The Perfect Family. Samantha King. 2018. Kensington Books. 304 pages. [Source: ARC provided courtesy of NetGalley].
The Perfect Family is not what it seems, both the book and its main characters. It starts by describing the aftermath of any parents’ nightmare — being asked to choose which of your children will live or die. For Maddie, it’s being asked which of her twins will be spared by a masked man who shows up at her door. The shock of her daughter’s death leaves her mute, but her mind is active in reflecting about the day tragedy struck and her motive for her choice.
Overall, this is an emotionally jarring read — the tension and anxiety were near constant. As you get to see what lies under the surface of Dom and Maddie’s marriage, you learn to take everything else with a grain (or pound) of salt. Through her reflections, you see Maddie struggling to keep from spiraling as she questions herself as a mother, but also no longer understanding what she takes for granted as truth.
I compliment King because she was able to evoke emotions in me that made me need to know what happened next so I could have my own resolution. That being said, this book left me constantly questioning what was happening and who to trust. The suspense was real! I can say that at the outset of the book, I thought I knew what to expect and that it would be predictable. I’m glad to say the ending was not what I expected at all. I also appreciated King’s structure of going from future to flashbacks. It allowed her to unfold the story in a way that built suspense as she revealed details.
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