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Apples never fall : a novel  Cover Image Book Book

Apples never fall : a novel / Liane Moriarty.

Moriarty, Liane, (author.).

Summary:

"A novel that looks at marriage, sibling rivalry, and the lies we tell others and ourselves"-- Provided by publisher.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9781250220257
  • ISBN: 9781250220271 (tradeback)
  • Physical Description: 647 pages ; 25 cm.
  • Edition: First U.S. edition.
  • Publisher: New York : Henry Holt and Company, 2021.
Subject: Marriage > Fiction.
Sibling rivalry > Fiction.
Deception > Fiction.

Available copies

  • 37 of 46 copies available at BC Interlibrary Connect. (Show)
  • 1 of 1 copy available at Fort St. James Public Library.

Holds

  • 1 current hold with 46 total copies.
Show Only Available Copies
Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Holdable? Status Due Date
Fort St. James Public Library MOR (Text) 35196000297700 Adult Fiction Volume hold Available -

  • Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2021 September #1
    *Starred Review* The Delaneys are a nice family. Stan and Joy sold their tennis school and retired, and they have good relationships with their adult children, Amy, Troy, Logan, and Brooke. But one Valentine's Day, Joy goes missing. The narrative flashes between the investigation into her disappearance and the previous September, when Savannah, a young victim of domestic abuse, shows up on the Delaneys' doorstep. Though Savannah cooks and cleans, the Delaney children are suspicious of how comfortable she is in their parents' home. Meanwhile, as evidence mounts against Stan, cracks in their lives start to show. Logan was dumped, and Brooke is separated and divorced. Troy is facing a dilemma with his ex-wife. Throughout the novel, there is tennis. Stan was a patient coach but less so with his own gifted children. Joy felt unappreciated as both a tennis player and as the glue that held the family together. Moriarty is at her best in the suburbs, and here the alternating points of view give a full picture and a gentle skewering of the pain points of suburban living. As the two time lines converge, and a happy ending is reached, no clue is left abandoned, not even in the chilling final chapter.HIGH DEMAND BACKSTORY: Moriarty is a perennial bestseller, and her previous books have received prestigious TV adaptations, so expect lots of well-deserved interest. Copyright 2021 Booklist Reviews.
  • Kirkus Reviews : Kirkus Reviews 2021 July #1
    Australian novelist Moriarty combines domestic realism and noirish mystery in this story about the events surrounding a 69-year-old Sydney woman's disappearance. Joy and Stan Delaney met as champion tennis players more than 50 years ago and ran a well-regarded tennis academy until their recent retirement. Their long, complicated marriage has been filled with perhaps as much passion for the game of tennis as for each other or their children. When Joy disappears on Feb. 14, 2020 (note the date), the last text she sends to her now-grown kids—bohemian Amy, passive Logan, flashy Troy, and migraine-suffering Brooke—is too garbled by autocorrect to decipher and stubborn Stan refuses to accept that there might be a problem. But days pass and Joy remains missing and uncharacteristically silent. As worrisome details come to light, the police become involved. The structure follows the pattern of Big Little Lies (2014) by setting up a mystery and then jumping months into the past to unravel it. Here, Moriarty returns to the day a stranger named Savannah turned up bleeding on the Delaneys' doorstep and Joy welcomed her to stay for an extended visit. Who is Savannah? Whether she's innocent, scamming, or something else remains unclear on many levels. Moriarty is a master of ambiguity and also of the small, telling detail like a tossed tennis racket or the repeated appearance of apple crumble. Starting with the abandoned bike that's found by a passing motorist on the first page, the evidence that accumulates around what happened to Joy constantly challenges the reader both to notice which minor details (and characters) matter and to distinguish between red herrings and buried clues. The ultimate reveal is satisfying, if troubling. But Moriarty's main focus, which she approaches from countless familiar and unexpected angles, is the mystery of family and what it means to be a parent, child, or sibling in the Delaney family—or in any family, for that matter. Funny, sad, astute, occasionally creepy, and slyly irresistible. Copyright Kirkus 2021 Kirkus/BPI Communications. All rights reserved.
  • Library Journal Reviews : LJ Reviews 2021 April

    Triumphant tennis players Stan and Joy Delaney have finally sold their celebrated tennis academy, and if their four children were never quite the whizzes on the court their parents wanted, they seem to be moving reasonably through life. Or are they? How does fancy-dress Troy make his money, why can't Amy hold down a job, must everyone communicate with Logan through his girlfriend, and will dependable Brooke's solo physiotherapy practice really thrive? When the Delaneys help a bleeding girl on their doorstep, trouble follows, and suddenly Joy is missing. With a 750,000-copy first printing.

    Copyright 2021 Library Journal.
  • Publishers Weekly Reviews : PW Reviews 2021 July #4

    Set in Sydney, Australia, this engrossing psychological thriller from bestseller Moriarty (Nine Perfect Strangers) centers on Joy and Stan Delaney, who have been married for 50 years and are discontented in their retirement. Joy often fantasizes about their four grown children giving them grandchildren to help them out of their rut. One night, a young woman appears at the Delaneys' door. Introducing herself as Savannah, she claims she's a victim of domestic abuse and has the injuries to show for it. The couple welcome Savannah into their home, where she soon becomes a permanent guest. Eventually, the Delaney children notice oddities in Savannah's behavior and suggest it may be time for her to leave. Tension builds between Joy and Stan, and suddenly she vanishes. The police and two of the Delaney children believe Stan is responsible for her disappearance as he won't talk about it. Moriarty expertly delves into the innermost thoughts of each of the children, exposing secrets unbeknownst to each other; artfully balances the present-day plot with revealing backstory; and offers several different possibilities for what happened to Joy. Only the overlong conclusion disappoints. Moriarty's superb storytelling continues to shine. (Sept.)

    Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly.

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