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Starred review from May 27, 2019
Savage’s startling, tender debut follows Ella, a young caregiver hired to help a woman of rapidly diminishing mental capability, and the relationship Ella develops with her and her husband. At the novel’s start, Ella is on the cusp of 30 and living in Minneapolis with her girlfriend, Alix, whom she loves deeply and uncomplicatedly. After dropping out of graduate school, Ella makes a modest living as a caregiver, though she harbors vague artistic inclinations. Her newest client is Jill, who, at 60, is younger than her usual clientele; her mental state has deteriorated ever since she was in a car accident over a decade ago. Unable to hold coherent conversations or wash herself, Jill has been taken care of by her husband, Bryn, a retired carpenter. Initially hired to provide Bryn with a reprieve, Ella finds herself gradually immersed in Bryn and Jill’s lives, and soon her role as Jill’s companion evolves into something more intimate and complex. Over the next year, Jill’s condition worsens and Bryn becomes more visibly strained even as the force of his love for Jill stays steady, and what Ella witnesses between the two of them challenges her ideas of love, spirituality, and empathy. Quietly forceful, Savage’s luminous debut is beautifully written, and will stay with readers long after the final page. Agent: Chris Parris-Lamb, the Gernert Company.

Lisa Flanagan perceptively narrates this tender novel about a young woman who is coming to grips with what it means to be a compassionate and committed life partner. Ella is a 20-something professional caregiver who accepts a new post caring for Jill, who is intellectually disabled due to a car accident. Ella is both endlessly patient with Jill and burdened by endless second-guessing about her own life choices. Flanagan's tone deftly reflects Ella's wandering introspection. Ella considers Jill's husband, Bryn, the ultimate partner because of his unwavering commitment and care. Flanagan voices him as gently masculine. In stark contrast, she renders Jill's angry, incomprehensible outbursts with a punch, and a hint of the terror Jill must live with. N.M.C. � AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine