Intermezzo (novel)

The novel follows Ivan and Peter Koubek, two brothers living in Dublin, in the weeks after the death of their father. Ivan, a 22-year-old former chess prodigy whose once-promising career has stagnated, meets Margaret Kearns, a 36-year-old arts program director, during a chess exhibition at a local arts centre. Their interaction develops into a passionate but discreet relationship, despite Margaret's concerns about their age difference.

Meanwhile, Peter, a 32-year-old human rights lawyer, is in a relationship with Naomi, a 23-year-old college student who supplements her income by selling explicit photos online and frequently relies on Peter for financial support. But Peter still harbours unresolved feelings for his close friend and ex-girlfriend Sylvia, a 32-year-old English professor, whose chronic pain following a car accident ended their relationship. Peter attempts to integrate himself into Naomi's social life but feels out of place among her friends. When he learns that Naomi has been arrested for squatting and evicted, he secures her release and invites her to stay at his apartment while she searches for a new home.

As Peter and Ivan meet for dinner, Ivan reveals his relationship with Margaret. Peter expresses disgust at their age gap, angering Ivan, who cuts off all communication. Sylvia confronts Peter over his hypocrisy, pointing out his relationship with Naomi. This prompts Peter to attempt reconciliation with Ivan, but he discovers he has been blocked. Meanwhile, Ivan and Margaret grow closer, professing their love for each other. She shares her past experiences, including a toxic marriage to Ricky, an alcoholic whose possessive behavior drove them apart. Margaret's mother sided with Ricky during their divorce, a betrayal that deeply affected her; Ivan sympathizes with Margaret.

Peter and Sylvia briefly consider rekindling their relationship, but Sylvia's chronic pain complicates physical intimacy. When Peter expresses guilt over his role in Sylvia's life, she rebukes him for using her to cope with his grief over his father's death. As Peter continues to care for Sylvia during a severe episode of her chronic pain, they briefly resume their sexual relationship, which leads Peter to believe Sylvia wants to reunite. He decides to end his relationship with Naomi. But Sylvia rejects Peter's attempt at reconciliation, accusing him of using her as an exit strategy and an excuse to escape his fear of being vulnerable in a new relationship. Embarrassed and chastened, Peter attempts to return to Naomi, who has been staying at his father's house in Kildare since the breakup.

While visiting the Kildare house with his dog, Alexei, Ivan meets Naomi, who reveals Peter's favorable opinion of him despite their estrangement. Naomi also discovers that Peter has not spoken about her to Ivan, deepening her concerns about their relationship. When Peter arrives unexpectedly while Naomi is away, he and Ivan have a heated argument about their father's reliance on Peter as a protector and Peter's history of bullying Ivan. The argument escalates into a physical altercation, leaving Ivan bloodied.

Seeking solace, Ivan confides in Margaret, revealing his struggles with grief and his rift with Peter. Moved by Ivan's vulnerability, Margaret declares her need for his love, and Ivan reassures her of his commitment to their relationship. Meanwhile, Peter returns to his apartment, where Sylvia and Naomi confront him about his behavior. Sylvia apologizes for misleading Peter into believing she wanted to reconcile romantically, while Naomi accuses him of sexual exploitation. Sylvia proposes an unconventional arrangement, suggesting that the three of them maintain connections in a way that accommodates their respective needs. Peter agrees, settling into a routine of domestic life with Naomi while spending evenings with Sylvia.

When Ivan shows promise of reviving his chess career, Peter attends one of his tournaments, where he meets Margaret. She intercedes on Peter's behalf, facilitating a reconciliation between the brothers. Ivan and Peter affirm their mutual respect and agree to reunite for Christmas.

The initial inspiration for Intermezzo came from Rooney imagining a simultaneous exhibition of chess at a small-town arts centre in western Ireland, where a woman working at the center would observe a young chess player.^[1] After writing this scene, Rooney developed the character of Ivan, but found herself "stuck" until she realized Ivan had an older brother, Peter. This realization provided the novel's central relationship and convinced her to proceed with the book.^[1]

During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Rooney's husband began playing online chess, and though she did not play herself, she watched chess tutorials with him. This experience influenced her appreciation of chess as "almost like an art form" and helped her understand "the mathematical elegance" of brilliant moves, which informed the novel's chess themes.^[2]

The novel's title is a play on terminology from both music and chess, where "intermezzo" refers to an interlude in music and an unexpected move in chess.^[2] Rooney wrote the book after moving from Dublin to the countryside near Castlebar, where she grew up. This relocation parallels the novel's setting, which moves between Dublin and a fictional rural western Irish town.^[2]

The book represents a departure from Rooney's previous novels in its focus on male protagonists. While she had written male characters before, notably Connell in Normal People, this was her first time writing about relationships between men. She noted that she had "never witnessed a conversation between two men in which a woman wasn't present", making this perspective a conscious step outside her social reality.^[2]

Rooney has said that, contrary to common perception, the novel is not autobiographical. Despite drawing on settings familiar from her life, such as Dublin and western Ireland, she maintains that she does not consciously draw on personal emotional experiences when writing about her characters.^[3] The novel was influenced by James Joyce's Ulysses. Rooney has said Intermezzo partly emerged from her reading of Ulysses and her sense that it "demanded a response".^[1]

A central theme in Intermezzo is grief and its effect on family relationships. The novel explores how the death of a father affects two brothers differently, examining the ways grief can divide and unite family members.^[4][5][6] This exploration of loss is intertwined with questions about memory, the absence of loved ones, and how grief can catalyze personal change and development.^[7][8]

The novel examines generational differences and age gaps, particularly through its portrayal of cross-generational relationships. It explores how age differences affect both romantic and familial relationships while also addressing broader questions about aging, mortality, and the cultural divisions between millennials and Generation Z.^[8][9][10] These themes are closely tied to the novel's exploration of social judgment and cultural expectations.^[11]

Power dynamics and love emerge as interconnected themes. The novel examines how relationships are shaped by social conventions, market forces, and systems of power.^[11][9][12] This extends to questions of gender roles and economic influences on romantic relationships, while also addressing the gap between ideological beliefs and personal behavior.^[6] The sibling relationship at the novel's center serves as a lens through which power dynamics are explored, particularly how family bonds both constrain and enable personal growth.^[13][14]

Intermezzo marks a significant stylistic departure from Rooney's previous work.^[5] Her earlier novels, particularly Beautiful World, Where Are You, are characterized by clean, dialogue-driven narratives with detached omniscient narration,^[15] but Intermezzo uses varied narrative techniques and distinct voices for its three main characters:^[12] Peter's sections feature staccato, fragmented sentences reminiscent of James Joyce's Leopold Bloom; Ivan's narration has a cooler, more humorous tone; and Margaret's passages are slower and more deliberately paced.^[16][12] Critics noted that Peter's stream-of-consciousness passages particularly represent a stylistic experiment for Rooney, with shortened sentences and fewer verbs creating a choppier but rhythmically consistent flow reminiscent of writers like Eimear McBride and Samuel Beckett.^[9]

While the novel retains Rooney's practice of omitting quotation marks and approximating modernist techniques,^[16] it is her most stylistically varied work. Critics noted it shows "less ruthless restraint" than her previous books, allowing for greater emotional and poetic expression.^[5] Rooney's characteristic style, often "mischaracterized" as "blank" or "flat", maintains its televisual qualities in Intermezzo, with seamless sentences, snappy dialogue, and chapters that conclude like complete episodes.^[9]