Review: Between the Tides by Susannah Marren

A debut novel following the fortunes of the happy-on-the-surface Morris family as it slowly comes apart after making a move from New York City to an affluent suburb

Lainie Smith Morris is perfectly content with her life in New York City: she has four children, a handsome surgeon husband, and good friends. This life she has built is shattered, however, when her husband Charles announces he has accepted a job in Elliot, New Jersey, and that the family must relocate. Lainie is forced to give up the things she knows and loves.

Though Charles easily adapts to the intricacies of suburban life, even thriving in it, Lainie finds herself increasingly troubled and bored by her new limited responsibilities, and she remains desperate for the inspiration, comfort, and safety of the city she called home. She is hopelessly lost—until, serendipitously, she reconnects with an old friend/rival turned current Elliot resident, Jess. Pleased to demonstrate her social superiority to Lainie, Jess helps her find a footing, even encouraging Lainie to develop as an artist; but what looks like friendship is quickly supplanted by a betrayal with earth shattering impact, and a move to the suburbs becomes a metaphor for a women who must search to find a new home ground in the shifting winds of marriage, family, career, and friendship.

Hardcover, 304 pages

Expected publication: July 21st 2015 by St. Martin's Press 

Genre: Contemporary

Kristine's Thoughts:

**I received an advanced readers copy through a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.**

I didn't love this book and I didn't hate it either. It is these middle of the road books that I often have the hardest time discussing my thoughts about. There is really no need to re-tell the story as the synopsis gives a pretty accurate description of what the story is about.

Here are a few thoughts worth mentioning...

1. I was indifferent to all the characters in the book. There wasn't a person that I could say that I loved or that I was routing for throughout the entire story. In fact, I disliked quite a few of them.

2. If it was the authors intention to portray Elliot as a horrible place to live then she was more than successful. It was like the hierarchy of high school for grown ups without the barriers of the walls. It was so pretentious that I could easily see why Lainey was struggling.

3. The story alternated between Jess and Lainey's voice, a style that I really like, but the story was somewhat stale and anti climatic. I think I was suppose to like Lainey more than Jess but they each had so many flaws that it was hard to take either one of them at times. Perhaps this goes back to the pretentious lifestyle but I felt that they were both terrible mothers and both guilty of not so nice things.

4.  The ending was slightly disappointing and if anything proves my above point.

This book had some good moments and some not so good moments making it one that I didn't mind reading but probably won't remember it a few months from now.