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Love Slave
It's 1995. When she can, Sybil Weatherfield works as an office temp. But in her jobless hours she may be her generation's Dorothy Parker, writing a confessional column for the alternative weekly, New York Shock. Her friends include a paperpusher for a human rights organization and the lead singer of a local rock band called Glass Half Empty. Together they try to find a path from their own wry inactivity to something real and lasting that can matter to them. Richly funny and wincingly specific, this cunning debut novel is a bittersweet and ironic look at what it means to be enthralled by an idea - by even the most ragged possibility of love.
ebook
First published September 1, 2012
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About the author
Jennifer Spiegel
10 books97 followersJennifer Spiegel has an MA in Politics from New York University, and an MFA in Creative Writing (Fiction) from Arizona State. She teaches college classes and writes. She is the author of four books: THE FREAK CHRONICLES (Dzanc Books), LOVE SLAVE (Unbridled Books), AND SO WE DIE, HAVING FIRST SLEPT (originally Five Oaks Press, reprinted by Bosco's Going Down Press), and CANCER, I'LL GIVE YOU ONE YEAR: A NON-INFORMATIVE GUIDE TO BREAST CANCER, A WRITER'S MEMOIR IN ALMOST REAL-TIME (Wipf and Stock). Spiegel’s 5th book, KIDS WITHOUT HORSES is forthcoming. Spiegel is also half of the book-reviewing team, Snotty Literati. She lives with her husband and two kids in Arizona. Please visit her at www.jenniferspiegel.com.
Sign up for her newsletter here (upper lefthand corner): https://mailchi.mp/798144a5da7e/jenni...
Something more lively:
Jennifer Spiegel is a fiction writer and English professor who never got over her first reading of THE CATCHER IN THE RYE or that time when she first saw the film version of THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING. She wishes she could go on an African safari or a trip to Turkey or even spend a little time in Manhattan soon, but it's more likely she'll be feeding the cats or grading the papers. But, seriously, what a great thing it is to be a real writer!
Sign up for her newsletter here (upper lefthand corner): https://mailchi.mp/798144a5da7e/jenni...
Something more lively:
Jennifer Spiegel is a fiction writer and English professor who never got over her first reading of THE CATCHER IN THE RYE or that time when she first saw the film version of THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING. She wishes she could go on an African safari or a trip to Turkey or even spend a little time in Manhattan soon, but it's more likely she'll be feeding the cats or grading the papers. But, seriously, what a great thing it is to be a real writer!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
August 10, 2016
I loved this book. The story is fabulous, the characters are wonderful, and the language... Sigh... So good.
October 5, 2015
My somewhat ordered thoughts...
I got it because I heard the author speak at a fiction reading at Arizona State University and knew that I wanted to get a copy when it came out in paperback.
I very, very much liked it. I like the story of Sybil, Madeline, Jeff and Rob, and all the other people in New York. It captures nicely what is was like in the '90s and she gets a lot of the pop culture references correctly. Which as a gen-xer, I do care about.
I liked a lot of the imagery and word choicage. Too many to list now, but I wrote nice images, nice wording many, many times in the margins. I also had to slow down my reading by leaving it in the car, so I wouldn't read it all in one night.
I love the French Toast part, where Sybil claims she will never leave New York because she can get French Toast at 8 p.m. That is very, very true. It also made me want to get French Toast, which I did at the diner near me. I also wanted fondue after the section where Jeff and Sybil are eating fondue at the Fondue Fete. What can I say, I tend to want what people are eating in my books or on my tv shows.
I liked the newspaper articles she writes in Abscess and the letters that are written about the articles and the interplay between them. There's a greater connection between the story and the articles, but it's not overly forced. It feels pretty organic and natural. Which is not easy to do. It also provides a different POV on what's happening in the story. And they're funny.
It is a love story, but it is a love story among real people. I like the ending which is hopeful, but not too overly resolved.
Finally, I liked the New York setting, too and the descriptions of New York in all its craziness, beauty and exhilartion. (Or something like that.) I was very, very satisfied with it.
I got it because I heard the author speak at a fiction reading at Arizona State University and knew that I wanted to get a copy when it came out in paperback.
I very, very much liked it. I like the story of Sybil, Madeline, Jeff and Rob, and all the other people in New York. It captures nicely what is was like in the '90s and she gets a lot of the pop culture references correctly. Which as a gen-xer, I do care about.
I liked a lot of the imagery and word choicage. Too many to list now, but I wrote nice images, nice wording many, many times in the margins. I also had to slow down my reading by leaving it in the car, so I wouldn't read it all in one night.
I love the French Toast part, where Sybil claims she will never leave New York because she can get French Toast at 8 p.m. That is very, very true. It also made me want to get French Toast, which I did at the diner near me. I also wanted fondue after the section where Jeff and Sybil are eating fondue at the Fondue Fete. What can I say, I tend to want what people are eating in my books or on my tv shows.
I liked the newspaper articles she writes in Abscess and the letters that are written about the articles and the interplay between them. There's a greater connection between the story and the articles, but it's not overly forced. It feels pretty organic and natural. Which is not easy to do. It also provides a different POV on what's happening in the story. And they're funny.
It is a love story, but it is a love story among real people. I like the ending which is hopeful, but not too overly resolved.
Finally, I liked the New York setting, too and the descriptions of New York in all its craziness, beauty and exhilartion. (Or something like that.) I was very, very satisfied with it.
October 10, 2012
Love Slave in an unusual love story. Sybil Weatherfield works as a temp in NYC. But her temp status goes beyond her job. She tends to be a temp lover as well: never too invested. She writes a column for The New York Shock, which is placed strategically between chapters. Writing is her art. It is what she lives for and yet she has to temp to pay the bills. When she meets Rob, the lead singer in the band Glass Half Empty, she finds a friend that can really understand her. As artists and New Yorkers they try to make sense of their lives and of love.
Love Slave is wildly clever. I loved and hated Sybil just as I loved and hated Rob. The depressive quality of this story appealed to me immensely! Maybe that sounds weird?? I find romance novels are a little too happy, too perky, too dramatic (but I still love them and read them often). However, Love Slave is more of a real life romance: two people struggling against themselves to find something to hold on to.
Downsides: Sybil often annoyed me but I felt for her and wanted her to succeed. Her columns are long and sometimes a little hard to follow, but that may have been because they were made to look like a newspaper column in the book (3 columns to 1 page).
Love Slave is wildly clever. I loved and hated Sybil just as I loved and hated Rob. The depressive quality of this story appealed to me immensely! Maybe that sounds weird?? I find romance novels are a little too happy, too perky, too dramatic (but I still love them and read them often). However, Love Slave is more of a real life romance: two people struggling against themselves to find something to hold on to.
Downsides: Sybil often annoyed me but I felt for her and wanted her to succeed. Her columns are long and sometimes a little hard to follow, but that may have been because they were made to look like a newspaper column in the book (3 columns to 1 page).
September 7, 2018
The story of this book and me is rather circumspect. I got it because I got a gift certificate to my favorite bookstore. Being a rather prolific user of the library I wanted to save that certificate for something I was just DYING to own. So I waited. And waited. And waited until it was about to expire. Somehow there was never a book I HAD to own this year. Now, don't get me wrong, I bought many books I just... never used the certificate. So, down to the wire, I started looking for something, ANYTHING, interesting. And there I found Love Slave.
I loved this book. It's not really even about anything concrete except a girl living in New York in the 90s, trying to figure out how to get by, whether or not she WANTS to get by in New York, dating the wrong man, and falling in love with the right one, her friend. It's about friendship and music and writing and basically everything I wanted it to be about. It was a fast read and I connected with every character. Even the yuppies were treated with relative respect.
I'd definitely recommend this. In fact, I want to pass it immediately to my best friend, but she doesn't read and I know it would languish on her shelf for years. So, for now, I am keeping it so it can be near me.
I loved this book. It's not really even about anything concrete except a girl living in New York in the 90s, trying to figure out how to get by, whether or not she WANTS to get by in New York, dating the wrong man, and falling in love with the right one, her friend. It's about friendship and music and writing and basically everything I wanted it to be about. It was a fast read and I connected with every character. Even the yuppies were treated with relative respect.
I'd definitely recommend this. In fact, I want to pass it immediately to my best friend, but she doesn't read and I know it would languish on her shelf for years. So, for now, I am keeping it so it can be near me.
July 21, 2014
I've had this book sitting on my book shelf for a couple of years. Every time I would pick it up and read the back I just didn't "feel" like it was the right book at that time. Now, after reading it, I wish I would have just opened the book, sat down, and started reading it as soon as I first picked it up.
The book allowed me to connect with Sybil and all of her thoughts, actions, and desires. I found myself shaking me head when she did something that was sabotaging her long term happiness (and not just the food related parts) but I also felt for her when it seemed like she finally knew what she wanted from the city but didn't know exactly how to say it other than through her writing.
While the book ends in such a way that the characters are still out there doing their thing, I would like to see a sequel set ten years in the future from the last day in the book. What has happened to them? How has the world events shaped their lives? etc..
It's a good book with more than just what the title suggests.
The book allowed me to connect with Sybil and all of her thoughts, actions, and desires. I found myself shaking me head when she did something that was sabotaging her long term happiness (and not just the food related parts) but I also felt for her when it seemed like she finally knew what she wanted from the city but didn't know exactly how to say it other than through her writing.
While the book ends in such a way that the characters are still out there doing their thing, I would like to see a sequel set ten years in the future from the last day in the book. What has happened to them? How has the world events shaped their lives? etc..
It's a good book with more than just what the title suggests.
June 30, 2012
I'm conflicted. Parts made me yearn, parts strained my patience, but mostly things didn't hit me as hard as I really, really wanted them to.
I'm not totally sure it should get a 3 from me, but I don't want to inflate it to a 4, and there isn't a 3.5 or 3.75, which is what I would like to rate it. I did like it a good bit. Not, like, love love love transformed me while I was reading it like, but I can see why the Unbridled guy at BEA was hyping it so hard.
There are some things that need to be fixed between now and publication: several things are described or mentioned twice near the same place and in the same way, like revisions happened in one place but not another. It's mostly near the beginning. If this was not the mistake I assume it is, it's majorly distracting.
Bottom line: interesting, well- and smartly written, strong characters, but for some reason it's not magical. I don't know. I will check out her subsequent work, though.
I'm not totally sure it should get a 3 from me, but I don't want to inflate it to a 4, and there isn't a 3.5 or 3.75, which is what I would like to rate it. I did like it a good bit. Not, like, love love love transformed me while I was reading it like, but I can see why the Unbridled guy at BEA was hyping it so hard.
There are some things that need to be fixed between now and publication: several things are described or mentioned twice near the same place and in the same way, like revisions happened in one place but not another. It's mostly near the beginning. If this was not the mistake I assume it is, it's majorly distracting.
Bottom line: interesting, well- and smartly written, strong characters, but for some reason it's not magical. I don't know. I will check out her subsequent work, though.
June 17, 2016
Bad. This book is the equivalent to a blogger taking photos of her feet as she stands pigeon toed and acts like her camera accidentally took the shot and accidentally posted it to her Facebook, blog, and instagram. Do not read this book. I can't imagine how much a laptop weighed in 1995, let alone how the sad protagonist would be able to afford one. I love books that take place in the 90's but this was so bad.
September 7, 2016
Here is my very brief, but heartfelt review from Litsy:
Ridiculously smart, ironic writing about Sybil Weatherfield, temp & writer, and her eclectic mix of friends. 90s Manhattan as the pulsing center of the universe for these 30-something seekers of truth and 24-hour-diners. Dripping with pop culture and wit.
Read it!
Ridiculously smart, ironic writing about Sybil Weatherfield, temp & writer, and her eclectic mix of friends. 90s Manhattan as the pulsing center of the universe for these 30-something seekers of truth and 24-hour-diners. Dripping with pop culture and wit.
Read it!
May 7, 2013
Anxious, real, unfair, and neurotic. Loved it.
February 3, 2024
Sorry for the repeat… goodreads somehow put my review in the wrong spot?
I really enjoyed this story of Sybil, Rob, and Madeline. It is a bittersweet ode to New York, to Gen X, to 90s culture, and to the many real ways that love does and does not happen.
I really enjoyed this story of Sybil, Rob, and Madeline. It is a bittersweet ode to New York, to Gen X, to 90s culture, and to the many real ways that love does and does not happen.
October 1, 2012
I’m just going to say this right now: I know Jennifer Spiegel. I have known her for 20 something years having met in college, losing touch and reconnecting a couple of years ago via Facebook. She asked me to read her book, but she’s asking everyone. She should. If a writer can’t or won’t promote his or her own work, who will? It’s her first published novel and this is a pretty super freaking big deal if you ask… well, anyone. What she didn’t ask me to do, however, was review it. But as I read it for this month’s book club pick and talked it over with The Book Babes, I knew I would. It’s really so very good.
Semi-Spoiler Alert: Early on LOVE SLAVE’s heroine, Sybil Weatherfield, declares: I can write the pants off any man. Guess what? Jennifer Spiegel can, too.
LOVE SLAVE follows Sybil Weatherfield a writer in her early 30s as she navigates life and love in the Big Apple, circa 1995. A writer for New York Shock, Sybil heads up Abscess a column of rants and raves that generate quite a chatty and engaged readership but not enough money to keep her from temping during the day to make the ends barely meet. She’s in a relationship with financial analyst and pretty boy Jeff Simon who loves that Sybil’s life is artsy, bohemian and struggling. Sybil loves that he’s kind, smart, well put together and nice to look at. They love what they think the other represents, without actually loving each other. She celebrates her triumphs and disasters and romantic woes with gal pal Madeline, a perfect go getter to Sybil’s comfortable stay putter. And then there’s Rob, sexy, edgy, lead-singer-of-a-band Rob who’s still in love with his dead wife.
Can you see it coming? A love triangle. Every good love story has one and LOVE SLAVE’s is a good one for someone like Sybil, temping her way through work and life, struggling with who she wants to be versus who she actually is. Bring on the drama! Bring on the angst! Bring on a book that feels like it was written for me! And really for my generation, Generation X.
And that’s what I did. I brought LOVE SLAVE to my book club, The Book Babes, who actually read and discuss books each month and not just drink wine. But there is wine, trust me. And talked and talked we did, just like any smart women reading a smartly written book would do. The result was a lively convo that didn’t always end up in agreement—the best kind if you ask me. Here are some of the highlights.
On Sybil
We loved Sybil’s authenticity even though some of us found her insecurity irritating. “I wanted Sybil to have her life together by this point in her life,” lamented one. But so many people don’t, which was an endearment for me.
On Female Friendship
We love good female friendship in books and thought Madeline’s take-on-the-world attitude was a nice contrast to the slightly neurotic contemplator Sybil.
But their relationship had some challenges, and while it added depth to the story, we were shocked by Madeline’s actions.
On Rocker Rob
We loved Rob. We hated Rob. He was passionate. He was a bit of a whore. He was probably a bit too real for us. “It’s real easy for guys to separate sex from love.”
On Resolution
We all liked how the book ended, which is a bit surprising. The Book Babe that always wants a little more, still wanted a little more. But for most of us, it ends at just the right spot in just the right way.
On What Kind of Book Is this Anyway?
We have a tendency to label books written by women, starring women and involving a love story as Chick Lit. And yet when I read LOVE SLAVE, I didn’t get a Chick Lit vibe at all. LOVE SLAVE has heart, but it also has more literary bite than typical Chick Lit fare. Spiegel has crafted a flawed, yet likeable, protagonist in Sybil Weatherfield, who is clever and witty behind her words, but a bit of a mess when she’s not. Sybil is perfectly imperfect like we all are, really. In LOVE SLAVE we get to experience writing that goes above and beyond the Top 10 Summer Beach Reads. Not that I don’t love a good beach read, but I loved this more and most were in agreement.
But there was a dissenter (there always is in good discussions). “It’s totally Chick Lit and I can see it being marketed to that group of readers. It has all the elements of Chick Lit.”
Despite some of our disagreements, we agreed on one thing: liking it. LOVE SLAVE gave us a lot to talk about, reminisce over and even shift uncomfortably as we saw some of ourselves in Sybil. But mostly, we agreed, it was refreshing to read such a smartly written contemporary love story.
On You
Now it’s your turn. Grab a copy a copy of LOVE SLAVE and form your own opinion. Take it to your book club or share it with a good friend and talk it over for yourselves. Even better? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Happy reading!
Semi-Spoiler Alert: Early on LOVE SLAVE’s heroine, Sybil Weatherfield, declares: I can write the pants off any man. Guess what? Jennifer Spiegel can, too.
LOVE SLAVE follows Sybil Weatherfield a writer in her early 30s as she navigates life and love in the Big Apple, circa 1995. A writer for New York Shock, Sybil heads up Abscess a column of rants and raves that generate quite a chatty and engaged readership but not enough money to keep her from temping during the day to make the ends barely meet. She’s in a relationship with financial analyst and pretty boy Jeff Simon who loves that Sybil’s life is artsy, bohemian and struggling. Sybil loves that he’s kind, smart, well put together and nice to look at. They love what they think the other represents, without actually loving each other. She celebrates her triumphs and disasters and romantic woes with gal pal Madeline, a perfect go getter to Sybil’s comfortable stay putter. And then there’s Rob, sexy, edgy, lead-singer-of-a-band Rob who’s still in love with his dead wife.
Can you see it coming? A love triangle. Every good love story has one and LOVE SLAVE’s is a good one for someone like Sybil, temping her way through work and life, struggling with who she wants to be versus who she actually is. Bring on the drama! Bring on the angst! Bring on a book that feels like it was written for me! And really for my generation, Generation X.
And that’s what I did. I brought LOVE SLAVE to my book club, The Book Babes, who actually read and discuss books each month and not just drink wine. But there is wine, trust me. And talked and talked we did, just like any smart women reading a smartly written book would do. The result was a lively convo that didn’t always end up in agreement—the best kind if you ask me. Here are some of the highlights.
On Sybil
We loved Sybil’s authenticity even though some of us found her insecurity irritating. “I wanted Sybil to have her life together by this point in her life,” lamented one. But so many people don’t, which was an endearment for me.
On Female Friendship
We love good female friendship in books and thought Madeline’s take-on-the-world attitude was a nice contrast to the slightly neurotic contemplator Sybil.
But their relationship had some challenges, and while it added depth to the story, we were shocked by Madeline’s actions.
On Rocker Rob
We loved Rob. We hated Rob. He was passionate. He was a bit of a whore. He was probably a bit too real for us. “It’s real easy for guys to separate sex from love.”
On Resolution
We all liked how the book ended, which is a bit surprising. The Book Babe that always wants a little more, still wanted a little more. But for most of us, it ends at just the right spot in just the right way.
On What Kind of Book Is this Anyway?
We have a tendency to label books written by women, starring women and involving a love story as Chick Lit. And yet when I read LOVE SLAVE, I didn’t get a Chick Lit vibe at all. LOVE SLAVE has heart, but it also has more literary bite than typical Chick Lit fare. Spiegel has crafted a flawed, yet likeable, protagonist in Sybil Weatherfield, who is clever and witty behind her words, but a bit of a mess when she’s not. Sybil is perfectly imperfect like we all are, really. In LOVE SLAVE we get to experience writing that goes above and beyond the Top 10 Summer Beach Reads. Not that I don’t love a good beach read, but I loved this more and most were in agreement.
But there was a dissenter (there always is in good discussions). “It’s totally Chick Lit and I can see it being marketed to that group of readers. It has all the elements of Chick Lit.”
Despite some of our disagreements, we agreed on one thing: liking it. LOVE SLAVE gave us a lot to talk about, reminisce over and even shift uncomfortably as we saw some of ourselves in Sybil. But mostly, we agreed, it was refreshing to read such a smartly written contemporary love story.
On You
Now it’s your turn. Grab a copy a copy of LOVE SLAVE and form your own opinion. Take it to your book club or share it with a good friend and talk it over for yourselves. Even better? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Happy reading!
May 27, 2023
Friday Afternoon Book Review: Well, seriously, folks. This book is historic artifact, cultural cryogenics.
LOVE SLAVE is all about 1995 Gen X in Greenwich Village, young adults obviously in need of growing up. The book begins on December 11, 1994 and finishes on January 8, 1996--the day that a real blizzard "silenced" Manhattan (it actually started the day before). In 1995, OJ was declared innocent, Pearl Jam attempted to stop Ticketmaster, Christopher Reeves was paralyzed, and Timothy McVeigh killed 168 people in Oklahoma and injured over 600 others.
(Look up the January 8, 1996 blizzard in New York City -- for pretty amazing photos! Man, we barely did a thing on the Internet then, but here are photos!)
I re-read this book for the first time in over a decade. I'm feeling all weird now, unable to actually "review" it. It's hyper-New York--I was VERY into dissecting the cultural moment in that particular geographical landscape at that particular time. We are talking a New York novel, a Gen X novel -- it's a snapshot.
You know what the truth is? I lived there briefly, and I never ever ever EVER wanted to forget it. So I wrote this book.
And what can I say about it?
--Yeah, I gotta say it: it's super well-written. THAT GIRL CAN WRITE!
-- I couldn't write this book now. No way. It's utterly outside of my realm of experience right now. I am wholly somewhere else.
-- It's pretty much "historic literary fiction."
-- I do find some of the NY song-and-dance tiresome, if I'm being honest. That said, the writing is just so awesome!
-- I ALWAYS resented the possibility that I was being cast by some as a "chick lit" writer--or a "woman's fiction" writer--and I think my own ego and resentment were harmful.
--If you were there, you'll love it. I'm not lying.
In all honesty, there are so many fabulous lines and passages, I can't quote just one!
Why did I read it?
Well, I decided--now strung-out on academia and middle-aged motherhood and the SUCCESSION finale and the whereabouts of my pets in the house, and STILL writing books--to write a sequel of sorts. A separate, stand-alone entity. Just Sybil and Rob, old now. I'm going to try it.
But I read it and felt especially grateful to Fred Ramey at Unbridled Books for believing in this book, and treating it so well--it's a lovely book and I'm most thankful for your artistry and wisdom.
#unbridledbooks #jenniferspiegel (I have a hashtag with fewer than 1000 posts!) #loveslave (this hashtag will likely draw in the S & M crowd --SORRY TO DISAPPOINT YOU), #bookstagram
LOVE SLAVE is all about 1995 Gen X in Greenwich Village, young adults obviously in need of growing up. The book begins on December 11, 1994 and finishes on January 8, 1996--the day that a real blizzard "silenced" Manhattan (it actually started the day before). In 1995, OJ was declared innocent, Pearl Jam attempted to stop Ticketmaster, Christopher Reeves was paralyzed, and Timothy McVeigh killed 168 people in Oklahoma and injured over 600 others.
(Look up the January 8, 1996 blizzard in New York City -- for pretty amazing photos! Man, we barely did a thing on the Internet then, but here are photos!)
I re-read this book for the first time in over a decade. I'm feeling all weird now, unable to actually "review" it. It's hyper-New York--I was VERY into dissecting the cultural moment in that particular geographical landscape at that particular time. We are talking a New York novel, a Gen X novel -- it's a snapshot.
You know what the truth is? I lived there briefly, and I never ever ever EVER wanted to forget it. So I wrote this book.
And what can I say about it?
--Yeah, I gotta say it: it's super well-written. THAT GIRL CAN WRITE!
-- I couldn't write this book now. No way. It's utterly outside of my realm of experience right now. I am wholly somewhere else.
-- It's pretty much "historic literary fiction."
-- I do find some of the NY song-and-dance tiresome, if I'm being honest. That said, the writing is just so awesome!
-- I ALWAYS resented the possibility that I was being cast by some as a "chick lit" writer--or a "woman's fiction" writer--and I think my own ego and resentment were harmful.
--If you were there, you'll love it. I'm not lying.
In all honesty, there are so many fabulous lines and passages, I can't quote just one!
Why did I read it?
Well, I decided--now strung-out on academia and middle-aged motherhood and the SUCCESSION finale and the whereabouts of my pets in the house, and STILL writing books--to write a sequel of sorts. A separate, stand-alone entity. Just Sybil and Rob, old now. I'm going to try it.
But I read it and felt especially grateful to Fred Ramey at Unbridled Books for believing in this book, and treating it so well--it's a lovely book and I'm most thankful for your artistry and wisdom.
#unbridledbooks #jenniferspiegel (I have a hashtag with fewer than 1000 posts!) #loveslave (this hashtag will likely draw in the S & M crowd --SORRY TO DISAPPOINT YOU), #bookstagram
January 3, 2013
I picked up this book because Jennifer is a fellow ASU Alum and my Facebook Friend. (Is there an acronym for that yet? FBF? Is that too much like, and so totally different from, BFF?)
I might even have met Jennifer in person a few times, but don't hold me to that because I have taught at ASU for 20 years and can't remember all 20-25K people I have encountered. But I love her sense of humor online and I wanted to support her by buying the book and I'm glad I did.
I have to say first that this is a love story, and I don't normally read love stories. In fact if you study my recent reviews, you'll see I'm fresh off a Roberto Bolano jag. And then there was that stint with the 9 Dara Weir poetry collections.
But I'll admit that every so often, when I'm home sick, I spend an afternoon speed-watching old episodes of Millionaire Matchmaker. So I guess that pegs me as kind of a romantic.
While the love story was a big part of what kept me turning pages in Love Slave, I was also interested in the narrator's descriptions of 90's New York, and I especially enjoyed reading her column "Abscess." I enjoyed much of the witty banter in the book, which reminded me a bit of a Judd Apatow flick but with AP vocab.
This early 30's narrator was a little bit like me in my early 20's. I did wonder about the age-appropriateness of her behavior. In "Pretty in Pink," Andie could hardly choose between Duckie and Blane. But that was high school. Maybe it's because I'm from Ohio--I don't have a lot experience with 30-something singles who temp for a living. So to me the narrator read young for her age. Probably part of the point.
One of my favorite features of the book is the sprinkling of Americana-style details: Overhearing a discussion about a TGI Fridays in Tulsa, The Price is Right on the TV, and eating McDonald's on road trips. The setting of the novel is nailed.
Nice work Jennifer. Good read. Well crafted. I enjoyed it.
I might even have met Jennifer in person a few times, but don't hold me to that because I have taught at ASU for 20 years and can't remember all 20-25K people I have encountered. But I love her sense of humor online and I wanted to support her by buying the book and I'm glad I did.
I have to say first that this is a love story, and I don't normally read love stories. In fact if you study my recent reviews, you'll see I'm fresh off a Roberto Bolano jag. And then there was that stint with the 9 Dara Weir poetry collections.
But I'll admit that every so often, when I'm home sick, I spend an afternoon speed-watching old episodes of Millionaire Matchmaker. So I guess that pegs me as kind of a romantic.
While the love story was a big part of what kept me turning pages in Love Slave, I was also interested in the narrator's descriptions of 90's New York, and I especially enjoyed reading her column "Abscess." I enjoyed much of the witty banter in the book, which reminded me a bit of a Judd Apatow flick but with AP vocab.
This early 30's narrator was a little bit like me in my early 20's. I did wonder about the age-appropriateness of her behavior. In "Pretty in Pink," Andie could hardly choose between Duckie and Blane. But that was high school. Maybe it's because I'm from Ohio--I don't have a lot experience with 30-something singles who temp for a living. So to me the narrator read young for her age. Probably part of the point.
One of my favorite features of the book is the sprinkling of Americana-style details: Overhearing a discussion about a TGI Fridays in Tulsa, The Price is Right on the TV, and eating McDonald's on road trips. The setting of the novel is nailed.
Nice work Jennifer. Good read. Well crafted. I enjoyed it.
August 11, 2012
It's the mid-nineties and Sybil Wetherfield is a thirty year old New Yorker trying to uncover who she really is, what she wants out of life, what she wants out of love.
Sybil is witty, sarcastic, a cynic. She's getting older, stuck in a temporary state of unrest. She considers herself an artist, writing a column for a weekly newspaper, but temping to make ends meet. Her one good friend is a girl she met temping who longs to get out of New York. She's in a mediocre relationship with what should be the perfect guy for her.
Enter Rob Shachtley, the lead singer of Glass Half Empty. Handsome, retro and chic, Rob is haunted by his young wife's death, still mourning her after 7 years. Sybil and Rob strike up a friendship that has her questioning what she wants for her future.
Sybil is self involved and trying to be something she's not. She's unwittingly complicated and so unsure of each decision she makes. The whole time I was reading I was wishing I could take her by the shoulders and shake her.
Rob is such a wonderfully written character. He's complex and sensitive, a good guy, and you can instantly understand the need to be with the band.
The author does a great job of putting you in that New York state of mind. Great descriptions and locales. You want to instantly be with Sybil, on the street, eating huge pancakes or sitting in a bar listening to the band. Being with the band. There a lot of good nineties nostalgia scattered throughout.
The middle of the book was slow at times and I didn't always care for Sybil's Shock articles which are placed throughout the book.
The ending was satisfying without tying everything up too neatly. Sybil is always romanticizing and I think by the end she realizes that love and life doesn't mirror fantasy and that's ok.
A good, solid read from an up and coming author.
Sybil is witty, sarcastic, a cynic. She's getting older, stuck in a temporary state of unrest. She considers herself an artist, writing a column for a weekly newspaper, but temping to make ends meet. Her one good friend is a girl she met temping who longs to get out of New York. She's in a mediocre relationship with what should be the perfect guy for her.
Enter Rob Shachtley, the lead singer of Glass Half Empty. Handsome, retro and chic, Rob is haunted by his young wife's death, still mourning her after 7 years. Sybil and Rob strike up a friendship that has her questioning what she wants for her future.
Sybil is self involved and trying to be something she's not. She's unwittingly complicated and so unsure of each decision she makes. The whole time I was reading I was wishing I could take her by the shoulders and shake her.
Rob is such a wonderfully written character. He's complex and sensitive, a good guy, and you can instantly understand the need to be with the band.
The author does a great job of putting you in that New York state of mind. Great descriptions and locales. You want to instantly be with Sybil, on the street, eating huge pancakes or sitting in a bar listening to the band. Being with the band. There a lot of good nineties nostalgia scattered throughout.
The middle of the book was slow at times and I didn't always care for Sybil's Shock articles which are placed throughout the book.
The ending was satisfying without tying everything up too neatly. Sybil is always romanticizing and I think by the end she realizes that love and life doesn't mirror fantasy and that's ok.
A good, solid read from an up and coming author.
February 17, 2013
I've only just started this book, but can already tell I'm going to enjoy it! Can't wait to see how the main character ends up!
Well, that didn't take long. I so wanted to know what happened to Sybil that I picked it up every chance I could get. I won this book in one of Goodreads' giveaways (thank you, Jennifer Spiegel!) a while back and wasn't able to get around to reading it until now. Wish I'd have picked it up sooner.
While Sybil's life is a FAR cry from mine, hers in NYC, mine in Portland Oregon I just wanted to see her get it together and enjoy her life. She is originally a CA girl (like me) who moved out to the East Coast to experience life. Thought that, surely, this is where life is happening. She relishes the true, raw nature of the city: the art, the bums, the food, the disinterested masses, the opportunities for experiences that she never decides to take. But the opportunities are there, and that's what matters. Through her artistic outlet as a columnist for an eclectic little paper, she gets to hash out her thoughts on life issues, without dealing well with them in real life. She's always a step or two removed. She also works as an office temp, and lives life as a temp, never setting up any sort of permanence, though she obviously needs some..desperately. She stays in a loveless relationship, because you're supposed to be with someone...anyone
Love Slave isn't about some kinky sexual set-up, it's about being a slave to the idea of love, of how to live life, of how things ought to be but often aren't. She gets so wrapped up in disappointments that she fails to grab on to the great things she does have.
I really enjoyed this book and wished it could keep going. THough I have to say, I thought I might have a heart-attack if a certain relationship didn't work out before the book ended. Also, I want to be "with the band."
Well, that didn't take long. I so wanted to know what happened to Sybil that I picked it up every chance I could get. I won this book in one of Goodreads' giveaways (thank you, Jennifer Spiegel!) a while back and wasn't able to get around to reading it until now. Wish I'd have picked it up sooner.
While Sybil's life is a FAR cry from mine, hers in NYC, mine in Portland Oregon I just wanted to see her get it together and enjoy her life. She is originally a CA girl (like me) who moved out to the East Coast to experience life. Thought that, surely, this is where life is happening. She relishes the true, raw nature of the city: the art, the bums, the food, the disinterested masses, the opportunities for experiences that she never decides to take. But the opportunities are there, and that's what matters. Through her artistic outlet as a columnist for an eclectic little paper, she gets to hash out her thoughts on life issues, without dealing well with them in real life. She's always a step or two removed. She also works as an office temp, and lives life as a temp, never setting up any sort of permanence, though she obviously needs some..desperately. She stays in a loveless relationship, because you're supposed to be with someone...anyone
Love Slave isn't about some kinky sexual set-up, it's about being a slave to the idea of love, of how to live life, of how things ought to be but often aren't. She gets so wrapped up in disappointments that she fails to grab on to the great things she does have.
I really enjoyed this book and wished it could keep going. THough I have to say, I thought I might have a heart-attack if a certain relationship didn't work out before the book ended. Also, I want to be "with the band."
September 13, 2012
Set in nineties New York when the craziness of the streets is mirrored in the craziness of life in this vibrant city. Sybil Weatherfield is an office temp by day but ,by night she becomes a journalist writing for New York Shock - her column "Abcess" makes her something of a minor celebrity.
But life is transient and Sybil seems to float in a blur of temporary status until she hooks up with Rob - he's the lead singer in a rock band called Glass Half Empty, who is quietly mourning but covering his loss in late nights and trivialities. What then follows is a story about love, loss and the search for the meaning of life
Sharp and witty in places, the author has a nice way with words, she describes New York as someone who knows the city well. I would think that if you experienced this time in the nineties, you would associate more with the characters, but as a social observation this story is carried me along until its satisfactory conclusion.
My thanks to NetGalley and Unbridled Books for the opportunity to read something so far out of my comfort zone.
October 18, 2013
Jennifer Spiegel gives us a refreshingly new take on the love story. Love slave is a book many of the 90s generation can relate too. Also, Sybil is highly relatable to the 30+ women who are feeling the need to settle down and make something of their lives. When I started this book I didn’t think I was going to like it. It is quirky, but funny and endearing in its quirks. Sybil and Rob are adorably devastated…I don’t know how else to put it. They are both so tragic, but with depth and emotion and need. This book was surprising in its ability to trap your attention and really want and feel for the characters. I won this book for free through Goodreads First Reads program, however the opinions presented are my own and not influenced or dictated by publisher or author.
June 28, 2014
Need a break from those heavier books of literary fiction you’ve been reading? Looking for that next hipster read for the summer? Well, here it is, Love Slave by Jennifer Spiegel. Realistic in its presentation of Sybil Weatherfield’s life circa 1995, enter the craziness that is the New York City lifestyle. Sybil is witty, sarcastic, and a cynic, in other words, she is my kind of gal. Like many from this generation she is not able to reach her full potential and therein lies the conflict.
Again, if you need a break from heavier reading choices then take a trip to NYC via Love Slave and see what Sybal is up to.
Thank you Net Galley and Unbridled Books for the review copy of Love Slave by Jennifer Spiegel.
Again, if you need a break from heavier reading choices then take a trip to NYC via Love Slave and see what Sybal is up to.
Thank you Net Galley and Unbridled Books for the review copy of Love Slave by Jennifer Spiegel.
September 19, 2012
This is a powerful book, because it follows a original sequence of experiences. No other romance or novel about young adulthood reads quite the same way. Sybil experiences feelings of happiness or loneliness in a concentrated way that takes many of us back to those early adult years. She is real about her experiences and does not try to sugar coat them. It takes both the good experiences and the bad to lead Sybil to unexpected place. Also, if you have lived in New York and then lived elsewhere, this book will take you back to that urban, cerebral feel. This is a highly recommended read.
April 7, 2013
I happened to start watching Girls the same week I started this book, it was like I couldn't get enough of white women in New York, in the 90's and today! While I never felt fully invested in the book, by the end I was hoping for the romance to happen. It kind of snuck up on me, that I cared at all. There is something I appreciated about the main character, about her stuckness, her unhappiness, her relative poverty.
November 17, 2013
Yay! Another New York based novel from the POV of an overeducated and under appreciative middle-class dilettante! Waaa...I'm so entitled, pretentious and bored! The only reason this book (aka "novel") got 2 stars from me is because the writer inadvertently stumbled on some freak imagery that called to me. (Btw, calling your judgmental narrow-minded crap out in your book does not excuse it, or you. And how's that 2.5 kids in suburbia working out for you?
October 4, 2012
A fun and hip and heartfelt tale of a woman finding her way in NYC in the 90s. The author handles the delayed love-story with perfect pitch and careful enticements. A charming and almost joyful book about a gritty world.
Read
February 25, 2013I gave up on this book about 150 pages in when I realized that I hated the main character, the supporting characters, and the entire plot. This isn't very eloquent, but I just had a moment where I realized "I am not enjoying this at all."
October 30, 2012
its such a great book. I loved it.
October 24, 2012
Funny and oh so witty! I found out extremely charming
July 21, 2013
Second time reading this book and I still loved it.
December 15, 2012
Excellent read. Jennifer Spiegel crafts a tale of choppy prose and snippets of totally quotable--very poignant--language. My best discovery in terms of e-books this year.
October 25, 2018
I enjoyed reading this book, and I enjoyed revisiting the 90s. It was a very nostalgic read for me.
December 5, 2023
Sybil Weatherfield came to New York to live the kind of life she felt she deserved. Now, she is thirty and what she thought would happen hasn't. She is temping for a living, writing a column on an alternative newspaper and she and her friend Madeline live for hitting the clubs at night and doing the things tourists never find out about. She has a boyfriend she does not love and has just met a guy she wants to be friends with.
Rob is the lead singer in the band she and Madeline follow. He has been a widower for seven years as his young wife died of a brain tumor a year after they married. He is known as a player but that's because he cannot move on and the thought of another relationship is more than he can bear. He is glad to be Sybil's friend and they start to hang out together, each denying the sparks that fly between them. Will Sybil ever find the life she wants?
This is Jennifer Spiegel's debut novel and I loved it. She has the characters spot on and her writing about a health scare Sybil goes through rings so true I had to stop for a minute as I've been there and she captured all the feelings that accompany that event. Sybil wants to be swept off her feet and can't accept that love might be a decision one makes. Readers will become totally immersed in Sybil and Rob's lives and cheer for them to realize that they are meant to be together. This book is recommended for readers of women's fiction.
Rob is the lead singer in the band she and Madeline follow. He has been a widower for seven years as his young wife died of a brain tumor a year after they married. He is known as a player but that's because he cannot move on and the thought of another relationship is more than he can bear. He is glad to be Sybil's friend and they start to hang out together, each denying the sparks that fly between them. Will Sybil ever find the life she wants?
This is Jennifer Spiegel's debut novel and I loved it. She has the characters spot on and her writing about a health scare Sybil goes through rings so true I had to stop for a minute as I've been there and she captured all the feelings that accompany that event. Sybil wants to be swept off her feet and can't accept that love might be a decision one makes. Readers will become totally immersed in Sybil and Rob's lives and cheer for them to realize that they are meant to be together. This book is recommended for readers of women's fiction.
February 4, 2021
Love Slave is the story of Sybil Weatherfield (love her name!) and she works as a temp and a columnist in New York City, which she can't seem to get out of. She appreciates the freaks too much for keeping her sane. Sybil has two faithful friends, Madeline, a human rights organization paper pusher, and Rob, a singer for a band called Glass Half Empty who still wears the wedding ring of his wife who died of cancer, along with her boyfriend, Jeff, who she describes as nice. The title comes from when Rob and Sybil first meet and he says she doesn't seem interested in being his love slave, yet that is exactly what she becomes by the end of the novel. She decides they both need to risk love, need to have something greater, even though they are both stuck in the City.
Sybil and Rob go through stages: meeting, hanging out and being friends, finding out that Madeline is leaving and being left behind, getting rid of Jeff, falling in love, following the band and watching the band break up, a lump in Sybil, Rob taking off his wedding ring. It's the story of the places they eat at, the columns Sybil writes, the music/band they listen to, and Sybil's inconsistent temp jobs. It's an interesting and hilarious story.
Yet it has shortcomings. It's the story of a girl and a boy stuck in a City deciding to love each other, despite not knowing their purpose. That's the main issue I had with Sybil, is that she lacks purpose and is just an aimless wanderer on the Earth. She's also not someone who is really contributing to anyone's life or the lives of her friends, to which she acknowledges at the end of the novel. That Madeline and Rob and even Jeff have given her so much and she has given nothing back. Sybil is just there; she exists with no purpose and no desire for one and this is the major flaw of the novel. Yet, how many people are there just like Sybil out in the world?
Ultimately, Love Slave looks at what it means to find love in one woman's purposeless world. To show that even those who live without knowing their purpose--can at least, hopefully maybe, one day find and have love. Because the hope of love is enough to keep a human alive. Love is what makes life worth living.
I received Love Slave via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions here are my own and are not affected by this.
Sybil and Rob go through stages: meeting, hanging out and being friends, finding out that Madeline is leaving and being left behind, getting rid of Jeff, falling in love, following the band and watching the band break up, a lump in Sybil, Rob taking off his wedding ring. It's the story of the places they eat at, the columns Sybil writes, the music/band they listen to, and Sybil's inconsistent temp jobs. It's an interesting and hilarious story.
Yet it has shortcomings. It's the story of a girl and a boy stuck in a City deciding to love each other, despite not knowing their purpose. That's the main issue I had with Sybil, is that she lacks purpose and is just an aimless wanderer on the Earth. She's also not someone who is really contributing to anyone's life or the lives of her friends, to which she acknowledges at the end of the novel. That Madeline and Rob and even Jeff have given her so much and she has given nothing back. Sybil is just there; she exists with no purpose and no desire for one and this is the major flaw of the novel. Yet, how many people are there just like Sybil out in the world?
Ultimately, Love Slave looks at what it means to find love in one woman's purposeless world. To show that even those who live without knowing their purpose--can at least, hopefully maybe, one day find and have love. Because the hope of love is enough to keep a human alive. Love is what makes life worth living.
I received Love Slave via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions here are my own and are not affected by this.
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