4 Stars
Katie and Mia are polar opposites, but growing up they were also as close as two sisters could possibly be. Now adults, they have grown apart. Katie has maintained her status as the responsible one and Mia her free-spirit counterpart. When Mia decides to quit her job and travel around the world with her best friend Katie is disappointed, but not terribly surprised. One thing she did not expect was a phone call letting her know that Mia committed suicide by jumping off a cliff in Bali. Katie finds herself unable to let go of Mia and can’t believe someone so strong suddenly killed herself. In an effort to obtain the closure she needs, Katie decides to use the entries in Mia’s travel journal to duplicate her final trip.
Although my reading taste pretty much runs the gamut, "Swimming at Night" probably would not have been a book that piqued my interest without a bit of divine intervention from NetGalley. I was a little terrified that this was going to either attempt to be a mystery where the completely average Katie suddenly becomes a supersleuth *queue dramatic music* or, on the flipside, some dramatic crybaby festival that made me rage out. That being said, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. Katie does not attempt to become a modern day Agatha Christie – she truly just wants to follow Mia’s path so she can let her go, and there was just the right amount of "Mia is f-ed up because blah, blah, blah, blah" without ever being whiny. The characters were well-developed, the imagery painted by Ms. Clarke was absolutely beautiful and the plot remained believable throughout. If you’re looking for a book that explores the dynamic of familial relationships and what makes them tick, this is a pretty good choice. (And it has a pretty cover. How am I always won over by the stinking cover? I’m so cheap!)
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