Book of the Week: Pieces of Happily Ever After

One of the books I read this week was Pieces of Happily Ever After by Irene Zutell.  The premise of this novel is pretty familiar - husband leaves dutiful wife for younger, more exciting Other Woman.  Pretty much the nightmare of every devoted spouse, right?  In this case the suburban mom is Alice, and her husband is Alex,  a usually staid entertainment lawyer until he runs off with starlet Rose Maris (to me a mix between Julia Roberts, Angelina Jolie and J.Lo) and becomes slick Xander, a man his wife doesn't even recognize.

This novel could easily veer off into something we've seen before, but Zutell unfolds the story with restraint.  The characters are layered, the plot rings of real life not just unnecessary drama, and Alice is a heroine you can root for.

Not only does Alice have to contend with the paparazzi attention after her husband runs off with a superstar, but she also has her princess-obsessed 5-year-old daughter and Alzheimer-striken mother to contend with.  Their is loneliness and struggle and friends that come from the most unlikely places.  As for Alex all I wanted to do was yell at him to grow up! (and man up, while he's at it!)

Pieces is an interesting look into the end of a suburban marriage in the time of TMZ, the guilt and glory of motherhood, and the good that can happen when women pull together. 

4/5

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