Review - 'The Husbands' by Holly Gramazio

So let me get this straight. Anytime you tire of your current husband, you can just send him off to the attic and a new one will appear? Hmm, you don't say.

I can't resist a good premise. And this is undoubtedly a compelling one. But what starts out as a fun and possibly thought-provoking read just kept going on and on, for far too long.

Initially, this had all the markings of a terrific speculative fiction. It drew me in almost immediately, and it wasn't long before I was turning the pages as fast as I could. Lauren's situation, though not one I've personally encountered thank goodness, is surely something that most of us could relate to. And not only that, but I had gone in thinking this was a serious read, and when it turned out to be more of a fun romp than anything else, I certainly wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

But at some point, I started thinking to myself, where is this all going? The more I read, the more I wasn't sure. Usually, books drop hints along the way to help guide readers toward the intended direction and destination, but this book remained distinctly rudderless. Lauren just kept happily switching husbands and we were taken along for the ride.

Then as the story continued, it started taking on a rather unhinged vibe that I just didn't know what to do with. Instead of progressing the way I expected, with Lauren slowly gaining insight into her life, she went the other way and started becoming crazier. I felt like I had been dropped into some sort of slapstick comedy routine or possibly the twilight zone.

This is a problem I've seen before, and it's especially noticeable in books with as enticing of a premise as this one. The author writes a terrific start and middle, building up and building up... into something. But what, that's the question? And more often than not, it feels like the author themselves don't know either.

And that's such a shame. The story does eventually reach a conclusion, but there's no real journey for Lauren or us readers to get there. Rather, we are just dropped at the end, and that's about it.

I wanted more from this. I was hoping for something profound, or at least a little bit insightful and interesting. But premise aside, this didn't really get there.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

This was a pick for my Book of the Month box. Get your first book for $5 here.