Monday, September 9, 2013

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty


SEPTEMBER BOOK CLUB SELECTION 

The lives of three women who casually know one another are about to collide in ways none of them could have ever expected.


Cecilia Fitzpatrick is happily married with three beautiful daughters, runs a successful Tupperware business and leads the parent organization at the local elementary school. Cecilia seems to be one of those ‘perfect’ women who appear to flawlessly juggle it all with poise, grace and a smile.

Tess Curtis has returned to her mother’s home in Sydney, after receiving devastating news from her husband. Tess is not sure what comes next, but she was not prepared to run into her old flame, Connor Whitby. When things begin to heat back up between the two of them, she learns of his secret past.

Rachel Crowley is consumed by grief over the loss of her daughter twenty years ago. She has found her only real joy is being a grandmother, but when her son and daughter-in-law surprise her with news –it’s just too much. Rachel is again filled with bitterness and heartbreak. Hasn’t life already cheated Rachel enough?

The novel begins with Cecelia holding an envelope with the words, “For my wife, Cecilia Fitzpatrick. To be opened in the event of my death.” The thing is her husband, John-Paul, is still very much alive. When she asks him about it, he tells her he wrote the letter after the birth of their first daughter. He explained the letter is full of silly sentimental stuff. Believing him, she puts the letter away.

When Cecilia’s husband suddenly returns home early from his business trip and begins frantically searching for the letter, she realizes there is much more to the letter than what he led her to believe. She knows she needs to find out what he is keeping from her. With a quick slice from a letter opener a Pandora’s Box explodes!

A secret is revealed so shocking it causes the lives of the women to spiral out of control. As Cecelia digests what she learns, her perfect world begins to crumble all around her.

There are secrets: big secrets, little secrets and there are choices. This is a novel about secrets and what we chose to do with them. Truly the most heart-wrenching stories I’ve read. I was able to connect with Cecilia, Rachel and Tess, the characters were so vulnerable and their feelings so raw. At times I had to remind myself I was reading a novel. I was not sure what I would do in any of their circumstances, and that bothered me. Usually I come away with a pretty strong opinion of how characters should have responded, but this novel digs a little deeper goes a little darker.
As the story unfolded, I found myself grappling with questions like: What I would do? Is it better to know the truth? Should you always tell the truth? Can you live with a lie?

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty tells an amazing story of three women as they deal with unforeseen truths. The novel is written with alternating perspectives of all three women. Be ready to sit down with a phenomenal book that is fast paced and emotionally driven—you will not want to put it down! Be warned, just when you think it’s all over the epilogue begins and it is so powerful it blew me away! I am highly recommending.


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4 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. I really enjoyed this month's She Reads selection. I'm glad you did too.

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  3. I loved this one too. The epilogue was like the icing on an already yummy cake :)

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  4. I loved that the author made me unsure what I would do in some of the characters' situations! I can't wait for the she reads discussion because I'm sure there will be tons of interesting things to talk about. I actually really didn't like the epilogue. I hate things that almost work out and the epilogue really emphasized that if something had gone just a little differently, some of the tragedies in the book might not have happened.

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