feeling the world to his bones. “I love us, too.” “It’s so good.” She ran a hand back from her forehead, gathering her hair up and away from her damp neck. “Happy birthday,” he said, running his mouth along her throat, tasting her scent. She took his face in her hands and kissed him. “Being twenty rocks.” Carefully he helped her down to her back, pulling a pillow into place, pulling up the covers and tucking them around their bodies. It was their anniversary as well. “Two years,” Daisy whispered. Curled up to him in the warm glow of the Christmas lights, she was unbearably beautiful. Sometimes she looked at him a certain way and his heart reset itself, closed up coyly just for the pleasure of opening to her again. Fingers twined, Erik set his mouth against her wrist, feeling her pulse beat. “Twenty-four months.” He loved her. Sometimes it was just part of the world, like air and water. Other times, like right now, he looked at Daisy and could not get his mind around the emotion he felt for her. “Love” didn’t seem an adequate word anymore. It was bigger than the world, beyond everything he had imagined love could be. Even the phrase “making love” had morphed out of context. Lately he was struck by the literal idea of making love. Not just a sexual expression but a creation-ary one. As if with each conversation, each shared experience and each time their bodies came together, they were assembling something larger. Adding bit by bit onto some magnificent structure. A cathedral within their private universe. “I love you so much,” he said. You can’t know. You’ll never know how much. I’ll never be able to say it all. He put his head down next to hers. Her lips brushed his face, her hand stroking the back of his neck. “I don’t know where I stop and you begin,” she said. Her voice had the slurred and sultry rhythm which meant she was growing drowsy. “Everything I am is so woven in with everything you are. It’s like… I can’t explain. I can’t explain love anymore, Erik. It doesn’t mean what it used to.” Erik moved closer against her as a great bell in the cathedral began to toll.
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The Man I Love, by Suanne Laqueur—Book Trailer
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