Sad Janet: A wallow in misery makes for a memorable literary debut

Lucie Britsch’s first novel manages to breathe fresh life into the well-worn trope of the emotionally damaged female narrator

Lucie Britsch’s first novel manages to breathe fresh life into the well-worn trope of the emotionally damaged female narrator

FICTION

Sad Janet

By Lucie Britsch

Weidenfeld & Nicolson, €19

From Eleanor Oliphant and Millie in Halle Butler’s The New Me to the unnamed protagonist in Ottessa Moshfegh’s My Year of Rest & Relaxation, there is an abundance of disaffected and dysfunctional anti-heroines. They grapple with mental health challenges, yet neither wait nor want to be rescued. In fact, at this stage, the emotionally detached female narrator trope is dangerously close to becoming boilerplate.

Lucie ...