March 23, 2016

The Good Goodbye - Carla Buckley

Bantam, January 19, 2016.



Four Stars



This is the story of Arden and Rory, cousins who lie unconscious in the hospital burn unit as the novel opens. There was a fatal fire in their shared dorm room, and as police question the girls’ parents, the parents themselves begin to question how well they knew their daughters. On top of all that, the parents have their own conflict, as Rory’s father’s bad investment choices may have lost the restaurant that he co-owns with his brothers’ wife, Arden’s mother.


Rory and Arden are cousins, but they grew up like sisters, born only months apart. They attended the same private school, although Rory was the popular girl and Arden the straight-A student. Their sister-like competitiveness extended from grades and friends to love interests, and their love triangle may have been the cause of the fire – however, the girls cannot speak for themselves, so we only see flashbacks leading up to the fire, making the story much more intriguing. There were definitely some really great plot twists – I had a lot of guesses, but I was still surprised many times.


Arden’s mother, Natalie, plays a large part in the story, and it was interesting to see how her perspective of her daughter’s life contrasted with actual events as seen through Arden’s eyes. The novel plays on the fears of parenthood, questioning how well parents can really know their children. The girls are 18-years-old, technically adults and suddenly given (perhaps too much) responsibility. They are forced to make life-altering choices, yet their parents still shelter them from their own concerns.


The contrast between Rory and Arden is a clear example of nature vs. nurture – the girls are so similar, raised together and attending the same schools, yet they have completely different goals and motivations. In fact, the girls are not the only diametrically opposed characters. There are also Vince and Theo, the girls’ fathers who are also twin brothers; Arden’s younger siblings, twin boys; and the contrast between Natalie and her sister-in-law, who make wildly different decisions regarding the upbringing of their children. The character pairings explore how people can respond so differently to the same situations, for better or worse.


The Good Goodbye was very entertaining, and definitely kept me guessing. I might have appreciated a bit more depth of emotion, but it wasn’t necessary, and the characters were strong overall, especially within the thriller genre. Many of the scenes were well-researched, especially the medical scenarios involving the girls. Even with similar characters, their voices were distinct, with separate voices and personalities – although the girls sometimes seemed a little too juvenile for their age. The ending was handled well, and tied everything together, making this a really fun, thrilling read.


I received this novel from Bantam and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

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