Overview

An Amazon Charts bestseller.

Honesty is the best policy…except maybe when it comes to marriage in this brilliant novel about the high price of perfection from bestselling author Camille Pagán.

Wife. Mother. Breadwinner. Penelope Ruiz-Kar is doing it all—and barely keeping it together. Meanwhile, her best friend, Jenny Sweet, appears to be sailing through life. As close as the two women are, Jenny’s passionate marriage, pristine house, and ultra-polite child stand in stark contrast to Penelope’s underemployed husband, Sanjay, their unruly brood, and the daily grind she calls a career.

Then a shocking tragedy reveals that Jenny’s life is far from perfect. Reeling, Penelope vows to stop keeping the peace and finally deal with the issues in her relationship. So she and Sanjay agree to a radical proposal: both will write a list of changes they want each other to make—then commit to complete and total honesty.

What seems like a smart idea quickly spirals out of control, revealing new rifts and even deeper secrets. As Penelope stares down the possible implosion of her marriage, she must ask herself: When it comes to love, is honesty really the best policy?

Review

Penelope is struggling through life, marriage and motherhood. She has two wonderful, boisterous kids, a great job, a husband she loves, even if he is a little bit of a dead beat. But, she is so tired of carrying this heavy load. She feels overwhelmed and completely under appreciated. Plus, she compares herself to other moms, especially her best friend Jenny. Jenny has an immaculate home, she is always there with cupcakes to every school function and she and her husband have the perfect marriage….or so it seems on the outside. Penny finds Jenny dead one day from an overdose. Then all the secrets start to come out!

Penny is a tough, tired lady and when her best friend dies she realizes something has to change in her life. She has a heart-to-heart talk with her husband. So, they come up with an idea to create a list of what they need from the other person. Penny wants…what all women want. Sanjay needs to get a job and help more around the house. She never truly expected Sanjay to give her a list. Well, he did!

I love the paradox this novel creates…is honesty the best policy? We are all for it when we get to tell the other person what is wrong with them…but can we take what is wrong with us? The author did a fantastic job with Penny’s feelings. And when Sanjay gets his act together…I can see why she fell in love with him to begin with. I enjoy these characters so much. They are so real! I struggled right along with Penny. We have all been there.

A wonderful story about life and marriage. Need a good, quick read…this one is for you!

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