Synopsis
“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. A single look between them can convey an entire conversation. 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?”
-Synopsis from Goodreads
Review
This was the third book by Liane Moriarty that I have read, and just like the last two, I throughly enjoyed it.
At first I was intimidated by the number of pages (my paperback copy is over five hundred pages) but once I started reading, I just flew through the book. One thing I love is short chapters, and these were no more than ten pages at a time – that’s my sweet spot.
The chapters alternate between present day and the night of the barbecue which was eight weeks prior. I was so intrigued to figure out just what exactly happened at this barbecue. There was a huge buildup to this moment. I will say that it isn’t until almost three hundred pages into the story before we finally find out what took place that night. I had some ideas, but I would have never predicted what actually happened.
When I got to that part, it was about ten at night and I ended up reading way longer than I planned to. I couldn’t sleep after that because my mind was racing with what happened. It was emotional, intense, scary, so many things. I’m glad it wasn’t dragged out, and if you’ve read the book you’ll likely know what I mean by that, and there was some resolution pretty quickly. If you have read any of Moriarity’s previous books you’ll know the kind of high tension drama I’m talking about, and just how real it can feel as she takes you right into those moments.
This was a very compelling read to say the least. I love these stories about relationships and secrets, both the ones we keep from each other and the ones we keep from ourselves. Moriarty does an amazing job of crafting these kinds of stories, with perfect dialogue and little witty surprises sprinkled here and there. What can I say? I have absolutely zero complaints about this one.
Hannah's Library 