Love Will Tear Us Apart

by Tara McCarthy

Two's Company When thirty-five-year-old celebrity journalist Sloan Madden is asked to write a biography of Grammy-winning pop princesses Flora and Fauna Sparks -- sexy seventeen-year-old Siamese twins... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1416503242
• ISBN13: 9781416503248
• Release Date: September 2005
• Publisher: Pocket Books
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.3" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Don't forget the website!

I really enjoyed this book, i picked it up on sale and thought that i would never actually read it (pop stars? blegh!). i ended up being floored by its complexity, and just by the thought of Siamese twin pop stars. i also liked how it was placed in real time, making references to jay Leno and Britney spears. and don't forget the website that was mentioned on the back of the book! if you go there they have downloads of three of the Sparks Sisters' songs (even though they aren't real, which makes me wonder where they came from and if the author isn't writer/songwriter/musician). I did feel that the ending was a bit rushed, and their suicide/accident wasn't thoroughly explained.

Dive In, Beyond the Surface

A journalist gets more than she expected when she meets pop music superstars Flora and Fauna Sparks - twins who are literally joined at the hip. When Sloane Madden is invited to write the biography of the Sparks Sisters, she accepts, in spite of the fact that she thinks little of the music they create. Sloane moves into The Joint - the house that the 17 year old Siamese twins share with their father - and discovers that many secrets lie in those four walls. Though the book jacket summary may make this story sound like a comedy or a soap opera, rest assured that it is neither. The story evolves and deepens as it goes on, all leading up to an unforgettable ending. Though Flora and Fauna have distinct personalities, they are never portrayed as Good Twin and Bad Twin. Each has her flaws; each has her secrets. Meanwhile, Sloan's inner monologues are both sincere and cynical. The remarks she makes (or keeps to herself) regarding growing up, hanging on, and letting go allow readers to really get into the mind of the narrator. Author Tara McCarthy is unafraid to take risks with this story and its characters. Love Will Tear Us Apart is well worth the read. It is quite different from her other novel, The Pursuit of Happiness, but in a good way; both are well-written, and both are recommended.

A deep and fascinating character study

Renowned singing siblings Flora and Fauna Sparks agree they need a biography written about their unique lives as Siamese teenage twins. They choose thirty something journalist Sloan Madden to tell their story. Sloan sees the assignment as a simple job that will boost her career; so she accepts and moves into the Joint, a Hollywood Hills mansion that the performers share with their dad Fred. As Sloan begins to know her subjects, she finds the stage harmony is filled with riffs. Instead of loving sisters, the duo battles one another with one of the youngsters wanting to go solo and jealousy is the norm. Surrounded by alcohol and drug abuse, Sloan begins pondering her relationships with her boyfriend, her friendship only with the man she really loves, and even Fred. The key to this insightful relationship drama is that the tale never loses its prime perspective of focusing on Sloan; this is remarkable because the fascination of the Siamese twins would have made it easier to concentrate on them. The key cast is fully developed especially Sloan, the twins, and their dad. The interrelationships between these four and somewhat between Sloan and her boy friend and her best friend provide readers with a deep character study that grips the audience from the moment Sloan enters the aptly named Joint. Harriet Klausner

Gripping dark comedy

Love Will Tear us Apart was recommended to me by a friend who received a review copy. It absolutely floored me. It starts out fun and very light (McCarthy's fine prose is what kept me reading at first - plus the 'where the hell is this going' aspect) but gradually it takes a turn towards the darkly comic and eventually tragic. The ending works like a strong kick in the gut.