Truly Madly Guilty is a mystery about 3 young families and one afternoon BBQ that didn’t go as planned. In fact, it leaves one couple questioning how different their lives would be if they hadn’t gone at all.
Why I read Truly Madly Guilty:
I’m pretty sure I picked up this Liane Moriarty novel from a Barnes & Noble sale table for a few bucks. I’ve read a couple of her previous novels (Big Little Lies, and What Alice Forgot) and really enjoyed them. Her books are usually clever and thought provoking, so I decided to give this one a go.
A lot of times, that’s how my book selection process goes. I find an author I like and just stick with them until I’m ready for something new. Do you ever do that? Here are some of my favorite authors I’ve done that with:
- Rosamunde Pilcher
- James Patterson
- Liane Moriarty
- Kate Morton
- Jen Lancaster
- Elin Hilderbrand
- Barbara Kingsolver
- Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus
- Kate Quinn
What is the book about?
Truly Madly Guilty centers mainly around the life-long relationship between Clementine and Erika. Having grown up together, they share so much history, they’re practically sisters, not just friends. In fact, sometimes it feels like they’re more sisters than friends, at least as far as Clementine is concerned.
Clementine Hart and husband Sam have 2 young daughters who keep them busy and happy. Erika and Oliver have two successful careers, but long for a child of their own. At least one of them does. Things get messy when they open up to Clementine and Sam about their fertility struggles and the conversation goes awkward.
Thankfully that doesn’t last too long because the 6 of them are off to ordinary backyard barbeque at Erika & Oliver’s neighbor house. Tiffany and Vid have a daughter together and they seem to be a walking advertisement for wealth, fun times, great food, and unforgettable parties.
Unfortunately for everyone, this spur of the moment BBQ is turning out to be one that no one can forget. Except Erika, that is. Even though the events of that afternoon were tragic, Erika just cannot seem to remember all the details. Will she ever?
Will Clementine’s and Erika’s friendship make it through the events surrounding this terrible day or will they ever come to a true understanding of one another? I won’t spoil it for you here, but if you really want to know, just ask. To be honest, I thought the whole book was anticlimactic at best, so unless you’re a super fast reader, you may want choose something a bit more thrilling.
My review of Truly Madly Guilty
Although I appreciated Liane Moriarty’s writing style and dialogue, to me, the whole story missed the mark. The entire first half of the book builds up to what happened at the BBQ and the entire last half talked about what happened at the BBQ. Not much else. 2 stars from me, Ms Moriarty.
For this review and many more, plus what I’m reading now, visit me on GoodReads. Thanks so much for checking out the Collective!
– Sarah
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