This is the second big read by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney. You’ve probably heard of her first book, The Nest! Although so many LOVE that book, I didn’t really 🤷. So, I was definitely intrigued to read Good Company to find out if I liked it better. Read on to find out!
Disclosure – We earn a small commission for any items purchased through the Amazon or Bookshop.org links below at no extra cost to you. These earnings are put toward our website hosting costs. Thank you for supporting Literary Quicksand!
The Summary
Flora Mancini has been happily married for more than twenty years. But everything she thought she knew about herself, her marriage, and her relationship with her best friend, Margot, is upended when she stumbles upon an envelope containing her husband’s wedding ring—the one he claimed he lost one summer when their daughter, Ruby, was five.
Flora and Julian struggled for years, scraping together just enough acting work to raise Ruby in Manhattan and keep Julian’s small theater company—Good Company—afloat. A move to Los Angeles brought their first real career successes, a chance to breathe easier, and a reunion with Margot, now a bona fide television star. But has their new life been built on lies? What happened that summer all those years ago? And what happens now?
With Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney’s signature tenderness, humor, and insight, Good Company tells a bighearted story of the lifelong relationships that both wound and heal us.
My Review
I enjoyed Good Company! It has been a few years since I read The Nest, so who knows, maybe I would like it better now? It seems like most people are the other way around, but I liked Good Company more.
This book was really a deep look at relationships, especially romantic ones, and what happens when something that was taken for granted is maybe not as solid as it appeared. Flora’s relationship turns into something entirely unexpected when she finds her husband’s “lost” right, clearly not lost. She deals with a lot of “what now?” kind of questions about her family and her marriage.
Meanwhile, Flora’s best friend, Margot, is facing a different kind of marriage question. Her husband suffered an early stroke, turning him into a man she’s not sure she recognizes anymore.
I thought this was a wonderful deep dive into relationships, parenthood, family, and friendships. If you like a lot of action happening in your books, this one might not be for you. If you enjoy largely character-driven stories about love and marriage, you’ll probably like Good Company.
The book had some great insight into love and relationships and how they evolve that I enjoyed, so I gave it a solid 3.5 (rounded up to 4) stars.
