
Toronto: Penguin, c2013.
326 p.
More silence! This time from a very patient wife whose patience is at an end...
Jodie and Todd have a relationship with certain parameters; she overlooks his lapses in monogamy as long as he is discreet and her calm professional world is not affected. As this book opens, however, Todd has fallen into an affair deeper than ever before -- his very young girlfriend (daughter of his old friend, who is also pretty PO'd when he finds out about it) is insisting he leave Jodie and start a life with her.
Before the story ends, everything that Jodie believed about herself has shifted -- she has become someone she wouldn't have recognized in the opening pages.
I'm not going to cover the plot, because the twists and turns are part of the pleasure of reading this novel. I thought it was a great read, intellectual and clever and emotionally twisted. There's a fair bit of suspense, some wonderful character development (I was ready to punch Todd in the nose myself), and lots of drama to keep you reading. I was actually surprised when I re-checked the page count while writing this review because it didn't feel like it was a very long book when I was reading it...it's a fantastic choice for a summer read. Much tighter structure than Gone Girl but some of the same marital drama, if you like this kind of thing ;)
Anyhow, you might have already read this one by now -- it's been so immensely popular around here -- but if you haven't and you'd like a suspenseful, well-written psychological thriller, this is the one to pick up.
Sadly, the author died before she could appreciate the success of her first crime novel. She led a colourful life, as detailed in her obituary in the Globe & Mail. This book, and that obit, are so worth your time to read.