New Book Weaves Bold, Humorous Tale of Family Misadventure From a Fresh, Stunning Voice in Contemporary Literary Fiction
Lorraine Devon Wilke is the author of the acclaimed debut novel After the Sucker Punch, a former rock-and-roller, and one of the boldest new voices in contemporary literary fiction. Now she unveils a whip-smart narrative of modern family misadventure and romantic entanglement, skillfully blending humor, and drama in her new book, Hysterical Love.
Hysterical Love follows Dan McDowell, a thirty-three-year-old photographer happily set to marry his beloved Jane—until a slip of the tongue about an “ex-girlfriend overlap” throws their pending marriage into doubt and him onto the street. Things get stranger still when his father’s sudden illness sparks a chain of events in which Dan discovers a story written by this man he doesn’t readily understand, but who, it seems, has long harbored an unrequited love from decades earlier.
On a mission to find the woman of his father’s dreams, Dan sets off for Oakland, California on an adventure fraught with detours and semi-hilarious peril. Along the way, he meets the beautiful Fiona, herbalist and flower child, who assists him while quietly and erotically shaking up his world.
The discovery of how the elusive woman from the past fit into his father’s world staggers him. But it’s when he returns home to yet another set of unexpected truths that he’s shaken to his core, ultimately forced to face who he is—and just whom he might be able to love.
Hysterical Love will thrill lovers of Richard Russo, Dave Eggers, and Nick Hornby with its shrewd perspective, tantalizing wit, and masterful skill from an intrepid contemporary author, exploring themes of family, commitment, balancing creativity, facing adulthood, and digging deep to understand true love.
"A realistic and profound journey of realization and forgiveness…a solid novel that admirably explores the fragile, fraught relationship between a parent and child."
– PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, on After the Sucker Punch
