Title: The Intermission by Elyssa Friedland
Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Contemporary, Women’s Fiction
Length: 368 pages
Book Rating: C+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
Have you ever had a secret so gut-wrenching you couldn’t tell anyone, not even the person who shares your bed? Told from the alternating perspectives of a husband and wife who both have something to hide, this incisive novel pulls back the curtain on a seemingly-happy marriage, posing the question: how much do we really know–and how much should we want to know–about the people we love the most?
After five long years, the unshakable confidence Cass Coyne felt as a bride is gone. Her husband, Jonathan, on the other hand, is still smitten. It’s true that the quirks he once found charming in his wife–her high standards, her refusal to clean the dishes–are beginning to grate. But for him, these are minor challenges in a healthy relationship.
So it comes as a complete shock to Jonathan when Cass suddenly requests a marital “intermission”: a six-month separation during which they’ll decide if the comfortable life they’ve built is still the one they both want.
Aside from a monthly custodial exchange of their beloved dog, contact will be limited. But as the months pass, they begin to see that calculated silences just like these have helped to drive them apart–and that it may finally be time to confront the blistering secrets they’ve been avoiding.
Review:
The Intermission by Elyssa Friedland is a leisurely paced exploration of a marriage during a couple’s six month separation.
Cass and Jonathan Coyne have weathered a few ups and downs over the course of their five year marriage. Jonathan is from a wealthy family and currently works for a very successful hedge fund. Cass works in theater marketing but she is currently out of work following the death of her beloved boss. Despite a few annoyances with one another, they are, by all appearances, quite happy. Which is why Jonathan is blindsided by Cass’s announcement she would like a six month “intermission” (which is in actuality a separation) from their marriage. While Jonathan remains in New York, Cass heads to Los Angeles where she works for a movie producer while living with an old college friend. At the end of their “intermission” will Cass and Jonathan decide their marriage is worth saving?
Cass and Jonathan’s family background could not be more different. After her parents’ divorce, Cass and her mother frequently move and their finances remain extremely precarious. Cass works hard all through school and she is rewarded with a scholarship to an elite university. In sharp contrast, Jonathan grows up in the lap of luxury and enjoys a privileged lifestyle. Cass and Jonathan’s paths cross in college but it is not until a few years after graduation they begin dating. Despite the fact Cass never fits in with in-laws, they are blissfully happy together after their wedding.
Neither Cass nor Jonathan are particularly likable characters and this does not change by the novel’s end. Their marriage suffers from a basic lack of communication and honesty and over time, this erodes the foundation of their relationship. Cass is rather manipulative and self-absorbed and Jonathan resents the fact he is continually guessing at what Cass wants from him. Both are harboring fairly big secrets from one another and neither is upfront about the missteps and mistakes they have made. The fate of their marriage hangs in the balance right up until the novel’s end but readers might not be overly invested in whether they reunite or divorce.
The Intermission is well-written but both the plot and characters are a little superficial. The pacing is slow due to the overly long and meandering passages. Elyssa Friedland effectively creates tension about the fate of the couple’s marriage but the ending is somewhat rushed and a little unsatisfying.
