Friday 1 September 2017

Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

Book Title: Truly Madly Guilty
Author: Liane Moriarty
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense
My Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥
Source: Library

Goodreads, Amazon UK

Goodreads Summary: Six responsible adults. Three cute kids. One small dog. It’s just a normal weekend. What could possibly go wrong?
Sam and Clementine have a wonderful, albeit, busy life: they have two little girls, Sam has just started a new dream job, and Clementine, a cellist, is busy preparing for the audition of a lifetime. If there’s anything they can count on, it’s each other.
Clementine and Erika are each other’s oldest friends. A single look between them can convey an entire conversation. But theirs is a complicated relationship, so when Erika mentions a last minute invitation to a barbecue with her neighbors, Tiffany and Vid, Clementine and Sam don’t hesitate. Having Tiffany and Vid’s larger than life personalities there will be a welcome respite.
Two months later, it won’t stop raining, and Clementine and Sam can’t stop asking themselves the question: What if we hadn’t gone?
What did I think? This is my second Moriarty book. The first was Big Little Lies and I loved that one so very much. Still haven't watched the show but definitely want to. I couldn't put Big Little Lies down once I'd started, but, sadly, this one takes a long time to really get somewhere.

The main focus here are the characters and Moriarty builds them carefully and with attention to detail. Maybe if I'd expected less thrilling action and instead a character drama, I would have enjoyed it a lot more. The characters are amazingly well written. Moriarty really has a knack for painting vivid, flawed people. The way she describes dysfunctional friendships and relationships is basically what made the book for me.

I must admit I was extremely frustrated by the time it was finally revealed what happened at the BBQ. And the way the characters suddenly were incapable of even seeing each other, made my brain imagine the absolute worst... and it turned out to be something traumatic, yet not something that, in my opinion, would drive a wedge between a group of people. I can't say more without spoiling the book's plot.

If you haven't read a Moriarty book yet and enjoy suspense novels, pick up Big Little Lies. I'd recommend this one for people who are Moriarty fans or people who enjoy character driven novels, who don't mind slow plots and instead love to read about dysfunctional relationships.

4 comments:

  1. Oh, I LOVE the sound of those characters. And I do adore reading about dysfunctional relationships, even if the book itself is on the slow side.

    I'm dying to read Big Little Lies, but now I'll definitely be looking out for this one as well :)

    Amy @ A Magical World Of Words

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  2. Okay, I'm definitely picking up Big Little Lies first. I'm determined to read a Moriarty one day soon!

    This one might not be for me - I do like the plot to move in conjunction with a character driven plot...

    Thanks for the honest review.

    I hope you had a good week last week! I am missing your Sunday Post! Hope everything is ok!

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  3. I also loved Big Little Lies but DNF this one! :( I found it booooring :(

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  4. She does have a knack for writing dysfunctional people, but I didn't like this one as much as Big Little Lies either. I kind of dutifully made myself plow through this, whereas BLL was a total page turner for me. The Husband's Secret for me was closer to BLL in tone, I thought.

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