Reviews of Loverboy

Winner of the S. Mariella Gable Prize

“A first novel that explores a mother’s obsession; in prose at once lyrical and chillingly realistic, it catches the reader up in a tightening circle of the fleeting delights and accumulating dangers of her misguided intimacy.” —ELLE

“Cryptic… authoritative and vast—full of suspense, emotional urgency, and shimmering imagery…. A nightmare tale of mother-love strong enough to swallow a child whole.” —Voice Literary Supplement

“Redel is one of the most talented scary writers to come out of musty old Manhattan in the last few decades.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review

“Daring.” —Vanity Fair

“A spare and stunning debut whose lean, episodic style seems perfectly adapted to its subject matter….Perfect.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“A controlled and convincing tale of a mother’s obsession for her child…. Painting a convincing portrait of her complex and surprising sympathetic narrator, Redel makes it possible to empathize with the woman’s overwhelming love for her son: the novel succeeds because the reader cannot condemn her.” —Publishers Weekly

“Fascinating and disconcerting; you’ll find yourself simultaneously empathizing with this mother’s love for her son and being horrified by her obsession with keeping him all to herself.” —Redbook

“Redel writes like an angel about the darkest edge of obsession. This debut is simply excellent. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal

“Loverboy is stunningly fine….More Redel, please, and soon.” —Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Redel brings a fresh, new voice to the world of fiction and peoples it with haunting characters.” —Times Daily

“This novel dares to look into the darkest corners of a mother’s heart and at the detrimental shadows cast by all-encompassing maternal love.” —Booklist

“Loverboy is a novel of extremes, and Redel is to be applauded for her relentlessness….This is some very potent stuff.” —Review of Contemporary Fiction