Read: "Come Closer" by Sara Gran

Read: Come Closer by Sara Gran, 2003, 9781569473283.

Since I read her and Megan Abbott's blog I figured I ought to read one of her books. I was looking at her bib. on Novelist and picked this one. A review had a neat comment, "[could not find the quote]". Basically the quote said Gran takes a cliched topic but avoids the pitfalls and keeps it interesting. She did, too, because my interest was kept through all 168 pages. I say that speaks to Gran's skill because most books like this are uninteresting to me.

Amanda and her husband, Ed, live in a NYC loft. They get along pretty well until ademon starts possessing Amanda. Amanda recognizes what is happening, reads up on possession, pursues spiritual, medical, psychological, and magical help but continues to let reason and doubt keep her from a complete cure. After a while her attempts at rescue are hopeless as her demon, Naamah, takes firmer control of her. When Amanda tries to speak out loud to Ed or others her voice is constricted and different words come out.

Naamah is the second wife of Adam who was rejected by Adam when he witnessed God put her together. Or so I recall from the book.

Comments:
1. Gran skips a lot of the usual stuff and keeps Amanda's narration internal. There is little dialogue and Amanda blacks out whenever Naamah starts to take over. Those blackouts mean there are no extended explanations and descriptions of the various crimes and misbehaviors Naamah undertakes. Amanda is kept in the dark about many of the bad things that are going on.
2. Amanda likes some of the things Naamah enables her with and makes her do. Increased assertiveness, heightened sexuality, a "presence" of beauty and power.
3. I've forgotten what else. I'm listening to an old Howard Stern episode on my headphones and it distracted me.
4. There was another book similar to this where the narration was almost all the internal thoughts of the main character with little dialogue. I don't recall the story I only recall writing similar comments. Will I now look for those comments? No.
5. Gran's personal interests (deduced from reading her blog) come through in this novel. Her online essays on magic, psychology, disassociation, the subconscious explore the same things she puts Amanda through.
6. As a result of Abbott and Gran's blog a copy of Black Dahlia Avenger by Hodel is sitting at home. I have a pile of stuff and may not get to it.