Slip of the Tongue - Jessica Hawkins

I love books with a dose of reality, I want to feel the emotions in the characters like I would in real life in the same situation, and I want to come out changed because of it. I requested an ARC of Slip of the Tongue by Jessica Hawkins a few weeks ago, something about the blurb was grabbing at me. I didn't read prior reviews, I didn't look anything up on it, I just dove in. Slip of the Tongue is out now and if there is a book that is seriously in the running for Top 10 of 2016, it is this one. Not because it's pretty, in fact this one will make you feel some serious angst, but because it was so real and when I finished the last page I sat there for a minute just sort of lost. I highlighted 15 passages, I reread lines repeatedly, and none of what this review says will do it any justice.
XO

Rating: 5 Stars
Published: February 26, 2016
ARC received via Netgalley

Amazon Goodreads

Sadie Hunt isn’t perfect—but her husband is. Nathan Hunt has her coffee waiting every morning. He holds her hand until the last second. He worships the Manhattan sidewalk she walks on. Until one day, he just…stops. And Sadie finds herself in the last place she ever expected to be. Lonely in her marriage.

When rugged and sexy Finn Cohen moves into the apartment across the hall, he and Sadie share an immediate spark. Finn reveals dreams for a different life. Sadie wants to save her marriage. Their secrets should keep them apart, not ignite a blistering affair. But while Sadie’s marriage runs colder by the day, she and Finn burn hotter.

Her husband doesn’t want her anymore.
The man next door would give up everything to have her.

That's right, I am giving Slip of the Tongue five stars and probably for reasons you wouldn't expect. I don't frequently read books with cheating involved, mostly because authors use it as a chance to make one character look so bad and ugly that you couldn't bear to like them. There's authors that use it as an opportunity to break a relationship, break a character, etc, but Slip of the Tongue called out to me the minute I read the blurb. While it is unexpected that I gravitated towards this, I just had a feeling there was more to it and there was, so much more. I don't like cheating, but I do think it happens, and this book is an intimate look at a woman and her relationship that's perfect on the outside, but nonexistent in reality. It's emotional, it's heavy, you will get frustrated, but you'll come out on the other side really feeling and possibly looking at your own life a bit differently.

"Since I first saw Finn in the hallway, we've been engaged in this drawn-out, fucked-up dance of innuendo and lingering glances. Foreplay with him is the space between us, the things we haven't said, the admission we haven't made."

I didn't cry reading this, I didn't throw it across the room, but I also didn't once consider not finishing, and guess what, I didn't even like the main character, Sadie, all that much when I first started. She's emotionally charged, but not in a loving sort of manner, and the lack of emotions between her and her husband, Nathan, is uncomfortable. She's selfish, she's insecure, and it feels as though she's already accepted her relationship is over. Nathan is still making coffee every morning, but he's rarely home, he's stopped checking in, and the lack of communication is growing. Then there's Finn, the new neighbor who captures Sadie's attention and is willing to do anything to keep it. What feels like two people providing company during life's trials soon becomes more, because the company becomes lust filled and secretive. What grabbed me though, was how this lust for another brought out a side of Sadie she'd put away, her acceptance of Nathan's distance is gone, she's trying, and while she claims she has no guilt, the reader can see it all plain as day. We don't see their perfect relationship, we don't see how they work together after seven years, but we see their emotions coming back to life, glimpses of how it used to be, and shocking revelations of the changes in who they are at this crossroads. I went from disliking her nature, to loving her, I was upset and at the same time wanted to hold her. I both loved Finn and Sadie, I loved what they had, how they were together, but I wanted to see Nathan and Sadie. As a reader it was so hard to have growing feelings for all three of them, because each has wonderful qualities and their fair share of flaws, but I knew what was happening wasn't right.

"His attention is heady, addicting. I won't know how far I'm willing to go until I get there. When I do, I'll stop. It won't ever be too late to walk away. And if I don't walk away at all? I'll have my answer-I can't stop."

I had no expectations, I certainly was blown away by some of the twists, and I didn't see the end coming, not from a mile away. I've read several Jessica Hawkin's books, some I've loved and some not so much, but none so much have done what Slip of the Tongue did to me. The characters were almost palpable for me, the emotions alive, the scenarios so realistic. Everything I first felt for the characters changed, some of my initial disgust became understanding, and I felt like I was reading an honest look at how marriages can so easily fall apart, how easily a person can fall into a pattern that isn't positive for anyone but themselves. The secondary characters brought more to the story than I first realized, all bringing out different thoughts and changes in Sadie. In the end, it felt real, I don't know if I love how it all worked out or not, because I'm more emotionally invested than I planned to be.

"If you ever think he’s falling out of love with you, stop him. Before it’s too late."

What I can be sure of is this, my words are not enough to describe this book, they do not do enough justice to how great the writing is, how real this story is, and how many feelings you will experience upon reading it. There is absolutely more to this book than meets the eye and cheating just barely scratches the surface. I recommend this one to everyone who loves a dose of angst, forbidden romance, reality, and seriously amazing writing.