Publisher: William Morrow
Hardback 400 pages
Book Source: TLC Book Tours
My Rating: 95/100
From the tour page:
“Every story has a narrator. Someone who writes it down after it’s all over. Why am I the narrator of this story? I am because it is the story of my life—and of the people I love most. . . .”
Harry and Madeleine Winslow have been blessed with talent, money, and charm. Harry is a National Book Award–winning author on the cusp of greatness. Madeleine is a woman of sublime beauty and grace whose elemental goodness and serenity belie a privileged upbringing. Bonded by deep devotion, they share a love that is both envied and admired. The Winslows play host to a coterie of close friends and acolytes eager to bask in their golden radiance, whether they are in their bucolic East Hampton cottage, abroad in Rome thanks to Harry’s writing grant, or in their comfortable Manhattan brownstone.
One weekend at the start of the summer season, Harry and Maddy, who are in their early forties, meet Claire and cannot help but be enchanted by her winsome youth, quiet intelligence, and disarming naivete. Drawn by the Winslows’ inscrutable magnetism, Claire eagerly falls into their welcoming orbit. But over the course of the summer, her reverence transforms into a dangerous desire. By Labor Day, it is no longer enough to remain one of their hangers-on.
My Thoughts:
Spoilers Ahead!
You can probably tell from both the title of this novel and
the description above, an affair occurs and is central to this story. From the first few lines of the story, you
also get the feeling that something tragic happens, and not just the
affair. There will be no happy ending to
this story. The four main parties in the
story are:
Maddy – wife and injured party
Harry – indiscreet husband
Claire – their new young friend and the object of desire
Walter – bystander and narrator of the story, friend to all
parties, and in love with Maddy since childhood
In the case of an extramarital affair its easiest to blame
one party, mainly the trollop who sleeps with the husband. But with this affair, I don’t think it’s that
easy. Throughout the story we learn
about each character, and the readers attitudes change towards each character
the more we read. At first I wanted to
blame Claire for most of what happened, but it takes two to have an
affair. Harry is not blameless, and the
more I learned about Harry, granted from Walter’s narrative, the more I felt
that it was his fault. He could have
said no, but instead he takes the easy way out.
Harry has never taken responsibility for anything in his life, so why
should he now. Harry thinks saying sorry
will fix everything but it doesn't always.
Claire, in her early 20’s, is young, vulnerable, and it’s easy to see
she is looking for a father figure. This doesn't excuse her behavior, but as an adult with 20 more years of experience than her, everyone
else should have realized her hanging around was not quite right. I know hind sight is 20/20, but still…I guess
you trust that your marriage of 20 years is rock solid, and you don’t see your
husband for who and what he is.
As for Walter and Maddy, my feelings about them also did a
180. Once Maddy has her world shaken by
this affair, she freaks out. I get
that. However, at some point, you have a
child, an 11 yr. old I think, you need
to attend to, so it’s not all about you.
But Maddy can’t do that. She goes
off on a path of self destruction and eventually gets herself right. However, I do think it’s her actions that in
the end, contribute to the final devastating blow. No, I won’t give that away folks! As much as I wanted to empathize with Maddy, I couldn't. Maybe it’s me but Maddy ended
up being the character who I ultimately disliked. I do not like people who are always the “victim”
and need to be cared for. Harsh?
Probably, but I’m being honest. And no, how this story concludes did not alter my opinion of her.
As for Walter, he also suffers through this entire story,
being disappointed at every turn. He seems
to have more sense than Walter and Maddy, but not really. It’s those childhood feelings for Maddy that
constantly hold him back from ever achieving his own happiness, separate and distinct
from Maddy. And you know, Maddy has to
know Walter still carries a torch for her, so she is a bit irresponsible too,
now that I think about it. Poor Walter!
In the end, it’s actually Claire that is the adult. After everything is said and done, she is the
one with the wisdom and enough sense to know what she did was wrong. Claire was sorry, and she moved on with her
life.
This book was a page turner for me, and I enjoyed it immensely. Not my typical read at all, but Charles Dubow
sucked me into his novel with the first page.
I was immersed in the story, and apparently as you can see from my
thoughts above, was strongly interested in these characters, whether I liked
them or not. What I enjoyed the most,
was how my feelings changed for each one as I read the story. What I thought and felt at the beginning, was
completely different by the time I closed the book. That’s what makes Indiscretion such a great read
for me.
To read what other's thought about this book, please visit one of the tour stops below.
You can also follow Charles Dubow on Twitter.
Charles’ Tour Stops
Tuesday, February 5th: 5 Minutes For Books
Wednesday, February 6th: toothy books
Thursday, February 7th: Sweet Tidbits
Friday, February 8th: I Read a Book Once
Monday, February 11th: A Dream Within a Dream
Wednesday, February 13th: Sara’s Organized Chaos
Thursday, February 14th: BookNAround
Monday, February 18th: JulzReads
Tuesday, February 19th: You’ve GOTTA Read This!
Wednesday, February 20th: The House of Crime and Mystery
Thursday, February 21st: Jenny Love to Read
Monday, February 25th: Book Addiction
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