GOODNIGHT BEAUTIFUL
AIMEE MOLLOY
*****
THE BOOK
A HANDSOME PSYCHOTHERAPIST, HIS LONELY WIFE, AND IN HIS HOME OFFICE, A CEILING VENT. . . YOU'D LISTEN TOO, WOULDN'T YOU?
Newlyweds, Sam Statler and Annie Potter are ready to begin their lives together in a small town in upstate New York. Whilst Annie spends most of her time alone, Sam, her therapist husband, works long hours in his home office, tending to the egos of his mostly female clientele.
Little does Sam know that through a vent in the ceiling, every word of his sessions can be heard from the room upstairs. The pharmacist's wife, contemplating a divorce. The well-known painter whose boyfriend doesn't satisfy her in bed. Who could resist eavesdropping?
Everything is fine until the French girl in the green Mini Cooper shows up, and Sam disappears into thin air, throwing a wrench into Sam and Annie's happily ever after.
THE REVIEW
Goodnight Beautiful is one of those books that is so very hard to review as I don’t want to give anything away! There are two major twists in the book that not even I had seen coming and really challenges the reader not to make assumptions. They are so well constructed I gasped out-loud as a read them and I congratulate Aimee Molloy for catching me off-guard! I would say if you feel like you want to read the book, try not to read any reviews or anything and just delve in to get the full experience. That said, I will ensure not to have any spoilers in my review so feel safe to read below!
The book focuses on the life of psychologist Sam Statler and his wife Annie Potter who move to Chestnut Hill to look after his ill mother and start a new life together. However, when Sam disappears we start to see the lies and deceit that have been building up in their marriage.
The book bounces between quite a few perspectives but it is quite an easy plot to follow. The twists come thick and fast at the beginning which meant I raced through the book and finished it in one sitting – I couldn’t put it down! I do however feel a little disappointed at the ending, although the plot started very strongly the book then just wrapped everything up a little too neatly. I was waiting for a final twist and had a few ideas about what I thought might happen but this never came to fruition.
I should warn people that there are a few minor West Wing spoilers in this book. I have started watching since lockdown began and was sad to see a season 7 spoiler in here. Although I know that it’s been out for a long time by now so I can’t really complain! It’s hard to mention the things I liked about the book without giving anything away so please don’t take any of these nit-pick negatives too strongly. I enjoyed the psychology elements to the book and the nicknames for characters that one of our main players comes up with.
Overall, Goodnight Beautiful is a well-constructed thriller with some brilliant twists. The fact that I physically could not put it down has meant that it has more than earned the first Kindig Gem for 2021! Thank you to NetGalley & Hodder & Stoughton – Hodder Paperbacks for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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