Quirky and fond, a humorous take on spending 3 months at home with her parents in rural France - Miranda observes their ailments, their fading memories and the pettiness of their marriage while the reader finds out about their relationship and their past from Miranda's mother's diary entries as a teenage college student

I’m still processing how I feel about this one. It’s both wryly observant and deeply melancholic—a novel that captures the complicated entanglements of family life with biting wit and an undercurrent of sadness.

Set in rural France, The Usual Desire to Kill follows Miranda, who spends her visits acting as a reluctant mediator between her eccentric, long-married parents. Her father, a retired philosophy professor, never loses an argument. Her mother, despite being born after the war, brings every conversation back to it. Their home, much like their relationship, is crumbling—shared with llamas, ducks, chickens, cats, and a freezer hoarding decades-old food.

The novel expertly dissects sibling rivalry, generational divides, and the long-buried secrets that shape families. Barnes’ background as a playwright shines through in sharp dialogue and dry humour, but at times, I found myself struggling to connect emotionally with the characters. While I appreciated the keen observations, the narrative left me feeling more distant than engaged.

Recommended for fans of literary fiction and family dramas, especially readers who enjoy the sharp wit of Jeanette Winterson.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

📅 Out 2 April 2025 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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