Men wanting to drain you of every last ounce of energy you've reserved for getting through the days. Men under streetlamps, men on my stoop. Men fucking someone against my very gate. Men leaving their refuse everywhere: Until the world fills up and spills over as it may soon do: The line that comes straight after this passage is: It's the actress who calms me, of course. The narrator's obsession with a woman who lives in her neighbourhood, a famous actress with a young family, is central to the story.
Neither character is ever given a name: The actress has a picture-perfect life: Children, whose absence from the narrator's life seems to be the fuel for so much of her hatred. What's ironic about the narrator's ferocious desire to have a baby is that she would surely make the worst mother imaginable. She doesn't even seem to like children, except as another object she wishes to possess.
Her treatment of Cat is an ominous foretelling of her probable parenting style: This sudden outpouring of 'love' made me much more uncomfortable than the previous neglect. And yet I feel repulsed, too.
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If I could suckle a child myself, would I feel the same? Maternally virtuous, like I was growing a future citizen of the nation, but simultaneously disgusted and trapped, clamoring to be free from the leech at my breast? The narrator is a fantasist, and there are points in the book where it becomes difficult — nearly impossible — to pick her daydreams apart from reality. As is the case with many an unreliable narrator, what she leaves out of her account is often more significant than what she puts in. It's also deliciously rewarding to observe other characters' interactions with her, particularly when it comes to her preoccupation with the actress.
And yet — is the narrator entirely unsympathetic? I cringed with recognition when she window-shops at an expensive organic store, contemplating blowing the last of her money on outrageously overpriced salads, just because the actress shops there. Throughout the book, she's always a step or ten away from understanding that having things in common with the actress, even possessing the actress's actual things, will not make her any more like the actress.
In the age of the 'influencer', I suspect many of us are more intimately familiar with this sentiment than we'd like to admit. I read Looker hungrily over the course of two train journeys. It is truly an unputdownable read, one designed to be devoured at speed no chapters, all one breathless diatribe , but also one you want to reread almost immediately.
There's so much more I loved about the book that I haven't even touched on here the fantasies about the actress's husband! It's an excellent debut, and I'm excited to read more from Sims. I received an advance review copy of Looker from the publisher through Edelweiss. TinyLetter Twitter Instagram Tumblr Dec 17, Jackie rated it liked it Shelves: I won this in a goodreads giveaway.
A decent read, but is mislabeled regarding where it fits in terms of genre. This is a character study of one woman whose life is crumbling all around her. The main character leans on an actress who lives nearby for support.
Granted the support comes from her mild in the beginning obsession of her. The story is highly unlikely to occur. Given the actresses popularity there would be no way for the MC to stalk her to the I won this in a goodreads giveaway. Given the actresses popularity there would be no way for the MC to stalk her to the extent in the novel. However certain characters actions rang true to life and I believe this author has the ability to really capture emotion and human behavior.
I mainly saw this in the secondary characters, and a bit in the MC. I think a few more books and this author could have a hit Oct 15, Jamie rated it liked it Shelves: Looker is a novel that really reads more like a novella - it's fairly short in length and you never even learn the two main character's names. At about halfway, the story picks up a bit but before I can really start to care and say ooooh this is getting good, the story ends. And unfortunately, the ending was a little flat for me. A unique approach but ultimately was not my favorite. Thank you to Scribner for an advanced copy.
All opinions are my own. Nov 20, KC rated it liked it Shelves: In this latest psychological suspense novel, the reader witnesses the unraveling life of the unnamed narrator. Divorced, childless, depressed and desperate, her growing obsession with a neighboring actress quickly results in spiraling madness and irreversible actions. For those who enjoyed Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller. Aug 01, Sana marked it as to-read-so-bad-it-hurts.
Nov 28, Karen rated it it was ok Shelves: This story got my attention initially and had the potential to be a unique thriller but fizzled midway. Thanks to Scribner fo This story got my attention initially and had the potential to be a unique thriller but fizzled midway. Thanks to Scribner for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I am glad this book was short, it was very hard to get into.
The story and writing are ok and the plot was different than any other I'd read, but that was about the only thing that kept me reading. Talk about unlikeable characters, I didn't care for any of these self-centered people and therefore couldn't really be interested in any of them and the ending felt a little flat.
I wish the author the best of luck with this book but it just wasn't my cup of tea. Thank you NetGalley, Scribner and Laura Sims for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own. Looker NetGalley All my reviews can be read here: Aug 17, Emi Bevacqua rated it it was amazing Shelves: I could not put this book down, it was so utterly absorbing, so well written, and so abjectly horrifying. A series of losses precipitates a descent into madness: I love that the title can refer to the main character, the object of her obsession, and to the reader as well.
I was reminded of Veronique Olmi's Beside the Sea, which was another outstanding first novel about an unnamed woman's tragic unr I could not put this book down, it was so utterly absorbing, so well written, and so abjectly horrifying. I was reminded of Veronique Olmi's Beside the Sea, which was another outstanding first novel about an unnamed woman's tragic unraveling.
But France's Olmi doesn't write with the dark humor or modern day snarkiness that Laura Sims uses to such spectacular effect in Looker. View all 3 comments. Aug 09, Michael Schein rated it it was amazing. Looker is the book Edgar Allen Poe might have written if he had been born in the age of television and had entered middle age in the era of social media. Its got something for everyone--thrills for fans of thrillers, character development for literary fiction fans, and plenty of high concept for everyone who plans to wait for the movie version.
This is apparently Laura Sims' first novel and I'm already itching to read the next one. Sep 13, Liese Schwarz rated it it was amazing. What an absorbing dark spiral of a story! Written so well that every scene shines in your mind, this is psychological suspense at its leanest -- not an extra word to dull the knifeblade narrative. A harrowing, intense and fascinating read.
You will not soon forget this one. This book has an unnamed female narrator 1st person POV. She is a literature professor. I really liked the beginning of this book. I love reading about unhinged women. This one is a stalker. She is obsessed with an actress who lives on her street. She stands outside her house and watches in her window. I love it when the main character is a woman with st 2. I love it when the main character is a woman with stalkerish tendencies. But that is where my love for this book sort of ends. I could tell pretty soon into this book that the story is written very differently from most other books.
We do not know the narrator's name. And the book is mostly just her observations and what she thinks. We are in her head a lot. I definitely prefer books where there are things happening, where there is dialogue. This book has very little of that. She is teaching and going home.
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But her interactions with other people are very minimal. And when there are other people we hardly get to hear them say anything, but instead just get the woman's thoughts. The book is more like an internal monologue. Everything is what she is thinking.
Looker | Laura Sims | | NetGalley
Also the woman does fantasize and daydream and a few times it was hard to distinguish what was real. Letters from David Markson. She lives outside of New York City with her family. Would you like to tell us about a lower price? A dazzling, razor-sharp debut novel about a woman whose obsession with the beautiful actress on her block drives her to the edge. No one would dare stand in front of our house and watch us, they think. In this taut and thrilling debut, an unraveling woman, unhappily childless and recently separated, becomes fixated on her neighbor—the actress. When an interaction with the actress at the annual block party takes a disastrous turn, what began as an innocent preoccupation spirals quickly, and lethally, into a frightening and irretrievable madness.
Searing and darkly witty, Looker is enormously entertaining—at once a propulsive Hitchcockian thriller and a fearlessly original portrait of the perils of envy. Read more Read less. Customers who viewed this item also viewed. Page 1 of 1 Start over Page 1 of 1. Late in the Day: Customers who bought this item also bought. Here's how restrictions apply Pre-order Price Guarantee! Order now and if the Amazon. Here's how restrictions apply.
Scribner January 8, Language: The precise, observant writing slips through the skin without ever calling attention to itself' Peter Straub, author of A Dark Matter and Interior Darkness.
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The Professor lives in Brooklyn; her partner Nathan has left her; she can't have a baby. All she's left with is Nathan's old moggy, Cat. Who she doesn't even like. Then a celebrity actress moves into the area. She's beautiful, with long auburn hair, perfect skin, a lovely smile.
She's got children - a baby, even. And a husband who seems to adore her. She leaves discarded household items and toys outside for thrift collection. She leaves her windows open, even at night. There's no harm, the Professor thinks, in recycling those items. Or looking in through the illuminated glass at that shiny, happy family. She lives in Brooklyn. A warm, uplifting novel from the author of The Magic of Christmas Tree Farm, about three women who discover that it's never too late for a fresh start - or to change your life story.
When solo travellers Benni, Emma and Ruth find themselves holidaying together at charming Rose Cottage in Brixam, Devon, they are initially disappointed to be sharing with strangers of a different age group. But 'friendship and home comforts' are guaranteed at Rose Cottage and soon a bond blossoms between the women, who each have valuable life lessons to share.
As the summer unfolds, Benni, Emma and Ruth begin to realise that age is just a number. Before their time at Rose Cottage ends, will they take the chance to grasp the dreams that are now within their reach? Henrietta and Jane are growing up in a farmhouse on the outskirts of town, their mother a remote artist, their father in thrall to the folklore and legend of their corner of New England. When Henrietta falls under the spell of Kaus, an outsider and petty criminal, Jane takes to trailing the couple, spying on their trysts, until one night, Henrietta vanishes into the woods.
Elspeth and Claire are sisters separated by an ocean. Elspeth's pregnancy at seventeen meant she was quickly married and sent away from her Scottish village to make a new life in America. When she comes to the attention of the local mill owner, a series of wrenching and violent events unfolds, culminating in her disappearance. As Jane and Claire search in their own times for their missing sisters, each uncovers the strange legend of Cold Thursday, and of a family apparently transformed into coyotes. But what does his myth really mean? Are their sisters dead, destroyed by the men who desired them?
Or have they made new lives, elsewhere, beyond the watchful eyes of the community they longed to escape? She thinks you don't deserve it. Your jobAmy is more than happy to offer the daughter of an old friend work experience at her London magazine. Josie is young and ambitious. She just needs a foot in the door. Your homeWhen Josie arrives, she swiftly makes herself indispensable at work and at home. And when childcare falls through before a long-awaited university reunion in Provence, it begins to look as if Josie may be staying longer than Amy had bargained for.
Your husbandIn the heat of Provence, Josie's presence starts to unsettle Amy, especially around her husband. As cracks begin to appear in Amy's perfect life, she cannot shake the feeling that the family friend may not be a friend at all Don't miss this gripping, addictive read. It will make you think twice about who you invite into your home Not to be missed by fans of Donna Leon. A derelict villa near Istanbul holds dark spirits, secrets and murder When historian Suzan Tan is asked to examine the contents of a derelict villa on the Bosphorus, she is intrigued to discover a Ouija board among the artefacts.
Forty years ago, a young girl was found with a knife in her heart in this villa. It is said that before her death this very Ouija board spelled out her name. The verdict was suicide - but what if it was a brutal act of murder and her killer was still walking free?
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When Maeve is bitten, Orpen is faced with a dilemma: So Orpen sets off, with Maeve in a wheelbarrow and her dog at her side, in the hope of finding other survivors, and a cure. It is a journey that will test Orpen to her limits, on which she will learn who she really is, who she really loves, and how to imagine a future in a world that ended before she was born. She's intelligent, driven, committed - and in love. She will follow him anywhere. She's even become a flightattendant for his airline, so she can keep a closer eye on him.
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