If one were to do a survey of the larger stressors life can put on a marriage, Jess and Malcolm have had more than their fair share. Infertility, financial strain, the ups and downs of owning a local bar called The Half Moon, and--most recently--swirling rumors of a one-sided infidelity.
Set over the course of one week's time against the backdrop of a debilitating snowstorm in the Northeast, "The Half Moon" is a slow burn character examination of an ordinarily-imperfect marriage across its origin, past, and fractured present. Despite being such a straightforward, unembellished story, the amount of sheer concentration it took to read this book was frustrating from the onset; unfortunately, I attribute this both to Keane's dull, heavy-handed narration and the nonlinear timeline jumps that occur throughout the story with nearly-imperceptible context clues.
All in all, the premise coupled with Keane's praise for "Ask Again Yes" was enough for me to dive into "The Half Moon" without a second thought. Regrettably, I could feel myself forgetting this book as I was reading it. Despite the almost claustrophobic focus on Malcolm and Jess the entire story, they felt one-dimensional and undeveloped. Further, the bits of peripheral plot that were tossed into the story held some initial promise but fizzled and felt random at-best by the end.
For such an ordinary story, it needed extraordinary heart, characters, or prose to make it stand out; and I'm sorry to say that for me, all three were lacking.
Rating: 2 Stars
Publication Details: Out 5/2/2023, Scribner
*Huge thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing my review copy!*
