A Different Sort of Love Affair by Shayne McClendonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
When Two Broken People Meet
Portia is a 34-year-old author who has mental health issues. She suffers from social anxiety and PTSD. She’s never had a romantic relationship. Strange men terrify her. She has a very small and tight circle of friends who adore her and she adores them back. At a party in her honour, she escapes all the people and hides in the library where she meets a beautiful man in a wheelchair.
Edgar is 40 years old and is the cousin of one of Portia’s circle. She’s never even heard of him despite knowing nearly all of the family of her circle. They spend the next hour talking about books, their mutual passion. Excited beyond words at meeting someone whose intellect fascinates her, Portia finds herself being attracted to a man.
Edgar is a neuroscientist and was a bit of a prodigy in his day, but he ran away from it all, got married and had a child. Sadly, his daughter was killed in the accident that put him in a wheelchair. He has heard lots of stories about Portia from his family, especially his beloved nephew Jacob, who is also Portia’s godson.
Their relationship starts tentatively and hopefully as both try to navigate around their own personal demons without triggering the other person’s. It’s beautiful to see.
This book is wonderfully matter of fact in the way it deals with mental illness, PTSD and physical disabilities. It states the condition and its effects without pity or any overemotional response. We watch two damaged people learn to love each other and like themselves just a little bit more. I love the support they are given by their friends and their happiness as they watch Portia and Edgar grow.
I really love the way that Portia and Edgar start to explore their sexuality despite their individual hang-ups. They are both intelligent people who like research!
I will say that Shayne McClendon’s writing can sometimes be a little cerebral, and that is certainly the case with this book. A lot of the emotions feel a bit muted because of the way the author describes them. In some respects, that’s a good thing because a lot of the subject matter is difficult and disturbing. Facing these subjects through the veil of intellect makes it easier to read about without being too disturbed.
I haven’t checked yet, but I really hope that this isn’t a complete one-off and that there are other books written about these wonderful people because I really like all the characters that we meet in this book and want to know about their lives too. If not, I’ll just have to imagine their stories instead.
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