Greta & Valdin

LoveReading Says

The novel alternates chapters between the titular characters, the siblings Greta and Valdin Vladisavljevic. We follow them trying to find love and fulfilling work and understand more about their close-knit family. Both siblings speak with a tone that is sarcastic and deadpan in their wit, but they also have incredibly soft, vulnerable hearts.

Greta describes herself on her dating app as ‘Depressed and frigid’. Valdin goes to a post office to pick up a parcel and the cashier looking at you ‘like this is the dumbest fucking thing anyone’s ever said to her’. Valdin tells us ‘I loved him in a way I’ve never been able to love another person.

When I was with him, it felt like nothing else mattered and I would be fine forever. That sounds stupid but it’s how I felt’. Greta looks at the woman she loves, thinking ‘I wonder if she remembers the time we lay on the floor of the PhD common room, after everyone else had gone home, listening to the same song over and over again’.

It’s vibes based, we’re more interested in the voice than the plot – we’re just interested in seeing the world through their eyes.

Reviewed by Billy Lindon
Lily Lindon (Billy) is a writer, editor, and bookseller living in London.
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