Fiction

Published on April 6, 2021 by Gallery Books

381 Pages

TITLE & AUTHOR: In a Book Club Far Away by Tif Marcelo

PLOT: Adelaide, Regina, and Sophia are Army wives that become best friends when their families are stationed at the same military base in Upstate New York. When their partners are deployed overseas for nine months, the three friends lean on one another to get through the emotional ups and downs of the deployment. They also create and participate in a monthly book club that ends up being a key aspect of their friendship.

Fast forward to present day when Adelaide calls on her two best friends to help her as she recovers from gallbladder surgery while her husband is stationed in Germany. The only issue is that Regina and Sophia are not friends anymore following an intense falling out that occurred ten years ago. As Regina and Sophia spend time helping their friend recover and care for her toddler, aspects of the past come to the surface and the truth about what really happened during "The Fight" comes out. Despite all of the pain, heartache, and difficulties that they have experienced, the three friends realize that they will always be there for one another and that their friendship is more important than anything.

THOUGHTS: I loved the sisterhood that these friends formed when they were on the same military base. All three of them were experiencing their own struggles during the employment, including relationship challenges with their partners, raising young children, pregnancy, and healing from the heartbreak of miscarriage. However, I loved how they didn't need to go through anything on their own when their partners were gone because of the bond that they formed.

Also I was a huge fan of the book club that was interwoven throughout the story. Each part of the story was broken up by what book was being read that month for book club. They read two of my favorites (The Hunger Games and Room), which was exciting to me as a reader because I felt like I was also participating in their book club.

Finally, I was relieved at the forgiveness and reconciliation that occurs. Even though it was predictable that they would all become friends again, it still made me smile when they realized how unbreakable their bond was. Cheers to strong female friendships, ya'll!

Rating: 4/5 Stars