Books
Sweetener
A Novel
From the author of A Good Happy Girl, a messy lesbian novel following two exes who turn to online dating after their dramatic split—only to end up seeing the same womanIn Sweetener, recently separated wives—both named Rebecca—can’t seem to disentangle their lives. Lonely and depressed, Rebecca is scraping by as a part-time cashier at an organic grocery store. Despite having less than ten dollars in her bank account, she lists herself as a sugar mama on a lesbian hookup app, where she connects with Charlotte, an artist who, unbeknownst to Rebecca, is also dating her wife.
The other Rebecca, a doctoral student who is newly motivated to stay sober, has discovered a way to fulfill her dream of becoming a parent without getting pregnant. She wants to foster a child, and because the Rebeccas are still legally married, she needs her wife to attend classes as part of the approval process.
Neither Rebecca asks if this means they’re getting back together, but the possibility of a reunion sends Charlotte into a tailspin. As Charlotte navigates her desire for each Rebecca—or her desire for attention—her world becomes Gumby-like and surreal, not least because she’s been wearing a pregnancy belly and only one of the Rebeccas knows it isn’t real.
Sumptuous, sticky, and slightly absurd, Sweetener brings together three women fixated on the fantasy of motherhood, and how they might best fill the role in someone else’s life.
A Good Happy Girl
A Novel
A poignant, surprising, and immersive read about a young professional woman pursuing an emotionally intense relationship with a married lesbian couple, for readers of Kristen Arnett and Melissa BroderHelen, a jittery attorney with a self-destructive streak, is secretly reeling from a disturbing crime of neglect that her parents recently committed. Historically happy to compartmentalize—distracting herself by hooking up with lesbian couples, doting on her grandmother, and flirting with a young administrative assistant—Helen finally meets her match with Catherine and Katrina, a married couple who startle and intrigue her with their ever-increasing sexual and emotional intensity.
Perceptive and attentive, Catherine and Katrina prod at Helen’s life, revealing a childhood tragedy she’s been repressing. When her father begs her yet again for help getting parole, she realizes that she has a bargaining chip to get answers to her past.
A Good Happy Girl is interested in worlds without men—and women who will do what they can to get what they want. In her exploration of twisted desires, queer domesticity, and the effects of incarceration on the family, Marissa Higgins offers empathy to characters who often don’t receive it, with unsettling results.