buttonsandbooks 's review for:

How to Sleep at Night by Elizabeth Harris

4.0

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I had no idea what this was about when I picked it up to read. I saw a couple of author endorsements on the front, but that was all. Frankly, if I hadn't been gifted this, I don't know if I ever would have read it, but I am SO glad I did. I couldn't stop thinking about this when I wasn't reading it.

Ethan and Gabe have been together for years. They're married and have a young daughter and a house in the Jersey suburbs. They used to be on the same end of the political spectrum, but Ethan has gradually come to recognize himself as a conservative Republican. Progressive Gabe struggles when Ethan runs for Congress, but ultimately supports his spouse, much to his own detriment. Nearby, mom of two Nicole wonders what happened to her life. She used to date men and women and had such bright career aspirations. Now, she's married to an older man who's more of a roommate than partner. When she sees her old college flame, Kate (Ethan's sister) on TV, she's determined to reconnect and find that missing piece. For her part, Kate is also turned off by Ethan's politics and has to stay far away from what's going on as she's a reporter at the prestigious Herald. At some point, all wonder what they're doing in their lives and how to make peace with it as best they can. 

I thought the political aspect of this was fascinating, as it was such a real story I'm sure tons of married couples face, especially in this time of divisiveness. Gabe bit his tongue for much longer than I would have been able to do so. And Nicole? I didn't care for her as a character, but her questioning who she was as a bi person married to a man I found interesting. It made such sense, because she felt mislabeled. What a fascinating debut!

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