Review: `Open Me' by Lisa Locascio

“Open Me” by Lisa Locascio is the story of Roxana, who lands in Copenhagen instead of Paris to study in a study abroad program and is picked up by Soren, her guide and steward. Later, Roxana and Soren go out for a beer, and she tells him about her parents' divorce. He tells her they'll be happier separated. Soren's thesis is on African-American literature. They talk of this and that, and it's light here until ten-thirty or eleven. When Roxana was six, she met Sylvie, who became her best friend, her only friend. Roxana's first love was Hunter, who was in her honors chemistry class. When she asked him to go to Homecoming, he brought her a lily and pinned it to her dress carefully. He held her hand all night. After the dance, they went to the grammar school playground, where he laid her on the ground and took off his clothing, then her clothes. After he came, he quickly dressed and took her home. Her Mama had waited up for her and drove to the pharmacy for a “morning after” pill, then made an appointment to get birth control. She tells Soren all of this, and he's concerned for her. They finish their beers and have a shot of schnapps for the end of the night. He takes her to the tram, then to her room and her bed, and says good night.

She dreams of Sylvie and going to Paris with her and doesn't tell her parents where she is now. The next day, Soren took her to meet the other group members. The day after graduation, she'd received a voicemail saying the enrollment to Paris was over-booked, and they'd booked her to Denmark, the happiest country on earth. Sylvia is still on for Paris. Roxana decides to go and make the best of it. The next day, she and Soren take the metro to Roskilde, where she orders a coffee and says thanks in Danish, proud of herself. They missed the group and ended up at the Viking Ship Museum. Then, stop at a bar for a beer, and then another bar, and so on. He tells her how her trip to Paris had been canceled because the director of International Abroad Experiences had an affair with his father, and her daughter wanted to go to Paris. Soren tells her she's a wonderful person and kisses her passionately. After another bar, they go to his apartment for water, which is important after a lot of drinking. As to her parents' divorce, he tells her love is real but can end. Author Locascio makes the love scene real with a slow pace. She increases the tension of the love scene as they lie on the bed. She is on fire under his mouth, melting.

When they are on * their way to Farso, it's scary and exciting to be with him as anything could happen. They arrive at his uncle's apartment, sterile and white, and Roxana unpacks their clothes while Soren sleeps. She watches TV, which is inane about an android. She and Sylvie had seen it before, Sylvie hating it and Roxana liking it. They didn't have to like the same things. The next day, Soren goes to the library to work on his thesis, which is his reason for coming here. After he leaves, she explores the apartment and keeps busy all day. Why doesn't he ever take her outside, she wonders. He tells her what he thinks of other cultures and admits he's a racist. He resents that others come here and never have to work; they live off his taxes. One day, Roxana sneaks out of the apartment after Soren leaves, and she walks on the streets, seeing new people. When she gets to the pond, she falls, and a man helps her to stand; it's Geden, known as “the goat.” He excites her, and she hopes to see him again. He invites her out to lunch. What had gone wrong with Soren, she wonders. He only gives her cheek a peck in the morning and at night. She wants more; nothing gives Soren pleasure anymore. His only happiness comes with a few beers, some Hash, and an old American comedy on TV. After which he immediately falls asleep. He hates himself, he says and calls himself a loser. He has deleted his thesis on his computer.

The day Roxana has lunch with Geden, she carefully chooses what to wear: black pants, a black t-shirt, and a black sweater. He opens the door to his car, and they drive to an American restaurant. They have cheeseburgers and fries. They go to a sleazy bar and drink straight vodka. They dance because Roxana wants to. His house is nice, and he has hundreds of books on shelves. Geden's real name is Zlatan, not “goat,” as Soren had said. He speaks perfect English and his house is beautiful. Why does Soren hate him? On a picnic in the woods, he explains his history to her, how he resisted everyone's attempt to know him, to make himself more dramatic. They make exotic love and think they know one another. When he takes her home to her empty, dull apartment, he thanks her for a lovely time.

Is she a wiser woman now? Has she learned anything in Denmark? Do they see one another again after she returns to America? Author Locassio is a director of the Mendocino Writers' Conference and teaches creative writing at Mendocino College. This is her first published erotic novel and you can find it on the new fiction shelf of your local library.