Another of my favourite authors, and another book of hers where there are multiple characters with their own points of view plus their various friends and family. I wonder if Moriarty uses a spreadsheet to keep track of the characters? (I’ve learned to do this for my own books, might start doing it for hers as well LOL. ) Plus there’s the intricacies of the relationships to each other and the plot. The Husband’s Secret began with the author’s normal humorous insights, and then went very dark very quickly, and didn’t let up.
In Sydney, Celia accidentally finds a letter written by her husband on the day their first daughter is born. 12 years ago. It’s marked: To be opened in the event of my death. On business in New York, said husband begs her not to read it. He brushes the letter aside as embarrassing sentimental ramblings he had meant to destroy but had lost … silly man.
Celia loves her good husband deeply (and he’s a brilliant daddy). She would have let it go at that, except the panicked man rushes back early from the States. Celia finds him in the attic desperately searching for said letter. So of course she reads it. More fool her.
The story dips between the long ago events referred to in the letter and the lives of those affected. Celia is caught in the kind of moral dilemma we hope never to have to face ourselves. What does she do?
I wasn’t sure about this book, mostly because I didn’t particularly like any of the characters. (I made an exception for the little girls, they were sweet.). So I didn’t really care what happened to them. I did like Tess – another, barely related, story line – whose own moral dilemma has its own consequences. I still wonder if she made the right choice.
A good read, if rather dark.
Find The Husband’s Secret here.