Normal People

Sally Rooney

This refreshingly honest love story is laced with Irish angst and excruciatingly frank sex scenes, lending authenticity to the tale of self-conscious adolescent encounters. The relationship dynamic, with flashbacks of miscommunication throughout the narrative, increases the erotic tension in a familiar will they/won't they romantic style - but without the usual smaltz.

Extract

How strange to feel herself so completely under the control of another person, but also how ordinary. No one can be independent of other people completely, so why not give up the attempt, she thought, go running in the other direction, depend on people for everything, allow them to depend on you. She knows he loves her, she doesn't wonder about that anymore.

Parallels