Novel: Three Wishes
Author: Liane Moriarty
Format: Audiobook
Source: OC Public Library
Rating: 4/5
Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty
Summary
The story starts in a Chinese restaurant where the three Kettle triplets Cat, Lin, and Gemma are celebrating their birthday. Everything is going on smoothly until they start fighting and shouting at each other. The fighting reaches up to a point where one of them throws a fork at her pregnant sister and then herself collapses. And the pregnant sister goes into labor with a fork sticking into her pregnant belly. The restaurant’s manager calls for an ambulance. And the ambulance takes the three sisters to the hospital
When their mother reaches the hospital, she finds them laughing and chatting. She demands the reason for their fight. Thus begins the story from the point they were in their mother’s womb. Followed by the journey through their childhood till present. All this journey to understand why they fought on their own birthday party.
Audiobook
Narrator: Heather Wilds
Publisher: Tantor Media
Number of parts: 12
Duration: 11 hrs 31 minutes
Rating: 4/5
Review: Heather’s Australian accent was a little tough to grasp at first. But it became alright by the end as I got used to it. Her reading pace is pretty good. She brings out the whimsical nature of Gemma, the whininess of Kate and the quiet voice of Lin brilliantly. She gives a unique voice to all the characters other than the three sisters too. That’s why the audiobook gets four out of five rating. I took out one point for the initial difficulty in understanding Heather’s words.
“Baths, she thought, were just like her relationships, all “ooh, ah” in the beginning and then suddenly, without warning, she had to get out, out, out!”
My Thoughts
Let’s meet the three sisters first. Cat and Lin are twins. Gemma is the third triplet. Lin is a successful businesswoman who manages her child, step-child, husband, home, and business single-handedly. She has an extensive to-do list for every task. From outside, you will feel she has it all, a loving husband, a doting daughter, a beautiful home, and successful business. From inside, Lin is grappling with certain issues she hides from everybody.
Gemma was a teacher a few years back. Since her fiance’s death, she has left her job and does house-sitting for people. She is a little careless and appears lost in her own world. Behind her carelessness, she hides a big secret, which again her sisters are unaware of. Cat is married happily and has a job she hates. She considers her marriage strong and happy. The day she discovers her husband’s affair, her life falls apart. Suddenly she gets another loss, that of a child by miscarriage. And one last hit before she stands back up on her feet.
I read this novel last year. Since I had finished no book in the last few days, thought of writing the review for this one. The first half of the novel gets us through the three sisters life from childhood to present. And listening to that first half was both annoying and frustrating. Because the first half was full of sisters bickering and fighting on petty things, being jealous of each other, etc. At that moment, I began wondering why I picked up this novel. Then Cat’s miscarriage and other revelations ahead changed my view. And I became interested in knowing what happens next in the three sisters lives.
Going through the boring first half was necessary to understand the revelations in the second half. What happened to Gemma in her past came as a total surprise to me. Lin’s health problems were a kind of obvious from the start, but it was great to read about how she finally accepted her issues and turned towards her husband and family for help.
Just like “Truly Madly Guilty“, “The Husband’s Secret” and “Big Little Lies“, Liane Moriarty touches on a lot of unconventional topics in this novel. Three Wishes deals with family dynamics, the relationship between sisters, miscarriage, marriage problems, panic attacks, effects of physical abuse, infidelity, etc.
Overall, this novel was worth reading. Her characters seem more real and relatable. They face issues similar to ones we face in our daily life. And this gives you another perspective to look at those similar issues. In this novel, I could relate to Cat and Lyn’s personalities.
Memorable Highlights
There is this advice that the triplet’s mother gives to Cat when she was feeling her life has fallen apart,
You are young. A whole life is infront of you. Stop wanting other’s dreams. Start chasing yours.
Often our friends, our colleagues, our family members have something that we can only dream of and are happy and content. We envy them and their accomplishments and their possessions and wish to have the same. We forget to think of our own goals and needs and allow ourselves to pursue other’s goals and dreams because we want the same spark and happiness. This only leads us to a lot of frustrations and heartbreak. Instead, we should focus on working on our goals and dreams because they might lead us to the same happiness we see in others.
Would I recommend it?
If you love a light mystery and have the patience to read/listen to a long book, then go for Three Wishes.
Have you read this book? Did you like it?Are you planning to read this one? Share your thoughts with me.
Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Reading!
