The Man by Laura Sims

The Man by Laura Sims

The photos Judith Stanley takes are just for her, a private passion to fill her suburban days. But when she shares them with Paul Sorenson, her new photography instructor, she's unprepared to hear his astonished praise. 'Stunning,' he calls her photos. 'Extraordinary.' She has an uncanny eye, he says, and should consider publication. He could help. Except Judith has no interest in sharing her work; in fact, the mere idea of it frightens her.

Still, emboldened by Paul's encouragement, Judith ventures out beyond her quiet neighbourhood to the city in search of increasingly striking images. When she starts to notice the dark shape of a man in the corner of her self-portraits, Judith is certain he's an attacker from her past. She doesn't know why he has returned, but she's sure of his presence: the hoarse sound of his breathing, his hard grip on her elbow. Perhaps it would appease the man if she were to put her camera down and give up her private passion. But she can't; she refuses. Until one night when the man finally emerges from the shadows, and Judith's story suddenly and irrevocably becomes his own.

Chilling and heart-poundingly propulsive, The Man is a phenomenal and timely novel exploring the inescapable fear of living as a woman, the tantalizing seduction of artistic freedom and the very real dangers that lurk both inside and outside the confines of the mind.

Haunting, atmospheric and relentlessly unnerving, The Man kept me up late reading - and had me looking over my shoulder at dark cornersBeneath the muscular prose and quiet sense of dread is a thoughtful exploration of power imbalances, our relationship with art and the roles we allow women to play -- Andrea Bartz, author of We Were Never Here and The Last Ferry Out
With elegant and propulsive prose, The Man is a chilling page-turner that explores art, ambition, gender dynamics and true fear. Creepy, disturbing and dripping with dread, I had to force myself to put it down -- Robyn Harding, author of Strangers in the Villa
Fiercely intelligent and deeply chilling, The Man - like the protagonist's self-portraiture - contains more than first meets the eye. It's the sort of novel I immediately want to talk about with others - the perfect book club read. I wish I could read it again for the first time! -- Ana Reyes, author of The House in the Pines
A chilling study of the ways in which a woman's art, talent and entire life get subsumed by the biggest malevolent force in her life - the men who want to shape her to their will. This book kept me awake at night, heart in throat, then stayed with me long afterward. I could not stop turning the pages. Sims has done it again -- Vanessa Chan, author of The Storm We Made
A gorgeous, haunting exploration of creativity, confinement and desire. Sims captures the inner life of an artist with uncanny precision and lyricism. Every page shimmers with intelligence and quiet menace. I could not put it down -- Danielle Trussoni, author of The Puzzle Box

Laura Sims’s previous novels How Can I Help You and Looker have been featured on Best Books lists in the New York Times Book Review, Vogue, People, Entertainment Weekly, Real Simple, Publishers Weekly and more. An award-winning poet, Sims has published four poetry collections; her essays and poems have appeared in the New Republic, Boston Review, LitHub and Electric Lit. She lives in New Jersey, where she works part-time as a children’s librarian.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780857309501
ISBN 10	0857309501
Title	The Man
Author	Laura Sims
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Verve Books
Year published	2026-07-23
Number of pages	288
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.