When people shed their skin every seven years, it’s just a fact of life that we will cast off all the attachments of our old life. And when our loves are part of us, those memories of love can be bought, if you know the right people.
Introducing the new drug, Suscutin, that will prevent the moult. Now you can keep your skin forever. Now you never need to change who you are.
But it’s not so simple for celebrity bodyguard Rose Allington, who suffers from a rare disease. Her moults come quickly, changing everything about her life, who she is, who she loves.
Meanwhile, her former client, superstar actor Max Black, is hooked on Suscutin, because he knows moulting could lose him everything. When one of his skins is stolen, and the theft is an inside job, he needs the best who ever worked for him on the job – even if she’s not the same person.
Very occasionally, I’ll read a piece of writing that takes my breath away. It’s rare, but it does happen from time to time; The Language of Dying by Sarah Pinborough immediately springs to mind. The Loosening Skin by Aliya Whiteley has found a place on this very select list. Where Pinborough’s work explores how we view and try to understand death, Whiteley’s work picks apart the nature of love in all its forms.
Rose Allington acts as the narrator of her own story, and this offers insight into her innermost thoughts and feelings. Whiteley perfectly captures the contradictions that exist within us all. Rose is looking for something she feels is lacking in her life, but she is also petrified of finding it. At certain points it felt like she was just treading water, paralysed by indecision. We’ve all been there, terrified to move forward but incapable of moving back. Little moments like this humanise Rose. She has the same failing and flaws as us all.
The other character I found fascinating is the actor, Max Black. You get the sense he also feels adrift in his own fame. A cursory glance would make you think he has it all. The money, the adulation and the jet set lifestyle mean that he wants for nothing, but of course the real Max Black is not interested in any of that. He has disconnected with the rest of humanity. He is so consumed with the idea of defining love he has become obsessed by it. Black realises how shallow his outward existence is longs to find something more tangible. When Max meets Rose he immediately falls in “love”. In his mind he constructs an idealised version of Rose and places her on a pedestal. In his eyes she is the answer to all his questions.
It’s the interactions between Rose and Max, these two damaged people, that lies at the heart of this story. How they act and react with one another make for a compelling read. We are seeing two people laid bare.
At this point, it’s probably worth pointing out that the timeline in this novel is far from linear. Chapters deal with different time periods and jump around, forward and back, over the course of events. I like this approach, as the narrative unfolds you get to see how all these disparate moments start to weave together to form a whole.
The thing that resonated with me most about The Loosening Skin is its premise. Whiteley has created a world that is identical to our own with one huge difference. To some the idea that we could walk away from our lives may feel like anathema, but you can still appreciate how some characters relish the opportunity to reinvent themselves.
I’d imagine/hope that different readers are going to interpret The Loosening Skin in different ways. I rather suspect that is the whole point. I finished reading the novel last week and I’m still thinking about it now, it leaves such a distinct impression. Though it is not a large book, there is so much to ponder. How do we quantify the nature of love, of friendship, of desire? I like the idea that viewing these concepts from an entirely different perspective allows us to better understand ourselves. Love can be such an ephemeral, fleeting thing that I know I sometimes struggle to understand it. Perhaps this level of self-examination won’t be to everyone’s taste. This novel poses many questions to any reader. Love, change and evolution of character are explored in a myriad of ways. Reading The Loosening Skin promotes a certain level of introspection and self-analysis that I can appreciate not everyone is looking for, but personally I was captivated by it. I was drawn into Rose’s world and her story genuinely made me think. Any novel that engages to such a degree should be lauded and is entirely worthy of your time.
My musical recommendation to accompany TheLoosening Skin is the soundtrack to the film Never Let Me Go by Rachel Portman. Delicate and emotive, it feels like the perfect fit to Aliya Whiteley’s evocative writing.
The Loosening Skin is published by the BFS award winning Unsung Stories and is available now. Highly recommended.
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