Read an excerpt on Muumuu House
Read Emmalea Russo’s review in The LA Review of Books
One of today’s most provocative writers—the author of the critically acclaimed Sunshine State and the Los Angeles Times First Fiction Award finalist Binary Star—captures the confused state of modern romance and the egos that inflate it in a dark comedy about a woman’s search for acceptance, identity, and financial security in the rise of Trump.
Nina is a struggling writer, a college drop-out, a liar, and a cheater. More than anything she wants love. She deserves it.
From the burned-out suburbs of Florida to the anonymous squalor of New York City, she eats through an incestuous cast of characters in search of it: her mother, a narcissistic lesbian living in a nudist polycule; Odessa, a single mom with even worse taste in men than Nina; Seth, an artist whose latest show is comprised of three Tupperware containers full of trash; Brian, whose roller-coaster affair with Nina is the most stable “relationship” in his life; and Aaron, an aspiring filmmaker living at home with his parents, with whom Nina begins to write her magnum opus.
Nina’s quest for fulfillment is at once darkly comedic, acerbically acute, and painfully human—a scathing critique of contemporary society, and a tender examination of our anguished yearning for connection in an era defined by detachment.
“True Love is as fluid and riotous a book as ‘true love’ is as a concept: so, very. And Sarah Gerard has once again proven herself to be one of the sharpest portrayers of the fuzziest parts of being alive.” — Kristin Iversen, Refinery 29
“[A] darkly comic dissection of desire.” — Entertainment Weekly
“A scouring tale of how a person moves through toxic relationships while maintaining a sense of agency, subsisting with awareness in a noxious world.” — Elle Nash, BOMB
“This darkly comic novel… cycles through a memorable cast of characters—including… Seth, an artist whose latest show is composed of Tupperware containers full of trash; and Aaron, an aspiring filmmaker living at home.” — Glamour
“Acerbically funny and sharply observant.” — Colette Bancroft, Tampa Bay Times
“Written with an acerbic deadpan…. [Gerard’s] stylistic innovation brilliantly captures the way contemporary technology bifurcates our brains into different conversational tracks…. The novel thrums with tension, and Gerard captures the dynamic of a failing relationship with lacerating honesty—made all the worse by the challenges of working freelance in the dystopian era of late-stage capitalism…. A fascinating read for anyone looking to understand the world we’ll inhabit when the smoke of the Trump era clears.” — Ploughshares
“Sophie Amoss’s superb narration enhances the raw and electric prose of author Sarah Gerard’s second novel.” — Audiofile
“This book is both appalling and hilarious, and is, at turns, surprisingly poignant. It’s an extremely resonant social satire that will definitely heat you up [from] a magnetic and influential literary figure.” — Sarah Neilson, Shondaland
“Gerard knows that a large part of identity is performance. [Her protagonist’s] actions, behaviors, language, decisions are at once because of who she is and also serve to define and redefine her evolving self…. The last scene of the novel is simple and devastating.” — Chicago Review of Books
“Gossip, sexual desire, and the uncompromising economics for aspiring artists guide the action in Gerard’s lurid, captivating tale [with] an arresting feminist layer. Gerard’s unflinching look at youthful desperation marks an exciting turn in her work.” — Publishers Weekly
“Nina’s search for love, fulfillment, and demonstrative success becomes a scathing critique of modern hustle culture and the privilege of making art… in this smart, dark riot of a novel.” — Booklist
“An unapologetic drama about a woman’s insistence on living at the apex of desire and self-destruction—what a rush!”- Catherine Lacey, author of THE ANSWERS and NOBODY IS EVER MISSING
“In the aching pages of TRUE LOVE, Gerard holds nothing back. What’s at stake in this frank, ferocious novel is the brutal, ever-elusive salvation of oneself. A smart, tender, startling work of brilliance.” – Idra Novey, author of WAYS TO DISAPPEAR and THOSE WHO KNEW
“True Love hurts so good. A sharply observed portrait of a knockdown world of low-wage work, lean belief, and artistic striving, Sarah Gerard’s novel captures with acuity and intelligence the brutal and baffling contortions we will twist ourselves into to find, in hairline crevices, connection—even when it’s compromised, explosive as it peters out, absurd, and painful, and frightening.” – Tracy O’Neill, author of QUOTIENTS and THE HOPEFUL
“Sarah Gerard’s True Love is a devastating portrait of loneliness and self destruction—both a compassionate portrait of an addict, and an incisive commentary on how our capitalist, individualist culture rips us away from ourselves. Nina’s compulsions and anger, her selfishness and yearning, her wisdom and naïveté–Gerard handles it all with deft poeticism and mastery of scene-building. This novel is a pleasure to read even as it gouges you and turns you inside out.” – SJ Sindu, author of MARRIAGE OF A THOUSAND LIES
“True Love is a brash, sexy, and addictive novel about bad decisions. Gerard’s uncompromising honesty and graceful, precise sentences make me jealous. I didn’t want the book to end.” – Juliet Escoria, author of JULIET THE MANIAC
“True Love is a look at what happens when we lie to each other, but also when we lie to ourselves—Gerard has written a book equally funny and dark. A fantastically mesmerizing read, its settings are dreamy and unsettling, showcasing beauty and ugliness in equal measure, highlighting pain and pleasure. It is bold and wildly imaginative, an overall deeply human novel. Gerard is a fiercely talented writer and True Love is a real page turner.” – Kristen Arnett, author of MOSTLY DEAD THINGS
“Sharp as a knife and wickedly insightful, True Love is a ferocious portrait of love, hate, and artistic self-definition in the 21st century. Life, with all its bruises, wounds, and unsightly rashes, becomes real and touchable in Sarah Gerard’s masterful hands.” – Alexandra Kleeman, author of YOU TOO CAN HAVE A BODY LIKE MINE and INTIMATIONS