I had no idea Marian Keyes was such a prolific writer. Before moving to the UK, I had read only her Walsh sisters series, and maybe one or two other books. But here, I see the libraries stocked with rows of her books. I ended up being tempted by a couple of her newer ones.
About The Break
Amy’s husband, Hugh, says he isn’t leaving her.
He still loves her, he’s just taking a break – from their marriage, their children, and, most of all, from their life together. Six months to lose himself in Southeast Asia. And there is nothing Amy can say or do about it.
Yes, it’s a midlife crisis, but let’s be clear: a break isn’t a breakup – yet.
However, for Amy, it’s enough to send her – along with her extended family of gossips, misfits, and troublemakers – teetering over the edge.
A lot can happen in six months. When Hugh returns, if he returns, will he be the same man she married? And will Amy be the same woman?
Because if Hugh is on a break from their marriage, then isn’t she?
~ Synopsis from Goodreads
My Review
I liked the crux of the story; the execution not so much.
For seventeen years, Hugh and Amy have had a good, strong marriage. When Hugh’s dad dies, he can’t shake his depression and says he needs to take a break from their marriage and go traveling. He promises to return and that he’ll always love her and their children, but during their break, he may or may not have relationships with other people.
Amy’s reaction to all this seems strangely placid, very submissive, and accepting. Somewhere midway through the book, there is an aha moment that explains her response, but by then, some of the damage is done. I had already written off Amy as a doormat, and now, after this mid-book revelation, any sympathy I felt for her evaporated. Hugh also comes across as selfish, although I did empathize with his depression. So, neither of these characters was someone I could root for, and honestly, I didn’t particularly care whether they got back together in the end, which is not a good sign of my interest or investment in the book.
Apart from the story of Amy and Hugh, there are a ton more hijinks, very typical of Keyes’ books – crazy family members, social, and friendship drama, and of course, one serious, social issue. In previous books, Keyes has talked about depression, death, grief, domestic violence, addiction, and more. And while I appreciate that she’s not afraid to tackle the hard topics, it’s now almost a standard motif in her books.
In The Break, the topic is abortion, and she beats us over the head with all the details about how Ireland has banned abortion and the impact of this law on women. And while I appreciate that she addresses social ills, this subplot does make the book even longer. In fact, the book is generally unengaging and could have been at least 40% shorter IMO.
Most of it is just pages and pages of Amy pottering around her old life, pointless side-quests about the clients she scores for her PR firm, and endless meals with the extended family that give lots of family backstory but don’t advance the plot a single inch.
This is one of those books that had the germ of a good idea, decently well-written, but really needed a razor-sharp editor to cut all the fluff.
