Liars

by Steven Gillis

Eric McCanus is a novelist with the misfortune of having written his one great book when he was young. Struggling to write more, recently divorced, cynical toward marriage while still missing his ex-wife, Eric becomes convinced that happy relationships are unsustainable. He sets out to prove his theory when he spots a seemingly perfect couple, Cara and Matt, at the market. Convinced that Cara and Matt's marriage can't be as successful as it appears, Eric does what he can to break them apart, using his power as a one-time great novelist. What follows is a psychological and philosophical comedy of errors. Liars is an exploration of love, relationships, and human interaction--a madcap romp through the vestiges of modern affairs--revolving around five characters, each spun drunk on the batterings of love while attempting to sustain themselves in a false world.

322 pages, Hardcover

Published November 7, 2017

Reviews

[Tariya · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Eric McManus notices Cara Benz and Matthew Geere shopping in the market together, he immediately becomes skeptical of the unabashed affection the two share. Recently divorced, Eric, the narrator of Steven Gillis’s Liars, is living with a woman who is not his girlfriend, periodically meets with his lover, and refuses to believe that two people can be in love and still be happy giving up pieces of themselves. Eric is writing his third novel after finding success with his debut novel but failing to gain as much success with his second book. Now the owner of a music studio, he blames his struggling to finish his book--about the fickleness of love--on how Cara and Matthew love each other. As part of his research, Eric sets out to test how much they really love each other.

Eric is an interesting narrator, and Gillis takes great care in developing his unique voice. Lidia and Eric divorce after Eric suggests that true love is allowing each other to find happiness in being free to do whatever they want to, and that includes seeking sexual fulfillment outside of the marriage. This works for both of them for a time, but they eventually divorce after Lidia claims that she and Eric have different perspectives on what love and happiness are. While the divorce is amicable, and Eric and Lidia keep in touch and remain friendly, Eric is baffled at how their marriage couldn’t succeed in such a way if they were both wanting the other to be happy. Furthermore, Eric is confused by the feelings he still has for Lidia.

With Gloria, Eric’s current live-in companion, Eric prides himself on keeping their relationship simple by not assigning any labels to their situation. He allows her the freedom to come and go as she pleases, and is cautious about not asking her about her plans or with whom she keeps company. It is ironic that in his quest to be nonchalant about his relationship with Gloria, Eric is constantly questioning whether he loves her and whether he should be doing more, which actually makes their romance more complicated.

Hearing the story from Eric’s perspective can be confusing. At times Eric is cold and manipulative, plotting ways to turn Cara and Matthew against each other for his own interest. Matthew, ironically, is a writer like Eric, but he is content with his life the way it is, not caring to draw attention to himself or pursue greater fame. His wife, Cara, however, wants more for her husband, and she works hard at her job as a landscape artist. Eric quickly figures out the weakness in their relationship and exploits this to understand better whether love really exists. While it’s difficult to embrace the way Eric knowingly sabotages Cara and Matthew’s marriage, he does seem to genuinely care for Lidia and Gloria, but he just does not seem capable of expressing his feelings appropriately. Whether this is due to fear or selfishness is up to the reader to decide, and there is hope that he will have a clearer idea of what love is and come to terms with his feelings for his ex-wife and girlfriend.

While Liars focuses on the psychology of love, it is surprisingly fast-paced. Gillis uses Eric’s perspective as a writer to provide thoughtful observations so the reader can easily picture the characters and setting. Very well-written and thought-provoking, the plot moves quickly, and the need to know what happens to Cara and Matthew’s marriage, and what Eric decides to do in his own life, makes this book very difficult to put down. When the reader reaches the end of the book, he will be surprised. Recommended rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

[David Gunner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liars by Steven Gillis
Could love be finite? What if the greatness of love cannot be contained or directed towards one person? What, really, is the secret to a long lasting loving and supportive relationship? Eric McCanus struggles with his inability to be open in his openness. His life partners are not constant. Even his dog is not a constant. As Eric stumbles through life as a writer with only one acclaimed book and a subsequent literary disaster, he is faced with the need to audit his beliefs. He thinks he has a viable direction for his third book until he spots a couple that completely upturns his beliefs. The couple seems happy on the surface but Eric is convinced that this is just a façade. He is convinced that given a hard enough shove the truth will come out. The couple distracts him from his writing until he decides to become the shove they need. How could they be happily married for twenty years given the friability of the institution? Eric does everything in his power to prove or disprove his theories about love and the necessity of monogamy, more to himself than anyone else. The true reason behind his urgent need to investigate Cara and Matt’s marriage is the fear that he might not be honest about what he truly believes. That he may just be too lazy to work on his relationships; first with Lidia then with Gloria. Is Eric misguided in believing that sexual fidelity and love have nothing to do with each other? Has Eric been deceiving himself all this time? Could he in fact be a traditionalist or is he just a man afflicted with insanity?
Steven Gillis approaches the subject of life, love and everything in between with meticulous precision. As is appropriate when dealing with such a heady subject, the sentences are brief and beautiful. They allow time to the reader to contemplate the thoughts expressed. They pack just the right amount of punch. Steven’s writing style is simple and appealing. His tone of voice makes it easier to glide through the chapters. ‘LIARS’ contains therein, characters with different personas and temperaments who still get along quite well. This is despite holding different views on what is deemed preeminent by some, love. This is representative of the current society and the makeup of most relationships. Rarely do two people with the same views on love come together. This could be a testament to variety being the spice of life. Variety here being the different opinions held by individuals owing to their nature and/or nurture.
The author made Matt out to be a bit of a wuss with his lack of ambition and desperate need to please his wife. This more or less announced the author’s views on the subject at hand. It may unintentionally drive the reader to take Eric’s side with disregard to their own opinion. Otherwise, delivery is good. The book is enjoyable. The story compels one to do an in depth analysis of their own beliefs. I would highly recommend it for any adult. Both for the reading pleasure and exploration of a less traditional dimension of love and marriage. This is not a love story. There is no happy ending. This is better.

[Kwong Ling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liars” is a story by Steven Gillis about another author’s plan for sexual adventure. Eric McManus, a fictitious writer (if not coincidental), is a literary celebrity looking for inspiration to his next love sequel. He sets his sights on a couple in a grocery store, whom he determines is the paragon of relationship, a lasting marriage of many years. Targeting the wife, he confronts the husband with a proposition and seduces his partner to close the deal. It is Steven Gillis’ masterpiece on how to sexually engage against an unsuspecting couple, with dialogue between the author fabricating the author’s science of affection on his philandering agenda.

The reader is first enticed by the author's introduction to his literary skills and potential as an equal love partner. He makes the point in the story that the last book is very well received, affording the author with tours across the country and friends with benefits. However, the author is insatiable, eager to outdo his last dissemination as he make new friends and love in the music business. He diaries the success with his waitress-cum-singer as he titillates the value of open relationships with his ex-wife. The author is engaging even as his love partners capitulate, exposing the gape in his libertine reasoning. This is where the reader finds the author gazing at a couple walking close, as he introduces a parallel narrative detailing the couple’s intimate life with him as the third person. Unbeknownst to the reader, that is the author repeatedly disguising his stalking behavior, even so much as to admittedly follow them home and looking through from the other side of the street. Should a beat cop hypothetically interrogates the author, he will simple defend himself with the curiosity he displayed thus far.

In response, the author devises a Faustian plan that uses all his skills as a writer and predator. He learns the occupation of the wife and introduce her with a simple proposal, and she unknowingly accepted. Gaining lawful entry, he notes the husband is an aspiring poet, a literary counterpart that presumably deals in feelings and emotions. Now the author has got him! He furthers his advances on both partners with a tantalizing position for the husband, something that the author knows is rarefied in poetic circles, aligning himself with the husband’s ambition and the wife’s desire for success. All the husband has to do is withhold his poetic merit, a technicality with the foundation to secure the appointment. The poet hesitates; the wife is anxious. The author notices, entreats her anxiety and she “fell into his arms.”

Complicating the reader’s understanding is a cohesive exposition of the author's projection skills to elicit certain effects. To the extent he discusses the size of his body language and the amount of drinks he consume, the author shows awareness to his surroundings as a victim habit, while dressing a sexual environment as a perpetuator. Agreed to disagree, Steven Gillis’ “Liars” is a tale of animals in their natural environment.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liars, by Steven Gillis, is a story primarily about Eric McCanus (an author, music producer, lover, liar, and manipulator). This book builds slowly over the course of the story. I was initially intrigued by the synopsis on the cover, which seemed to promise a mystery. For the first part of the book, I was feeling a bit confused as the story did not seem to be living up to that synopsis. But, it builds and eventually things tip off in a big way. It is definitely worth the patience.

The main character, Eric once wrote a book, Kilwater Speaks, that propelled him into what he calls “minor fame.” This small portion of fame allowed him to snag a teaching position at a local university. His life is going well with his fame, his endearing wife Lidia, his dog Rex, and his new book, A Full Fog Front, coming out. However, Eric’s new book crashes. Meanwhile, Eric and Lidia decide to take their relationship in a new direction, by opening up their relationship, but they promise to be honest with each other. While on tour promoting his books, Eric cannot keep up his end of the deal (not fully honest). This leads to his relationship crashing as well.

Moving forward in the story, Eric has more or less recovered from his setbacks. He has a new burgeoning musical career, a new dog (Fred), and a new woman in his life, Gloria. The only thing missing is a good book. Then, by sheer chance, he meets a happy, hand-holding couple at the market: Matt Geere and Cara Benz. He is struck by their love for each other, starkly contrasted by the failed relationships that he himself has experienced. He decides to learn all he can about them and use them as the basis for a new novel. It quickly becomes dark; he wants to throw a wrench into their well-oiled machine and see what happens. He stalks them, commits a felony by going through their mail, and tracks Cara down at her work.

Through the story, Eric machinates, twists, lies, pokes, and prods, to set the principal parts of his plans into just the right places, then he sets things into motion, and watches his target slowly and spectacularly crumble before his eyes. It almost feels like a Rube Goldberg Machine in the way it plays out, once he tips it off. Of course, you have to read the book to see exactly how it all plays out from there. As you can imagine, Eric is not a particularly likable character given his actions and lack of regard for other people’s lives and needs.

Despite strongly disliking the main character of this book (because of his actions in the story), I did like the novel. We all probably know someone like Eric (a person who delights in the chaos and destruction of good things). My only complaint is that it feels unrealistic that he becomes a successful music producer without any formal musical training. Liars seems to be intended for mature audiences, there is no violence, but there is sexual content and adult themes.

[Moná · Rating 5 out of 5]

Relationships with yourself versus relationships with others are experienced differently because no one knows you better than you do, while at the same time people tend to think otherwise. At the rate of breakups, divorces, children custody battles, etc., these days many still possess a level of hope that true love, a happy marriage, and family can still exist for some people. In “Liars”, author Steven Gillis introduces his readers to a novelist by the name of Eric McCanus, who lacked inspiration in writing his second book, but decides a new perspective. A divorcee missing his ex-wife now believes that there’s no such thing as happy and successful relationships, until one day an opportunity presented itself. Eric observed a married couple, Cara Benz and Matthew Geere, while in a supermarket and judging based on their publicly displayed affection towards one another, Eric didn’t believe their marriage could withstand all odds. He made it his mission to put their marriage to the test while in the process of using all he learned as the premise for his second book.

He began doing research on them as individuals and figured out a clever way on how to approach them, without seeming like a stalker. While he’s putting his plans in motion, he’s communicating with his ex-wife, Lidia, in hopes they can reconcile because he really loves her. At the same time, he’s living with a woman, Gloria, who he loves even though he remains in complete denial. He retains Cara’s company to handle architect work in building a garden for his home, while tries to get Matt’s poems before a larger audience. Every move he makes according to the married couple is going well, but their bond is stronger to break than he imagined. Eric doesn’t give up because he truly believes he can be the wedge that will pull them apart.

The fact that every relationship is fragile or as described by Eric as, “love is a jerry-rigged construct from which no couple is safe,” can discourage people from their efforts of the experience altogether. Of course, I personally believe that while love takes work from both parties, it’s absolutely possible to survive through trials and rough patches, if you truly want to be with someone. Unfortunately, you’ll learn what happens with the lives of each character while reading, but I will say it seemed predictable. I highly recommend this book to anyone willing to witness what can potentially happen within a marriage that has been tested by a single individual, and what can be done to strengthen the bond you already have with the one you love.

[Chet · Rating 3 out of 5]

A man mired in a stale relationship is more interested in pining for a happily married woman than building a more loving relationship with his girlfriend. Often predictable, it became unbelievable as it progressed, with an unlikely ending IMO. I wanted this to be better, but it.never quite got there.

[Cassandra Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mixed feelings about a very interesting book. I might not have been satisfied with it in its entirety, especially emotionally, but it was a fascinating premise and I really liked the ending. In some ways this is a book for writers, because it features a character who is writing about the action he is setting in motion in the book. Very meta.

[Jayne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Odd book. I waited until the end for commitment to show up. Never did.