Moriarty, Liane-Big Little Lies-Informal Buddy Read;Start Date: November 9th 2014 ;Revisit May 29, 2018

[Sarah]

(view spoiler)[ I am hoping Tom isn't really gay and him and Jane could make something happen. (hide spoiler)]

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

I'm currently working on chapter 40 and don't want to post anything from my iPod since I can't put any of my thoughts into spoilers yet but can't wait to post. So good :)

[Sarah]

Holy shiat, chapter 77 (view spoiler)[ I surely never saw that one coming. Perry is Banks. (hide spoiler)]

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Hahaha Sarah I'm glad that I can't click on spoilers on my iPod because I would definitely click just by your post LOL

[Sarah]

Done and done - five stars from me. Great ending.

[Joi]

I'm on the part where (view spoiler)[Madeline is admiring Perry and thinking about how lucky Celeste is and how she probably doesn't even know it. (hide spoiler)] This made me think about how things aren't always as they seem. When you're on the outside looking in, anything is possible and up to the imagination. It's only when you're in that situation can you tell what you would do.

Furthermore, I really want to love Madeline. I like how she is sort of protective over Jane and whatnot, but her private thoughts irk me at times. I don't like how she thinks negatively and knows that she's doing it...but chalks it up to lost causes.

[Sarah]

Joi wrote: "I'm on the part where [spoilers removed] This made me think about how things aren't always as they seem. When you're on the outside looking in, anything is possible and up to the imagination. It's ..."

Oh Joi - what you dislike, I love. Don't we all have those types of inner thoughts. Or am I just a little evil?

[Joi]

Sarah wrote: "Joi wrote: "I'm on the part where [spoilers removed] This made me think about how things aren't always as they seem. When you're on the outside looking in, anything is possible and up to the imagin..."

I must admit, Sarah I did think about that as I was typing out that statement. I agree that we do all have those thoughts. But it seems like Madeline thinks that way about everyone.! I must admit that it is hilarious the way she talks about Bonnie, and I feel as if it is completely realistic and I like that aspect. I think that I have such a huge problem with her talking about other people because we are able to see their TRUE happenings as well. We know how their life really works...and it isn't what Madeline thinks at all. I think that's why I get so irritated.

[Elena]

Finished it! Stayed up till 4 am last night because I couldn't put the book down. A 5 star read for me, liked it even better than The Husband's Secret. One thing for sure, Liane Moriarty knows how to end a book, very satisfying wrap-up all around.

[Laura]

Elena wrote: "Finished it! Stayed up till 4 am last night because I couldn't put the book down. A 5 star read for me, liked it even better than The Husband's Secret. One thing for sure, Liane Mor..."

I liked it better than The Husband's Secrettoo Elena. Definitely a very satisfying ending.

[~Melissa~]

Sarah wrote: "Holy shiat, chapter 77 [spoilers removed]"

Yep - I hadn't seen that coming either,lol

[~Melissa~]

Kaora wrote: "Done!
"

I love it Kaora ~ you're just a tad blood thirsty like me!! (view spoiler)[ I thought he got off a little easy too. Not that dying doesn't suck but he really didn't have to 'pay' publicly for all his bad behavior. I did love that he was exposed while around the basic group of main characters for the asshole that he was (hide spoiler)]

[Sarah]

Joi wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Joi wrote: "I'm on the part where [spoilers removed] This made me think about how things aren't always as they seem. When you're on the outside looking in, anything is possible and up..."

Well she did have PMS - like all the time.

[Kristie]

Sarah wrote: "Holy shiat, chapter 77 [spoilers removed]"

I thought the same thing! Definitely didn't see that coming.

Carmen - Do not click that spoiler!! lol

Laura & Elena - I also liked this better than The Husband's Secret, which I thought was great.

[Kristie]

~Melissa~ (~Cainis~ the Elf) wrote: "Kaora wrote: "Done!
"

I love it Kaora ~ you're just a tad blood thirsty like me!! [spoilers removed]"

end (view spoiler)[ I thought it was great that he was exposed to everyone there, but also that a small, gentle woman is the one that finally did him in. Celeste saying that he had that smirk because he liked when women got mad ticked me off. That's one of those things that would make me want to kill him. So, I thought it was quite fitting that this little woman, that he clearly thought couldn't hurt him and wasn't a real threat, knocked him over the edge. I also like that they all banded together and supported her. (hide spoiler)]

[~Melissa~]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "~Melissa~ (~Cainis~ the Elf) wrote: "Kaora wrote: "Done!
"

I love it Kaora ~ you're just a tad blood thirsty like me!! [spoilers removed]"

end [spoilers removed]"

I know - I totally agree - I loved that (view spoiler)[ he thought she was no threat and Renata with the phone was the real threat. Who knew Bonnie had it in her. That smirk would have pissed me off too. (hide spoiler)]

[Sarah]

I am just really blown away by the character development and plot development. Superb story - it was done just right. And for those who don't have a lot of background in domestic violence and child bullying - Moriarty really does make her characters believable and well researched psychology.

[Kristie]

Absolutely agree, Sarah. I thought they were believable and a lot of the thoughts that Celeste had were very common among women that suffer domestic abuse. I think Liane Moriarty is a fabulous writer.

On a different topic, I think is my favorite buddy read ever. The book was great and perfect for discussing, but also everyone had so much to say. I really enjoyed reading all your comments. Thank you to everyone that shared their thoughts!

[Laura]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Holy shiat, chapter 77 [spoilers removed]"

I thought the same thing! Definitely didn't see that coming.

Carmen - Do not click that spoiler!! lol

Laura & Elena - I also liked this ..."

It was hard to not vote for this book in the goodread nominations. (The only reason I didn't was because the book I had just finished wasn't even nominated and it was fabulous too!)

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Ok I'm on my computer and I have a lot to post. Here comes the spoiler LOL (view spoiler)[Does it seem strange that Celeste doesn't then does mind the abuse? When she went to the therapist she talks about how she wins when they fight and how she likes it when he's gone but also misses Perry. I think she's nuts if she thinks this is ok because Perry is a good father. I'm glad she went to the therapist but what good is it. She needs to get Perry to go with her and they both need help. I'm wondering if there is something going on with Renata and Perry.
I was so glad that Jane spoke up for Ziggy. The poor kids is being blamed for something that no one saw and that none of the kids said that he did and Wow to hear that Ziggy's dad is Perry cousin. Small world isn't it? I like Jane but I think that she may need help with a therapist too. She has issue that she hasn't gotten passed because of "Mr. Banks" He was a jerk to her and she can't seem to get passed that and she puts herself down. I was just happy that Ziggy wasn't a product of a rape. At first when she was talking I thought she was going to say. Ziggy is just a normal kid with tantrums and whiny attitudes.
I love Madeline. She is such a good friend even though she is feeling down because Abigail decided to move in with her father but I think that's a normal reaction to having just being you and your daughter to now being you, your daughter, new family and now dad with his new family.
What I love about this book is that it talks about all the things that goes on in the world today. How people are always making comments about others, how people are jealous about what others have and of course the classic "the in-crowd" group. It's funny because they are all out to get Ziggy removed from the school because they believe that Ziggy is the bully and I'm sure that it's probably one of Celeste and Perry's twin. He is probably mimicking what they see the parents is doing. Well that's my opinion. I guess we shall see. (hide spoiler)]
There's more that I probably missed but I'm going to check out what others are up to and see what they've posted. I'm currently on chapter 54 and will definitely finish this book tonight. I just can't stop and I need to know more and more. :)

[Kristie]

Kaora wrote: "@Kristie @Melissa

That's true. I wish I could have known went through his head those couple seconds to the ground.
"

end:
(view spoiler)[ It was probably, "SHIIIT!!!" lol I wish I could have seen his eyes bug out with recognition. (yes, I know that's a bit evil, but still...) (hide spoiler)] :)

[Joi]

I finished.! I finished. I like how everything is so life-like.

(view spoiler)[I have not been in this situation...but it is very believable that there are abuse victims that react in the same way that Celeste did. They believe that it is something that they did. That they were at fault. That things would change if they could change, if they would just stop doing whatever was making them mad. Celeste was very believable.
I don't like how that lady (I can't remember her name)...I think it was Thea, judged Renata for leaving her husband because he cheated. I feel like every woman is different. Some women know what they will and won't deal with. I feel like these women used children as an excuse to stay in a bad relationship. This goes for Renata, the woman that said it, the lady that actually stayed, and Celeste.
I am so glad that I wasn't wrong about Ziggy. I knew that I couldn't be wrong....and this makes me even gladder that Jane defended him when everyone else was getting on his case. I knew they would all rue the day that they missed with that cute little boy.
I like how Jane reacted in the "come-to-all" meeting. She confronted Perry head on...at that exact moment I could see how much she had grown as a character. She was no longer timid and frail. She'd grown into herself. (hide spoiler)]

That's a lot I know....but I enjoyed this book a lot.

[Kristie]

Joi wrote: "I finished.! I finished. I like how everything is so life-like.

I have not been in this situation...but it is very believable that there are abuse victims that react in the same way that Celeste d..."

(view spoiler)[ I also loved how Jane grew as a character through the story. She stopped worrying about eating as much, stopped chewing gum, and started to really believe in herself, which was awesome. (hide spoiler)]

[Kristie]

Laura wrote: "It was hard to not vote for this book in the goodread nominations. (The only reason I didn't was because the book I had just finished wasn't even nominated and it was fabulous too!)"

I voted for it. :)

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "End of Chapter 34: (view spoiler)[I really expected Jane to say that Ziggy was a product of rape, but I should have expected more from Liane Moriarty's writing.I think what she went through was just as bad and wo (hide spoiler)]..."

I think as a friend (view spoiler)[I would tell her the truth about googling him and if thats who really was I would tell her the rest of what she found. (hide spoiler)]

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Kristin ~ Experiment in Terror Junkie wrote: "Chapter 34(view spoiler)[

I just have to say that I love Madeline.. I'm still not sure what all transpired on the school trivia night, but she is such a strong pe (hide spoiler)]..."

I found this so funny. He's such a nice guy.

[Joi]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Joi wrote: "I finished.! I finished. I like how everything is so life-like.

I have not been in this situation...but it is very believable that there are abuse victims that react in the same way th..."

Yes, I enjoyed that.! She made me proud.

[Kristie]

Hey Carmen! The reply that you posted in message 283 removed the spoiler tag for some reason. Can you go back in and edit it so that it either has a spoiler or just delete some of the words. I don't want to ruin that part for anyone. Thanks!

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Hey Carmen! The reply that you posted in message 283 removed the spoiler tag for some reason. Can you go back in and edit it so that it either has a spoiler or just delete some of the words. I don'..."

Hmm don't know what happened there but I fixed it. Sorry if I ruined it for anyone.

I finished last night and (view spoiler)[towards the ending I was sad for all the boys but also thought it was a revelation for Celeste. I'm glad that she realized that how she was living her life was also effecting her life and her children.
Wow,Renata! I didn't see that coming. I guess she was such a bitch because of what was going on with her husband. I ended up feeling sorry for her but also liking her. She was a pain but not as much of a pain as Hailey, who by the way was also a fool. She was always in everyone's business and doing things that she shouldn't have. I think she was more of a bitch than Renata.
Margaret was a usual divorcee with her issue and she should be happy that she has a good husband like Ed. He is very loyal to her and I would never have asked him to lie because he was right, it was an accident and there shouldn't have been any reason to lie. It's not like Bonnie was looking to take Perry out, she didn't even know what was going on until that night. I guess she was still harboring anger towards all abusive men and Perry was there and with everything that came out just go to Bonnie. I'm just glad she got a lesser charge than murder.
So glad Jane and Tom are together and she's moving along with her life and I thought is was nice of Celeste to include Ziggy in Perry's money. She's really a good person even though she didn't deserve the situation that she was in. (hide spoiler)] Awesome book. I thought it was even better than The Husband's Secret even though it was a good book too.

[♦Ashley♦]

I'm coming to a close, about 20% left. I really liked this book! The interviews between each chapter really helped enhance the storyline. I have never read Moriarty before. I'm a little apprehensive to read her other stuff if everyone likes this better haha:)

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Ashley wrote: "I'm coming to a close, about 20% left. I really liked this book! The interviews between each chapter really helped enhance the storyline. I have never read Moriarty before. I'm a little apprehensiv..."

I only read and it was a good one too but this was really, really good.

[Kristie]

☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎ wrote: "Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Hey Carmen! The reply that you posted in message 283 removed the spoiler tag for some reason. Can you go back in and edit it so that it either has a spoi..."

No problem! Glad you were able to fix it. Every once in a while strange things happen on GR with replies.

Glad you finished and loved it. I also thought it was great and liked it even more than The Husband's Secret. (view spoiler)[ I also felt bad for Renata. I think she overreacted, but it's hard to say how I'd react in her situation. If my daughter came out of school having been strangled by a playmate, I'd be ticked too! I thought Harper was worse, because she involved herself and started that awful petition and all those rumors. She was just a mean person.

I agree that they didn't need to lie in the end, if they all said what really happened, it was clear that it was an accident and not intentional murder. And I think it's great that Celeste included Ziggy too. He is a half-brother to her twins!

I basically just loved the ending. :) (hide spoiler)]

[Laura]

Lots of 5* ratings!!

[Cynthia]

I'm only up to Chapter 33, but it's going to quickly. What a great story! I was initially trying to keep all the people being interviewed straight, but I don't really see the point of it. The comments are interesting, though and add to my enjoyment of the story now that I've stopped trying to keep all the non-essentials straight.

I have to say, after Chapter 32, (view spoiler)[ I'm wondering if Celeste's husband is Ziggy's father. He's such an abusive a$$hole that I can imagine him doing something like that to Jane. Jane's met Ed, so I know it isn't him. I have to believe that the evil Saxon Banks isn't just background.

Still not clue as to which of the 3 are dead. This is an excellent mystery. (hide spoiler)]

[Kristie]

I did that too, Cynthia! The book is much better when you don't worry too much about the extra people. :)

[Cynthia]

Wow. I agree with everyone that says it's better than The Husband's Secret.

I give it 5 stars even though (view spoiler)[ I did guess that Perry was Ziggy's dad early on. I just didn't expect him to be the dead person. I assumed it would be one of the 3 women.

I don't really feel bad that he's dead. Maybe there's hope for his boys now that he's gone. Not much without a lot of intervention, but that's something they wouldn't get if her were alive. (hide spoiler)]

[Sarah]

Thank you everyone for joining this BR with me - seems it was a very popular one.

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎ wrote: "Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Hey Carmen! The reply that you posted in message 283 removed the spoiler tag for some reason. Can you go b..."

I agree with you. I can't wait to see what the author is going to come up with next.

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Cynthia wrote: "I'm only up to Chapter 33, but it's going to quickly. What a great story! I was initially trying to keep all the people being interviewed straight, but I don't really see the point of it. The comme..."

I thought the same thing because of the things going on and the fact that (view spoiler)[Perry was related to him. Then thought maybe there was going to be something to do with Celeste saying something about it and getting really hurt. I was cringing waiting for what was going to come of that situation. (hide spoiler)]

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Sarah wrote: "Thank you everyone for joining this BR with me - seems it was a very popular one."


It was an awesome pick Sarah, thanks :)

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Cynthia wrote: "Wow. I agree with everyone that says it's better than The Husband's Secret.

I give it 5 stars even though..."

I agree. I thought so too, about the murder.

[Becca]

Chapter 19 - (view spoiler)[OMG, I had so much second-hand embarrassment when Jane's mom started rattling off all of Jane's baggage to Madeline! How awkward! Why the heck did she feel compelled to tell all that stuff to M out of nowhere?

Also, feeling a teeny bit irked that the "career moms" are painted as such negative people in this book. I feel a little protective of career moms, and just wish there were a little more balance there. Sure, having some of them be negative is fine, as long as there is a positive representation in there as well. :P That's if I haven't missed that one of the characters other than Renata is a career mom.

Really enjoying this book though :) I am on the edge of my seat devouring every bit of info as it's revealed. I love it! (hide spoiler)]

[Cynthia]

I didn't take it that career moms are depicted poorly. I think that was meant to demonstrate the divide between the stay at homes and the careers.

When I retired, I basically retired my friends from work, too. They live a different life than I do, and do everything at a different pace. It doesn't make them or me any better or worse. We're just different from each other now.

[Kristie]

Becca wrote: "Chapter 19 - [spoiler removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I was shocked and embarrassed for Jane when her mom did that too. I get that she was worried, but that's just awful.

Also, Madeline might not be a "career mom", but she works and so does Jane. (hide spoiler)]

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

~Melissa~ (~Cainis~ the Elf) wrote: "Kaora wrote: "Done!
"

I love it Kaora ~ you're just a tad blood thirsty like me!! [spoilers removed]"

I have to agree with both of you. I thought the same thing and I was so (view spoiler)[proud that Celeste continued her therapy for herself and her twins. (hide spoiler)]

[☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎]

Cynthia wrote: "I didn't take it that career moms are depicted poorly. I think that was meant to demonstrate the divide between the stay at homes and the careers.

When I retired, I basically retired my friends f..."

I feel the same way. It was the same when I became a full time mom. It's just that things are different when you leave the job. People are at a different pace than you are.

[Kristie]

Just something to think about when discussing the way career moms are depicted in the book, Madeline works part time and Jane is also a working mum. She just has a more flexible schedule. Only Renata has a really demanding job and is depicted as a "career mom", but the others aren't really traditional stay-at-home moms either.

[Debbie (Doc)]

Kristie (~ Gaildis, of the Elves ~) wrote: "Just something to think about when discussing the way career moms are depicted in the book, Madeline works part time and Jane is also a working mum. She just has a more flexible schedule. Only Rena..."

I teach at 6 universities and definitely consider myself a career mom. However, I am sometimes depicted differently since I set my own hours and work from home teaching online. Although my friends at at a different pace than me, I am still just as busy or busier than they are.

[Debbie (Doc)]

Is there a certain date that we should have this completed? I am on chapter 34. I just have some strict deadlines this week so I'm not sure how much reading I will go done.

[~Melissa~]

Debbie wrote: "Is there a certain date that we should have this completed? I am on chapter 34. I just have some strict deadlines this week so I'm not sure how much reading I will go done."


There is no set date this needs to be completed.