Guest review by: Becki Bayley
Jess used to say that he wasn’t himself until he had people around, until he had other moods and personalities to react to, and he resented when she said that, as if he were incapable of self-reflection, but now he sort of knew what she meant. It wasn’t that he disliked being alone, it was more like he felt muted, not completely awake. He held a bag of ground coffee, considered whether he could rig up a percolator on the stove if he found matches to light the pilot. And then, after standing there another minute, he heard the crunch of snow under tires, as if from his dreams.
A police SUV was rolling slowly up the street, the snow so high it looked like it was floating. Malcolm imagined all his neighbors rushing to their windows, praying that a cop car meant something that would distract them for ten minutes, break up the morning. It kept coming, rolling past the other houses, and stopped at Malcolm’s driveway.
Jess and Malcolm have had more than their share of troubles since getting married. One season brings all of the obstacles to their happiness to light, and leaves them both with choices to make.
Official synopsis:
His smart and confident wife, Jess, has devoted herself to her law career. After years of trying for a baby, she is facing the idea that motherhood may not be in the cards for her. Like Malcolm, she feels her youth beginning to slip away and wonders how to reshape her future.
Award-winning author Mary Beth Keane’s new novel takes place over the course of one week when Malcolm learns shocking news about Jess, a patron of the bar goes missing, and a blizzard hits the town of Gillam, trapping everyone in place. With a deft eye and generous spirit, Keane explores the disappointments and unexpected consolations of midlife, the many forms forgiveness can take, the complicated intimacy of small-town living, and what it means to be a family.
The synopsis points out that the book takes place over one week, but in reading it, the flashbacks and how it all ended made it feel like much more. It was an eventful week, for sure, but a lot had happened that triggered some of the actions of that week, even if the sudden onset of a winter storm instigated a lot of immediate action too.
While Malcolm and Jess are the central characters of the story, their relationships with their mothers and their lifelong friends also presented more angles to the struggles they faced. Most of the story was from Malcolm’s perspective—he wanted to be supportive as Jess decided if she could feel part of a family of two if they didn’t have children, he struggled with keeping the bar he dreamed of owning afloat and while the bar was shut down for a few days while the whole town was without electricity, he had some unique drama regarding a regular at the bar who had gone missing at the same time the storm struck. So many life-altering decisions to be made over the course of a week spent largely in isolation while the storm caused everything to grind to a halt.
The story was a largely insightful family drama which earned 4 out of 5 stars. It was an enjoyable contemporary drama with engaging adult characters.
{click here to purchase on Amazon.}
Becki Bayley is a wife and mother who spends her days addressing regulatory complaints for a debt collection company, and her evenings caring for her family. She couldn’t imagine life any other way. Read more about her adventures at her blog.
GIVEAWAY:
One of my lucky readers will win a copy of The Half Moon!
Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Friday, May 19th, at 11:59pm ET, and winner will be chosen the next day and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.
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The Half Moon, by Mary Beth Keane
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