APPLES NEVER FALL

Liane Moriarty MACMILLAN AUSTRALIA, RRP $33

Settling in with a new Liane Moriarty novel is a bit like a catch-up with an old friend or bingewatching a favourite series. Longtime tennis coaches Joy and Stan Delaney have packed up their hectic lives and tennis school for a wellearned retirement. But downtime together starts to prove more challenging than expected. Their four adult children also have not aced their personal and professional lives as their super-organised parents had planned or expected. And when a mysterious woman knocks on the Delaneys’ door late at night – and doesn’t leave – the dynamics change again. While Joy and Stan love the visitor’s attention, the kids start to get edgy and suspicious. And then Joy goes missing. Using alternate timelines, Moriarty expertly weaves secrets, lies, resentment, rivalries, police drama, family dysfunction and even the Covid pandemic into a page-turner that keeps readers guessing. This could well be her best effort yet.

CARINA BRUCE VERDICT: Brilliant