3 out of 5 stars

“Sometimes your life changes so slowly and imperceptibly that you don’t notice it at all until one day you wake up and think, ‘How did I get here?’ But other times, life changes in an instant with a lightning stroke of good or bad luck with glorious or tragic consequences.”

Liane Moriarty, Nine Perfect Strangers

As a Big Little Lies fan, I was expecting a lot from this book. When I got a notice from my library that Nine Perfect Strangers was available for download just in time for a vacation, I was so excited.

In this book, nine strangers gradually arrive to begin their 10-day stay at a wellness retreat, Tranquillum House. Whether it be to heal their marriage, lose weight, detox, or reconnect as a family, each person has come to this remote retreat seeking something different from their stay. 

The book was okay — not terrible, but not great either.  It has eleven characters (including the retreat leaders) and is told through different viewpoints. However, it doesn’t focus equally on each of the characters, which made some of them feel extraneous to the story and weighed the story down.

Frances, a fifty-something former best-selling romance novelist, seemed to be one of the main characters, and I did enjoy her storyline. She had a good arc and had some of the funniest lines in the book.

Overall, this book was a bit of a letdown compared to the other Liane Moriarty books I’ve read.