A dark, contemporary novel about self-destruction and redemption.
Breathing in Rhythm is a contemporary novel about a lost, young woman, Siobhan – a prostitute and a junkie very close to the brink of insanity and living a dangerous lifestyle.
Chilling and intense, the novel, set during the grunge era, reflects the despair and emotional poverty of the main character, and her melancholic perception of the world and those around her. Much concerned with the existential conflicts in life, society and belief systems, it is the pain of the central, female character, which is the focal point of the novel. Siobhan’s surface aggression, paranoia and unnerving honesty produce a very modern effect.
The novel begins with Siobhan trying to get rid of a ‘client’ before her boyfriend, Jay, returns to their flat. When Jay returns Siobhan discovers he has not paid the rent with the money she has ‘earned’. She ends up homeless and doing tricks to survive. Along the way, Siobhan encounters a number of characters, including Belle, the opera singing has-been, Belle’s ennui-driven son, Oscar, and the sadistic Robert, all of whom lead Siobhan further down the path of sexual abuse and addiction.