BOOK REVIEW: The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty

BOOK REVIEW: The Last Anniversary
by Liane Moriarty

⭐️⭐️⭐️

ABOUT THE BOOK (from Amazon):

From Liane Moriarty, author of the #1 New York Times bestsellers Big Little Lies andNine Perfect Strangers, comes an unforgettable novel defined by her signature sharp wit, page-turning storyline, and lovable and eccentric characters.

A family secret explodes. A first kiss betrays. A mystery is solved. A marriage is tested. It all happens on one extraordinary night—the Last Anniversary!

Sophie Honeywell always wondered if Thomas Gordon was the one who got away. He was the perfect boyfriend, but on the day he was going to propose, she broke his heart. A year later he married his travel agent, while Sophie has been mortifyingly single ever since. Now Thomas is back in her life because Sophie has unexpectedly inherited his aunt Connie’s house on Scribbly Gum Island—home of the famously unsolved Munro Baby mystery.

Sophie moves onto the island and begins a new life as part of an unconventional family, where it seems everyone has a secret. Grace, a beautiful young mother, is feverishly planning a shocking escape from her perfect life. Margie, a frumpy housewife, has made a pact with a stranger, while dreamy Aunt Rose wonders if maybe it’s about time she started making her own decisions.

As Sophie’s life becomes increasingly complicated, she discovers that sometimes you have to stop waiting around—and come up with your own fairy-tale ending.

MY REVIEW:

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I would actually give this book 3.5 stars if that were an option. I didn’t quite enjoy it enough to give it a 4. And since 3.5 is not an option, I went with 3.

I didn’t dislike the book. I enjoyed the story. I just didn’t feel a connection with any of the characters. I think part of the problem was that there were so many characters.

We first start connecting with Sophie and the story of her breakup with Thomas and his Aunt Connie who mysteriously leaves her house to Sophie years after their breakup. We want to find out why Aunt Connie left the house to Sophie and we want to meet the man Aunt Connie thinks might be Sophie’s match.

Then we have Grace and her struggle connecting with her newborn son and experiencing postpartum depression. And Aunt Rose who becomes a much bigger part of the story towards the end. And Veronica who is very upset about Sophie’s inheritance. And then her parents Margie and Ron. And then Callum and Enigma and…it just goes on and on.

Liane Moriarty typically has a lot going on in her books and lots of layers, but there’s usually a main character (or two or three) with whom you connect throughout the course of the book. This one just felt different for me. Again, I enjoyed the story, I just didn’t feel the hook drawing me back to the book.