Pamela Dorman Books | Book Chatter

My Husband’s Wife
By Jane Corry
Pamela Dorman Books, Hardcover, 9780735220959, January 31, 2017, 384pp.

The Short of It:

History repeats itself.

The Rest of It:

The title of this story is a little misleading and it’s not fully explained until the last third of the book but what started off as a rocky start, turned out to be quite a page turner.

Lily is married to Ed. Their marriage is riddled with problems. Ed doesn’t have a full-time job because he’s an artist trying to make a name for himself. Lily, resents having to be the sole breadwinner but when she takes on her first murder case everything takes a backseat including her marriage.

Carla is the little neighbor girl who lives next door with her mother. She’s alone much of the time because her mother chooses to entertain her “boyfriend” Larry in order get the things she needs like rent money, clothes and tuition for her daughter. After Lily and Ed offer to watch Carla, a bond grows between Carla and Ed as Carla becomes Ed’s artistic muse.

This book could be split into two separate novels. Carla’s childhood is interesting enough but once Carla is grown, the story takes a different direction as we follow her into adulthood and see how her mother’s actions impact her later in life. In addition to Carla’s story, there’s Lily’s story and how a murder case from the past affects her years later.

As you might have guessed, Carla and Lily’s stories are intertwined due to Ed but the way they come together is not smooth and dare I say it, a tad awkward. The transition between childhood and adulthood needed a little finessing in my opinion and some of the plot points weren’t realistic but the last third of the book had me flipping pages left and right to see how the story would end.

I think this book tried too hard. It tried to be many things ( a murder mystery, a psychological thriller, a book about relationships, etc.) It lacked focus even though the last third of the book was pretty riveting. All in all this book was just okay for me. It missed its mark.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

The Couple Next Door
By Shari Lapena
Pamela Dorman Books, Hardcover, 9780735221086, August 2016, 320pp.

The Short of It:

A story made-up of lies and secrets makes for a good page-turner.

The Rest of It:

Marco and Anne Conti attend a dinner party at their neighbor’s house while their infant daughter sleeps next door. Bad idea. Cora disappears and because Anne and Marco are too intoxicated to remember details, they can’t remember if they left the door unlocked or exactly when they saw her last. As the disappearance is investigated, secrets are revealed and no one can be trusted.

This is a book that is really hard to put down because every time you turn the page, someone is lying or blame quickly switches from one character to the next. NO ONE in this story can be trusted which is a little aggravating but somehow makes for good reading. Plus, Anne is suffering from postpartum depression so her take on the situation is rather skewed at times which makes you doubt what’s going on.

If you are sensitive to convenient story lines or tire easily of red herrings, you could grow bored with this one. I am typically that type of reader but it was a fun read and a great book to take my mind off of my first week back at work.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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