Book: After My Own Heart
Author: Sophia Blackwell
Publisher: Limehouse Books
Review by Andrea Enisuoh
Evie Day believes her life is near perfect. An out and proud lesbian, she has a settled job in PR, a great flat and a steady girlfriend. By night she pursues her real passion as a singer/guitarist and performs at some of the more alternative clubs of London. But after attending a session at a motivational support group with her girlfriend Kate, things begin to radically change.
The book starts with the breakdown of their relationship. After five years together they are both are forced to admit that what they have is flawed. A confession about infidelity proves the catalyst for the relationship breakdown, but both of them know there is much more behind the deterioration.
So far so chick lit, you may be thinking. If After My Own Heart is chick lit, it is a rare breed. It is chick lit with a twist, a literary bite dashed with an innovative spin on the genre. The complexity of the characters, who fight against being pigeonholed, is a strong feature – from Vinyl Lace the burlesque stripper “who doesn’t do nice” to Evie’s mum who is anything but a suburban mother figure.
Then there’s Evie’s love life. She desires both Vinyl Lace and Roshan, an old male school friend who forces her to question what she thought was her ‘set’ sexuality. Evie also begins to realise that it is not her sexuality or work that are the cause of some very deep seated issues, but rather feelings of inadequacy that she has nurtured since childhood and the breakup of her parents’ marriage.
In her intriguing debut novel Sophia Blackwell gives us some great sassy characters and a read sustained as much by its lyricism as its plot. While Evie is a strong protagonist, there are several other colourful characters that provide layers to a powerful narrative. The author also gives the novel a very firm and familiar sense of place – from Hackney to Soho to Muswell Hill; the bars, restaurants and grotty clubs all scream London in a way only one who knows the city can convey.
It would be a mistake to see the book as only about sex and sexuality. Just as labelling this a chick lit novel would be wrong it would also be misguided to label After My Own Heart as a lesbian novel.
The narrative has much to say too many communities as mental health, cultural diversity and justice are also strong themes for reader to think about. There is much humour too – and heartbreak, devices Blackwell uses with great knowing to carry the story.
Blackwell, an established performer and poet, has clearly drawn on her experiences. Now as a debut novelist she presents us with a page turner that is both subtle and direct in equal measure. A very pleasurable read.