Liz Harmer celebrates the launch of her sophomore novel, Strange Loops, at Flying Books this February

By: Hannah Mercanti

Liz Harmer is not the first author to brave the murky waters of mutually destructive relationships. Many writers have tackled interpreting messy connections between lovers, siblings and families in their own ways. Though, in the acclaimed author’s newest book Strange Loops, this may be the first time we’ve ever seen human connection written quite like this.

In a swift departure from the sci-fi world of Harmer’s previous novel, Strange Loops takes its readers on a bizarre journey through the trials and tribulations of love, both familial and romantic, in all its unsightly forms.

The self-destructive cycles people find themselves in had been in Harmer’s head long before she connected it to her story. In a post-book launch event interview, Harmer shared the inspiration behind her title selection. It had been prompted by Douglas Hofstadter’s book I Am a Strange Loop, a philosophical novel that focuses on how human relationships are essentially feedback loops.

“I was interested in the characters, metaphorically, as a kind of strange loop or a damaged loop where you can’t escape the other,” said Harmer. “They’re almost like a snake eating its own tail.”

Days after the novel’s initial release in January, launch night had crept up on me. I hopped off the streetcar at College and Shaw streets with my copy of Strange Loops firmly in hand. I heaved open the door to Flying Books, a Canadian bookstore, writing school, independent publishing house and host of Harmer’s launch, while unbothered shoppers rushed in and out of the small shop. Since its opening back in 2015, Flying Books has been the home of numerous book launches, author interviews and writing workshops.

As I meandered up and down the narrow shop, I hardly noticed when a rush of cold air swelled into the room and the door hinges groaned open. Instinctively, my fellow patrons and I turned to see who had entered next. This time, it was Harmer herself. I watched as she lit up the room in a black and yellow checkered skirt and a bright smile and positioned herself beside Jean Marc Ah-Sen, a fellow Toronto-based author who led the evening’s discussion.

This was Harmer’s first official book launch since the release of The Amateurs in 2018. She emphasized the joy of getting to share her work with those close to her heart as well as newcomers.

“It felt almost like a reunion or wedding,” said Harmer. “Not everybody gets to have a book launch that brings together people from your professional life, your friends who are there to support you, people you haven’t seen in a while and readers that you’ve never met.”

I don’t think books should make moral claims. They’re just written by other fools.

While Harmer worked the room, readers slowly began to fill the small shop with an excited energy. As the night progressed, more and more attendees moved toward the register to get their hands on a copy.

Around 7:30 p.m., the discussion between Harmer and Ah-Sen began. They settled into their chairs and a hush fell over the room. In one swift motion, she cracked the spine of Strange Loops and began with a reading from her first chapter.

With bated breath, the small crowd listened intently, collectively losing themselves in Harmer’s narrative.

Strange Loops invites questions of desire and the morality of our desire, mostly through the baffling perspective of the main character, Francine.

Twins Francine and Philip have been at odds with each other since their teens. After Philip catches his teenage sister in a forbidden love affair with their youth pastor, he is unable to forgive her transgression against him and his beliefs.

Harmer’s writing style illustrating Francine’s desire is as nuanced as it is complex — she separates desire from morality completely. Francine is smart and self-aware, yet she cannot discern the moral dilemma with her affairs.

Over the course of her life, she feels a strong, desperate attraction towards two men who couldn’t be more different – older Pastor Howie and younger student Alexander. Though, in both of these cases, Francine does not see herself as the victim or the guilty party. Francine believes herself to be good but incapable of making the right choices. This leaves the reader questioning, does that negate the inherent immorality of her actions? We don’t know, and Francine sure doesn’t either.

“I don’t think books should make moral claims,” said Harmer to Ah-Sen. “They’re just written by other fools.”

The novel itself debuts at a perfect time. With Valentine’s Day around the corner of its release, many of us have love on the brain. Love comes in all different forms, and more often than not, it can create more problems than solutions. Strange Loops takes this idea and pushes it to the extreme.

Years into the future, Francine and Philip can’t seem to stop themselves from falling into the same self-destructive patterns from their childhoods. Again, Francine finds herself attracted to an inappropriately-aged man and Philip can’t bear to keep himself from ruining his sister’s life. 

Harmer’s narrative moves quickly and sneakily. She swiftly jumps from past to present and from character to character, seemingly at random. It might be easy for a reader to become confused or overloaded with information with that style, though that was not the case in Strange Loops.

The dual perspective was engaging, especially in Philip’s case. When I started the book, I found him boring, obsessive and borderline annoying since I was seeing him through Francine’s eyes. When the perspective switched to Philip, I was able to step into his shoes and enjoy his character a bit more through an inward lens.

Though the novel would be classified more as realistic fiction, the prose is reminiscent of a thriller. Suspense builds from the very first chapter. An argument, detrimental to their relationship, ensues between Philip and Francine, opening the novel, but Harmer holds off on the climax of that argument until much later in the story. This is the same in Francine’s case – she doesn’t give up the details of her initial teenage affair until halfway through the novel. The thriller-esque suspense is what kept me reading. I was so curious about the root of the twin’s animosity and so anxious about Francine’s affairs, past and present.

I don’t think books should make moral claims. They’re just written by other fools.

Painfully relatable, Strange Loops deals with heavy topics like religion and sexual assault through the tumultuous relationship of the twins. When talking with Harmer about readers potentially being put off by these subjects, she said, “literature should disturb us sometimes.”

The discussions of assault are candid, but they are compelling. This is because they are realistic – Harmer encourages readers to connect with the characters despite our own discomfort or disapproval of their actions.

Strange Loops can be purchased at Flying Books, Indigo or Amazon.