Little Lies
Ratings176
Average rating4.2
An addictive page turner, just like The Husband's Secret (which is the book I read to ‘discover' Liane Moriarty.)
She has a way of creating real, believable characters, putting them in everyday situations, and making them do the unexpected!
Thoroughly enjoyed, devoured in a day.
This story was a really good one. It took a darker turn than I expected, and was a page-turner from start to finish. The characters were so superficial, yet relatable. I found myself quoting some of them in real life. Highly recommend!
Madeline is a fixture at Pirriwee Public School, having sent her 14-year-old daughter Abigail through already. Now, on her daughter Chloe's kindergarten orientation day, she is confident that the day will be business as usual. It is, until a stumble in the street brings her into contact with Jane, a new mom in town. Madeline introduces Jane to her friend Celeste and the three are fast friends. By the time orientation is over Jane's son has been accused of hurting a young girl in his class, Jane defends her son when he says he didn't do it, Madeline defends Jane from the girl's angry mother, and battle lines have been drawn. The book takes off from there, touching on school bullying, helicopter parenting, sexual violence, domestic abuse, self-confidence, single parenting, money, blended families, the pressure of keeping up appearances, and the dangers of gossip until racing toward a final stunning murder during the school's Trivia Night fundraiser.
Sending your children to school is not unlike going back to school yourself and Moriarty captures that with biting accuracy. The “Blonde Bobs” (known for their similar fashionable haircuts) are the Type-A moms of Pirriwee Public, running committees and signing petitions. Moriarty perfectly captures these women and the children they pass off as trophies. One parent quips that a Blonde Bob is lucky that her child is both gifted and has a mild peanut allergy, proving that motherhood is often viewed as a competition and to have more of a struggle is seen as a badge of honor and a sign of dedication. There's also a quiet rivalry brewing between the “career moms” and the “stay at homes” that any mother would probably recognize on some level. As a mother with a child in elementary school, I do not find these characterizations to hit far from their mark.
Moriarty peppers the novel with police interview tidbits from the other parents at the school that serve as a Greek chorus, commenting (usually with a delicious bit of snark) about the goings-on at the school. Their insight into the dynamics of the school community were a great insight into how much gossip and social alliances can color the reputations of others. They were often some of the funniest, laugh-out-loud moments in the book.
“Mrs. Lipmann: Look, I'd rather not say anything further. We deserve to be left in peace. A parent is dead. The whole school community is grieving. Gabrielle: Hmmm, I wouldn't say the entire school community is grieving. That might be a stretch. “
The characterization was perfect, with each woman, husband, and child having a unique voice and well-developed persona. The infuriating voice of Madeline's teen daughter was even spot-on, projecting just the right balance of self-absorption, self-righteousness, and naiveté all at once. When you can accurately capture how infuriating and adorable a 14 year old girl can be, you know you've done something right.
There were no wasted scenes and no points at which the book dragged. All of the subplots converged and were resolved at just the right time and the ending was satisfyingly believable, despite being (at least for me) a possibility I never once considered. In the end, Big Little Lies showcased just what kind of lies we tell ourselves and other and the disastrous consequences those lies can have.
I read this in like 100-page gulps and probably could've finished it in one sitting if I didn't have to do things like sleep and work. Everything came together perfectly at the end in a way I suspected but still managed to surprise me. Even the minor characters were so well-drawn (especially the terrible ones like Harper). Highly recommended and compulsively readable.
When I first started Big Little Lies, I had no idea what the book was even about. It was recommended to me by my sister and I'd just finished reading The Book Thief when I picked it up. It actually took me longer to get through it than it normally would a book this size but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. Within the first couple of chapters we are introduced to our main characters - Jane, Madeline and Celeste.
Jane, a young single mother to a 5 year old boy, Ziggy. Madeline, a re-married mother of 3, who has just turned 40. And Celeste, Madeline's best friend - mother to 5 year old, twin boys.
All three mothers are just starting their 5 year olds at school and with it comes drama, drama, drama.
Madeline is normally involved in the drama as she doesn't really know when to hold her tongue - but in the end, this is why I loved her.
I didn't really have a favourite scen or part of the book to be honest, but the ending was shocking and I didn't expect it at all. We don't know who has died in the story until it happens - this kept the suspense going throughout the whole thing. I thought I had guessed who died and who the killer was, but I was waayyyy off.
Big Little Lies, delves into serious issues of every day life. Domestic violence, kids being bullied at school, rape and infidelity. Some parts of the book were hard to read as the violence described wasn't expected but it seemed real. By the end, these characters were real to me. I wanted to yell at Celeste and tell her to leave her abusive husband. I wanted to hug Jane and tell her it was okay and she was doing a great job of raising Ziggy. And I wanted to be best friends with Madeline. I haven't actually felt this about characters in a book for a long time. It was refreshing. (Now I have to watch the TV show).
Liane Moriarty did a fabulous job of developing her characters throughout the novel, and who they changed and adapted to their current situations. Jane grew so much as a young mother, Madeline learned to get over her hatred for her ex-husband, and Celeste learned to be brave and stand up for herself.
Overall, I enjoyed Big Little Lies, with it twists and turns. I'll have to see if the TV Show is any good and hope that the characters are as well portrayed on screen as they were written in the book.
Well, the lies in Big Little Lies were too little for me. I was bored out of my mind after the first 10% of this book and it only got worst closer to the end. Apparently, I'm just not grown up enough for this book yet.
Let's do 5 reasons why I didn't like this book.
1. Parents obsessed with their children. For the sake of everything holy just let the kids be kids. They will figure out what to do without being constantly herded by the parents.
2. Celeste. Do I need to say anything else here? Her indecisiveness was driving me nuts.
3. Jane. She just annoyed me. How much time do you need to learn to live with something? Especially if you have someone to live for.
4. Abigail. Or maybe I just don't like teenagers who think that they know everything in this word. But they just haven't been proven wrong yet.
5. The end. But I guess it is my fault. I was expecting too much from the end. But the one that I got was just too simple and almost predictable. Well, that character had to die, so we all could get happy ending.
To sum it up, I consider this book to be the waste of my time.
I love Moriarty's writing, this is my second book by her and I can't wait to read them ALL!
HBO are about to launch a brand new, star-studded miniseries later in February based on this book by Liane Moriarty. Starring such big Hollywood names as Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman and Shailene Woodley it is clear that the budget for its adaptation to the small screen hasn't been insignificant. For a show to attract such a myriad of stars as it has there must be something significantly strong in the book for it to have found such attention.
The last book I read by Moriarty was some years ago now and was The Husband's Secret, I remember it as being an okay read but it didn't blow me away and so this book has been on my e-reader pretty much since it's release and it was only my incessant need not to let the series begin without my having read the content upon which it is based that pushed it to the top of my list.
Based in a small, highly affluent seaside suburb in Melbourne, Australia it follows the lives of three women. Madeline is a mother of 3, happily married to her second husband she is preparing for her youngest daughter beginning to start Kindergarten. Making the whole transition worse is the fact her ex-husband's child with his new wife is going to be in the same class and there's just nothing Madeline hates more than the hippy-dippy lifestyle of the woman was replaced with. Also, we have wealthy and beautiful Celeste, mother of twins and wife of a successful businessman is also preparing to send her boys to school however it's clear that behind the veneer of Celeste's perfect life is a secret that she keeps from everyone around her.
Finally, we have Jane, a young single mother who has just moved to the area and has to transition her little boy into the school along with mothers and children she doesn't know. On the first day of school, Ziggy is accused of bullying another child and she finds herself ostracised by the other mums and judgements made about her parenting. Jane though hides a secret also about the father she has never told Ziggy about and it scares her that perhaps the things her little boy is accused of could be true.
From the very outset of the book, we are aware that there has been a murder committed at a trivia night held to raise funds for the school. The book is written through the moths and weeks leading up to the crime and each chapter has interspersed snippets from police interviews with different members of the school community after the crime. From these, we are given tantalising glimpses of what happens but never the full picture as each person has their own perceptions of the evening's events based on whom they have aligned themselves with in the bullying furore.
The book really pulls you on through the chapters, the mixture of chapters being told from each different lead characters perspectives means we get to share each of their stories and their friendship from each angle. The characters are well written and maybe because I know who is going to be playing each role in the series I could really see them clearly in my mind and you can see the actresses chosen really bringing their role to the screen perfectly. The police interview snippets are a really clever writing tool because it lets us see that no two people ever view the same situation in the same way and that what we observe from afar is not always the truth behind people's actions. We also learn that bullying and cliques and name calling are something that we don't leave behind in the school playground, even as adults people use these to give themselves power and status and the parallels between the adult's worlds and those of their children is profound.
I did manage to guess one of the big reveals at the end of the book from around half way however it didn't spoil the ending as I couldn't have foreseen the murder itself and the way in which it took place. The book really did keep you guessing about that right up until the moment itself as there were various ways it could have played out. The fallout from the crime was handled very well and brought together characters that we hadn't anticipated would find affinity with one another and taught us that absolutely everyone has secrets they don't wish to share in life and sometimes it's the things we don't share that are the most powerful things about us.
I am now literally on the edge of my seat waiting for the television adaptation, I have a feeling it's going to be a huge hit for HBO and for people who have not read the book they will fall in love with it as there is glamour and friendship and enough backstabbing to bring the screen to life. I know that now I will be watching with a clear indicator of what the ending will be but I still cannot wait to relive Madeline, Celeste and Jane's journeys on screen.
This was a surprisingly entertaining book. Sure it was a bit of a light read, but the story is fully engaging. I highly recommend it. Wish I could give half stars, totally a 4.5 star.
This book felt like it was too long but the humorous writing style kept me reading.
This storyline, so much better than “The Husband's Secret”. This storyline was so interesting and captivated my attention. I definitely did not expect the ending!
I've seen the HBO thing, but still really enjoyed reading this. Very moving ending, and even surprisingly thought provoking.
I truly enjoyed this book. Loved the characters, the mystery, and the way it ended. It didn't just flat end it fully ended and I don't think it cheated.
Some of Moriarty's other novels are MUCH better than this one. But there are many good things about this book.
It does take on very important topics (domestic abuse and bullying) and tells the story of a single mother (Jane) who along with her son Ziggy moves to a seaside town supposedly on a whim (though you will learn later that there is more to why she chose that town...a clever plot turn on the author's part). She is very young (24) and has difficulties when she registers her son for kindergarten. The other mothers assume she is a nanny because she is so young.
For years, Jane has refused to identify Ziggy's father or the circumstances around her son's conception. She eventually reveals the ugly and life-altering story to some of her new friends. But about half way through the book I guessed what the outcome would be concerning the father.
I found all the drama at the school and with the very high maintenance mothers of the other children to be a bit tedious. The “camps” seemed to be divided between Jane's friends (who were for the most part rational) and the other mothers (who were mostly caricatures of the over-involved mom....too involved, too quick to judge, too critical. A little more “grey” and not so much black and white would have helped.
I'd much more quickly recommend Moriarty's The Hypnotist's Love Story and The Husband's Secret. Both of those books seem to be more tightly written and were novels I lost myself in right away.
I never thought I would enjoy a Liane Moriarty novel, after I hated The Husband's Secret (?????? ?????????). In that a particular story, I found the reveal came too quickly and the writing wasn't strong enough to support the story. However, in this novel I really enjoyed the writing. The style of the book lends itself well to the writing, as it is all written through the speculation of 3 unreliable narrators. At the end of chapters there was a brief summary of the gossip going about.
The novel is a similar construction as to The Husband's Secret, where it follows 3 women who know each other because their children all attend the same school. Drama flies about the school after one child is accused of bullying; while the chapter titles count down to the school trivia night, where something horrible has occurred.
I feel like this was the novel The Husband's Secret was meant to be, but seeing as this came only a year after according to goodreads publication dates I'm surprised the quality improved so quickly. I highly recommend this one, and I'm delighted I've finished now and I can watch the tv show.
Surprisingly funny and quirky, with entertaining characters whose honesty at times is both shocking and relatable. There are some sensitive topics as well as language that may not make this read everyone's cup of tea. Still may be my favorite of Moriarty's that I've read thus far!
Fantastic read. Fast paced, well plotted, engaging characters. I was a little worried in the beginning because in just the first paragraph Madeline irritated me. Now I think that was just residual irritation from the book I'd just finished. Because by the halfway point, Madeline had become a favorite (loved her almost as much as I loved Ed). So much so that I missed her when she wasn't around.
A great mix of over the top, absurd parenting antics and reactions (anyone who has ever had to deal with parents will immediately identify real life counterparts to the fictional women) and normal family dynamics. But, along with the humor there were serious topics like bullying and abuse, none of which were handled lightly.
The author masterfully staged and plotted the who-done-it portion of the story. Throwing in clues and jagged bits of information without tilting her hand at who was the perpetrator or the victim. It took me a while to figure out that the interview excerpts weren't really police interviews. Love what they really turned out to be.
Really liked this one - so much so that I feel the need to read Liane Moriarty's other books.
This is absolutely indulgent and it has to be enjoyed for being that. Sometimes it's superficial, sometimes it's deep but it's addictive reading and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I've had this book on my shelf for so long slightly intimidated to read it but I finally got to it and I'm so glad because I loved it! I'm so excited to watch the tv series now
VINDICATED! I AM SELFISH I AM WRONG I AM RIGHT I SWEAR I'M RIGHT SWEAR I KNEW IT ALL ALONG
Took a little while to get started. Dwelled maybe a bit too long on the politics of being a parent in an upper class community – I see why those bits were there but I feel like there was too much of it before the book established its pace and intent. But once it got going it was surprisingly interesting and well-told.