Open Water

The story begins in a bar in South East London, with a chance meeting between two young artists. There's an undeniable spark between them and what unfolds is a beautiful yet tentative story of of love, loss, vulnerability, race, and identity. Like with a lot of books I'm picking up at the moment, I didn't know what to expect, but wow - it was stunning. The prose reads like poetry and the second-person narrative adds a whole new level to the story. Whilst we follow the blossoming relationship between the two artists, the story also highlights the experiences of a young black man growing up in London (and many other places in the world). Not only do we read about pressures stemming from expectations of masculinity, but also the all too frequent experiences of racial bias and profiling. There are multiple occasions where the narrator refers to being 'observed', yet never 'seen' and each instance carries the same full impact as the last. This book however also celebrates the pure talent of black artists across the spectrum and also the vibrancy of multicultural London. I could go on about this book, but all I can say is read it.  (Oh, and while we're still here, this is also a book I'd I highly recommend on audio. Narrated by Caleb Azumah Nelson himself, it adds a heartfelt level of intimacy to the book which was just wonderful).🧡

A stunningly romantic debut that reads like a love letter to London. I particularly loved the book's relationship with Black art across multiple disciplines, especially music. It's a short read but you'll want to linger over every word.

“The trouble is, this is trouble that you welcome.” Have you ever accidentally fallen in love with your best friend’s girlfriend, and been terrified to cross the boundary between friendship and love? To swim out into open water and let yourself be completely vulnerable? This book is absolutely beautiful and hooked me in right from the start. Nelson describes the pain of a deep and forbidden connection so perfectly. The writing is beautiful. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. I just want to write ‘beautiful’ a thousand times! I love the poetic repetition throughout and found myself going back to read over my favourite sections again and again. It was so refreshing to read about love and real emotion from a male perspective, I look forward to being able to hold a physical copy in my hands. Favourite quote: “The two of you, like headphone wires tangling, caught up in this something. A happy accident. A messy miracle.”

I was pleased Open Water was a short novel, under two hundred pages, because it allowed me to read it in two sittings. This is not a book to read a chapter, leave it for a day or two and come back to it. Once you start this intoxicating book, you cannot stop. It draws you in really intensely and doesn’t let you go. It is one of those books where atmosphere and emotion really gets its claws into the reader and doesn’t relent even after the last word has been read. By the end of this breathtakingly poetic debut novel, I was in floods of tears that would not abate. This book deals with an intense relationship between two young people who start as best friends and end up as something else. The phrase ‘two becomes one’ is used a lot in the book. They never really establish themselves as boyfriend and girlfriend but what they have between them is really powerful and absorbing. Is the relationship doomed to fail from the start? If you are expecting a happy ever after story you will be sadly disappointed. This book could be termed romantic but it is so much more than that on every level. Both struggle to articulate their thoughts and feelings and say more through silence and actions than words. Our male protagonist is battling his own demons all the way through the book. These demons cause him both inner and outer turmoil and show a different side to the character. Events conspire to rip the couple apart in every sense of the word but it is how they decide to react to those events that make the story so engaging and poignant. This novel felt fresh, different and challenging. It was a difficult read not because of content but because of the way, it pulls you in so deeply and does not let go. I personally felt like I was holding my breath the whole way through and by the end I was exhausted and an emotional wreck. These comments are not negative; in fact, they are praise for the author to be able to write something so deep that it can consume the reader to the point where they feel drained after the reading experience. The same phrases and sentences crop up repeatedly throughout the book compounding the density of the words and the tensions between the pair. Now the book is finished I feel numb because I did not want it to end and because of the tension, it built up in me. I felt a lot of apathy for these characters and feel a void now their story is over. There are not enough superlatives available to give the praise warranted to this book and its amazing author.

Honestly, I had trouble reading and following this story, but plan to read it again at a later date with fresh eyes. The story shows us how hard it is to navigate being different from the majority of your friends and colleagues. We see how important friendships can be, and how they can sometimes turn into a serious relationships. After all the five star reviews, I look forward to rereading this story with a whole new understanding. Thank you to NetGalley, Caleb Nelson, and Grove Atlantic for letting me read Open Water in exchange for an honest review.