Apples Never Fall (by Liane Moriarty)

(Amazon UK link)

I very much liked the first few books I read by the Australian author Liane Moriarty, so put a couple more on my wishlist. I was given ‘Apples never fall’ for my birthday a year ago; for some reason I didn’t start it until last weekend, but I finished it in just three days despite it being quite a long novel close to 500 pages). 

The story involves the disappearance of a woman in her sixties called Joy. She’s married to Stan, and they have four adult children: Amy, Logan, Troy and Brooke. The day she vanished, she sent a mysterious text message to all four, but they can’t figure out what it means - and begin to wonder if someone else sent it. Joy and Stan used to run a tennis coaching business, although they have now retired. All four of their children played tennis to quite a high standard when they were younger.

After nearly a week without hearing from Joy, a police report is filed and an investigation starts.  We’re taken through the questions asked, the theories that abound, and the suspicions that gradually deepen. Has Joy been kidnapped? Has she had an accident? Is she even alive…?  

The book is very cleverly written, with chapters set either ‘now’ or the previous Autumn, progressing forward. So we see questions asked ‘now’, and then flash back to a family scene or incident from a few months earlier which may (or may not) shed some light on what is going on. 

Much of the story revolves around a young woman called Savannah who arrives on Joy and Stan’s doorstep in the ‘September’ section, very early in the book. She’s drenched, she’s crying, and she has a scratch on her face - she tells them that her boyfriend hit her, and that she jumped in a random taxi then knocked on the door of a house that had lights on, and looked friendly. 

Joy is a kind-hearted, motherly person who finds her empty nest and retirement quite difficult to handle. So she takes Savannah in, feeds her, and lets her sleep in Amy’s room. A day or two turns into a longer stay; Savannah is an excellent cook, and good company too. Amy was always quite prickly as a child, and suffered depression; Brooke was close to her parents but has always suffered debilitating migraines. Neither has any interest in cooking or shopping, so Savannah seems the ideal surrogate daughter…

The four adult children are suspicious, although they can’t quite put a finger on why. Troy is a very wealthy man who mostly lives in the United States, trading in something that’s never made quite clear. Logan teaches at a community college and is quite laid back. Amy works as a taste tester, though she doesn’t tend to stick to one job for long. Brooke has just started a business offering physiotherapy. They’re different enough people, and three dimensional so I never had any trouble recalling who was whom. 

As I’ve come to expect with Liane Moriarty, there are twists and turns as new revelations appear; not everything comes to light immediately, and it gradually becomes clear that the family weren’t as perfect as they seemed to outsiders. Secrets emerge, and I really had no idea which way the story was going. I found it compelling reading and could hardly put it down at times. 

Several important issues are touched upon, mostly relationship-based; there are some particularly poignant scenes relating to childhood pressures and abuses. The question is left open as to how far our childhood experiences determine our characters as adults, and whether it’s ever a good idea to try to take revenge. 

I thought the climax to the book was very well done, tying up most of the ends neatly. So I was slightly surprised it didn’t finish soon after; only to discover one more extra little twist in the final chapter. 

Highly recommended to anyone who likes character-based fiction with a bit of mystery.

   Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews