The Arrangement: A Novel - Softcover

Dunn, Sarah

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0316013617 ISBN 13: 9780316013611

Publisher: Back Bay Books, 2018

Synopsis

*National Bestseller*
A hilarious and emotionally charged novel about a couple who embark on an open marriage-what could possibly go wrong?
Lucy and Owen, ambitious, thoroughly-therapized New Yorkers, have taken the plunge, trading in their crazy life in a cramped apartment for Beekman, a bucolic Hudson Valley exurb. They've got a two hundred year-old house, an autistic son obsessed with the Titanic, and 17 chickens, at last count. It's the kind of paradise where stay-at-home moms team up to cook the school's "hot lunch," dads grill grass-fed burgers, and, as Lucy observes, "chopping kale has become a certain kind of American housewife's version of chopping wood."

When friends at a wine-soaked dinner party reveal they've made their marriage open, sensible Lucy balks. There's a part of her, though-the part that worries she's become too comfortable being invisible-that's intrigued. Why not try a short marital experiment? Six months, clear ground rules, zero questions asked. When an affair with a man in the city begins to seem more enticing than the happily-ever-after she's known for the past nine years, Lucy must decide what truly makes her happy-"real life," or the "experiment?"

About this title

About the Author

Sarah Dunn is a novelist and television writer whose credits include Spin City (for which she co-wrote Michael J. Fox's farewell episode) and the critical darling Bunheads, which you would have loved. Her debut novel, The Big Love, is available to read in nineteen languages. Dunn is also the creator and executive producer of the 2016 ABC series, American Housewife. She lives outside New York City with her family and their seventeen chickens.

Review

"Daring and darkly funny, Sarah Dunn's THE ARRANGEMENT is this summer's must-read. Her take on middle-age and family life is wry, poignant and spot-on. Readers will recognize themselves and their friends in this wonderfully comic novel."―Candace Bushnell, author of Sex and the City

"A hilarious, spot-on comedy of the heart about middle-aged marriage and what happens when it goes off the rails."―Maria Semple, author of Where'd You Go, Bernadette

"Sarah Dunn's novels are literary flume rides. You're in a world you think you know, with a couple you swear you know, and in an instant, the world is turned upside down. You hold on because the story is entertaining, hilarious, and addictive. But, Ms. Dunn also writes complicated human beings who struggle, make mistakes, and are redeemed. THE ARRANGEMENT is a novel you'll share with your friends. You'll talk about it. You'll return to it. It's one of those. A keeper."―Adriana Trigiani, author of All the Stars in the Heavens

"THE ARRANGEMENT is a comic masterpiece that exposes the unbearable paradoxes of love."―Delia Ephron, author of Siracusa

"Sarah Dunn has written an irresistibly JUICY novel about a couple who try an unconventional experiment in an attempt to revitalize their marriage. This story, addictive from the very first pages, becomes not only more tantalizing as it unfolds but also more thought-provoking. The Arrangement will both shock and delight you."―Elin Hilderbrand, author of Here's to Us

"If you've been wondering what an experiment in open marriage might be like, try Sarah Dunn's deliciously inventive novel"―Elle

"Dunn writes a genuinely surprising read that is worth checking out."―RT Book Reviews

"Dunn's peek inside a seemingly normal relationship exposes the deepest thoughts of a husband, wife, and the people they decide to include in their experiment. Lucy and Owen are relatable, realistic, and resilient, and Dunn's television-writing background is evident in her witty dialogue. She grounds her novel in the minutia of suburban life, contrasting the heady days of new romance with school drop-offs and soccer games. Fans of Matthew Norman, Greg Olear, and Meg Wolitzer will adore this engaging and exhilarating exposé."―Booklist

As hilarious as it is sensitive. From raising chickens to children, copping your own kid's ADD medication to cancer, Dunn expertly reveals the intricacies that make up a marriage. Her characters are sure to strike a chord with readers, as they struggle to define themselves and their roles as spouses. Dunn makes her mark in women's fiction with this multilayered novel that takes readers from funny to serious in a story full of truths, lies, and everything in between.―Library Journal

"Dunn (The Big Love) again plumbs the messiness and fallibility of romantic relationships....with hilarious results."―Publishers Weekly

About this edition

• Publisher: Back Bay Books
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 0316013617
• ISBN 13: 9780316013611
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 368