Suburban mother Paige Atwell lives a comfortable middle-
class life just outside of Denver. Her husband Paul works
too hard and travels too much for his techno-babble job.
Her children are finally both in elementary school, giving
her free time during the day for the first time in 11
years. Her neighbor Karen has just breathlessly confessed
to a spicy extramarital affair with a sexy Spanish
model/barista. And suddenly Paige isn't content -- with her
boring days, her tenacious children, her distant husband,
and especially with her practically non-existent sex life.
Every man Paige meets seems to find her desirable, and she
can't stop thinking about sex. The grass is always greener
in the neighbor's yard, and Paige secretly envies Karen and
her passionate affair, at least until Karen is found dead
on the floor of her attached garage. Paige isn't sure if
she is more like Nancy Drew or Miss Marple, but she is very
suspicious of the circumstances of Karen's death, and she's
determined to keep searching until she uncovers the truth.
After Paige locates Karen's lover, who is indeed
irresistible, she hopes to find answers but only uncovers
more conflicting information about Karen's twisted life.
Desperately trying to target the fans of TV's most popular
housewives, this book tries too hard to fit that mold.
Suburban housewives and mothers who gather for coffee and
share gossip and intrigue have become clichéd characters
lately. To keep multiple characters as viable suspects, the
characterizations are awkward, but the most memorable
characters are Paige's two children, who are honest,
embarrassing and fun. In spite of small flaws (Paige's kids
don't do any extra-curriculars, let alone soccer) this
story is suspenseful and unpredictable. The ending
surprised me and the resolution was satisfying for this
fast-paced suburban housewife mystery.
“I felt fairly
confident that I would take this information to my
grave–even though it
was the juiciest thing to happen in Aberdeen Mists in about
eight
years.”
Paige
Atwell appears to have a fulfilling life in the cozy
community of
Aberdeen Mists–a nice house, a great husband, and two young
kids. But
behind the façade of neighborhood coffee klatches and
carpools, Paige
is growing restless with her increasingly busy spouse, the
early onset
of her ten-year-old daughter’s teenage hostility, and her
young son’s
alarming preoccupation with bodily functions.
When
her friend
and neighbor, Karen, looking even more vibrant and gorgeous
than usual,
confesses to a passionate affair with a sizzling Latin
lover, Paige
assesses her own state of domestic ecstasy: not good. But
Paige’s
attempts to “re-sexualize” her marriage produce comically
calamitous
consequences.
Just when Paige begins to wonder whether an
extramarital remedy may be the key to happiness, Karen is
found dead in
her garage, lying in a pool of blood. The residents of
Aberdeen Mists
may be satisfied with the freak accident theory–that Karen
fell and hit
her head on a metal toolbox–but Paige knows the adulterous
secret that
could blow the closed case wide open.
With sleuthing
skills
acquired from her favorite TV crime dramas, Paige vows to
find out the
truth. Her list of potential perps (that’s what Law &
Order calls
them, right?) includes Karen’s aggrieved husband, Doug, and sexy
Spanish lothario Javier. As Paige’s Miss Marple—esque
adventure winds
through her allegedly quiet enclave to the boundaries of her own
fidelity, what she uncovers may prove more shocking than she
ever
imagined.
In this outrageously entertaining gem,
Robyn Harding
shines a light on the plight of suburban housewives–the
sacrifices, the
secrets, and the desperate lengths they’ll go to to keep up
appearances. With a sharp wit and a delightfully
unpredictable story
line, Harding’s darkly funny novel examines whether the
grass really is
greener on the other side of the white picket fence . . . or
if it’s
just a good place to bury a body.
© 2003-2024 off-the-edge.net
all rights reserved Privacy Policy