If I Can't Have You

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The reasoning behind choosing the “safe” areas is also illogical. Some nearer destinations are out of bounds or a scarier prospect than somewhere further yet familiar. But to clarify, none are far from my house. I’m trapped within the constraints of my hometown – the only occasion where the term “Madchester” would be acceptable. My restrictions aren’t limited to the where but also the when. The only thing worse than a journey is a journey with bad traffic. The vision of red brake lights ahead is a certain trigger. Overheating, nausea, dizziness, palpitations and derealisation are all exacerbated by the fact I can’t escape. Levin’s prose is fierce and original - not once did my attention stray. It fairly bristles with anger - almost everyone in Constance’s life is subject to her cynical scrutiny, but this brings laughs too, especially when she regales us with details about her fellow receptionists and Linda and Alison. Having been through a recent trauma, Constance is a broken thing. So when Samuel is nice to her, she is drawn right in. Her initial attraction to him then tips into obsession and the tension mounts as her behaviour becomes more and more outlandish. Living in a dank bedsit, her only friend appears to be Dale, but the question is does he have some ulterior motive for looking after Constance so diligently? If I Can’t Have You is a psychological thriller about a woman who becomes obsessed with her ex-boyfriend after he begins dating someone else. It was Ernest Hemingway who once encouraged writers to begin with “one true sentence”. There are many such sentences in Charlotte Levin’s debut “If I Can’t Have You”, but this is her first: “Everyone stared.” Simple, effective, true, because, above all, this is a novel not about looking but rather, about the desire to be seen.

The ending is written in a way that you can draw your own conclusions and I liked the fact that things were not rushed and wrapped up in a bow neat and tidy.

Brilliant. A perfect and completely terrifying depiction of heartbreak and obsession' – Sarah Powell

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They say there's a fine line between lov

When the sexy Dr Stevens begins to show interest, her whole world changes. They begin an exciting affair, Constance is in Love for the first time. He whispers sweetness to her ear, he's smitten... right? read #readreadread #readersgonnaread #reading #reader #readingcorner #readmorebooks #readstagram #readersofig #ifiletyougo If you want a story to get its fingernails into you and have you both wanting to cover your eyes and not stop reading, then this is the story for you.I didn't really know about this book at first but I did get into it. Janet is a cleaner with an overly controlling husband, Colin. It's clear from the start that something isn't right between the pair, Colin is horrible towards Janet, never lets her go out and always expects her to do everything for him. Indeed I was. Originally Levin’s novel was entitled An Explanation of Love - and stripped down to its barest bones, that’s just what it is - an explanation of what love is and what love isn’t. When the new doctor at the surgery where Constance works as a receptionist shows an interest in her, she thinks she is falling in love, except that what transpires between she and Samuel Stevens is anything but love. This psychological thriller is written as a fascinating and detailed letter, from Constance to Samuel, and SO hard to put down. The story is a mixture of “Fatal Attraction” and “Gone Girl” and works perfectly. I couldn’t help but root for “Team Constance”, even if she was a bit psycho. The more I read about her, the more I sympathized with her and tried to understand her actions. The story follows Constance Little, a young woman who is desperately in love with her best friend’s husband, John. When John is tragically killed in a car accident, Constance is left heartbroken and alone.