The Last Anniversary
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4.2 • 696 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
From the no. 1 New York Times bestselling author of The Husband's Secret, Big Little Lies and new novel Apples Never Fall.
"I'll tell you something, something important. Love is a decision. Not a feeling. That's what you young people don't realise. That's why you're always off divorcing each other. No offence, dear."
So decrees the formidable Connie Thrum of Scribbly Gum Island. She is the chief decision-maker of a rather unconventional family and her word is law.
It's been over seventy years since Connie and her sister Rose visited their neighbours and found the kettle boiling and a baby waking for her feed, but no sign of her parents. The Munro Baby Mystery still hasn't been solved and tourists can visit the abandoned home, exactly as it was found in 1932.
But now Connie has passed away and the island residents ponder her legacy. Sophie Honeywell is looking down the barrel of her fortieth birthday and still hoping for that fairytale ending. Her beautiful new friend Grace, the Munro Baby's granddaughter, can't tell anyone what she hopes for. It would be too shocking.
Meanwhile, a frumpy housewife makes a pact with a stranger, an old lady starts making her own decisions and a family secret finally explodes on an extraordinary night of mulled wine, fire-eating and face-painting-the Last Anniversary.
Fans of Jojo Moyes, Jodi Picoult and Paula Hawkins will love Liane Moriarty.
PRAISE FOR THE LAST ANNIVERSARY
"Original and entertaining ... deeply affecting" The Australian
"[A] stunner...[Moriarty's] prose turns from funny through poignant to frightening in an artful snap." Publishers Weekly
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
With her second novel, Liane Moriarty really found her trademark brand: a winning blend of suspense, suburban comedy of manners and dark wit. Three years after Sophie Honeywell broke her boyfriend Thomas’ heart—though apparently not for long, given his new wife and son—she unexpectedly inherits his aunt’s beautiful, decaying home on an eccentric Australian island. A tourist attraction thanks to a decades-old unsolved mystery, the house is at the heart of the extended family’s secrets. Moriarty’s teasing reveals of these skeletons in the closet are artfully deployed, swiftly turning The Last Anniversary from poignant to joyous to chilling.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Moriarty (Three Wishes) presents a stunner several shades darker than typical chick lit, about a family and the outsider who inherits a house on Scribbly Gum, their (fictional) Australian island and a popular tourist destination. Sophie Honeywell hasn't heard from ex-boyfriend Thomas Gordon since she broke his heart three years ago. He's since married and fathered a child, while Sophie remains single, pining for a baby. When Thomas's Aunt Connie leaves her house on Scribbly Gum Island to Sophie, the family is largely nonplussed but then, they're used to mysteries. The famous 1932 discovery of baby Enigma by Connie and her sister, Rose Doughty, led to the successful "Munro Baby Mystery" tour that kept the sisters afloat for years. Among the large, eccentric family, Sophie starts a new life, befriending Thomas's cousin Grace, who is suffering through postpartum depression; finding a dangerous mutual attraction with Grace's husband, Callum; and dealing with bitter, intense Veronika, Thomas's sister, who covets Connie's house. Moriarty expertly handles a large cast and their relationships, keeping everyone guessing as the true story of baby Enigma and its role in Sophie's strange inheritance is slowly revealed. Moriarty's prose turns from funny through poignant to frightening in an artful snap.
Customer Reviews
Deep & Dramatic Page turner!
Adored this story! Slightly confusing initially trying to connect all the characters, but a beautifully touching read with many deep, thought provoking themes. Definitely recommend this one!
Fascinating tale
A family mystery set on an island near Sydney
Amazing Read!
I think I’ve read all of Liane’s books, but this one is my favourite. A crazy and sweet page turner with surprises right till the end. Thank you Liane, for such a perfect book!