Julie's Review: The Husband's Secret

Summary: At the heart of The Husbands Secret is a letter that's not meant to be read...My darling Cecilia, if you're reading this, then I've died. . . .
Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive. . . .
Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all—shes an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husbands secret.Acclaimed author Liane Moriarty has written a gripping, thought-provoking novel about how well it is really possible to know our spouses—and, ultimately, ourselves. ~powells.com

Review: The secret in The Husband's Secret gets revealed a little less than halfway through the book so it isn't the main focus of the book. The focus of the book is the fallout from the secret. How does it affect his wife, Cecelia? Their marriage? Their children? It's hard to write a review without revealing the secret but I'm going to try.

I wasn't sure what to expect going in. I thought the premise sounded good and figured it wasn't going to go the standard, "I cheated on you" confession. What is shattered is Cecelia's view of her husband and her marriage. Did she ever know him? Does this confession change how she views him? What about how she views other people? I wasn't sure what to think of her. She seemed too put together for me in the beginning. Did she show her true colors through crisis? I think so.We are also introduced to Tess who is sure that she's got social anxiety. Her marriage is in a crisis so she moves home to take care of her mum who just broke her ankle. She thought she was happy and the situation causes her to look at herself and examine if she really is.
Next is Rachel, who lost her daughter when she was on the cusp of adulthood. Rachel is depressed and with the anniversary of her daughter's death it has been intensified. How all of these stories intersect is interesting and what really holds the novel together.

We slowly get pieces of each woman's character revealed and while your opinion might change over the course of the novel, one thing is for sure is that in the end all of their lives will be changed forever. 

The Husband's Secret examines life behind closed doors and how we perceive our own lives and those of others. It is an examination of the secrets we all hold from each other. How bravery can come from unexpected and tragic events and make us stronger/better people.

Final Take: 4.25/5





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