The Paper Palace (Reese's Book Club)

By Miranda Cowley Heller

Book Overview

INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK

OVER 2 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE

"Filled with secrets, love, lies and a summer beach house. What more could you ask?"--Parade

"A deeply emotional love story...the unraveling of secrets, lies and a very complex love triangle." --Reese Witherspoon

" An] irresistible placement of a complicated family in a bewitching place." --The New York Times

A story of summer, secrets, love, and lies: in the course of a singular day on Cape Cod, one woman must make a life-changing decision that has been brewing for decades.

"This house, this place, knows all my secrets."

It is a perfect August morning, and Elle, a fifty-year-old happily married mother of three, awakens at "The Paper Palace"--the family summer place which she has visited every summer of her life. But this morning is different: last night Elle and her oldest friend Jonas crept out the back door into the darkness and had sex with each other for the first time, all while their spouses chatted away inside. Now, over the next twenty-four hours, Elle will have to decide between the life she has made with her genuinely beloved husband, Peter, and the life she always imagined she would have had with her childhood love, Jonas, if a tragic event hadn't forever changed the course of their lives. As Heller colors in the experiences that have led Elle to this day, we arrive at her ultimate decision with all its complexity. Tender yet devastating, The Paper Palace considers the tensions between desire and dignity, the legacies of abuse, and the crimes and misdemeanors of families.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 059332983X
• ISBN13: 9780593329832
• Release Date: April 2022
• Publisher: Riverhead Books
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.0" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Surprised there’s so many negative reviews

This book is one I think of often and want to go back to every summer. It’s gritty, layered, and beautifully crafted. The imagery is incredibly moving and perfect for reading in the summer.

The paper palace

I loved the main characters and how descriptive the book was. At points I thought it was a little confusing flipping from past to present with all the different characters they mention.

This books condition was so bad with water damage that I had to throw it away. It’s the first time t

Read above

Such a lovely book with a whirlwind of emotions

Kept in enthralled from beginning to end.

Rollercoaster of feelings

There are a few sensitive topics. Overall, an interesting book.

Time is too valuable to waste on this book

I really wanted a good summer read and I heard this book recommended on a radio show. Unfortunately, I will never get the couple of hours back that I spent reading though half the book and hoping it would get better. I finish most books I start, couldn't get through this. Characters were not developed; story was sad and depressing and definitely not a page turner. Wish I had done my homework and read other the reviews from other people who felt the same way. 1 star is overrating this book.

Contains child abuse

Not going to finish this one…I draw the line at child abuse, especially s*xual abuse. I don’t find it appropriate material for works of fiction, it may only be two paragraphs worth (thus far) but to me, that is two too many! I don’t care how it supports the “storyline”….NOPE! Book closed after two chapters. NEXT!!!!!!!

Mostly good with a sprinkle of boring.

I was really invested in the main character, especially as a child as she was navigating her childhood and early adulthood. I don't know if I wasn't supposed to like her as an adult but she just fell short for me. She was a mediocre mother, wife, friend, and daughter. I of course felt terrible for everything she went through but I was really hoping to carry that over to the sections written in the present. There was so many characters that you don't ever connect that deeply with any of them, and I found it very difficult to keep track of people outside her immediate family. At certain points in the book it feels like the author only wants you to like Peter- he is truly a sweet man who I feel the main character doesn't deserve. Overall I felt like it was a good read and it kept my interest for most of the book.