Discoving a New Author: Liane Moriarty

While I read regularly, sometimes I am at a loss for what to pick up next. I'm not very good about keeping a running list of books to check out so often I scramble to find  my next read. I love it when I enjoy a book by a new author and discover that he/she has written several more. This is always a great moment as I know I won't be short on reading material for a while. Thus is my recent experience with the work of Liane Moriarty.

I came across her book Big Little Lies in early January and read it in the course of a week. It was great, and I discovered she had written more books so I set out to read them. To date, I have finished five out of her six novels.

I first discovered Ms. Moriarty as Big Little Lies was on the "Staff Picks" shelf at the MSU library. I found the next three books, The Hypnotist's Love Story, What Alice Forgot, and The Husband's Secret, at the Bozeman Public Library. Immediately after I had read the fourth of her books and was planning to find the last two, I stumbled across Three Wishes at one of Bozeman's community libraries.  How coincidental. Don't you love it when that happens?!

Big Little Lies centers around a group of mums (Yes, mums not moms. The book is set in Australia.) and takes a humorous look at the drama that surrounds their children's elementary school. It is a great combination of a light-weight work of fiction that touches on some bigger issues - domestic violence, bullying, relationships, work and more. A suspenseful plot is woven into the story in the form of quotes that end each chapter and that, along with the lively characters, kept me reading.

All of Ms. Moriarty's other books take on a similar format.  They all combine light-weight plots with bigger issues in life, and there are elements of suspense in a majority of her stories. Additionally, each novel takes place in Australia. Many of the characters are mothers with young children and most of them deal with some sort of relationship issue. I wouldn't say all of the characters are the same but there are definitely a lot of similarities among them. However, the plot lines vary widely and by touching on a variety of deeper issues, from stalking to dealing with grief to keeping secrets, Ms. Moriarty has made all of the books unique. The Hypnotist's Love Story had a lot of formulaic romantic elements and was my least favorite of her books but it was still a really good read.

I'd highly recommend Liane Moriarty's novels to anyone looking for a beach read with a bit more substance. Are there any new authors you have discovered lately? What is it about their work that keeps you reading? Please leave your thoughts in the comments section of this post (You can do so anonymously so no need to set up an account.)

Liane Moriarty Books Ranked By the A-List
(Note that the A-List found all of these books to  worth reading. The last books on the list is by no means bad.)

• Big Little Lies
• Three Wishes
• What Alice Forgot 
• The Husband's Secret
• The Hypnotist's Love Story 

Not Yet Ranked

• The Last Anniversary- this is the only one I haven't read!