For some reason, none of the characters really pulled me in. Artist Jack Shanley is a charming New York artist who thinks nothing of cheating on his wife. Deb, his wife, should not be shocked since Jack cheated on wife number one with her. Neither character made me feel much empathy, even when Jack's spurned lover sent a box filled with pages of printed emails to Deb, that graphically described their relationship. Unfortunately, eleven year old Kay found the box first and shared it with her teen brother before giving it to Deb. It was difficult watching this family fall apart...and yet I kept reading.
This story of a typical family facing crisis kept me reading because Pierpont has a way of digging right into the mind of each character and laying their thoughts right out there. Few authors have allowed me to know their characters so completely. There are authors who can open up the male psyche for us, and those who can open up the female psyche, but rare is the one who can expose them both so totally. She writes with an underlying wit, but most of the story centers around a heartbreaking loss of trust that Deb and her children must come to terms with, and Jack's inability to take ownership of the actions that destroyed his family.
Because I continued reading...five hours straight...and ended the book with a better understanding of a terrible situation, I will recommend this book to you, and now I will try to find another of her books.
- Beverly
Publisher - Random House
Date of Publication - July 7, 2015