A review by nickdleblanc
Die, My Love by Ariana Harwicz

3.0

Goddamn this book was sad. I didn't really feel the comparisons to Lynch, with the exception of maybe the "girl in trouble" motif. But I definitely felt the comparisons to Cassavetes, or more appropriately Gena Rowlands portrayals of troubled women. Some reviews I have seen position the narrator's instability on breaking out of her societally appointed roles, but for me it just read as illness. The narrator and her husband are contemptible parents, I am happy not to be spending anymore time with them. Truth be told, I have a one year old daughter and have a mother who had struggles with mental illness so maybe this was a little too close to home. Also, I have experienced some of these impulses or intrusive thoughts--as I'm sure most have--so seeing them play out in prose is a geat reminder that I have always made the right decision in not following them. Despite all of this, I was compelled to keep reading, so that counts for something. I could definitely see how this book may have been an exorcism of sorts for Harwicz. Not something I'd read again.