They say that when someone loses someone they love, they seek closure. When that person’s body is never found, closure is hard to attain.
“…the amount of time you spend with a person means nothing. Because no matter how many questions you ask, you’ll only ever see the parts of them that they allow you to see. The rest stays buried.”
June married Josh ten years ago. After knowing him for only six short months, he drowned while they were on their honeymoon. Josh’s body was never recovered… Several times now June has thought she has seen Josh. Her best friend and her new fiance tell her she is seeing things – a product of her grief over her loss.
When searching for venues for her upcoming honeymoon to the new man in her life, Kyle, she comes across a website for a Napa winery. There is a photo of the owner of the vineyard on the website. It is Josh!
She secretly travels to Napa to see for herself. Once there she discovers family secrets and learns information about Josh and his family that she never knew.
In addition to June’s narrative we hear from Bev. Bev is Josh’s mother and her narrative takes place twenty-five years previously. Their narratives alternate to divulge secrets upon which the two women live their lives.
For wine lovers everywhere, there is a lot of information on wine-making and the appreciation of a fine vintage.
There are two unexplained deaths in this novel, Josh and Michelle, and only one of them is ever explained. To my mind, the oversight of not explaining who killed Michelle was a glaring one. Yes, there was a hint, but that could have been misleading and was not conclusive.
With themes of betrayal, parenting, manipulation, adultery, and suspicion, this novel will appeal to many readers. Especially when they hear that there is a huge plot twist near the end of the book. There are many things I liked about this novel, yet the plot seemed a bit contrived for my full enjoyment. The ending twist seemed implausible given the information revealed up to that point.
“Till Death Do Us Part” was touted as a thriller, but for me it was more of a slow-burn domestic drama with a mysterious backstory.
This review was written voluntarily and my rating was in no way influenced by the fact that I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from Simon and Schuster via NetGalley.
Publication date: August 13, 2024
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 9781982144661 ASIN: B0CL5FNKQN – 320 pages
Laurie Elizabeth Flynn is a former model who lives in London, Ontario with her husband and their four children.
Her adult fiction debut, The Girls Are All So Nice Here, was named a USA Today Best Book of 2021, sold in 11 territories worldwide, and became an instant bestseller in Canada. Her second novel for adults, Till Death Do Us Part, was an instant USA Today and national Canadian bestseller, and a Good Morning America Buzz Pick. She is also the author of three young adult novels: Firsts, Last Girl Lied To, and All Eyes On Her, under the name L.E. Flynn.
When she’s not writing, you can likely find her hiking in the woods, perusing thrift stores for vintage dresses, or bingeing on reality TV dating shows.
Connect with Laurie Elizabeth Flynn – Her Website ; Twitter ; Instagram.
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