Triplets Lyn, Cat(riona) and Gemma are turning 33 and its been quite the year- task-oriented Lyn is stressed trying to ‘do it all’; fierce Cat is trying and failing to get pregnant when her husband confesses he’s having an affair; and flakey Gemma can’t seem to find anything in her life to define her or hold on to. Set in Sydney over the course of the year, Moriarty charts the ups and downs of the triplets, and their closest loved ones.
Although I loved reading this, parts of the stories felt almost too close to home (read: that point when a lover tells you that they are no longer in love with you, and the first defensive remark they make about the new person that has replaced you in their affections- Moriarty does a bang up job capturing that moment of heartbreak). I was wishing for the best for all the triplets, but especially for the triplet whose heartbreak seemed so familiar. Things definitely do not always go their way (and the ending is not a romance novel happily ever after), but Moriarty does finish with a realistic hopefulness that I really appreciated.
Compared to the other Moriarty novels I’ve read this was the most ‘normal’ in terms of plot- not as much drama as Big Little Lies and more mundane secrets than those in The Husband’s Secret- but I enjoyed it all the same. I will be thinking about the bittersweet but hopeful ending for awhile.