Ellen O'Farrell is a hypnotherapist in her mid-thirties. She lives and works in her little house by the sea in Australia, left to her by her grandparents, and has recently fallen in love with Patrick, who owns his own surveying business and has an 8-year-old son. Patrick lost his beautiful young wife, Colleen, to cancer when Jack was just a baby and has had only one other serious relationship since then, with a woman named Saskia. When Patrick reveals to Ellen that Saskia has been stalking him for several years, since their breakup, she is alternately amused and concerned, especially when she discovers that she herself has an unexpected and possibly dangerous connection with Saskia.
Moriarty's book is part romance and part thriller with a good dose of quirky humor thrown in. The development of Patrick and Ellen's relationship is charming and realistic. The various family members and friends are an interesting mix. Patrick's family and in-laws are kind and accepting of Ellen while her physician mother is rather cold and ultra-practical until she meets up with Ellen's father, a former lover who is now widowed and didn't know about his 35-year-old daughter. Ellen's hypnotherapy practice adds a great deal of additional interest to the story. All in all, this was a great book. I enjoyed the development of the characters and I loved the "real" feeling of Ellen and Patrick's love story. I even liked Saskia, who has been trying unsuccessfully to find closure in her relationship with Patrick and Jack. Liane Moriarty's writing reminds me of a sunny Australian day, somehow, at least that's what keeps coming to mind when I think about this novel. I'm looking forward to reading more of her books!
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