An increasingly obsessive radio host tests the boundaries of her boyfriend's love in this unforgettable dark comedy that is by turns romantic, horrific, and profound
Olive is desperate to get close to Theo—really, really close. She’s always struggled to connect with people. And now she’s in her thirties, single, and so flustered by relationships that she secretly records her conversations, hoping to decipher social cues and find a way to be less alone.
Then Theo turns up for a shift at the same food pantry where she volunteers. He’s a surgeon fascinated by human organs, a former soccer player, and possibly as weird as Olive. For the first time, someone seems to crave and understand her. Every recording of Theo is a balm, which just makes Olive more afraid of losing him. The only solution seems to be to bind him to her forever. Luckily, the gap between Theo’s front teeth is just wide enough for something—or someone—to slip inside.
Arresting and immersive, Open Wide explores the complexities of intimacy, love and consent, as universal human impulses bleed into the surreal.
Praise
"I lost count of the emotions that gripped me while reading Jessica Gross's unputdownable latest, Open Wide. No one writes harrowing, wild, authentic, bordering-on-criminal obsession (love?) like Jessica Gross."
—MARIE-HELENE BERTINO, author of Beautyland
"Strange, ominous, and darkly alluring, Open Wide teases the line between intimacy and possession––and what it really means to have 'all' of someone. Absolutely gripping. I couldn’t put it down!"
—PENG SHEPHERD, bestselling author of The Cartographers
“Sexy and smart, Open Wide is a modern fairy tale about obsessive love. Jessica Gross is a storyteller of extraordinary ability—the novel begins with a meet-cute that takes a disquieting turn as this gripping novel unfolds. The end is stunning.”
—LUIS JARAMILLO, author of The Witches of El Paso
