Slip

by Abbey Lay

'There are many ways to know someone. You will see. I will show you.'
Grace, a young linguist, plans a trip to Sicily to research Italian dialects. Travelling alone, she hopes for six weeks of total immersion in the language, food and social dynamics of Palermo. Then she'll be joined by her long-term partner and barrister, Jack, for the holiday he needs after his first major trial.
But when Grace rents a room in writer Nico's apartment, what was intended as a period of study and internal reflection takes a different turn. Moving gently at first, Nico and Grace talk and prepare meals together, and he opens the door to the local experience she craves. As they spend more and more time together, however, Grace and Nico's conversations turn thrillingly intimate. And all the while, Jack's arrival in Sicily draws nearer.
An intoxicating, sensual novel that interrogates ideas of authenticity, tourism and the power of language, Slip is a portrait of a woman reckoning with the cost of desire.

'A beautifully rendered portrait of desire, Slip is gorgeously attuned to the gentle drama and everyday beauty of a life. Lay asks us to think about the power of language to shape experience and our understanding of who we are. I was utterly immersed in this vivid depiction of a scorching Sicilian summer and the narrator's reckoning with its potential consequences.' Katherine Brabon
'Vivid and consuming, Slip explores the intersection between loneliness and desire. A sensual, transportive novel about the paradox of language - its slippery nature to isolate as well as connect - and about the bargains we make with ourselves.' Kylie Needham

Audible Audio

Published March 3, 2026

Reviews

[Chloe Ŀicious · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel bad giving a negative review for this book because it hasn’t come out yet, but I’m not a good liar. I picked this up because I love a story featuring Italia 🇮🇹 But I don’t understand what it was trying to convey, or where it was going. A girl is in a relationship with a guy who sucks (it feels clear that both of them don’t think it’s working but they persist anyway), she goes to Italy for her thesis, she is tempted by the man she’s boarding with, but nothing happens, and then she goes back home to her boyfriend that sucks, and nothing changes. I don’t get it? I feel really disappointed honestly.

[Jaclyn]

Grace travels to Palermo for six weeks to research Sicilian dialects. Her partner Jack will meet her there at the end of her research for a holiday (he’s a complete dud of a dude though and we do not care for him at all). But Grace is staying with hot Sicilian Nico and things are about to get complicated. This book made me think about Sunbathing and The Sun was Electric Light, quiet Australian lit novels about women overseas trying to reconfigure how they live this life of theirs. I thought its class analysis as well as the way it gently probed the ethics of tourism were particularly well done. Ultimately it made me worry for millennial heterosexuals. Are you guys okay?

[Mads · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this but MY GOD were the characters boring!! Why do you all suck?!

[H Alexander · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book is a sedative. a great read if you enjoy limp love triangles, a mundane and pathetic protagonist, upper middle class people whining about their lives while on a gorgeous holiday, a slow and predictable plot, and lots of descriptions of food and italy.

it was not for me, but i am sure it could be for someone.

[Olivia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐⭐⭐

Grace is from Melbourne which I love and I was excited to read about her studying Italian dialects. I loved the setting and food descriptions, they made me feel like I was there in Palermo with Grace. Though the interactions she had with people there added to the feeling of authenticity, I did wish there were more and longer interactions. I’d hoped that there’d be more from Nico’s friends and even family as this would’ve been a great way for her to do more research on Sicilian dialects. I was actually really excited to read about her research on dialects but felt that Grace had, to an extent, quite forgotten about her thesis, even though it was the reason behind her trip and I was disappointed that there wasn’t really much else on this after the interview with Nico. (That could just be me and my love of language and Italian speaking though).

At times it did feel like Grace was the only character there which enhanced the feeling of difficulty slipping into a language and country that she was less familar with. I did wish the other characters had been fleshed out more though and that she'd interacted with more people and that we got to witness those interactions.

Overall I did enjoy reading Slip but I was also left feeling like something was missing. From the story, the relationships between the characters and the ending.

On the ending – I understand why she stayed with Jack and how comfortable the familiar can be. However, it really did seem like she didn’t like him very much and even if nothing happened with Nico, I feel like I would’ve preferred her leaving Jack rather than staying with him.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC.

[Between the Lines Podcast & Bookclub · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chelle and I (Leanne) both loved this book. It was a quiet exploration of the things that often float around in our heads - giving voice to what we often don't say out loud. We loved the Melbourne references, as well as the Sicily references - and it made us want to go back for a holiday of our own!

So much thanks goes to Abbey Lay for speaking with us for our podcast Between The Lines - the Slip episode (#69) will release on May 11 and you can find the episode here: https://www.betweenthelinesaustralia.com

We don't do spoilers - so you can listen before OR after you've read the book :)

[Jacki van de Schoor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Slip to a certain extent. I loved the beautifully descriptive writing, making me feel like I was there experiencing Italy.

I liked Grace and Nico, but I really disliked Jack.
Unfortunately, a lot of the story fell flat for me.
Nothing much really happened. I understood why Grace didn't go there with Nico, but I really don't get why she stayed with Jack. He clearly didn't trust Grace, and he didn't respect her either.

Even if Grace and Nico couldn't be together, I still would rather have Grace leave Jack.
The ending to Slip was all wrong.

3 stars from me. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to Netgalley, Penguin Random House Australia, and Abbey Lay.

[Judith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more than I did. Sicily, languages, food maybe some romance. It should have stacked up. It didn’t. I just didn’t like the people. Sorry. Not one was engaging and the writing didn’t change that. Some good descriptions of the landscape and Palermo but nothing that really built the characters for me. I am damming it with faint praise as a good holiday read. The tissue of attraction that it explored the issues of travel and linguistic and cultural differences just dint come to fruition for me.

[Cha Cha Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abbey Ley’s ‘Slip’ was so compelling and readable; it makes me want to quit my job and spent a Euro Summer frolicking around Italy. I was kind of expecting some big catharsis moment; there was so much tension built up that never really dissolved? I’m left feeling frustrated and confused? Ditch the loser barrister BF! Send your kids to public school and be happy!

[Kara Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

At the start I hated this book because I thought “grazia” was pretentious (which she is) but by the end I loved it !! I thought it was such a good consideration of the grass is greener mentality. Jack is defs my nemesis

[Barbara Burstall · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this book, as I love Sicily. However none of the characters are likeable or believable. Jack is horrible and I could not believe what Grace was doing with. And Grace is annoying, dithering and annoying. Nico is the most interesting but it goes nowhere

[Corinne Johnston]

I quite enjoyed the first third of this book, mainly as it reminded me of wandering around Palermo in 2017. But, it just dragged a bit too long. I could not be bothered waiting for the insufferable workaholic Jack to arrive in Sicily.

[Sarah Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable at times, made me feel like I was in Sicily. But a frustrating ending for me - I wanted more, from the storyline, from the relationships, and for her!!! Left me feeling flat.

[Madi Bowing · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read, kinda an underwhelming finish but quite reflective of reality

[Amelia Rounds · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more but it just fell flat for me!

[Melody | Spilt Wine Book Club · Rating 2 out of 5]

Full review to come.

Loved the setting and descriptions of food. Hated all the characters, they were so boring. The plot was non-existent, like fully nothing happened?? Sorry!

[Sally Vuong · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mundane