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THE BOOK OF LOVE AND HATE by Lauren Sanders

THE BOOK OF LOVE AND HATE

by Lauren Sanders

Pub Date: Oct. 3rd, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-61775-582-8
Publisher: Akashic

A torrid tale of sex, lies, and intrigue set against the backdrop of the 2008 Gaza War.

In 1988, speed skater Jennifer Baron slammed into a wall while competing at the Calgary Olympics, injuring her leg and ending her career. Twenty years later, Jennifer is a recovering alcoholic who oversees the charitable foundation established by her father, an eccentric billionaire who recently fled the United States and is now on the run from Homeland Security, the FBI, and the Jewish Mafia. While at a conference in Tel Aviv, Jennifer meets her father’s lover and business associate, Gila Zyskun, who seduces Jennifer and convinces her to smuggle sensitive information out of the country. Jennifer does the job and flies back to New York without incident but then can’t stop thinking about Gila. When rumors surface suggesting that her father has been killed in Jerusalem, Jennifer seizes the opportunity and returns to the Middle East. With conflict brewing between the Israelis and the Palestinians and assorted intelligence agencies watching her every move, Jennifer endeavors to find Gila and uncover the truth regarding her father. Lambda Literary Award winner Sanders (With or Without You, 2005, etc.) squanders artfully drawn, psychologically complex characters with muddy storytelling, florid prose, and a melodramatic narration that’s riddled with digressions and pseudo-philosophical asides.

Though Sanders excels at writing love and its complexities, the thriller portions of her plot are poorly executed.