EDITOR’S CHOICE
Witty, heartfelt, and wonderfully eccentric—Real Life and Other Fictions is a captivating blend of mystery, humour, and self-discovery.
Susan Coll’s Real Life and Other Fictions is a delightfully offbeat novel that blends mystery, satire, and self-discovery with an irresistible dose of cryptozoology. At its heart is Cassie Klein, a woman in her fifties whose life has been defined by an unresolved tragedy—her parents’ deaths in a West Virginia bridge collapse when she was just two years old. Now, reeling from personal disappointments, including a failed journalism career and an unfaithful husband, Cassie embarks on a road trip fuelled by impulse and curiosity. With only her puppy for company, she sets out to uncover the truth behind her parents’ fate, a journey that leads her to a peculiar cryptozoologist and the shadowy legend of the Mothman.
Coll’s writing is sharp, witty, and rich with wry humour. Cassie is an engaging protagonist—self-deprecating, intelligent, and wonderfully flawed. Her existential crisis unfolds in a narrative that seamlessly intertwines the absurd and the heartfelt, making the novel both hilarious and deeply poignant. The book’s satirical edge is particularly biting when it explores internet culture, failed ambition, and the fluidity of truth in storytelling.
While the novel’s eccentric plot may not be for everyone, those who enjoy quirky, genre-blurring fiction will find it immensely rewarding. The blend of myth, mystery, and midlife reinvention makes for an entertaining and thought-provoking read. Real Life and Other Fictions is ultimately a story about searching for meaning in a world that often refuses to make sense.
