Same as it Ever Was by Claire Lombardo

Same as it Ever Wasby Claire Lombardo 

ARC from PRH Audio and Doubleday for an honest review 

Book Blurb:

Julia Ames, after a youth marked by upheaval and emotional turbulence, has found herself on the placid plateau of mid-life. But Julia has never navigated the world with the equanimity of her current privileged class. Having nearly derailed herself several times, making desperate bids for the kind of connection that always felt inaccessible to her, she finally feels, at age fifty seven, that she has a firm handle on things. She’s unprepared, though, for what comes next: a surprise announcement from her straight-arrow son, an impending separation from her spikey teenaged daughter, and a seductive resurgence of the past, all of which threaten to draw her back into the patterns that had previously kept her on a razor’s edge.

My Review: 3.5 stars

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Same as it Ever Was by Claire Lombardo was a strong follow-up for this author’s sophomore novel. I think there is always the most pressure on authors for book number two; can It live up to book number one?  

The premise of the book will definitely strike a chord with many women in mid-life. It focuses on a woman who at fifty-seven reunites with an acquaintance, Helen, who soon becomes her lifeline. When she meets Helen’s son and connects with him on an emotional and physical level, she starts to live a double life. How this affects her family life, the upcoming marriage of her son and her overly clichéd daughter was presented in many ways.

There were times this book offered insight that made me think about how fast the kids grow, the regrets we have and the things we could’ve done differently. On the flip side, she also had a negative attitude and poor self-esteem. She was quite unlikeable, and the author gave Julia a voice that was often “the glass is half empty” rather half-full. I didn’t have a problem with that because it’s how she was characterized and that in turn affected her decision making. 

This one was a quick listen for me, but I understand from other readers that it felt longer to read. I think that’s probably because there was a lot of inner monologues swirling inside the main character’s head. Fans of family dramas will really like this one. 

Quotes I liked:

Parenthood was a persistent cruelty, a constant, simultaneous desire to be together and apart.”

“It was a cliché to be this person; she got bored just thinking about it, the sadness over nothing, the fact that she was resentful of the easiest life in the world. And yet she couldn’t help herself.”

“She had a tendency, she knew, to turn people into her enemies before they’d actually had a chance to wrong her, just for the sake of cleanliness.”