The Half Moon
by Mary Beth Keane
Pub Date: May 2, 2023
Scribner
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts on this book!
This story captures your heart because it is so real! This book was a sad, realistic, marriage story. This book grabbed me from the beginning. Malcom was a bit slower for me to warm up to.
I liked that the book was hopeful at the end. I liked this book much more than Keane's first novel, Ask Again.
I highly recommend this book.
4 stars

Relationship's... It's complicated. Malcom and Jess have a history, through various circumstances they are brought together and torn apart. Well written, the author moves back and forth between the two characters
telling two very personal perspectives.

I loved the writing and the characters in this story. Mary Beth Keane writes about a marriage that is in trouble after dreams are deflated and the timing and plot are right on.I read this book in two sittings and highly recommend. It is a bit depressing but super realistic as anyone who has struggled in a marriage will agree.
I just loved the way the story moved along and the sidebar mysteries that unfolded and the downright dirty tricks and dealings going on outside of the main story. This is a must read for anyone that needs realistic fiction in their lives.

I am deeply appreciative to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

Keane digs deep into what it means to be married and takes a hard look at where one draws the line. Her fine prose left me cheering for both Malcolm and Jess at different times. Although this story was dark at times, Keane shines a light for you to follow their stories to the end.

Aside from the heartbreaking narrative of living with infertility, this story delves into the missteps of relationships, and how quickly they add up. She poses questions you may even change the answers to once you realize both sides of the story add up to one incredible tale of love, heartache, and second chances—in both love and life.

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC.

This one had moments where I thought it was going to be interesting, but then I got bogged down by the lack of a moving plot. I chose not to finish this one.

I love Mary Beth Keane! 'She has such a beautiful style of writing - cathartic and relatable. I think this one will be a hit, once again. I love the drama of the restaurant and how the familial relationships tie in.

Once I again I call on editors everywhere to EDIT THE BOOK!!! I am curious how so many books seem they had no editor. This was good- but def could have been better with editing.

This is a good book. The characters are well-drawn. The story is well though-out. It's well-written. It's a comfortable story about people I might know. It's about family and history and what it means to be from a particular place. It's about the inner life of a marriage when two people have different dreams and neither wants to tell the other that they just aren't going to happen. That it's time to stop trying. It begins on the eve of a major blizzard, which echos the cold and powerlessness going on inside Malcolm and Jess, and hits the pause button on their lives. From there the it all unfolds.

This novel didn't reach deep inside and strum a chord that will keep playing on long past the last page, or leave me seeing the world in a new way, but I did enjoy reading it. I would give it 3.5 stars, but I can see it being a 5-star read for someone else.

Life is short and this book left me with hopeful feelings and a reminder to stay close to those that make you feel the magic in the everyday.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. This book is well written with developed characters. Three stars.

“The Half Moon” is the latest novel by Mary Beth Keane. This is my first exposure to the author but not the last.

I have been reading and reviewing a lot of thrillers, so I appreciated the opportunity to read a story that slowed down and focused on people struggling at difficult points in their lives. Malcolm is a bartender who dreams of owning his own establishment. Jess is an attorney who fell in love with Malcolm when they were both in their twenties. Then, an unexpected pregnancy led to marriage that led to heartbreak when Jess had a miscarriage and then found herself unable to get and stay pregnant. Flashforward to the present—Malcolm took one too many loans to buy the “Half Moon” while Jess resents Malcolm who she believes has failed to support her through endless rounds of IVF. Marriages do not usually fall apart because of one big event but minor rips and tears; Malcolm and Jess’s story is a fantastic example of that.

There is nothing unique about this plot, but the way the characters jump from the page and tug at your heart strings make this story memorable. I had not previously read “Ask Again, Yes,” but now I want to.

Four and a half stars.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for my advanced copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review.

This is another great character study from Mary Beth Keane. Not a lot really happens in this novel, but you see a married couple, Malcolm and Jess, go through a rough patch in their marriage. They each deal with their issues on their own until they come together to solve some problems. I enjoyed the novel, and would recommend it for anyone who likes contemporary fiction with a focus on character development.

What happens when your current life doesn't match what you thought it would be? That's what's happening with Malcom and Jess. the married couple thought things would be easier, but life keeps throwing curveballs at them. Then over the course of a blizzard, they are forced to reckon with their decisions and determine if they can move forward in a different path.

This book just made me sad. From the beginning you find yourself hoping Mal will just catch a break. Also, MBK writes in such a way that you feel the struggles of the character as if they are your own. There are some life lessons to be learned in this story - it’s like therapy!

Keane is an excellent writer, particularly with character development. The same goes for “The Half Moon.” Malcolm is having a helluva week in this book between his failing marriage with Jess, the struggling bar his somewhat owns, an upcoming snowstorm, worrying about his mom, and a patron who’s gone missing. Some of this felt relatable in how life is, but too many plot points led to the book fizzling out.

I absolutely loved "Ask Again, Yes" so I was really looking forward to this book. I once again enjoyed Mary Beth Keane's writing, but I didn't feel as connected as I wanted to be with the characters and the plot seemed too obvious. I've seen other reviewers complaining about the structure and how the story jumps back and forth in time but that really wasn't an issue for me. I never got confused or annoyed by the flashbacks. The Half Moon just didn't hold up for me next to 'Ask Again, Yes' but that won't stop me from reading whatever Mary Beth Keane writes next.

Enjoyable, well written novel that takes a reader into the lives of a young couple trying to get established after they were married and start a family. As most married couples quickly learn, things rarely go as planned in marriage (or in life for that matter, too). And Jess and Malcolm in the book are no exception when infertility challenges arise. The character development of Malcolm is strong, perhaps a bit too much so, in that at times it overshadows his wife, Jess. A couple subplots are interwoven about halfway through the novel, which keep the storyline moving along. I feel that the novel would still be enjoyable if one of those subplots had been left out. Overall, I think people will enjoy this one and recommend it!

Thank you to the author and Netgalley for my ARC to read and review.

Poetic, compelling and so, so real -- The Half Moon paints a gripping portrait of a failing marriage in small town America. Alternating between Malcolm and Jess's point of view, the novel recounts the events that lead to their separation and what takes place after.

I enjoyed the characterisation of both the focalisers. Keane brought out their virtues and vices subtly, making the characters realistic. The language was beautiful but not over the top, and made for a fairly enjoyable read.

My only criticism is the subplot with Tripp was unnecessary and dragged the book on. It took me about half a day to get through the first two-thirds of the book and then three more to get through the last third. I liked reading it the first time, but I wouldn't read it again.

Thank you to Netgalley for this advanced reader. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The old wooden sign above the door of this bar showcases a carving of a crescent moon, and customers love pointing out how inaccurate the sign is when entering the Half Moon bar.

In storytelling details like this, Keane shines in this slow-burn portrait of a childless couple searching for a purpose and direction in their forties.

The reader is introduced to Malcolm, who worked at the Half Moon bar for twenty-four years before he bought it.

This bar holds a history for him because it is where he has learned everything from fixing a running toilet to soldering a pipe. He also seems to relish being the tried-and-true vessel for his regular customers' worries and complaints. However, his current preoccupation lies not in his joy in running the bar but in the lack of financial resources to make it into the bar he knows it can be.

Meanwhile, Malcolm's wife, Jess, struggles with her own. A successful lawyer, she's been trying for years to start a family but is coming to terms with the possibility that motherhood may not be in her future. This six-and-a-half-year battle consumes Jess's life, where her first waking thought is singularly focused on what her ovaries are doing.

As both Malcolm and Jess confront the reality of their aspirations and the ticking clock of their youth, they must also navigate the turmoil of a tumultuous week that includes the disappearance of a regular customer during a major blizzard in their town.

I loved how Keane writes about the challenges of trying to blend a family and the fertility challenges that her character faces in relatable ways that had me highlighting passages.

This book did not match my expectations of her finely crafted Ask, Again, Yes, but much of that also landed in weird structural waters.

The story jumps from past to present with no clear indication of the change for the reader, making it difficult to keep track of where in the characters' lives certain events occurred.

That doesn't discredit this storyteller, and if you enjoyed We are the Brennans and craving a quiet story, the two were similarly built.

This novel will hit store shelves on May 2nd!

This was my first read from Mary Beth Keene and I hope this book isn’t my last due to how I felt towards Half Moon. I didn’t quite enjoy the time jumps in the story. It made it difficult for me to keep up with the story. I think it was just a little confusing or my liking . How I mentioned before this was my first read from Mary Beth Keene and I’m hoping this book didn’t ruin the rest of her work.
Overalll the story is very real and heartfelt. I know many people who will see themselves along the characters of the book. I really appreciated the character development along the way. This story deals with infertility, divorce, finding one self, and even has a missing person investigation. I would tell people to read this book for themselves and give it a try cause at the end of the day it was a good read.

Interesting characters, interesting plot, well written prose that moves us along. Should be a good fit with our patrons.

I personally stopped at 12% but it should be an easy 3-4 stars for our usual readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for the ARC.