*Rules of Attractions*! This is one of the major conflicts for all three main characters (two men and a woman) and a bunch of supporting figures. They all seek connection and direction but self-sabotage, fail to recognize it when it’s there, and generally feel lost and alienated. It’s a beautiful book.
A lot of other Bret Easton Ellis novels have a similar theme. *The Shards* uses secrets and potential violence to keep the protagonist at arms length from his close friends. In *Less Than Zero*, everyone is so solipsistic and drugged up no one can make a real connection. *American Psycho* takes this to a violent degree. Several of the stories in The Informers include characters like this.
*Play It As It Lays* has this in spades.
*Sweetbitter* has this to some extent, though the protagonist Tess goes through periods of feeling like she belongs and other periods where she feels at odds with her group.
*Strangers* fits the bill nicely, though the protagonist begins actually isolating himself as his sense of alienation begins to strengthen.
It’s a little vaguer and more ethereal, but I think you’d enjoy *Picnic at Hanging Rock.*
Holiday-Leg-2488 on
Ruthless Empire by Rima Kent. It is a dark romance book. Here the main character is a popular girl but sometimes she still feels lonely.
2 Comments
*Rules of Attractions*! This is one of the major conflicts for all three main characters (two men and a woman) and a bunch of supporting figures. They all seek connection and direction but self-sabotage, fail to recognize it when it’s there, and generally feel lost and alienated. It’s a beautiful book.
A lot of other Bret Easton Ellis novels have a similar theme. *The Shards* uses secrets and potential violence to keep the protagonist at arms length from his close friends. In *Less Than Zero*, everyone is so solipsistic and drugged up no one can make a real connection. *American Psycho* takes this to a violent degree. Several of the stories in The Informers include characters like this.
*Play It As It Lays* has this in spades.
*Sweetbitter* has this to some extent, though the protagonist Tess goes through periods of feeling like she belongs and other periods where she feels at odds with her group.
*Strangers* fits the bill nicely, though the protagonist begins actually isolating himself as his sense of alienation begins to strengthen.
It’s a little vaguer and more ethereal, but I think you’d enjoy *Picnic at Hanging Rock.*
Ruthless Empire by Rima Kent. It is a dark romance book. Here the main character is a popular girl but sometimes she still feels lonely.