Liquid

Reviews

“Pleasures of nearly every variety abound in Mariam Rahmani’s astonishing Liquid, a novel whose force seeps into the bloodstream, dilating thinking on desire and ambition, of the relations that entangle and unmake us, alongside the traces of unknowability that sustain. Pages erupt with blazing intelligence, pathos, and stringent wit. How rare it is to encounter this marriage of sociological richness with a poet’s staggering feel for the capacity of language, its lush contours and bite. Traversing the streets of LA and Tehran with Rahmani at the wheel awakens sensations and appetites for which one has no name. Liquid is a potent, shimmering revelation, and Rahmani is a writer you proselytize for.”—Jenny Xie, author of the National Book Award Finalists The Rupture Tense and Eye Level "Flailing in the disparate worlds of academia, Los Angeles, and Tehran, the complex and complicated protagonist of Mariam Rahmani's electrifying debut novel is struggling to find a job and a husband, both of which prove elusive. Written with a sharp eye and warm heart, Liquid traverses a fascinating woman's circuitous route to self-discovery. An eminently memorable novel worthy of all the praise and raves it will undoubtedly receive—it literally took my breath away."—Binnie Kirshenbaum, author of Rabbits for Food "Brainy, swift, naughty, constantly surprising, and slyly political—a transgressive tour de force of cultural criticism, hidden inside a careening, and deftly comic, logic proof of love."—Heidi Julavits, author of Directions to Myself and The Vanishers “I love this book. After hilariously tearing through the faux-profundity of so many of our cultural fixations—from Los Angeles, to academia, to rom-coms—the novel moves to Tehran, and slowly morphs into a touching examination of vulnerability, dislocation, grief, and longing. Underneath the posturing and razor-sharp wit, we find the yearning heart and hard-won intelligence of a young woman who has found herself adrift. I couldn't stop thinking about Liquid—sexy, sly, daring, and utterly brilliant. Mariam Rahmani is the most exciting new writer I've read in ages.”—Justin Torres, National Book Award-winning author of Blackouts and We the Animals “Liquid is an absolute lifeline—Mariam Rahmani's prose expands what's possible on the page, with a novel that's loving, cutting, mournful, and hilarious. Rahmani knows LA and Tehran. Rahmani knows sex, pleasure, and pain. Rahmani knows loss, and care, and the stickiness in-between. Liquid is a dream of a book—written with heart and feeling and longing and clarity, bracingly astute, elastic, and precise—an absolute delight expanding the possibilities in American fiction.”—Bryan Washington, award-winning author of Family Meal and Memorial “Hirsute, heuristic, and humorous, Liquid is an electric read. From Los Angeles to Tehran, past to present, academia to the bedsheets, Rahmani navigates these journeys with undeniable verve, serious street-smarts,  and a glowing charismatic cool. The smoothest, smartest book I’ve read in quite some time and the dawning of a literary force.”—Paul Beatty, Booker Prize-winning author of The Sellout “Liquid is sleek, gimlet-eyed, stylish and doubtless smarter than the average reader -- myself.  But it is ever prescient and often very witty about the fate of love among thirty-somethings -- indeed, among us all -- as we enter the brave new world ahead."
 —Richard Ford “Provocative, intelligent and bold, Liquid is a novel that lingers. Rahmani’s ability to access humor at the perfect moment, and her keen understanding of the power and perils of vulnerability make her the best kind of observer—an honest one.”—Angela Flournoy, author of The Turner House Expand reviews