The Half Moon was a "hate-to-put-down" novel for me, one of the first in a long time. The married couple, seeing themselves approaching middle age, were so likable and believable, as were the small-town neighbors who surrounded them.
Malcolm has long been a popular bartender at the Half Moon, a local bar. Now, he goes against the advice of his lawyer wife Jess to purchase both the bar and the property it stands on. Their marriage has been on sorta shakey ground anyway, following years of unsuccessful tries at in-vitro fertilization. To me, the main conflict of the book was a loving couple, both watching their dreams shrivel, who must try to discover what the next steps are for themselves and their marriage.
I felt that Malcolm and Jess, their mothers, and their best friends, became people I knew, and wanted only the best for.
Other plot elements are interesting and riveting: a town-stopping snowstorm; a customer who has disappeared; business fraud; a single father of three small children. But, what I will remember is the inner lives of Malcolm and Jess as they make life-time decisions with the best intentions.
I will tell you that the resolution was satisfying to me, and hope you will feel the same. The book is not long, and you will read it quickly.
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