“An insightful, riveting study of marriage.” —People
From the bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes, a masterful and “absorbing” (The New York Times) novel about a couple in a small town navigating the complexities of marriage, family, and longing.
Malcolm Gephardt, handsome and gregarious longtime bartender at the Half Moon, has always dreamed of owning a bar. When his boss finally retires, Malcolm stretches to buy the place. He sees unquantifiable magic and potential in the Half Moon and hopes to transform it into a bigger success, but struggles to stay afloat.
His smart and confident wife, Jess, has devoted herself to her law career. After years of trying for a baby, she is facing the idea that motherhood may not be in the cards for her. Like Malcolm, she feels her youth beginning to slip away and wonders how to reshape her future.
“A quick and impactful read that will stay with you long after you finish it” (theSkimm), The Half Moon takes place over the course of one week when Malcolm learns shocking news about Jess, a patron of the bar goes missing, and a blizzard hits the town of Gillam, trapping everyone in place. With a deft eye and generous spirit, Mary Beth Keane explores the disappointments and unexpected consolations of midlife, the many forms forgiveness can take, the complicated intimacy of small-town living, and what it means to be a family.
Genre: Literary Fiction
From the bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes, a masterful and “absorbing” (The New York Times) novel about a couple in a small town navigating the complexities of marriage, family, and longing.
Malcolm Gephardt, handsome and gregarious longtime bartender at the Half Moon, has always dreamed of owning a bar. When his boss finally retires, Malcolm stretches to buy the place. He sees unquantifiable magic and potential in the Half Moon and hopes to transform it into a bigger success, but struggles to stay afloat.
His smart and confident wife, Jess, has devoted herself to her law career. After years of trying for a baby, she is facing the idea that motherhood may not be in the cards for her. Like Malcolm, she feels her youth beginning to slip away and wonders how to reshape her future.
“A quick and impactful read that will stay with you long after you finish it” (theSkimm), The Half Moon takes place over the course of one week when Malcolm learns shocking news about Jess, a patron of the bar goes missing, and a blizzard hits the town of Gillam, trapping everyone in place. With a deft eye and generous spirit, Mary Beth Keane explores the disappointments and unexpected consolations of midlife, the many forms forgiveness can take, the complicated intimacy of small-town living, and what it means to be a family.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"A masterful novel that tells with great tenderness how love goes wrong and how, with hope, it can be righted. Mary Beth Keane is an unnervingly talented novelist - dead-on brilliant, authentic, full of humour, and possessing a dark and comforting wisdom. The Half Moon is a triumph." - Adrienne Brodeur
"I fell in love with The Half Moon from the first page, and barely looked up until I'd finished. Mary Beth Keane has written another brilliantly absorbing novel about complicated marriages and family dynamics - how they shape us, yes, but how they undo us as well. Prepare to lose yourself in this book." - Sara Collins
"Mary Beth Keane writes to the heart of the human heart. She shows us how love can deepen, how love can stall - hang in the sky like a half moon, waxing and waning in the same moment, equal parts shadow and light. I could not put this book down." - Miranda Cowley Heller
"Mary Beth Keane is one of our finest writers on the interior complexities of marriage and family. She shines a flashlight on the intricate clockwork of love and longing that runs inside us; and because of the thoughtfulness of that examination, beauty and possibility are visible. I ran my finger over sentences while reading, thinking: Yes, exactly. This kind of fiction recognizes us, and allows us to look around our own lives with respect and kindness, and is therefore a great gift." - Ann Napolitano
"I fell in love with The Half Moon from the first page, and barely looked up until I'd finished. Mary Beth Keane has written another brilliantly absorbing novel about complicated marriages and family dynamics - how they shape us, yes, but how they undo us as well. Prepare to lose yourself in this book." - Sara Collins
"Mary Beth Keane writes to the heart of the human heart. She shows us how love can deepen, how love can stall - hang in the sky like a half moon, waxing and waning in the same moment, equal parts shadow and light. I could not put this book down." - Miranda Cowley Heller
"Mary Beth Keane is one of our finest writers on the interior complexities of marriage and family. She shines a flashlight on the intricate clockwork of love and longing that runs inside us; and because of the thoughtfulness of that examination, beauty and possibility are visible. I ran my finger over sentences while reading, thinking: Yes, exactly. This kind of fiction recognizes us, and allows us to look around our own lives with respect and kindness, and is therefore a great gift." - Ann Napolitano
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