I Liked My Life: A Novel

The Starling family has been decimated. Seventeen-year-old Eve and her father, Brady, have confronted an unimaginable tragedy: the suicide of Maddy, devoted mother and exceptional wife. Although she seemed like a perfectly happy, perfectly ordinary housewife, the assumptions Eve and Brady held about Maddy collapse when she jumps to her death from a four-story building. The question of why haunts Eve and Brady, and they’re unable to fully deal with their loss–let alone move on–as long as their questions remain unanswered. Meanwhile, Maddy is determined to steer her daughter and husband from her celestial perch. She knows that Rory, a young teacher, is exactly the right person to fill her shoes and help her family reach a new kind of happiness.

Told from multiple points of view, including Maddy’s, I Liked My Life probes Eve and Brady’s painful daily life while deftly exploring Maddy’s possible motivations. Though wrenching, Eve and Brady’s belief in their own culpability drives them to a greater understanding of both Maddy and themselves. When the truth of the horrific event finally emerges, it’s hard not to be simultaneously sickened and grateful for the misunderstandings that have warped the Starling family’s efforts to heal.