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Tabitha Suzuma
author
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Radio interview
Forbidden
Nominated for the 2011 Carnegie Medal
Winner of the Premio Speciale Cariparma for European Literature 2011
'We can’t ... If we start, how will we ever stop?' A book which tackles the biggest taboo of all: FORBIDDEN by Tabitha Suzuma Sixteen-year-old Maya and seventeen-year-old Lochan have never had the chance to be 'normal'. Having pulled together for years to take care of their younger siblings while their wayward, drunken mother leaves them to fend alone, they have had to become much more than simply brother and sister. And now, they have fallen in love. But this is a love that can never be allowed, a love that will have devastating consequences . . . ‘How can something so wrong feel so right?’
'A complex novel that succeeds in exploring the controversial subject of sibling incest without sensation. Waves of emotion accompany Maya and Lochan's tale, which skilfully explores the type of desperation and need for love that occurs when families break down. A chilling, powerfully written tale with lasting effects for both teenage and adult readers.' The Bookseller
‘Brilliantly told in alternating point of views Tabitha Suzuma will give William Shakespeare a run for his money in this modern-day adaption of forbidden love. ' Books By Their Cover
'An extremely well-written and thoughtful novel. Suzuma takes a subject that really is taboo for most people and creates a heartbreaking story of immense emotional impact... A brave, poignant and powerful book... For older readers looking for a novel that really challenges our expectations of Young Adult storytelling, this is the one.' I Was a Teenage Book Geek
'Remarkable writing . . . A beautiful novel.' Mondadori Editore
'One of the most extraordinary pieces of writing that I have read for a very long time. Without sensationalism, but with so much sensitivity in the writing, this is passionate, horrific, empathic and so well handled . . . Tabitha Suzuma is a gifted author.' Anne Cater
'Amongst all the pain and fear that walk alongside Lochie and Maya, there are moments of happiness that are so bright and so powerful they are almost blinding. The streak of passion that is so expertly weaved in makes the story amazingly sexy . . . Most people will not understand your love of the book. Unless they read it.' Waterstone's
'Suddenly, the reader is rooting for this star-crossed couple. And that is a tremendously shocking thing to find yourself doing. It forces you to confront some very difficult feelings. It can't end well, of course, and I cried floods of tears at the inevitable denouement ... This is a brave and important book. And I can't even begin to imagine how difficult it was to write it. Bravo.' Jill Murphy
'The ending made me cry - seriously, I bawled my eyes out. I find it rare that a book is so affecting it brings me to tears, but in this case I felt I had travelled a journey with these characters. I believe it is the highest compliment to pay an author when I say: I lived through these characters as I read Forbidden.' Floor to Ceiling Books
'A fascinating, dark, emotionally challenging novel that left me sobbing and contemplative. I really encourage you to be brave and read it!' The Bookette
'I have been amazed by the author’s brave and honest writing. This might not be a book for everyone, but it will leave a lasting impression on those who embrace it.' Library Mice
'A brave, poignant and powerful book ... For older readers looking for a novel that really challenges our expectations of Young Adult storytelling, this is the one.' I Was a Teenage Book Geek
'Suzuma wrote a heart-wrenchingly painful story, because it was a story that had to be told. I love her for that. Forbidden was that hardest book I have ever read. But it was also one of the most poignant and capturing books I have read as well. Unbelievably sad, and somehow beautiful ... if you are looking for a story that will completely take over your emotions and never fully leave you, I urge you to give it a try. Painful. Powerful. Brilliant.' YA Addict
'I have never read of so beautiful and yet so real a love. Never. It’s possible that I never will again. There are two things which shine through Forbidden like stars reflected into a bowl of still water. Love and hope. One of these is the foundation of the story and the other is its conclusion - but both of them are the lights which brighten the darkness and change the gloom to a luminescence which will shine and shine forever.' Thomas Khoo
Extract
LOCHAN I tell Maya that she needs to sleep but I know I can’t – I’m too afraid to go upstairs and sit on my bed and go crazy in that tiny room, alone with my terrifying thoughts. She says she wants to stay with me: she’s frightened that if she goes away, I’ll disappear. She doesn’t need to explain – I feel it too: the fear that if we part now, this incredible night will just vanish, evaporate like a dream, and we will wake in the morning back in our separate bodies, back in our ordinary lives. Yet here on the couch, my arms around her as she sits curled up against me, head resting against my chest, I still feel frightened – more frightened than I’ve ever been before. What just happened was unbelievable yet somehow completely natural, as if deep down I always knew this moment would come, even though I never once allowed myself to consciously think about it, to imagine it in any way. Now that it has arrived, I can only think of Maya, sitting right here against me, her breath warm against my bare arm. It’s as if there is a great wall preventing me from crossing to the other side, from casting my mind out into the external world, the world beyond the two of us. Nature’s security valve is at work, preventing me from even contemplating the implications of what just happened, keeping me, for the moment at least, safe from the horror of what I have done. It’s as if my mind knows it cannot go there yet, knows that right now I’m not strong enough to deal with the outcome of these overwhelming feelings, these momentous actions. But the fear remains – the fear that in the cold light of day we will be forced to come to terms with what was, quite simply, an awful mistake; the fear that we will have no choice but to bury this night as if it never took place, a shameful secret to be filed away for the rest of our lives until, brittle with age, it crumbles to dust – a faint, distant memory, like the powder of a moth’s wings on a windowpane, the spectre of something that perhaps never occurred, existing solely in our imagination. I cannot bear the thought of this being just one moment in time, over almost before it started, already retreating into the past. I must hold onto it with all my might. I cannot allow Maya to slip away because, for the first time in my life, my love for her feels whole, and everything that has led up to this point suddenly makes sense, as if all this was meant to be. But as I gaze down at her sleepy face, the freckled cheekbones, the white skin, the dark curl of her eyelashes, I feel an overwhelming ache, like acute homesickness – a longing for something I can never have. Sensing my eyes on her, she looks up and smiles, but it is a sad smile, as if she too knows how precarious our new love is, how dangerously threatened by the outside world. The ache inside me deepens, and all I can think of is what it felt like to kiss her, how brief that moment was and how desperately I want to live it once more. She keeps on looking at me with that little wistful smile, as if waiting, as if she knows. And the blood is hot in my face, my heart racing, my breath quickening, and she notices that too. Raising her head from my chest, she asks, ‘Do you want to kiss me again?’ I nod, mute, heart pounding anew. She looks at me expectantly, hopefully. ‘Go on, then.’ I close my eyes, my breathing laboured, my chest filling with a mounting sense of despair. ‘I don’t – I don’t think I can.’ ‘Why not?’ ‘Because I’m worried . . . Maya, what if we can’t stop?’ ‘We don’t have to . . . ’ I breathe deeply and turn away, the air around me thrumming with heat. ‘Don’t even think like that!’ Her expression sobers and she brushes her fingers up and down the inside of my arm, her eyes heavy with sadness. Yet her touch fills me with longing. I never thought that the mere touch of a hand could stir so much. ‘All right, Lochie, we’ll stop.’ ‘You have to stop. Promise me.’ ‘I promise.’ She touches my cheek, turning me back towards her. I take her face in my hands and start to kiss her, gently at first; and as I do so, all the pain and worry and loneliness and fear start to evaporate until all I can think of is the taste of her lips, the warmth of her tongue, the smell of her skin, her touch, her caresses. And then I’m struggling to keep calm and her hands are pressing against the sides of my face, her breath hot and rapid against my cheek, her mouth warm and wet. My hands want to touch her all over, but I can’t, I can’t, and we’re kissing so hard it hurts – it hurts that I can’t do more, it hurts that however hard I kiss her I can’t ... I can’t – ‘Lochie . . . ’ I don’t care about the promise. I don’t remember why I even suggested it. I don’t care about anything – anything except for – ‘Easy, Lochie – ’ I press my lips back down over her mouth, holding her tight to stop her from moving away. ‘Lochie, stop.’ This time she pulls away and pushes me back, holding me at arm’s length, her fingers gripping my shoulders. Her lips are red - she looks flushed and wild and exquisite. I’m breathing too fast. Much too fast. ‘You made me promise.’ She looks upset. ‘I know, all right!’ Jumping up, I start pacing the room. I wish there was an icy pool of water for me to dive into. ‘Are you OK?’ No, I’m not. I’ve never felt like this before and it scares me. My body seems to have taken over. I'm so aroused I can hardly think. I’ve got to calm down. I’ve got to stay in control. I can’t let this happen. I run my hands through my hair repeatedly and the air escapes from my lungs in a rush. ‘I’m sorry. I should have said it sooner.’ ‘No!’ I spin round. ‘It’s not your fault, for God’s sake!’ ‘All right, all right! Why are you angry?’ ‘I’m not! I’m just – ’ I stop and lean my forehead against the wall, fighting the urge to head-butt it. ‘Oh, Jesus, what are we going to do?’ ‘Nobody would have to find out,’ she says softly, chewing the tip of her thumb. ‘No!’ I shout. Storming into the kitchen, I rummage furiously through the freezer for ice cubes for a cold drink. Hot acid shoots through my veins and my heart is hammering so hard I can hear it. It’s not just the physical frustration, it’s the impossibility of our situation, the horror of what we’ve got ourselves into, the despair of knowing that I will never be able to love Maya the way I want to. ‘Lochie, for goodness’ sake, calm down.’ Her hand touches my arm as I wrestle with the freezer drawer. I knock it away. ‘Don’t!’ She takes a step back. ‘D’you know what we’re doing here? Have you any idea at all? D’you know what they call this?’ I slam the freezer shut and move round to the other side of the table. ‘What’s got into you?’ she breathes. ‘Why are you suddenly turning on me?’ I stop abruptly and stare at her. ‘We can’t do this,’ I blurt out, aghast with the sudden realization. ‘We can’t. If we start, how will we ever stop? How on earth will we be able to keep this a secret from everyone for the rest of our lives? We’ll have no life – we’ll be trapped, living in hiding, always having to pretend – ’ She stares back at me, her blue eyes wide with shock. ‘The others . . .’ she says softly, a new realization suddenly dawning. ‘The kids – if even one person found out, they’d be taken away!’ ‘Yes.’ ‘So we can’t do this? We really can’t?’ It’s phrased as a question, but I can see by the stricken look on her face that she already knows the answer. Shaking my head slowly, I swallow hard and turn to look out of the kitchen window to hide the tears in my eyes. The sky is on fire and the night has ended. Tabitha Suzuma
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