Wednesday, June 4, 2014

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty
Published July 2013 by Amy Einhorn/Putnam
Source: my copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Publisher's Summary:
Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death.  Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive. . . .

Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all—she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.

My Thoughts:
That secret? It comes out relatively early in the book and won't come as a terribly big surprise when it does. But the book's not really about John Paul's secret. It's about marriage, family, love, temptation, guilt, grief and discovering what you would do if you thought everything you had could be lost in an instant.

Some of The Husband's Secret is a bit predictable, some of it is a bit over the top, and some of it while make you want to shake some of the women. But it made me think. What would you do if doing the right thing meant your children's lives would be forever changed for the worse? What would you do if you thought the police would never arrest the person you were sure murdered your child? Could you forgive the betrayal of those you are closest to? There is a lot of darkness in the book but Moriarty mixes in some wit, the story of Pandora's box, and the history of the Berlin Wall (which, surprisingly, does not feel out of place at all). I raced through this book, eager to find out how the lives of each of these women would work out, caring as much about these characters as Moriarty clearly does.

Book clubs, The Husband's Secret is a terrific book club read - so much to discuss!

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