Book Review: The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty


The Husband's SecretTitle : The Husbands Secret

Author : Liane Moriarty
Publication date : 29 August 2013
Publisher : Penguin 
Purchase eBook: Kindle
Purchase paper book: Amazon
Rating : 5 out of 5 LeeLee’s!

At the heart of The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty is a letter that’s not meant to be read…Mother of three and wife of John-Paul, Cecilia discovers an old envelope in the attic. Written in her husband’s hand, it says: to be opened only in the event of my death. Curious, she opens it – and time stops. John-Paul’s letter confesses to a terrible mistake which, if revealed, would wreck their family as well as the lives of others. Cecilia – betrayed, angry and distraught – wants to do the right thing, but right for who? If she protects her family by staying silent, the truth will worm through her heart. But if she reveals her husband’s secret, she will hurt those she loves most…Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, or anyone who enjoyed One Moment, One Morning or The Midwife’s Confession, The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty is about the things we know, the things we don’t, and whether or not we ever get to choose. Above all, though, it’s about how we must live with the consequences of our actions – whether we like it or not.

My Thoughts

After reading the  synopsis to The Husbands Secret I thought it would centre around Cecilia and the finding of that all important letter. Written in her husband’s hand, it says: to be opened only in the event of my death. From the outset the story actually follows three different women at a time in their lives that seem to overlap and cross paths with one another,  I really liked this, following three story lines and plots at once was surprisingly simple and each one of them had me sucked in from the get go. I could not put this book down!

Initially I thought all three women were at a time in their lives where everything was perfect, how wrong was I?

Cecilia is a house wife who also runs her own business, she has three beautiful daughters and a handsome husband. Her life couldn’t be anymore perfect! Until her husband rushes home from the other side of the world upon hearing she has found his letter and she begins to question their life together, could it really be that bad?

Tess lives with her true love Will and their 6 year old son Liam running a joint business with her best friend & cousin Felicity, Tess couldn’t be happier but not every cloud has a silver lining when you share everything.

Rachel is an older lady who although she has lost a lot in her life has a wonderful son and grandson who make her happier than ever, but her clearly evil daughter in law is taking them away from her.

As things take a turn for Cecilia after she finds the all important letter addressed to her in the event of her husbands death we also see the lives of the others start to unravel, and things get a little crazy from here.

While Cecilia spent hours wondering whether or not to open the letter she had found, Tess is questioning everything she has done in her life. How much has her cousin Felicity affected every life choice she has made to date? Rachel is fixated on finding out who is responsible for tearing her family apart back in the 1980’s and won’t ever let go of the past.

I was very surprised that there wasn’t a single moment where I even thought I had guessed the husband’s secret or how all of these characters connected. It was a complete mystery and one of the reasons why you won’t want to stop reading, It’s not predictable but when it all comes together everything makes sense.

Verdict

This is a book I shall be recommending to people for a while and putting in Christmas stockings. A deep, mysterious, gripping and thought provoking novel.

This had my attention from start to finish. It’s been a while since I picked up a book that caught my interest as quickly as this, I found myself feeling attached to the characters very quickly, they all have their own traits that make you like them all for different reasons.

You know it’s a great read when you realise you’re still reading at 4:00am and you have work at 7:00am!

Liane Moriarty has given this novel a dark twist. Full of surprises, it’s not your average womens fiction and will have you sneaking in a page at every spare moment you get.

I received this book with a very fun and exciting envelope, upon the front it read “The Husband’s Secret is…”  along moriarty-letterwith a note that read “This envelope contains The Husband’s Secret. How long can you resist opening it?” Well I did rather well, because I still don’t know what it says inside!

I kept telling myself it will be a note telling me off for being nosey and instruct me to read the book if I wanted to know the secret, but then maybe it actually had the secret? I don’t know! However the boyfriend does know as he OPENED IT!!! He read it and resealed it, then cackled like an evil witch and I still don’t know what it says. I must admit I did hold it up against a lamp like a detective to see if I could figure it out but had no such luck. Did anyone else open theirs? Can I open mine? Who knows.

I also received an optical illusion spinner, like the bird in a cage Johhny Depp has in sleepy hollow? This has the butterfly on one side and the jar on the other so when you spin it you get the illusion of the butterfly fluttering its wings. The result looks a lot like the animation you can see in the side bar!

Many thanks to the wonderful Katie Sheldrake at Penguin UK for allowing me to be a part of the blog tour, and thanks to Liane Moriarty for a fabulous read.

 

The Husbands Secret Review     Liane Moriarty Q&A     Billy and Me Book Cover

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