An absorbing, moving, ruefully tender, witty, and wise novel of marriage, motherhood and the paths we navigate through both, for fans of Ann Patchett and Anne Tyler.
Journalist and single mother Suzy Hamilton gets a phone call one summer morning and finds out that the subject of one of her investigative exposes, 25-year-old wellness blogger Tracey Doran, has killed herself overnight. Suzy is horrified by this news but copes in the only way she knows how – through work, mothering, and carrying on with her ill-advised, tandem affairs.
The consequences of her actions catch up with Suzy over the course of a sticky Sydney summer. She starts receiving anonymous vindictive letters and is pursued by Tracey’s mother wanting her, as a kind of rough justice, to tell Tracey’s story, but this time, the right way.
Set in Sydney’s inner-western suburb of Glebe, Maley explores the life of Suzy and her spiral into grief, cancel culture and the power of motherhood. With excellent characters, a powerful story and the wonderfully messy Sydney setting, Maley highlights some of today’s most prevalent themes in her impressive debut.
I was really impressed with Maley’s character work. The chaos of seeing her interact with Tracey’s mother and deal with the consequences of her actions made for some tense and grief-stricken moments, and I really felt for both these characters.
Another standout feature of the novel was the setting. I pass through Glebe most days on my way to work and seeing it brought to life so vividly here took the story to a whole new level for me. I enjoyed Maley’s depiction of the suburb, with the familiar, graffiti-filled streets and the crowded cafes. A perfect setting for her chaotic characters.
A tender, absorbing, intelligent and moving exploration of guilt, shame, female anger, and, in particular, mothering, with all its trouble and treasure, The Truth About Her is mostly though a story about the nature of stories – who owns them, who gets to tell them, and why we need them. An entirely striking, stylish and contemporary novel, from a talented new writer.
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