Tales from the Dark Side...of Love: Emily McDaid on why Silver Linings Playbook is Her Favorite Dark Love Story

My friend, author-mate and critique partner, Bianca Sloane, writes fast-paced thrillers about the Dark Side of Love, and she is running a February promotion on the topic. If you love surprising characters and REALLY surprising plot twists, enter below for a chance to win copies of her books!

She asked her fellow authors to talk about their favorite Dark Side of Love stories, and rather than list a bunch of them, I'd love to focus on one that really resonated with me:

Silver Linings Playbook

Nobody gets murdered or maimed in Silver Linings Playbook, but for me, the story is very much about the dark side of love -- about honesty and being ourselves; about flawed people who fall in love despite their emotional baggage (and psychological disorders). I think that in order to truly love a person, you have to be yourself, and see the other person for who she/he truly is, too.

In this story, Patrick "Pat" Solitano, Jr (played by Bradley Cooper in the movie) suffers from bipolar disorder and has recently moved back in with his parents after leaving a psychiatric hospital. He runs into Tiffany Maxwell (played by Jennifer Lawrence), a sex addict, and befriends her despite his (well-founded) reservations.

They enter a dance competition and grow closer as the big event looms, but the obstacle in the way of their love is Pat's refusal to admit his previous relationship/marriage is well and truly over. He also seems to harbor the attitude that Tiffany is "screwed up" -- which is the funny part of the story, because she's the one who has made concrete strides in curing herself of her issues.

Through loving her, Pat discovers the curative power of honesty within himself.

I absolutely love this story because it displays one of the best characteristics of great fiction -- honesty in what the human condition is REALLY about. So much of our lives is airbrushed—the way people present themselves on Facebook, the way people look on TV and in magazines. I absolutely love engaging stories that present life the way it really is, and a realistic love story at that? I'm sold. Writer Matthew Quick certainly has done that here.

Bianca’s Note: Aww…thanks for the shout-out, AFF! J

Silver Linings Playbook certainly does go to some dark places; between Pat’s outbursts spurred by his mental instability and Tiffany’s penchant for brutal honesty (sometimes at the most inopportune of moments), it’s not a chick flick, to be sure.  Still, as Emily said, it is honest. And can’t we all use more of that?

Thanks to Emily for giving us her Tale from the Dark Side…of Love and for offering a choice of her novels, ‘The Boiler Plot or Tetherbird.  Today is the LAST DAY to enter, so don’t wait!

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