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Truly Madly Guilty
By Liane Moriarty
Flatiron Books, 9781250069801, 2017, 560pp.

The Short of It:

What could go wrong at a barbecue? Plenty.

The Rest of It:

This is the second Moriarty book I’ve read, the first being Big Little Lies. As much as I liked Big Little Lies, I think I enjoyed Truly Madly Guilty a bit more.

Both books open with the knowledge that something bad has happened. In this book, this “incident” takes place at a neighborhood barbecue. Just your everyday, neighborhood barbecue with a few neighbors and a couple of mutual friends. As the story unfolds, the chapters count the reader down to the event itself. This method of storytelling creates a lot of tension in the best way possible. I could not turn those pages fast enough and the book stands at 560 pages so that’s telling you something.

The story mostly focuses on three couples, Erika and Oliver, Clementine and Sam, and Tiffany and Vid. These couples are vastly different from one another. Their views on marriage, children and social gatherings are flaunted for all to see as the tension builds between them. All presented in the most delicious, dishy way. Erika and Clementine were tossed together as kids but do they even like one another? Vid and Tiffany are over-the-top with their lifestyle and a bit flashy but what harm could a little barbecue cause? It’s just a meal among friends. Clementine and Sam have their own issues to deal with so why are they always roped into other people’s problems?

The storytelling feels so personal. Almost voyeuristic. When the details of the incident are finally revealed to the reader, you immediately wonder how they will survive it. How will each couple deal with the information they have in front of them? The not-knowing makes it even more of a page-turner.

Friends, this was a good one. Plenty of tension, good story, suspenseful without being unrealistic and characters who come full circle. This is one of those complete package reads. For me, a perfect read.

Source: Purchased
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

Sunday Matters

One good thing about being home all the time is that I have a lot of time to read. In the beginning, I could not focus and stopped trying but now that there is more of a routine established, reading has been my saving grace. I just keep those books coming. As soon as I turn that last page I go right into another. Even if it’s late at night. It’s working for me and helps with mental health because if you spend too much time thinking about the world around you then it’s too easy to find yourself falling into a hole.

Right Now:

My day is pretty much wide open except my daughter has her second driving lesson with an instructor later today. They used to come to your home but now they are requiring us to be at the school (which is closed) so I will need to drop her off there for her lesson.

This Week:

Senior registration is this week but it conflicts with my daughter’s musical theatre intensive so for the first time ever, she’ll do the make-up registration the following week.

I have a backyard meetup for youth ministry mid-week. Just to check in with other leaders but our plans for fall are up-in-the-air at the moment. We have some options but not many of them work for my group.

Reading:

I finished and reviewed The Second Home and The Safe Place. Both, were on my summer reading list, so for once I am making progress with a list.

I started another book on my summer list, Truly Madly Guilty. I am already halfway through it. I like Moriarty’s writing. Her books are so easy to fall into.

Watching:

I am back to watching Hoarding and Lakefront Bargain Hunt. Mindless TV is all I want right now. Watching Hoarders makes me want to throw everything away. Haha.

Grateful for: