This was a book that I read whilst on holiday, and although it took me a while to get into it, I zoomed through it in the space of a couple of days. After reading it, I'd definitely be interested in reading another of the author's books, as it was a really well written novel that was full of suspense and intrigue.
The story revolves around three brothers in a glamorously wealthy family, the Kellers. Rafe is a successful surgeon like his father, and marries a scatterbrained American actress called Maddy, when they meet in a cafe in the US. But Maddy has her own troubles, and struggles to cope with married life, often feeling lonely, bored, and unfulfilled as a mother.
Aaron is training to be a lawyer like his mother at Oxford, where he meets working-class girl Julia and they instantly hate each other. Years later, they meet up and fall in love, but their past often causes friction in the relationship, and Julia isn't sure if they can work through it.
Josh is the oddball of the family, an architect who helps build shelters in poverty stricken third world countries, and rarely visits the family home. He meets a Somalian refugee girl called Niela on his travels, and they have a whirlwind marriage, but she has a dangerous secret that could cause their world to come crashing down around them.
The boys' mother, Diana, rules the roost, and her children's lives. Seeming perfectly content to the outside world, little does anyone know that she holds the key to the family's past, and it isn't pretty.
As you can tell from the description, this is a complex novel with lots of delicate plot lines that all tie together. It is told from the perspective of the three boys' wives and Diana in groups of three chapters or so. This creates a constantly changing viewpoint, which was refreshing throughout the book, and while you might expect it to become confusing at times, I personally enjoyed how they all slotted together. Though there were some clichés within its pages, the majority of the characters were well thought out and easy to empathise with, and some of the scenarios were truly heart-wrenching to read about,especially Niela's story early on in the book.
I would recommend this to people who like what I call 'holiday reads' but who want a little something extra. It is fairly predictable at times, but enjoyable nonetheless, and not too mind-boggling to read on the beach.
For my main I had Bamieh, a lamb dish cooked with tomatoes and garlic that had chunks of okra in, with rice. I had lamb last time we went, but it was so nice I decided to try a different variation. We skipped dessert as we were too full, and had coffee from the machine I got as a birthday present when we got home instead.
