INTIMACY <i> by Susan Chace (Plume: $7.95) </i>

A fragmented, inconclusive novel about an alcoholic woman who somehow survives the disease, despite a series of weird adventures that include a suicide attempt and a dalliance with her brother-in-law. The narration bounces about confusingly, shifting time and voice at the drop of a glass. The constant switching between Mary Cronstein’s version of events and her friends’ accounts may represent an attempt to re-create the fog of acute alcoholism, but Susan Chace probably makes extensive use of other characters because Cronstein’s incessant whining bores her as heartily as it does the reader. Critics have ceased to announce the death of the novel, but “Intimacy” is at least badly wounded.