There is much already written and said about online dating, and still so much to be said and written. From memoirs, movies, and reality shows to self-help books and novels, there is a lot of inspiration around, particularly warning about its traps. But loneliness itself is also a trap, because it can throw us up in a world of wishes and illusions, lacking contact with reality and its limitations. We want to have something more than we want to feel ourselves safe. We are lonely, but also fragile and exposed. Which make it into the perfect victim for predators of all kinds.
The Loneliness Trap, the elegant debut by Brasilian-born author Ana de Andrada is based on exactly such a story. A lonely lady of a certain age, Gwen, is falling in love with a handsomeme, younger man she met online. The perfect instant reward for feeling herself desired again, a woman with all that the society expect her to be as a woman. But she was alone maybe for too long and she got lured into a trap of illusions and happy lies. Until his charming prince Tom revelas to be a very dangerous and unkissable frog.
I liked how a contemporary topic is turned into a novel exploring human vulnerabilities in the age of Internet. Love in the age of online dating may be changing, but trust, betrayal and love itself are expected to stay the same, being sought after. It is a new vocabulary of love written online, but the alphabet stays the same. Books like The Loneliness Trap are a recommended bibliography to anyone looking for an online adventure or for that big love. It may help to avoid being trapped.
Rating: 4 stars
Disclaimer: Book offered as part of the book tour but the opinions are, as usual, my own
Thanks for the blog tour support x
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