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The Slippage
By Ben Greenman
(Harper Perennial, Paperback, 9780061990519, April 2013, 288pp.)

The Short of It:

A fractured, splintered view of a marriage in decline.

The Rest of It:

When I first saw the title of this book I was immediately reminded of California earthquake faults and how they slip and slide every ten years to give us a good jolt of reality. Oddly enough, that’s kinda what this book is about. Marriage, on the brink of disaster and how the fissures eventually become full-on cracks if you let them run their course.

William and Louisa Day live in suburban bliss. Nice house, great neighborhood, interesting neighbors. One afternoon, while hosting one of his famous parties, William realizes that Louisa hasn’t come out to greet their guests. After trying to juggle his meet and greet duties along with cooking the food they are about to eat he goes in search of Louisa and finds her locked in their junk room. Forced to talk to her through the door, she seems okay but refuses to come out and only comes out after her drunk brother shows up and causes quite the scene.

Shortly after the party, Louisa tells William that she’s bought a plot of land and wants him to build her a new house. This innocent and somewhat far-fetched request triggers introspection but when an old flame of William’s moves into their neighborhood and rekindles what they started long ago, William’s not really sure what he wants.

The book opens with the party scene and within just a few pages, I was hooked. William is one of those funny, sarcastic guys that people don’t really pay attention to. His humor, if you can call it that, inserts itself innocently but the people on the other side of it rarely pick-up on his sarcasm. As he plods through life, you willingly follow along because although he’s a cheater and seems clueless about what his wife wants, he’s somehow more human than say the “suits” that he has to deal with at work or the guy next door or down the street.

As much as I love stories like this one, I had some trouble with Louisa. In one sense, she appears to be the voice of reason but her odd behavior, hiding behind closed doors and hoarding junk mail made me wonder if she was a little off. The other thing that bothered me is that William and Louisa hardly interact at all. Their interactions are short and abbreviated and her comments about anything had a throwaway quality to them. As if she was saying them just to say something. Perhaps, that is what a marriage in decline is like, but there was no heat… no tension. I expected there to be lots of it given the fact that their marriage was on the line. To me, they were looking at each other through a broken mirror. Their images greatly exaggerated and skewed.

After finishing the book, I concluded that all the women in the book seemed a little off. I couldn’t relate to any of them and found myself relating more to William which surprised me. As negative as that may sound, I still enjoyed the book quite a bit. Greenman’s take on suburbia was spot on. That party scene alone won me over and the wry humor made what could have been a very depressing novel, somewhat comical.

It’s not perfect, but what marriage is? If you’re like me and want to read something a little different this summer, give this one a try. It will give you a lot to think about.

Source: Sent to me by the publisher via Edelweiss
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

The Silent Wife
By A.S.A. Harrison
Penguin Books, Paperback, 9780143123231, June 2013, 336pp.)

The Short of It:

Two people. One marriage. Deception at its finest.

The Rest of It:

Jodi and Todd Gilbert have it all. She’s a successful therapist who’s successful enough to pick and choose who she treats on a day-to-day basis. He’s a real estate developer who knows how to turn a run-down building into profit. Together, they live in their swank, well-appointed Chicago condo and their lives are very comfortable. After a long day at the office, Todd comes home to a plate of artfully arranged canapés made by Jodi herself and Todd mixes the cocktails for them both to enjoy while looking out at the sweeping views of the city before them.

All is not golden. After twenty years together, the excitement of being with one another has dimmed to a flicker yet they’re both willing to push this aside since there is still so much to gain from such a relationship. Jodi seems to know her place as the beautiful, dutiful wife and Todd’s need to “be a guy” is not dampened in the slightest by Jodi because she “gets” him. She understands him like no other woman can and as long as he continues to keep her happy with the thoughtful gifts that he picks up for her every now and then, she seems content and that’s all Todd wants, is for her to be happy and content.

Oddly enough, Jodi feels the same way and overlooks Todd’s numerous indiscretions. He works hard, Plays hard and can’t be expected to toe the line every single moment, can he? But when one of his indiscretions turns into something more serious, Jodi begins to assert herself in a way that Todd is not accustomed to. But even this is so deceptively subtle, that it goes right over Todd’s head. Somehow, he’s convinced himself that he can have both. That he can be the happy husband with Jodi at home whenever he needs her, and that he can have Natasha, the daughter of his best friend whenever he feels the need for change.

This book is deceptively simple as far as plot goes but what makes the story so compelling is how the author handles the characters. These are sophisticated types and the way they handle themselves is not how you or I (or any normal person) would behave in a situation like theirs. They are even-tempered, cool even… and rarely break a sweat. At one point, I felt that Jodi was a cold, calculated woman but I liked her for being that way. I liked her for the way she put distance between herself and the situation. Something would happen and she’d take it all in stride with only a small tell that anything was amiss. I found both Jodi and Todd to be fascinating characters.

The story is told in alternating chapters titled “Her” and “Him” so you get both sides of the story and what each chracter is feeling at any given point. This back and forth format delivers, innocently, their motivations behind their actions but then later you realize that what seemed so innocent early on was really a pre-cursor to the total and utter destruction that follows.

This book is marketed as a thriller and I can see why. The level of suspense builds to a point where you just have no idea how the story will end and although you get to know the characters and their feelings quite intimately, you can’t predict what they’ll do. There are small implosions that occur throughout the book. Little upsets telling you that things are not looking good and I loved every one of them. This book will have you questioning right and wrong right up to the very last page. I am still thinking about the book. Plus, it’s so well-written and tastefully done. I really loved it.

Sadly, A.S.A. Harrison recently passed away so she isn’t around to receive the praise that this book will most surely garner but I am still screaming from the rooftops singing its praises. You have to read it! I loved everything about and I don’t say that too often.

Source: Sent to me by the publisher via Edelweiss
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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