Genre: Women's Fiction/Domestic Suspense
Pages: 517 (large paperback version)
Published: 2016
An Adventures By The Page 2018 Best Book Nominee
2018 Most Unique Story Winner
Or so the book begins, when Clementine is giving a talk about what really happened that day to a group at the library.
Clementine and Erika don't exactly have a traditional friendship. They're just so different, and then there's the part about how Clementine's mom forced it on her. But they're friendly enough that when Erika invites her and her husband to a barbecue with their neighbors, they accept the invitation. And then something goes terribly wrong.
Two months later, that fateful day continues to haunt each couple as they wonder: whose fault was it? Suddenly their normal lives hang in the balance and everyone is scrambling to save relationships between their friends, spouses, and even themselves.
If I don't like anything these days, besides our president, it's probably how generations love to attack each other over the Internet. Millennials are blamed for just about everything under the sun and for being "lazy," when in reality it's harder to find jobs that it was for the previous generation. They might counter with the fact that previous generations hated black people. Yes, people are flawed. But nobody is perfect, and wouldn't it be a better world if we all learned to get along and saw things from the other's perspective? (Obviously that won't always work for some of those scenarios, but you get the idea: it's easier to point fingers and blame people than to actually see eye to eye and fix the problem if there is one.)
Of course, one of the things they love to pick on millenials for is parenting. Helicopter parenting bothers me a lot, but so does the fact that this generation apparently needs "help" from the previous one to tell them everything they think is wrong. But keeping an eye on your kids is definitely a good thing, as shown in Truly Madly Guilty. And it brings up a lot of the other issues I mentioned too.
Yay!
The book centers around the effects of what happened at the barbecue. But guilt is actually explored in many ways here, and not just through asking the question, "whose fault was it?" One parent struggles to deal with a morally questionable past, while another considers how strong their friendship with another really is...by considering a life-changing favor simply because it's "paying them back." Others feel guilt about the relationship with their neighbors. This neighbor actually becomes a good subplot as you wonder what their role in the conflict was. Even the children wonder if they had a hand in what happened. Many fingers are pointed, but you also wonder...was it truly ever anyone's fault? The message about how useless it can be to place blame on each other and ourselves hits home. (And as for who does right? The answer may surprise you, adding to some already interesting twists.)With flashbacks and guilt come suspense. Moriarty's use of suspense is again masterful. In her traditional style, she alternates between the present day and the day of the barbecue, two months prior. You're just dying to find out what happened. I actually did manage to figure out the "who" and the "what," but even that guess wasn't 100% correct. So it's not totally predictable. And it leads up to a breaking point that's actually tense. I had previously read Big Little Lies by the same author, and while the big reveal is dramatic, the event it was built around wasn't quite as big as you would expect. In short, a bit disappointing. Not the case in Truly Madly Guilty. Readers are getting the drama and suspense they're paying for. Unlike some of her other novels, the plot twists continue until the book ends and it's not just a bunch of filler.
I't's not all about suspense, either. I haven't touched on the heart of the story: characters! They're just so real and easy to relate to. Little Ruby's hobby of personifying a kitchen item is exactly the quirk a young child might have. I liked grumpy old Harry too, even if the eventual excuse for his behavior bordered on the cliche. The couples deal with their struggles realistically and are good for each other. You have the dreamy cellist Clementine and the orderly Erika. I wanted to dislike some at first, especially Erika, but then I learned to see her as a person. Ultimately, you don't want anything bad to happen to them. Each character also gets a good amount of time for readers to hear their story. The transitions between POVs don't feel shocking and everyone gets to be in the spotlight.
All this suburban life gives way to commentary, too. I especially liked when Tiffany's body is complimented and she is hesitant to respond, believing that women expect modesty when it came to their body (Again, there's that guilt!). That instance is one of many others. You'll have a lot to think about in the undercurrents.
Nay!
(general spoiler alert; meaning, no specific events are revealed but general ideas are)
I've said the same things before: Moriarty's ending don't always do it for me. Or rather, a few events that precede the ending. I feel like some characters resolved (or not) their conflicts very quickly. I'm thinking of one particular couple who was most affected by the events of the novel. Their ending is quick, predictable, and sudden. It doesn't take long for them to be happy again. On the other hand, two months have passed since their initial decision to fix things, so why shouldn't things be going better by that point? They certainly have their share of drama in the present day chapters. I guess what I'm saying is that I would have liked to see them work things out a bit more rather then suddenly realize things weren't going well and want to fix them. It's like when you're watching something like The Office for the first time and get annoyed in the season 4 opener that Jim and Pam are suddenly dating without you having seen any of their initial dates. But it's a documentary show that skips to certain points in the future, so it's natural that you don't see everything.
That said, there was another couple who didn't seem resolved enough. Yet another couple seemed to stop caring about the initial conflict in the last 50 pages, so they could wrap up their own problems in a bow. I won't spoil them here, but you'll likely figure them out.
Verdict
With the topics at hand, the memorable characters, and suspense that will keep you turning pages, Truly Madly Guilty is probably one of Moriarty's best. Granted, characters could have been more involved in working out their endings, but I think readers will still be satisfied because it doesn't really detract too much from the story, which is strong. Overall the ending is fine. If you like domestic suspense, this is a must-read. A great beach book and book club choice as well!
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