Sally Rooney is an award-winning Irish novelist who writes contemporary fiction, primarily about romantic relationships, economic class, and how interpersonal relationships affect those around us. Both her novels Conversations with Friends and Normal People have been adapted into TV Shows, and her third book Beautiful World, Where Are You? won the Goodreads award for ‘Best Fiction’ in 2021.
It’s been three years since her last book, and now the world has Intermezzo. I’m here to talk about whether or not the hype, both on and offline, still holds up.
Intermezzo follows two brothers, Peter and Ivan. Peter is a lawyer who is in his thirties, struggling to balance the relationships between his first love Sylvia who he still pines for, and grad student Naomi ,who doesn’t seem to be taking her life too seriously. Ivan, a competitive chess player at twenty-two who sees his older brother has inferior due to his own social awkwardness, meets Margaret. An older woman who has a complicated past of her own and very quickly becomes wrapped up in his life.
Despite being brothers, they seem to have nothing in common. After losing their father, the two now grieve and their relationship takes unexpected turns.
Rooney’s way of writing characters that feel like real people is astounding. The dialogue between all of these characters plays real, and Peter and Ivan’s dynamic has so many complexities to it that also play real.
Her ability to put the spotlight on so many characters is impressive as well. As the reader, you are able to not only learn all about Peter and Ivan, but also Sylvia, Margaret, and Naomi. There is so much depth in the cast of characters, and I wish the book didn’t end.
Rooney’s writing style is more striking and emotional than ever. I loved the way she explored grief, complicated family dynamics, and love in this novel. Some of it hit close to home for me, and I know it will hit close to home for so many other readers as well.
Now, Sally Rooney is known for using no quotation marks and not many indents in her novels. This still holds true in Intermezzo, which certainly makes it a challenging read, but I would still highly recommend it. Rooney can do no wrong when it comes to picking up a pen, and I would say this is her best novel yet.
By Merryn Overbeck, ’28