TITLE: THE SIREN
AUTHOR: TIFFANY REISZ
Pages: 400
Date: 25/06/2013
Grade: 5
Details: No. 1 Original Sinners, The Red Years
Re-read
Own / Kindle / Paperback
The blurb from the author’s website:
Zachary Easton holds Nora's fate in his well-manicured hands. The demanding British editor agrees to handle the book on one condition: he wants complete control. Nora must rewrite the entire novel to his exacting standards—in six weeks—or it's no deal.
Nora's grueling writing sessions with Zach are draining…and shockingly arousing. And a dangerous former lover has her wondering which is more torturous—staying away from him…or returning to his bed?
Nora thought she knew everything about being pushed to your limits. But in a world where passion is pain, nothing is ever that simple.”
I have to admit that, as a rule, I don’t do re-reads. Why read a story
you already know when there are so many new books to discover? Well, I guess
this book and its two sequels provide the answer to that question; you re-read
a book because it is impossible not to do so, because it is the only way you
can make sure that you will do the final book in the series justice and because
regardless of how many new books may be waiting for your attention, the urge to
go back to the start is just too strong.
Since this is a re-read I’m not going to do a proper review again. If
you’re interested in my thoughts on this book you can have a look at the original review. And, if you do, you’ll notice that my grade for the book today
is slightly higher than it was the first time around. That is because back then
I read the book too fast. I got so caught up in the story, so desperate to find
out how it would end that I missed a lot of the detail and beauty I did catch
this time. And yet, although this was a re-read I still had to force myself to
take it slow. The urge to rush on, an urge created by the tension in the story
and my connection to the characters, was (almost) as strong as it was the first
time, even if I knew how the story was going to end.
So, no proper review this time; instead I’m going to share some of my
favourite quotes from this book; sentences that touched me, described feelings
I recognised or just blew me away with their beauty. I may include some stray thoughts here and
there when I feel like it, but apart from the blurb above I probably won’t say
a whole lot about the story, except that it is brilliant and even more so on
re-reading.
There were times that I wanted to kick myself while reading this book
again. How did I not realise that “The Angel” was about Mick. The clue is in
The Siren. I know it is only one sentence but when Nora says to Michael “You are, angel” that’s your hint, right
there! Of course, my big fear is that I have yet again managed to miss clues
and hints; my big fear and yet something I’m almost sure about.
Chapter Two, Nora makes her entrance and a grin appears on my face. A
grin that grows wider whenever she opens her mouth and refuses to completely
disappear, even after I put the book down. Except of course, for those moments
when she managed to break my heart and I found myself with tears in my eyes. But
that is Nora for you:
“You told me to stop
writing what I knew and start writing what I wanted to know. I want to
know…you.” (Nora to Zach)
“I sin boldly” – Nora.
“He’s the only man who
never hurt me.” Nora about Søren.
“The most familiar
darkness…her darkness…she was home.”
Or, as Søren would put it:
“How easily you forgive, Eleanor.
How freely you absolve the sins of others. Tell me, little one, when the time
comes, how will you absolve yours?”
And:
“Eleanor, there are suicide
bombers on the Gaza
Strip who are less dangerous than you are.”
Because this book takes you on an emotional roller-coaster ride the
likes of which you rarely experience in fiction. Laugh out loud to cry out loud
may only take a paragraph, smiles turn into frowns and back again and through
it all complete and utter awe. Awe at the mastery of Tiffany Reisz’ words, the
vividness of her characters, the realness of her world. A world I’ve all but
lost myself in. But who can blame me when you’re confronted by writing like
this:
“He kissed her like her
mouth was his mouth, her lips were his lips, her tongue was his tongue. They
were one flesh.”
“When Søren touched her she
became his. When Wesley touched her, she became herself.”
“We can only sacrifice so
much of ourselves in a relationship before there’s nothing left to love or be
loved.” (This quote made me think and be eternally grateful for reasons I won’t
go into here.)
“Broken love is the most
dangerous love. It will slice you open with every touch.”
And for what is probably the best sentence in this book:
“There are only two reasons
why you leave someone you’re still in love with – either it’s the right thing
to do, or it’s the only thing to do.”
Since I first read “The Siren”, I’ve read “The Angel” and “The Prince”
as well as all available short stories about the Original Sinners. I can’t
begin to explain how much my reading experience was enhanced by the fact that I
knew all the characters better than I had that first time. In fact, it’s a bit
like having sex; it only improves as you get to know each other better.
I have seen this book described as “literary smut”, and I couldn’t agree
more except that the word “smut” doesn’t seem to encompass enough to describe
this book. But, if the Dutch can have “literary thriller” as an established
genre I don’t know why we can’t have “literary smut” as well. And while we’re
at it, I suggest we make Tiffany Reisz its Mistress.
And on that note I think my non-review is long enough. I could have gone
on endlessly with my quotes. I’ve got at least another fifteen that I would
love to share. But that defeats the purpose of this piece. If you haven’t
gotten the message yet that this is a brilliant book, you never will. And that
would be your loss. Books/series this good are few and far between; don’t
deprive yourself. Buy them, read them and love them!
“You’re beautiful enough
and wild enough that you make me think things I never thought I would think
again and feel things I didn’t think I’d feel again. And you make me afraid
I’ll start forgetting things I don’t ever want to forget.” Zach to Nora
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