An Idiot in Marriage

Jester’s slice-of-life sequel to An Idiot in Love is filled with risqué humor and littered with forehead-slapping moments. It’s not much of a romance, but it delivers dozens of laughs with a few cleverly disguised moments of thoughtfulness mixed in. Kieran is the titular self-proclaimed “idiot.” He’s in his 20s and can’t keep a job to save his life; instead he takes care of his infant son, Ben, while his wife, Lizzie, has employment that pays the bills. Kieran’s life is filled with stunning misadventures and over-the-top friends, especially his best friend, Matthew, a womanizing, vulgar miscreant with delusions of adequacy. Kieran’s neighbors are equally absurd and think nothing of accusing him of catnapping. Yet somehow he manages to stumble through life, possibly learning a lesson or two about himself and others along the way—including how to function outside the psychiatric facility where he and Lizzie met. The autobiographical style lends itself well to full immersion in the laugh-out-loud situations encountered by Kieran and those unfortunate enough to love him. The delightfully biting, tongue-in-cheek British sensibility occasionally overwhelms, but the ridiculous situations are usually balanced with dashes of normalcy. (July)