The Lakeview Mystery Book Group had been meeting in person over the last few months but decided to go back to meeting on Zoom now that the nights are longer and are getting colder. Last week was our return to Zoom and given how the online platform can change the shape of meetings, I was wondering if our talk would be as comfortable and free-wheeling as it had been for our in-person meetings. The answer? It certainly was a relaxed, energetic discussion. But was that the group or the book? Because turns out, The Mother-in-Law is a very discussible book and one I'd suggest to any and all groups who might be looking for fresh titles.
The titular mother-in-law is Diana who has a son, Ollie, who gets engaged to and marries Lucy. From their first meeting Lucy and Diana are at odds. Not because Diana is evil or Lucy terrible, but because they just don't connect and the small misunderstandings in those early meetings cement themselves into a generalized dislike on Lucy's part and discomfort on Diana's. Lucy had hoped that in Diana she would gain a mother figure to replace her own mother who died when she was a teenager. And as to what Diana hoped? That takes a little longer to become clear. A shocking event at the beginning of the novel upends the whole family and Lucy will have to re-examine her own thoughts and actions as regards her mother-in-law.
We read this for a mystery book group, so you can probably guess there's some here. But the real meat of the novel is about family relationships, perceptions and values. And here's pro tip for you: though I really enjoyed this one, not everyone in the book group did, and that helps make for a great discussion. So if your book group has been mulling what to read next? Here you go.