Book Review: Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty

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Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty: If family drama books are one of your favorite types of books to read. With the equal quality of mystery in it that reveals such a piece of information to you, you remain interested and keep reading right until the big reveal at the end. Then you are in the right place. I am reviewing a domestic thriller novel, ” The Apples Never Fall” by Liane Moriarty. The story is about the mother’s disappearance and a family drama.

Apples Never Fall follows the four gorgeous red fruits, the Delaney siblings. They were tennis stars but never quite good enough to be a champion. As their parents ran a well-regarded Tennis academy which they recently sold to live their retired life blissfully, after their mother’s disappearance, the four adult children have to face the terrible possibility that police have identified their father as a possible suspect in the case.

It’s a family mystery story about marriage, family, sibling rivalry as a family struggle. The entire book outlines the similarities among siblings and families, and the expression fits perfectly. It will make you think about the complicated relationships that family members have.

The book took you on an emotional roller coaster and if you want a small ride to this before reading this book without spoilers, join the ride with me.

Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty | Book Review 

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Author

Liane Moriarty 

Liane Moriarty is an Australian author, born and raised in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. After leaving school, she worked in advertising and marketing at a legal publishing company and ran her own before working as a freelance advertising copywriter. Then in 2014, she enrolled in a master’s degree from Macquarie University in Sydney also wrote her first novel, three wishes, as part of the degree.

Moriarty has written nine novels, including the New York bestseller Big little lies and nine perfect strangers, which were customized into the television series of HBO and Hulu, respectively. The Apples Never Fall was her ninth novel which Henry Holt and Company published in 2021.

Overview | Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty

Apples Never Fall a Thriller domestic fictional novel by Liane Moriarty, published on 14 September 2021. The novel focuses on marriage, siblings, family drama, secrets, and how the people we love the most can hurt us the deepest.

The novel is a mixture of a mystery thriller with contemporary fiction like family dynamics and some mystery element themes with repeating history itself. Following two present-day and a year before, chapters are told from the different family members’ perspectives.

Why is the book called apples never fall? As the title may remind you of the similar famous phrase “apples never fall far from the tree,” which means a child usually has a similar character or similar qualities to their parents. The question applies in two ways, one for Stan (that he didn’t fall from the tree) and Savannah, also be used to the four children who grow up and show similarities to their parents.

Who is the main character? The story is about the Delaney family led by Joy and Stan Delaney. Joy Delaney is the wife of Stan, mother of four tennis players, and co-owner of Delaney’s tennis. Joy’s husband, Stan Delaney, is Delaney’s tennis academy co-owner. The four Delaney children – Amy, Troy, Brooke, and Logan, all were tennis stars at their own time, but none of them had taken to go all the way. One more character mysteriously visits Stan and Joy’s house, named Savannah. 

Summary | Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty

The story follows the four siblings Delaney after the disappearance of their 69-year-old mother named Joy Delaney. The police soon recognized their father, Stan Delaney as a possible victim involved in this case.

Joy and Stan Delaney met as tennis champion tennis players more than 50 years ago. They both ran a well-honored tennis academy until their retirement. They sold their academy and are ready to start the golden years of their life. Their long, complex relationship marriage has filled with the passion for the game of tennis for each other and their children.

Days passed, and Joy remained missing. Police became involved in the case by setting up the mystery and then searching months into the past to solve it. As they try to solve the mystery of what happened to her or where she went, the four siblings Troy, Brooke, Logan, and Amy were compelled to present the truth about their relationship with each other, their parents, and their parents.
A strange woman named Savannah knocks on Stan and Joy’s door to entangle the event, bleeding after a fight with her boyfriend. Delaney happily gives her sympathy, which she painfully needs.

Later, when Joys goes missing, and now this strange woman is here to be found, the police question the one person who claims to be innocent. Stan, like many husbands, had a lot to hide with them. Two of the Delaney children think that their father is clear, which the other two were unsure of, but they were against each other perhaps. The Delaney family starts to check their family secrets in a very new light thoroughly.

What to Take Away from The Book?

Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty Cover image
Source: Entertainment Weekly

The story is about the disappearance of a woman, and it’s about sibling rivalry, sibling love, family secrets, competition, and tennis. You will read about the suspenseful mystery through the life of the Delaney family. That is how they deal with the disappearance of their wife and mother. The book moves back and forth from the present to the past, whereas children search for the answer and suspect the murder.

The story is written in short chapters, and each chapter is beautifully written from a different point of view and is told by other characters. The characters are drawn with such incredible psychological depth so that you can explore many facets of their personalities. The author provides an opportunity to learn more about each character in the novel. They are fascinating and quirky people to spend time with.

What do I Feel About the Book?

I like the complexity of marriage and family, twists of being human and loving. In general, the novel shows the family dynamics and secrets of each member of the family. As you delve more into the novel, all the secrets held by each member will open to you, which makes you think about the relationship that family members have. 

The beginning was a little hard to get into but as you read throughout the book the ending will fully satisfy you.

I enjoyed reading about their complicated lives and going into these four adult siblings’ heads. The contemporary fictional family drama is the strongest part of the book.

Rating of the Book | Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty

The book Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty earned 3.5/5 stars.

Conclusion & Recommendations | Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty

If you find it interesting reading about the siblings and their complicated relationships with each other and their parents, I would recommend this novel. The Apples never fall by Liane Moriarty. The Delaney family members were so well thought out and developed throughout the story that you can’t help but love them. Just try out reading this novel.

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