
Author: Liane Moriarty
Links: Bookshop (affiliate link) |Goodreads
Rating:

Summary: Not my favorite of Moriarty’s books, but a still a fun, suspenseful, summer read.
“Sam and Clementine have a wonderful, albeit, busy life: they have two little girls, Sam has just started a new dream job, and Clementine, a cellist, is busy preparing for the audition of a lifetime. If there’s anything they can count on, it’s each other. Clementine and Erika are each other’s oldest friends… But theirs is a complicated relationship, so when Erika mentions a last minute invitation to a barbecue with her neighbors, Tiffany and Vid, Clementine and Sam don’t hesitate. Having Tiffany and Vid’s larger than life personalities there will be a welcome respite. Two months later, it won’t stop raining, and Clementine and Sam can’t stop asking themselves the question: What if we hadn’t gone?” (source) Because the tragedy that marred an otherwise normal night threatens all of their relationships and how they each view themselves.
This was such a fun, suspenseful read, I couldn’t put it down! I loved the way the author circled the tragic event at the heart of this story, slowly revealing events before and after from every character’s perspective. As in every one of Moriarty’s books, the characters all felt believable and relatable, despite or perhaps because of their flaws. I also appreciated that Moriarty once again managed to tackle interesting ethical issues within the context of a normal suburban setting.
In a few ways, however, this didn’t quite live up to Moriarty’s previous books for me. Compared to Big Little Lies especially, this book didn’t surprise me as much, There were many twists, but I anticipated every one. I also thought that even though this book tackled some tough questions, it lacked the emotional punch of Big Little Lies. I think this is just a case of a book having to live up to ridiculous expectations though, since I loved Big Little Lies so much. Despite not replacing Big Little Lies as my favorite of Moriarty’s books, this was a fantastic read. I’d highly recommend picking this up as an easy, but not too light book to enjoy this summer.
Terri Wilkins
I put this on hold at the library–looking forward to reading it!
DoingDewey
Great! I hope it comes in soon 🙂
Carol D.
I love Liane Moriarty’s books.
DoingDewey
Me too!
Rhonda
I’ve been reading raves about this book,
DoingDewey
I would say they’re well deserved! It’s not my favorite of the author’s books, but it was still very good.
Lindsey
I haven’t read any books by Moriarty (yet). Time to fix that soon, I think!
DoingDewey
Good idea! I would most highly recommend Big Little Lies, but they’re all good 🙂
Letty Blanchard
I keep hearing great things about this book!! Fingers crossed!! 🙂
DoingDewey
I hope you enjoy it 🙂