I received a copy of The Dinner Party by Jenny Ladner Brenner in exchange for an honest review. Lainie Silver has an all right life. Her parents are sometimes a bit too overbearing, she hasn’t found the love of her life quite yet at the age of twenty-eight, but she has a steady job, a nice apartment in New York City, and a best friend in Miya – her BFF since the seventh grade. But after hosting a tumultuous dinner party, Lainie throws her good judgment to the wind – and sleeps with Miya’s husband, Jake. Lainie knows she can’t confess her wrong doing to Miya, and Jake swears he won’t tell her either about their one-night stand – or the countless others he has had during their marriage. Lainie is forced to take a good, hard look at her life and her friendships. Why would she sleep with her best friend’s husband? Does she secretly harbor ill feelings to the woman who has been by her side for so many years? Through the guilt, Lainie tries to find some normalcy in her life – which includes falling in love, getting engaged, and moving on from her lapse in judgment. But will her secret come back to haunt her…or can Lainie really get away with duping her best friend?
I found The Dinner Party to be a very fascinating read. It explores self-discovery, the true meaning of friendships, and of course, love, throughout the way. While it could have been easy to write Lainie off as a horrible person after sleeping with Jake, I never really felt that way. Sure I wasn’t happy with her decision, but I was right there with her trying to figure out why she did it, how she let it happen. And I of course was dying to see how their friendship would turn out if the big event was ever revealed. I also really enjoyed reading about Lainie and her eventual fiancé Noah, who is a big part of this book even if he is only around for a short amount of time. I think this is a great read for the 20-30 age group, and I highly recommend!
[Rating: 4.5]
