A Dangerous Friendship by Robin Merle

TITLE INFORMATION

A Dangerous Friendship

Robin Merle

She Writes Press, 401 pages

9798896360032, 10.28.25

Overall Rating = 4.17

Storyline & Concept = 4

Writing & Delivery = 4.5

Editorial = 4

Set in 1980s New York, A Dangerous Friendship follows the combustible relationship of two women desperate to rewrite their lives. Told from the point of view of Tina, a woman recovering from a broken marriage, we witness her entanglement with the magnetic and intoxicating Spike, who is brimming with stories of rich men, sexual freedom, and tales that sometimes defy belief. They embark on a summer adventure in a remote cabin fueled by drugs, dive bars, late-night dancing, and a string of men eager to join their entourage. Their journey quickly spirals from thrilling to toxic.

This novel captured my interest from the beginning as I saw how Tina was obsessively drawn to Spike as if the other woman’s chaotic glamor would help her shed her past and her old identity. Their friendship is intense and fast burning. Spike is by turns empowering and manipulative, mesmerizing and menacing, and the author uses sharp dialogue and Tina’s internal thoughts to take the reader on a roller-coaster ride of emotions. The changing atmosphere of the remote setting is used to its full advantage as it contributes to the psychological tug-of-war, where love, envy, and power over another human being are deeply entwined. The ending surprised me, as I’d expected something more from the toxic havoc of their relationship, but the novel is a captivating portrait of friendship, identity, and the thin line between freedom and destruction.

Sublime Line: “A gripping tale of friendship, obsession, and the danger of losing yourself in someone else’s story.”

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