Pier Vittorio Tondelli
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Classic + Literary Fiction + LGBTQ+
Separate Rooms is a 1980s queer Italian classic novel that has been translated into the English language. It follows Leo, a man in his thirties, mourning the death of his lover. Leo is a writer who has been deeply in love with Thomas, a young German musician. The story highlights their relationship and how their careers affected their passionate bond.
The story is narrated from Leo’s perspective in a nonlinear style. Through his narration, we get to feel the isolation that Leo has been going through and the struggles and obstacles that affected his relationship with his lover.
The novel is about love, loss, grief, identity, isolation, and memory. With the melancholic and poetic prose, the author successfully turned this story into a tale of heavy loss and emotional depth. The representation of gay characters here is very authentic and will resonate with many readers.
Due to the lack of plot progression, I feel this story won’t be the cup of tea of every reader. The story doesn’t have what one calls dramatic events or even a clearly defined resolution. I was not a fan of the constant jumps between past and present. I feel a linear approach would’ve served the book a lot better. Regardless of these drawbacks, I still think this is a fascinating read that you should give a try.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC of this book.
Genre: Classic + Literary Fiction + LGBTQ+
Separate Rooms is a 1980s queer Italian classic novel that has been translated into the English language. It follows Leo, a man in his thirties, mourning the death of his lover. Leo is a writer who has been deeply in love with Thomas, a young German musician. The story highlights their relationship and how their careers affected their passionate bond.
The story is narrated from Leo’s perspective in a nonlinear style. Through his narration, we get to feel the isolation that Leo has been going through and the struggles and obstacles that affected his relationship with his lover.
The novel is about love, loss, grief, identity, isolation, and memory. With the melancholic and poetic prose, the author successfully turned this story into a tale of heavy loss and emotional depth. The representation of gay characters here is very authentic and will resonate with many readers.
Due to the lack of plot progression, I feel this story won’t be the cup of tea of every reader. The story doesn’t have what one calls dramatic events or even a clearly defined resolution. I was not a fan of the constant jumps between past and present. I feel a linear approach would’ve served the book a lot better. Regardless of these drawbacks, I still think this is a fascinating read that you should give a try.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC of this book.
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