Lost in the Reflecting Pool
Adult; Memoir; (Market)
A psychological story about Diane a highly trained child psychologist, who falls in love with Charles, a brilliant and charming psychiatrist—ignoring all the red flags that will later come back to haunt her.
When Diane, a psychologist, falls in love with Charles, a charming and brilliant psychiatrist, there is laughter and flowers—and also darkness. After moving through infertility treatments and the trials of the adoption process as a united front, the couple is ultimately successful in creating a family. As time goes on, however, Charles becomes increasingly critical and controlling, and Diane begins to feel barraged and battered. When she is diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer, Charles is initially there for her, but his attentiveness quickly vanishes and is replaced by withdrawal, anger, and unfathomable sadism. What Diane previously thought were just Charles’ controlling ways are replaced by clear pathologic narcissism and emotional abuse that turns venomous at the very hour of her greatest need.
A memoir and a psychological love story that is at times tender and at times horrifying, Lost in the Reflecting Pool is a chronicle of one woman’s struggle to survive within—and ultimately break free of—a relationship with a man incapable of caring about anyone beyond himself.
Plot/Idea: 8 out of 10
Originality: 8 out of 10
Prose: 8 out of 10
Character/Execution: 8 out of 10
Overall: 8.00 out of 10
Assessment:
Idea: Lost in the Reflecting Pool offers excellent pacing, and strong storytelling elements. The reader is drawn in wanting to know how Pomerantz’s partner changes from “almost perfect” to the story’s villain.
Prose: The author’s authentic storytelling invites the reader in, offering a fine balance of descriptors of scenery and fast paced events.
Originality: Lost in the Reflecting Pool is a story that many women have lived, but is full of unique experiences, descriptions, and believable suspense.
Character/Execution: The voices of the narrator, as well as her family members and friends introduced in her story, are well defined and easy to understand. The paragraph structure would benefit from a degree of additional editing to allow for greater storytelling flow.
Date Submitted: November 15, 2021
Plot/Idea: 6 out of 10
Originality: 8 out of 10
Prose: 8 out of 10
Character/Execution: 8 out of 10
Overall: 7.50 out of 10
Assessment:
Plot: Pomerantz's memoir is well plotted and moves along at a swift pace. And while the story holds few surprises, it is nonetheless a compelling tale.
Prose: The author's prose is effective and works to distinguish her book. The memoir is full of vivid details and the writing keeps readers engaged.
Originality: Although memoirs about disastrous marriages are plentiful, this gem of a book stands out from the pack. Not only does the author survive a horrible marriage, she survives cancer.
Character Development: The characters here are well developed. Both Charles and Diane feel real, multi-dimensional, and imperfect.
Date Submitted: June 01, 2017
