To Lie Within the Moment by M. R.M. Parrott

From the Publisher

Called a "scorching, salty, beach read", To Lie Within the Moment is a portrait of Jim Mercer, trying to determine what meaning his life has after his wife, Mary, commits suicide. The story illustrates the power of Jim's entrapment in the moment, and through his controversial relationships, his moral decay and ennui.

rimric folio - Frederick Morissette

Discovered this unique novel, really a novella, recently, released almost four years ago through a small press. To Lie Within the Moment, the first novel from author M.R.M. Parrott, is a gem of a book, well-written and produced, with a full-width photograph on the dust jacket. When books are starting to look more and more alike, this one stands out.

It is also the quality, and sometimes spellbinding complexity, of the prose making up the story which floored me. In a day when books seem to ramble on with no end in sight, this one is tight, like a stage play, with no wasted words or scenes. It takes much more skill, I'm told, to produce such writing, but here it seems effortless, rolling like gently pounding waves on a beach.

Parrott's story deserves some attention here. Starting with Jim and Mary Mercer, a prominent Gulf Coast couple, awaking to an uncomfortable morning in their marriage, Jim decides to go sailing, like any rich husband would do in such a situation. While he is away most of the morning, Mary begins to have a psychological fit, and through a series of flashbacks from each character's point of view, it comes to light that she, an artist struggling with the direction of her work, has been quite unhappy with herself for some time. She then, and for no apparent reason, goes into a powerful dream-wake nightmare, in a beautifully written sequence. To indicate what happens next will ruin the story for anyone who hasn't read it, but this uncomfortable morning gets far more uncomfortable. During all of this, Parrott introduces a third character, Anna, whose joyful approach to life completely infects Jim, for he and Anna are lovers, but oddly, both Anna and Mary are as well. I suppose the Gulf Coast wealthy have to fill their time with something.

The back cover's blurb offers a nod to Virginia Woolf, which makes sense, because like Mrs. Dalloway, To Lie Within the Moment moves in forward time shorter than one day, but involves a copious number of flashbacks to tell the back story of many years. Through the flashbacks, additional characters are introduced and scenes filled-in, painting a rich mosaic of the three main characters, without having to disrupt the tension of forward progression.

Indeed, it is difficult sometimes to discern what is happening in the novel, and the density of the prose with the faintness of the dialogue seem to enhance this effect. Parrott certainly intends his reader to concentrate, or at least to re-read, in order to catch the full brilliance of his gem. This alone is unusual in today's book world, where writers often have trouble getting to the point, and do so using grade school language. Parrott, a busy, young author of nine titles already, was setting himself apart in this first novel, and does so in a way that may be a harbinger of his reported second novel, underway at the time of this writing. M.R.M. Parrott's debut novel is a must read for those whose interests lie, well, in the moment.

Special to The Herald, Spartanburg, South Carolina; South Carolina writers star in anthology (excerpt) - Rodney Stevens

To Lie Within the Moment is an often moving novel about Jim Mercer, who, because of what happens to his mate, Mary, finds it difficult to get beyond his pain and loss. Only after delving into his sometimes traumatic memories of growing up in Mobile, Alabama, is Jim able to set himself on the road to recovery.

South Carolina writer M.R.M. Parrott's concise, 107-page work is like a Virginia Woolf novel: It takes place in a brief span of time, yet it has a timeless quality. Though the novel is uneven, it has considerable reflective and emotional depth.

Product Details

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Forewords & Introductions

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