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Anhedonia
Alex Austin is nearing thirty; a self-confessed fake, charlatan, degenerate and – worst of all – a failed poet, Alex’s life has become a meaningless sequence of bad habits and poor decisions. He ekes out a living doing a job that makes him feel dirty and ashamed. His only friend, JB – the developmentally arrested offspring of two famous psychologists – is just as broken as he is.
He’s emotionally uninvestable: incapable of experiencing pleasure or joy without resorting to unhealthy extremes, Alex’s days are divided between sofa-mining and grief-surfing; shiftily rummaging down the backs of display model couches for fallen coins and notes, and cynically manipulating strangers’ grief for his own depraved gratification.
As his self-destructive behaviour escalates and his self-loathing deepens, Alex is relentlessly, savagely cross-examined and berated by the voice of his own conscience, which speaks to him in the sneering, righteous tones of a retired TV news show host. When Edie – a former grief conquest, now wise to his scam – shows up out of his sordid past, he’s not sure if she’s here to save him or destroy him, and he can’t decide which is the more terrifying prospect.
Anhedonia is a darkly comic study of the way human beings fetishise death; a story about the struggle to find meaning in the disconnected jumble of reality TV, deodorant ads and celebrity murderers; a tribute to the best of our culture and an indictment of the worst.
Edited by C Z Hazard, Cover by Jay Heath
He’s emotionally uninvestable: incapable of experiencing pleasure or joy without resorting to unhealthy extremes, Alex’s days are divided between sofa-mining and grief-surfing; shiftily rummaging down the backs of display model couches for fallen coins and notes, and cynically manipulating strangers’ grief for his own depraved gratification.
As his self-destructive behaviour escalates and his self-loathing deepens, Alex is relentlessly, savagely cross-examined and berated by the voice of his own conscience, which speaks to him in the sneering, righteous tones of a retired TV news show host. When Edie – a former grief conquest, now wise to his scam – shows up out of his sordid past, he’s not sure if she’s here to save him or destroy him, and he can’t decide which is the more terrifying prospect.
Anhedonia is a darkly comic study of the way human beings fetishise death; a story about the struggle to find meaning in the disconnected jumble of reality TV, deodorant ads and celebrity murderers; a tribute to the best of our culture and an indictment of the worst.
Edited by C Z Hazard, Cover by Jay Heath
297 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 5, 2015
12 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
About the author
Nico Reznick
9 books25 followersNico Reznick is a writer and spoken word performer of ambiguous immigrant extraction. Having spent her early life moving around various European countries as a ‘corporate army brat’, Nico now lives in Shakespeare country with her editor and two feline overlords.
She has appeared as a warm-up act for a number of established poets, and is a regular attendee and guest at local spoken word events.
Nico’s darkly comedic début novel, Anhedonia, and her first collection of poetry, Over Glassy Horizons, are both available on Amazon.
Nico has served stints as a dead-eyed bureaucrat (until realising there’s only so much negative emotion you can bury in spreadsheets), as a purveyor of bad, smuggled wine (statute of limitations since expired) and as a political canvasser and campaign agent (she can tell you how a household will vote based solely on their front garden).
Besides writing, her interests include photographing rust, getting angry about politics and assembling Lego, which – she claims – centres her. If you met Nico in life, you probably wouldn’t get on.
She has appeared as a warm-up act for a number of established poets, and is a regular attendee and guest at local spoken word events.
Nico’s darkly comedic début novel, Anhedonia, and her first collection of poetry, Over Glassy Horizons, are both available on Amazon.
Nico has served stints as a dead-eyed bureaucrat (until realising there’s only so much negative emotion you can bury in spreadsheets), as a purveyor of bad, smuggled wine (statute of limitations since expired) and as a political canvasser and campaign agent (she can tell you how a household will vote based solely on their front garden).
Besides writing, her interests include photographing rust, getting angry about politics and assembling Lego, which – she claims – centres her. If you met Nico in life, you probably wouldn’t get on.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 7, 2015
I was hooked pretty quickly here. Right off the bat Reznick eschews gender stereotypes, writing a male protagonist in the throes of a strange sex fetish. I'll avoid rehashing the plot here, but essentially our hero gets off on trolling funerals for fresh mourners to boff. Alright; something different! I was quite impressed and more than a little humbled by the ease with which Reznick mind-hops from male to female characters. Well done. Anhedonia is fast paced, always compelling, always thought-provoking and enjoyable throughout.
Reznick's narrative command is exceptional considering this is her first novel. Her approach reminds one immediately of Chuck Palahnuik, but as you get further into Anhedonia, a more relatable humanity becomes clear. There is much lamenting on the trappings of modern society; disaffection and cynicism abound, yet (SPOILER ALERT????? . . . . . Yes, I think so.) a surprising optimism wins out in the end. At times I felt Reznick gave too much play to her artistic insecurities by frequently referencing Palahniuk and indulging in some almost apologetic justifying of the leap into writing for an audience. (I'm guilty of the same thing.) Hopefully positive reaction to her debut novel will give Reznick the confidence to leave her literary influences in her dust from here on out.
Reznick's narrative command is exceptional considering this is her first novel. Her approach reminds one immediately of Chuck Palahnuik, but as you get further into Anhedonia, a more relatable humanity becomes clear. There is much lamenting on the trappings of modern society; disaffection and cynicism abound, yet (SPOILER ALERT????? . . . . . Yes, I think so.) a surprising optimism wins out in the end. At times I felt Reznick gave too much play to her artistic insecurities by frequently referencing Palahniuk and indulging in some almost apologetic justifying of the leap into writing for an audience. (I'm guilty of the same thing.) Hopefully positive reaction to her debut novel will give Reznick the confidence to leave her literary influences in her dust from here on out.
April 14, 2016
I loved this dark, comic look at life, death, celebrity culture, reality TV and social media. The writing is outstandingly good.
August 25, 2019
Loved every second of it. A brilliant read, already bought another book by Reznick. Can't wait to dive into that one.
December 3, 2015
A perfect balance of humour, tragedy and insight; lyrical, dark, moving, comedic and surprisingly uplifting.
This is an amazingly strong debut novel, in the tradition of Fight Club or The Wasp Factory, with a similar sense of urgency and satisfyingly transgressive style. There's just something [i]authentic[/i] about this book; something soul-baringly honest and intense.
The characters are vivid and investable, their relationships feel real and I genuinely cared about their individual story arcs. The narrative, though largely character-driven, is solid and fluently executed, and the protagonist's voice is distinct and deeply appealing. The style is effortlessly slick, yet rewardingly gritty, and the tone is gleefully dark.
The subject matter and some of the scenes are quite uncomfortable, but that's sort of the point, and fans of the transgressive genre should be thoroughly satiated with this offering.
This is an amazingly strong debut novel, in the tradition of Fight Club or The Wasp Factory, with a similar sense of urgency and satisfyingly transgressive style. There's just something [i]authentic[/i] about this book; something soul-baringly honest and intense.
The characters are vivid and investable, their relationships feel real and I genuinely cared about their individual story arcs. The narrative, though largely character-driven, is solid and fluently executed, and the protagonist's voice is distinct and deeply appealing. The style is effortlessly slick, yet rewardingly gritty, and the tone is gleefully dark.
The subject matter and some of the scenes are quite uncomfortable, but that's sort of the point, and fans of the transgressive genre should be thoroughly satiated with this offering.
January 11, 2016
Nico Reznick's first novel, Anhedonia, is a startling piece of work. The most arresting quality of the work is its relentlessly consistent voice. She writes from a male point of view and does not miss a beat. This powerful voice, combined with her mastery of plot and character development allows her the freedom to fold powerful social commentary and mordant humor into the novel seamlessly, without being preachy or glib. Her eye for detail is vivid; a poet's eye. Her initial plot devices - anhedonia and second-hand necrophilia - would seem immediately off-putting, but are not. She is skillful enough to make what ought to be unlikeable characters both human and attractive, instead of just 30-something losers. This empathy allows her to grow her characters, especially the narrator, in a believable, hopeful way that justifies the ending. Her incisive, understated black wit is at times laugh out loud funny, especially in view of the subject matter. That she succeeds in making these characters and this subject an enjoyable, engrossing read, says a great deal about her ability as a story teller. In sum, Anhedonia is not just an excellent first novel, it is an excellent novel. If Ms Reznick continues to produce work of this caliber or better, she will certainly become a major talent of her generation. Get in on the ground floor of an important career. Buy this book, read this book, share this book with others. Both you and they will be satisfied and left wanting more.
April 20, 2016
I loved this book. To enjoy it, you need to like your humour dark and deadpan, and not mind its morbid and outrageously offensive themes and plot twists. The quality of the writing shines through the bleak humour, and while it's not exactly a feel-good story, ultimately it was one of the most life-affirming and positive novels I've read in quite a while. An easy 5 stars from me.
June 17, 2019
Great read
The sordid tale in Anhedonia is a great way to immerse yourself in another's misery while getting a few chuckles out at a bit of crude humor on observations on society and even a few jabs at the author and the writing process.
The sordid tale in Anhedonia is a great way to immerse yourself in another's misery while getting a few chuckles out at a bit of crude humor on observations on society and even a few jabs at the author and the writing process.
April 20, 2016
Wonderfully dark humour and ultimately deeply profound.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews