The Silent Wife

Fisher’s resonant novel (following The Lost Child) about one woman’s blended family is full of emotional drama and dark secrets. When Maggie Parker marries Nico Farinelli, her life in Brighton, England, is forever changed. She and her 10-year-old son, Sam, have left behind Maggie’s mother, Beryl, with whom they used to share a flat. After her marriage to Nico, Maggie and Sam move into the house Nico shares with his 13-year-old daughter, Francesca. Maggie, despite her love for Nico, finds an uphill battle with the rest of his family. She tries to cope with Francesca’s surly attitude towards her as well as Nico’s mother Anna’s disapproval of her (not to mention Anna’s constant adulation of Nico’s deceased first wife, Caitlin). The cold indifference of Maggie’s sister-in-law, Lara, makes Maggie’s transition into the Farinelli clan even more difficult. When Maggie discovers a secret about Caitlin, she must decide whether to keep quiet, knowing it would hurt Nico if it were revealed. As Maggie forms a tenuous friendship with Lara, who begins to warm to her, she wonders why Lara won’t stand up to her husband, Massimo, who exhibits cruelty toward their seven-year-old son. The novel is told from both Maggie’s and Lara’s perspectives, and the switches keep the pace lively and fast. The story is further bolstered by a dark sense of humor, making for a compulsively readable novel about family skeletons. (Nov.)