What Belongs To You by Garth Greenwell Review

I am a big fan of LGBTQ+ romance; I enjoy the layers and complexities to the stories unfolding on the pages, they usually offer many insights and retrospections that are not as commonly found in run of the mill genre romances that tickle the readers' ears with lovey stories where everything works itself out, a happily ever after is basically a guarantee. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy both genres and categories of stories immensely, I find both to be beautiful in their own respective rights. But when I picked this up at the secondhand store, the back cover's description drew me in with its grittiness and I knew this would not fall into the category of a rosy romance; I'm not even sure if I am able to describe it as LGBTQ+ romance, although it paints an illustration of a man deeply obsessed with another man. 

What Belongs To You fell into the category of books that I'm sure are objectively enthralling and artful in its execution and delivery. However, I found that I did not feel that the characters, Mitko nor the unnamed narrator were particularly compelling nor discussed enough to be invested in anyways. But I did enjoy the narrator's introspection on his past and familial trauma, which draws attention to some of the inexplicitly stated reasons he finds himself so drawn to Mitko as a lover and character in his personal narrative. 

The story is not plot driven, with jumps in the timeline when the author sees fit to either delve into the narrators past or current interactions, and not a lot going on. The true focus of the story is the narrator's unhealthy and obsessive relationship with Mitko, not to be confused with a story of a functional or healthy relationship between two people. The story is strictly told from the narrator's perspective, and although the reader is able to witness several interactions between the two of them, it is obvious that Mitko's impression of the narrator is not the focal point, this story is completely and utterly the narrator's. The narrator unpacks his visceral obsession with Mitko, and it doesn't feel like affection nor voluntary love, it comes off more as impulsive and unstoppable, as if the narrator is powerless against the compulsion to allow and even encourage Mitko to take advantage of him. This is emphasized by his welcoming Mitko back into his life even when he is in a relationship with another unnamed character. It is relevant to note that all characters in his story, even himself, are unnamed and therefore irrelevant, everyone's influence pales in comparison to the impact Mitko has had on him and his life. 

Perhaps the most relatable part of the story is how the narrator fully understands throughout their short-lived connection that it cannot end well, that Mitko is using him for shelter, money, and various practical purposes such as food and the means to communicate with his other clients, but goes on with it. He attempts to cut Mitko out of his life after a particularly dangerous and threatening moment between them in Sofia, but when he sees him again, he goes back to the routine of hasty intimacy and providing temporary relief to Mitko's worldly and immediate concerns, all the while thinking to himself that Mitko is likely lying or using him and that his personal actions are objectively wrong, that he shouldn't keep seeing and interacting with Mitko. From the narrator's perspective, it is as if their fate has been written far before they met, that Mitko was always destined to change the course of the narrator's life all along, he is simply acting on pre-written moves. This is set up by the parallel between the narrator's past relationship with a childhood friend and relationship with his father who he never resolved his issues with and his unhealthy relationship with Mitko, it is thoroughly haunting and quite thought-provoking. The narrator reads as though he has given up on even attempting to trick himself into thinking he could ever abstain from Mitko. 

I enjoyed these complexities in the relationship between the two characters as well as the attention to detail when discussing the setting and narrator's innermost thoughts, but as I've mentioned, I didn't find the characters and story compelling enough to find the whole book to be utterly enjoyable. But I didn't regret reading it, it is short and an "easy" read in its prose, but not its subject matter. If you are a fan of character studies or deep dives into unpacking unhealthy relationships, I'm sure you would be able to garner some value from this book.