Reviewed by Colleen McLennan
Maggie Alderson is a British author with extensive editing experience in both England and Australia. She is author of ten novels and four collections of her columns from Good Weekend magazine. Her children’s book Evangeline, the Wish Keeper’s Helper was shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Award. In her latest book, Would You Rather, she presents an interesting read with serious undertones.
This is the story of Sophie and the unexpected change in her life. Her marriage to Matt seemed idyllic to family and friends. The next phase of life for Sophie and Matt had been planned with the sale of the family home in London and a move to Hastings to be near the sea and a slower pace of life. Then, out of the blue, Matt tells Sophie that he would not be moving but staying in London to be with Juliet. Juliet – who was Juliet? Stunned and hurt by his words, Sophie watches him cycle off on his bike, too bewildered to take in the reality of her situation.
Later Sophie is confronted by two policewomen at her door. There has been an accident. Matt has not survived. Then begins a period of grief for Sophie, for the loss of the life she had known, the loss of her husband’s fidelity, the future that now would never be. A funeral is held, and an unknown woman attends – the first link to Juliet is made.
Even feeling as outraged as Sophie does by Matt’s infidelity, she seeks to protect the memories her sons and Matt’s brothers have. Memories of family celebrations, the good times, the closeness of family ties creep into her thoughts, nudged by the smallest prompting.
Striving to lift herself out of the darkness, she moves to Hastings and with the help of Rey, her trusted friend, the glimmer of a future life emerges.
The author, Maggie Alderson, allows the reader to experience the pathway of grief in its complexities, sometimes with its feelings of loss of purpose, of denial of future happiness, and in Sophie’s case, a sense of betrayal. We are allowed to slowly watch Sophie claw back the remnants of her former self and make inroads into the finding of new friends and experiences.
Maggie Alderson has a way of making her characters relatable and employs her sense of family unity to tug at the heartstrings of her readers. We are also allowed a glimpse into the life of Sophie’s son, Beau, and his foray into the jewellery design business.
The concluding part of Sophie’s story might seem unrealistic to many. The depth of human feelings of acceptance and forgiveness run deep in us, and sometimes emerge in time, sometimes never.
As witnesses to Sophie’s story, perhaps in this case we want those feelings to emerge sooner. We want Sophie to embrace the next phase of her life wrapped in the security of a loving partner and extended family and to file away the hurt of times that have been and now have gone.
This is an engaging story and might have many of us wondering how, in real life, those who choose to stray from the comfort and care of a traditional relationship, manage the deception for an extended period of time.
Would you Rather
(2024)
by Maggie Alderson
Harper Collins
ISBN: 978 1 4607 5206 7
$34.99; 385pp