Liane Moriarty

Joy Delaney, many years married, mother of four adult children, and previous owner of a well-know tennis academy, has disappeared. Her children are unsure what to do. Call the police? Wait it out? Meanwhile, her husband Stan does not seem overly concerned. Suspicion mounts, not only on Stan, but on a mysterious woman who spent several months in the Delaney home the previous year. Did Joy disappear of her own free will, or was something more sinister at work?

I would consider this classical Liane Moriarty. There's an alternate past & present time line, a somewhat dysfunctional family, and some mysterious past incident that the reader is gradually clued into as the story progresses. While portions of the story seem unrealistic, the dysfunctional family and character flaws seem jarringly realistic and tend to hit close to home. I tend to go back and forth with my opinions of Moriarty's novels as I'm reading, but I generally like them in the long run and this one falls into that category as well. I've just started watching the series adaptation -- only 2 episodes in, so I can't share my full opinion on it. I'm not sure I like the casting, and so at this point I'd say (as is often the case), the book is better.… (més)