1* book review. The Husband’s Secret. Liane Moriarty.

The Husband’s Secret. Liane Moriarty.

So why did I choose this book?

Published by Penguin.

This author makes a living from writing.

An intriguing cover.

Recommended by loads of people including a close friend.

Author lives in Sydney.

Yay. What’s not to like?

Everything!

 

Even my two seater sofa has less padding.

 

To err is human, to forgive is divine…Alexander Pope.

Didn’t realize it was going to relate to my state of mind after five pages!

First let me say I do not enjoy posting 1 star reviews. I enjoy reading and writing. My writing has invoked 1 star reviews in some but they are usually boring people. Ha! 😉

After page 37 I gave up. I was on a 2 hour flight.

I skimmed the rest of the book, finishing it as we came into land at Nice airport.

So what is ‘wrong’ with it?

It is unnecessarily complicated, repetitious, has an obsession with the minutiae of everyday life (I was searching for Samaritans number by this point- not for me but for anyone who feels this stuff is important)

Page 2: She filled the kettle, switched it on, and cleaned the droplets of water in the sink with a paper towel so that it shone.

As I care for people with Alzheimer’s I suddenly wondered if I was reading their instructions on ‘How to make tea’ by mistake.

So maybe this is the domain of popular female authors and why some men blatantly refuse to read anything written by women. The world from a female perspective? Nope. Check out Kathy Reichs and Janet Evanovich. Neither of whom see the need to mention polishing a kettle as part of their narrative.

They get on and tell their stories, albeit in very different worlds. Could also explain why some women feel the need to use initials to lure men into their world?  This applies especially in science fiction. Crazy.

And back to… the Husband’s Secret which by a third of the way through (and remember I am skimming) is obvious. So add predictability to my whinges. Plus I love and Sydney and have been several times, so I was looking forward to revisiting it. Nope. Could have been written about anywhere…

So what comes to mind when someone mentions this title? 1. Disappointing. 2. Why do so many people like it? 3. And I won’t get back those two hours of my life!

Although maybe I should have noticed praise from Sophie Hannah. Love her covers, never been able to read past the first page of her books. Also, liking it to Jodi Picoult should have warned me off. Sorry, can’t stand her work either.

Could also be entitled:  The life of someone with OCD and inability to make decisions.  Catchy?!

Leave a Reply