Foursome is the third book that Jane Fallon has written and each book has been a winner as far as I am concerned. Foursome is no exception and it has all the ingredients for a really good read. I loved it from the moment I picked it up to the very last word and it definitely left me wanting more.

The book tells the story of two couples who are all great friends and have been so ever since their university days twenty years before. They live near each other, spend a yearly holiday together and often look after each other’s children. Life is ideal for Rebecca, Dan, Isabel and Alex. That is until Alex announces one day that he is leaving Isabel and their cosy circle is torn apart! Life becomes even more complicated when Alex declares undying love for Rebecca. She tells him in no uncertain terms that she is not interested but should she tell Dan or Isabel or should she keep Alex’s behaviour to herself?

Once Alex has been rejected by Rebecca, he turns quite nasty and it makes all three of the others wonder whether they ever really knew him. He uses Rebecca’s colleague Lorna and then when he finishes the short lived relationship, Lorna goes to pieces and Rebecca finds herself having to cover in the theatrical agency where they both work. This often takes the reader into another aspect of the book which is a glimpse into the life of a small but reasonably successful agency and some of its more interesting clients! I loved this aspect of the novel and found it quite absorbing and fascinating.

“The pace of the novel is very good and makes you want to keep reading more.”

This is just a flavour of the many complications that arise in this novel and some of the dilemmas that face the characters. Rebecca does not know whether to share some of Alex’s behaviour with her best friend and husband, and when she discovers something about Isabel’s new man, she does not know whether to divulge that information either! Also, Rebecca and Dan feel totally adrift as they have lost their best friends as a couple and as a consequence their social life suddenly plummets. Therefore they are on a quest to find some new best friends! This part of the book, when they discuss possibilities is actually quite funny but also illustrates well how difficult it is for friends when a couple separates.

Rebecca is the main character in this book and she is the one who tells the story. I always like first person narratives as you feel that you are really able to get inside a character’s head and this is definitely the case with Rebecca. She is a great character – often trying to do her best although not above having a few flaws of her own. Her relationships with the other characters are totally believable and she is the sort of person you could quite easily want for your own best friend!

The pace of the novel is very good and makes you want to keep reading more. There is enough going on but not too much and the different storylines are interwoven well. I don’t really want to say anything about the ending but I must say that it is very satisfying. I say this because too often I feel that the end of books I read are hurried or inconclusive and I end up with a big question mark in my head. In contrast, this is very satisfying as is the whole read.

I read this very enjoyable book in a matter of days which is always a good sign and towards the end it was virtually ‘unputdownable’! It’s a great book and I will be eagerly anticipating Jane Fallon’s next offering!

Jane Fallon

Foursome
by Jane Fallon

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