Rooney excels at creating an authentic experience of striving within a frenetic, ever changing world. With her sociopolitical and emotional intelligence, Rooney raises the question: is there ethical heterosexuality under late capitalism and imminent climate collapse?

With 'Intermezzo' comes the latest wave of envy and desire to replicate the star author’s sales. But she stands alone

Irish author Sally Rooney, hailed as the "voice of a generation" after the runaway success of "Normal People", examines modern love in all its glory and friction in her fourth novel "Intermezzo" released next week.

Anyone who has ever read Sally Rooney will know to expect some kind of meditation on modern relationships – all their intimacy, desire, connection, miscommunication – whenever they pick up one of her novels.

Rooney herself have garnered the kind of celebrity status that induces in fans cultish hysteria at best, and enthusiastic takedowns at worst, it seems an odd question. But those devoted to her novels recognise its importance.

As influencers and celebrities vie for advance copies, buzzy books like Intermezzo are going viral long before publication. But what does it mean when a book becomes a status symbol?