
The Book:
Her Turn by Katherine Ashenburg
Published August 3rd 2021 by Harper Perennial
Date read: October 27, 2021
The Characters:
Liz
Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon
The Plot (from Goodreads):
A journalist in Washington, DC, Liz has turned lemons into lemonade after her husband walked out on her a decade ago. She likes her life—she’s the editor of Her Turn, a weekly column in which readers write about their lives, has a few romantic nibbles—some better than others—a good relationship with her teen-aged son, and has come to terms with the shock and heartbreak of her divorce.
Or so she thinks.
One day at work, she receives a letter for the column she can’t ignore, because it’s written by her ex-husband’s current wife—AKA the other woman. It is the beginning of an unexpected correspondence between the two women—but only Liz knows the truth about their connection. Could it be she still cares? How far will she take this unusual relationship? And what happens if the truth comes out?
Her Turn is an immensely readable, joyful novel about fidelity and forgiveness that explores one woman’s second act in life, and the ties that still bind her to the first.
The Review:
Thank you to Harper Perennial for the physical copy and to Harper Audio for the advanced listening copy in exchange for an honest review.
This book scores an even 2.5 stars from me. It was entertaining enough, very middle-of-the-road, but it didn’t stick with me at all. It’s been about a month and I would have no recollection of what Her Turn was about, if not for the notes I took while reading it.
I love reading about women who have just had it with their lives. There were a few passages of Liz’s inner thoughts that made me chuckle, and I enjoyed that she wasn’t trying to please anyone any more. I liked the scenes about her bad dates and her interactions with her son.
I think part of the reason I didn’t love this one is that I just don’t like character-driven novels. There was very little plot to speak of here, so I found it to be somewhat dry. For me to like a character-driven novel, I need to be able to really relate to the main character, and I need them to show significant growth throughout the book. I didn’t really get either of those things, in this case. I’ve never been divorced (or married), so I couldn’t really relate to Liz’s ire. I also didn’t find her all that likable.
Overall, I think this book would be better suited to someone that can identify with Liz’s experiences, and to a reader who enjoys character-driven novels. Luckily it was very short, so I made it through quickly! I will say that I love the color of the spine, so it’ll probably stay on my shelves 🤷♀️
Follow me on Bloglovin’!
