Linda's Reviews > Cul-de-sac

If you could flip the lid on some of these upscale homes in Cul De Sac, you'd view some mighty strange goings on. People behaving badly. Every day of the week non-stop.

Joy Fielding has taken a slice of Florida life in the heat of July. Fielding has added a lotta lotta characters to keep track of including their various children. Each household has a kettle of questionable behavior brewing on the back stove burner. And while that is circulating hot steam into the air, a gun shot rings loudly through the neighborhood. Which address can it be traced to?

Palm Beach Gardens seems to be the ideal community especially in regard to a semi-circle of houses situated in proximity to one another. Oddly, the neighbors hardly ever greet one another or raise a hand in recognition. But that's all about to change now. Certain events will cause these individuals to realize that they do need one another. Some more than others. And some will still guard their privacy at all costs.

Fielding has created characters as varied as the flowers in a field. Neighbors range from an elderly widow whose grandson now lives with her to another couple who have just recently separated. There are two married doctors, a former soldier and his wife, and a couple in which the husband lies about the loss of his job. Fielding has packed this one with PTSD, marital trauma, violence, dishonesty, theft, in-law woes, and mega secrets galore. Like Cinderella, you've got to see which fits which household. Oh, and there's got to be fingerprints on that gun. Care to take a guess?

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Random House (Ballantine Books) and to Joy Fielding for the opportunity.