Sophomore novels are hard as readers so often compare to the debut; I'm going to try hard and not do that here. I really loved that this entire novel takes place over the course of just a week. There's a certain intensity that comes with writing something like that. I also loved the setting; it felt like home. Some of the storylines felt a bit used, but I still cared about the characters so much and couldn't put this book down once I sunk in.

While I loved Ask Again, Yes, unfortunately The Half Moon didn't have quite the same impact on me. The story of a struggling marriage with rather unlikable characters was tough to resonate with. Since I loved Keane's prior novel so much, I'll still be looking forward to more from her in the future.

Mary Beth Keane shines once again in this breathtaking novel. I thought Ask, Again, Yes, would be impossible to top, but this is the best book of 2023 so far.

I loved Ask Again, Yes, and was thrilled to receive an advanced reading copy of The Half Moon. Keene is a master of characterization and I fell in love with both Malcolm and Jess. The story unfolds through dual timelines and carries the same family, multigenerational drama that fills the pages of Ask Again, Yes. The narration focuses on Malcolm and Jess's marriage which is in shambles, but then the reader is privy to flashbacks, memories, and the past to fill in the early days of their relationship, the choices that each made to see their dreams come to life, and the aspects of their marriage that they sacrificed along the way and lead to their separation.

Malcolm is a handsome, charming bartender who dreams of making his recently purchased Half Moon bar a grand success, but must balance the pressures of fulfilling the terms of the deal he made with the bar's previous owner, Hugh, a mobster type who sends his goons to intimidate Malcom. Malcolm is strapped for cash and struggling to remain afloat after the couple spent thousands upon thousands on fertility treatments to fulfill Jess's dream of becoming a mother. The final straw came when Jess, a lawyer, found out about the casual deal that Malcolm made with Hugh in secret, compiled with Malcolm's decision to stop trying for a baby. Jess leaves and seeks comfort in other places.

The way that Keane captures the heartache, confusion, ambivalence, and disappointment that ravage both Malcolm and Jess pulls at your heart strings and at times, fills you with dread for this poor couple. How could they ever pull through this mess they have created?

When a historical blizzard hits the town, Malcolm is forced to confront the reality that is his life as the financial pressures, reality of Jess's betrayal in leaving him, and a strange mystery at the bar bring everything to a head. Jess's choices also catch up to her as she is also snowed in and realizes that maybe what she was longing for was already hers in the ways that are most important. I was so emotionally invested in these characters and won't be soon to forget Malcolm and Jess.

Thank you to Scribner and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Pub Date: May 2, 2023

Actual Rating: 2.0

I was really hoping this would be emotionally harrowing for me, but it unfortunately just didn’t click.

The plot is relatively simple. It follows Malcolm Gephardt and his wife Jess through their marital issues. The bar that Malcolm recently purchased is struggling to stay afloat, and Jess is feeling her youth slip away as the two of them fail to conceive a child.

I think infertility and the marital issues that this book touches on are very worthy topics, but the story itself felt very flat. I found myself not really caring what the outcome would be or not even feeling that this was an important story to tell; there’s also an overarching subplot about a missing bar patron but it’s not something I felt that emotionally invested in. All in all, the final results just felt a little underwhelming.

I actually really enjoyed the tidbits we read about Jess and Malcolm in the past and was kind of craving more of it. I think it might’ve helped me connect with both of them more because ultimately I found both of them bland and not that interesting to follow.

The writing style was fine; there were some great lines but overall everything is pretty straightforward. I think it simply would’ve hit harder had the plot or the characters clicked more with me.

Overall, this is definitely a slow burn. I enjoy those but this one in particular didn’t hit me. The only people I’d recommend this to are those who enjoy slice-of-life contemporary stories, but even within that, there's definitely a more specific, smaller group of people this will click more with.

This started off very slow but picked up once I got used to the writing style and understood the characters. This is a character driven story about a couple who owns a bar and their struggles with infertility.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Mary Beth Keane is an ARTIST. Highly recommend this to anyone that is a fan! All the stars from me. Loved it.

This book just wasn’t for me. As much as I loved Ask Again Yes, I found this book to be hard to follow, slow, and uninteresting. The writing needed some editing down, and I’m sad it just didn’t work for me at all.

Malcolm Gephardt, owner of the struggling Half Moon bar, and his wife Jess are having some serious marital problems. And unfortunately that’s an understatement. At the time that a huge blizzard wipes out Gillam, New York, it’s been seventeen weeks since she left. Over the course of a long snowy weekend, we learn their story. The difficulty of the current state of their marriage is apparent in the present while flashbacks show us the twists and turns of how they got there.

I think it is a challenge to write a book that prioritizes character over plot and unfortunately this one didn’t quite rise to the challenge. I felt that author Mary Beth Keane wrote this book to excel in character development, then worried it wouldn’t be enough so she threw in some unnecessary elements. For example, I often enjoy books told from multiple perspectives and timelines, but this one didn’t pull it off as smoothly as I would have liked. There are also a couple side storylines that don’t feel necessary and therefore distract from the main characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Scribner for the advance copy of this book.

This fantastic book cements author Mary Beth Keane into my favorite authors list. A beautifully written, gripping novel.

The Half Moon by Mary Beth Keane

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.

Award-winning author Mary Beth Keane’s new novel 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, 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.

Out on May 2.

Thank you, Mary Beth Keane, Scribner, and Netgalley, for the gifted eARC.

Malcolm Gephardt has been a bartender at the Half Moon for years. When the owner decides to retire, Malcolm jumps on his offer to buy the bar. Malcolm's wife, Jess, is a lawyer. They have been struggling to have a child for years, the bar isn't doing as well as Malcolm had hoped, and their finances are in shambles. Malcom and Jess's marriage is in a very delicate place right now and may not survive.

If you're looking for a fast-paced, fun, light read, this is not the book for you. The Half Moon is an intimate look at the broken marriage of Malcolm and Jess. It's told over the course of a week, during a snowstorm that shuts down an entire town. We get to read both Malcolm and Jess's POVs in both the past and present. Malcolm and Jess both tell about their life in the present and their experiences of how their marriage got to the place it is. This is a character driven story and not a plot driven story. I love that this book looks at how messy marriage can be, but also how love can bring you through the toughest of times. This book was so beautifully written, and I found myself drawn into Malcolm and Jess's lives and rooting for them to pull through. Trigger Warnings: miscarriage, infertility, infidelity.

As someone experiencing infertility, this book really hit home. I loved Mary Beth Keane's last book- but this one was even better in my opinion. Watching the marriage fall apart- and then slowly mend itself only once it had gone up in flames- was beautiful. Will be reviewing it next week during National Infertility Awareness Week on @overeducatedwomenwithcats and our website www.overeducatedwomenwithcats.com

Many thanks to my friends at @scribner and @simon.audio for this #gifted copies of this book.

Messy. Vulnerable. Relatable.

Growing up watching Disney fairytales, I used to think the kiss indicated the end of the journey. We see the embrace, fireworks erupt, and then they ride off into the sunset. <end scene/curtain call>

But as a grownup, I quickly learned that wasn’t true. The kiss is only the beginning.

It’s rare that I watch fairytales anymore. These days, I tend to find more satisfaction in authenticity. And that is why Keane’s newest novel, The Half Moon, worked so well for me.

We meet Malcomb and Jess in the midst of crisis. Failed dreams, inordinate debt, and poor decisions have left deep cracks in the foundation of their relationship.

It’s a book about a bar that’s really about a marriage. (Ironically, bars and marriages have a lot in common.) Set amongst the backdrop of a life-stopping blizzard, we ponder the frozen status of a husband and wife, wondering if the temperature of their union will thaw alongside the weather outside.

Reading The Half Moon, I was deeply drawn into the predicament Mal and Jess faced.
It felt so REAL. It’s not indicative of my life. And yet, the decisions that pile up…the way small cracks can become something more if not properly handled… I’ve known this to be so true.

There’s a universality to the crisis Keane pens between Malcolm and Jess. An authenticity that I connected with, even in the characters’ most *unlikeable* moments.

And while I think the humanity in this story will find its home with many readers, I also recognize that many plot points will be hard to swallow for some.

As someone who walked the road of infertility, it’s important to note that it plays a big role in this story. More than a decade after my experience, I still felt a bit of a twinge when reading it here.

This made for a terrific buddy read with one of my favorites, @rachellelovesbooks. I loved seeing this book through a different set of eyes as we contemplated the mistakes, the options, and the outcome.

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for the eARC.

I was so excited for this one because I loved Ask Again, Yes. But I did not have a similar experience with this one.

First to note this book is a sloooooow burn. You’re basically 3/4 of the way through the book before things start to really happen. Second one of the side plots seemed pretty far-fetched to me, to the extent that I didn’t even enjoy reading about it.

Third, the resolution to the major plot conflict left me so frustrated. To me, it was unforgivable. But the forgiveness came within one conversation almost.

Anyway, Mary Beth Keane can definitely write there’s no questioning that. I just didn’t vibe with this one. 2.5 stars rounded up.

Contemporary story about a couple in crisis. Infertility, avoiding difficult subjects and just taking each other for granted. Glad it ended well.

The story drug at first - then seemed to rush to clean itself up! Did not like Jess - she came across as selfish and flighty.

I received an electronic ARC from Scribner through NetGalley.
Malcolm and Jess's marriage has been shaky since almost the beginning. Readers meet them several years in after much of the damage has been done. Jess has moved out to create some space and Malcolm is in danger of losing the bar he worked so hard to own. The title comes from the bar's name - a clever name for the bar.
After reading Keane's Ask Again, Yes, I looked forward to this story of two people dealing with an unexpected pregnancy, loss, marriage, infidelity, and secrets. However, both characters were flat and didn't develop throughout the book. Neither is easy to connect with so it's difficult to feel emotionally involved. We do see the events from both sides as the story unwinds. In the end, they are back together but the book closes with the real work of reconciliation to come.

Enjoyed from beginning to end getting an intimate look at a marriage.a couple struggling.She a lawyer struggling to conceive her husband a bartender dealing with his job their difficulties.So well written so involving another wonderful story by MaryBeth Keane.#netgalley #scribner

4/5 stars.
Loved this! Jess is a lawyer and Malcom works at a bar. Malcom takes over when his boss retires, with a dream of what he wants everything to look like with new ownership. Jess wants a baby, and they are struggling to have one. The story follows the impact this has on them and their relationship.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you to Scribner and Net Galley for the advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review. First off, The Half Moon; great title, beautiful cover. I’ve heard of the author before but this is my first read by them.

The story is contemporary fiction dealing with a failing marriage due to infertility. I’ve read novels on this topic before and they usually draw me in. The Half Moon didn’t allow me to connect emotionally with the characters in the way I wanted to. Maybe it was the multiple timelines or the immense detail in every paragraph. I found myself getting bored, and sadly, not at all interested in how the story would end.

I think the setting is great (The Half Moon is a cool name for a bar) and the characters had great potential. I just felt let down by the execution of the story. 1.5/5 stars.

While the topic of this book is basic, it is the writing and the storytelling that captured me and compelled me to read this book at every possible opportunity. A bartender and a lawyer are married and trying to conceive a child. But let me tell you, all the nuances that go along with those two are so convincingly depicted, that I wanted to find out what happens next. I really enjoyed reading this book. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.