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“The Line of Horror”
A Dangerous Friendship follows a woman navigating heartbreak, loneliness, and the lure of risk, who, after a failed marriage, is drawn to a magnetic yet volatile woman whose energy feels both liberating and destructive. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Any kind of loss that forces a woman to question her future and identity sends me into story-telling mode. Especially against the backdrop of New York City in the 1980s, where there was an electric vibe and the possibility that anything could happen if you were open to it. I lived in the City during that time and it was magical. Wealth, street art, theater, fantasies of changing your life in a New York minute—it was heaven.
What was the inspiration for the relationship that develops between Tina and Spike?
Every female friendship I’ve had or witnessed since high school. We know the archetypes of the popular girls, the mean girls. What about the dangerous ones? What about the women who promise to give us power. Who tell us stories that we want to believe are true because are own lives seem so meh. Also, in the 1980’s, there was a second wave of feminism with women fighting for equal rights and questioning cultural and social norms. That history fans the flames of the relationship between Tina and Spike and their confusion: wanting to be powerful in their right but also looking to be elevated to a different reality by wealthy men.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Reinvention after loss. I like to explore the ways women navigate identity and self-worth when their lives take an unexpected turn. Also, truth vs. fiction. I’m fascinated by the stories we tell ourselves and each other to survive. Finally, the thin line between attraction and danger. Tina calls this “the line of horror,” which she refuses to cross at first, then leaps over, believing that Spike, like a cult leader, will change her world.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?
My next novel is The Enlightenment of Henry Pike. It leans even further into dark humor than A Dangerous Friendship. It follows a slightly unhinged philanthropist who’s being swindled out of his fortune by those closest to him. At its core, it’s also about loss and reinvention—and our endless obsession with wealth, power, and the lives we think we deserve. Readers can expect it in the next two years.
Author Links: GoodReads | Instagram | Facebook | Website
In 1980s New York City, aspiring writers Tina and Spike bond in a complex, all-consuming friendship that will change their lives forever.
Desperate to redefine herself after a failed marriage, twenty-nine-year-old Tina embarks on a thrill-seeking journey to feel alive again. When she meets thirty-five-year-old Spike, a beautiful, seductive, seemingly invulnerable woman, she becomes enthralled by the older woman’s stories of NYC power brokers, sex, wealthy men, and her past. Tina latches on to Spike as someone who can save her from mediocrity and show her how to be the kind of woman who can have power over men—both in romance and in life.
Chasing adventure and the writing life, Tina and Spike rent a cabin together for the summer in the rural backwoods. There, they go on a wild, manic, darkly humorous journey involving dive bars, drugs, men, and all-night dancing, becoming increasingly psychologically entangled in each other’s lives along the way. But eventually Tina realizes just how dangerous Spike is, and is forced to act to save herself.
Filled with New York wit and fast-paced dialogue, this is a story of loss, betrayal, survival, and blurring the line between attraction and peril.
A Dangerous Friendship
Robin Merle’s A Dangerous Friendship tells the story of Tina, a woman navigating heartbreak, loneliness, and the lure of risk, who is drawn into a powerful and consuming relationship with Spike, a magnetic yet volatile woman whose energy feels both liberating and destructive. The book unfolds as a mix of confession, memory, and cautionary tale, with Tina’s voice pulling readers through the strange encounters, reckless adventures, and raw emotions that define her search for meaning and connection. At its heart, the novel explores how desire, loss, and self-deception intertwine when we reach for love in places that might destroy us.
The writing is sharp, sometimes even intoxicating, as if the sentences themselves were alive with the same restless energy that fuels Spike. There were moments I felt swept along by the chaos, unable to look away even when the scenes grew uncomfortable or unnerving. The style often felt conversational, almost like overhearing someone at a bar late at night telling you the truth they hadn’t meant to say out loud. That rawness worked for me. It made me trust the voice even when I knew the choices being described were dangerous or misguided. Still, there were times when the sheer intensity wore me down. I caught myself needing a pause, needing to breathe, because the book doesn’t really let you step away from the emotional heat. That relentlessness is its strength, though.
I kept coming back to the theme of how easily people mistake chaos for passion, or instability for depth. Spike is fascinating because she’s equal parts irresistible and terrifying. I understood Tina’s attraction to her. Who doesn’t want to be pulled into someone’s orbit when they seem larger than life, when they make you feel braver than you are? Yet I also felt a knot in my stomach, knowing where such relationships might lead. The book never pretends that this friendship is healthy, and I liked that honesty. It made me think about the kinds of people we let in when we’re at our most fragile, and how often the need to feel alive can push us right to the edge of destruction.
A Dangerous Friendship left me unsettled in the best way. It’s not a comforting read, but it is a truthful one. I’d recommend it to readers who enjoy stories about flawed characters, messy emotions, and the dangerous beauty of being swept up in someone else’s storm. If you’re drawn to novels that explore obsession, betrayal, and the thin line between love and ruin, this one will keep you turning pages.
Pages: 311 | ASIN : B0DWYJWSBF
LITERARY TITAN 