In “A Good Family,” author Matt Goldman gives us a look at what goes on behind the closed doors of some homes in seemingly picture-perfect subdivisions. While the families might look picture-perfect, you can be sure that they are anything but. Katie Kuhlmann, married to a seemingly perfect husband from a wealthy family, discovers that her husband and her marriage are not what she thought.
Katie and Jack have been inseparable since college, when Jack’s best friend Adam introduced them. They haven’t seen Adam since he dropped out of college in Minnesota and went back to Florida, but one night, many years and two children later, he shows up at their doorstep. They have guest quarters over their garage in their extravagantly remodeled home, and Jack invites Adam to stay as long as he needs. He doesn’t consult Katie, and this is just the latest in a series of actions that clearly demonstrate that Jack is detached not only from Katie but from their two children as well.
Their two kids, Elin and Kaleb, have complained to Katie that when they are home with their father, he goes into the basement and disappears. They search for him and call him, but he’s nowhere to be found. He laughs it off and says they just missed him, but Katie is disturbed, and she feels that he’s gaslighting their kids. And the kids are really upset by this. Jack is also short with Katie, and she suspects that he’s having an affair.
When Katie runs into a guy she had met a year earlier at a cross-country ski meet, they begin to ski together, and that leads to a drink and dinner. She feels comfortable with Noah, who recently moved to Minnesota, and she tells him a bit about her problems. When she starts to suspect Jack of some illegal business practices and also thinks that Adam is hiding things about his business more carefully than he had hidden his concealed gun, Katie doesn’t know who to turn to.
What I enjoyed about this novel is that Katie is clearly one of the smartest people in the room. She is also ethical, and while she does make a few dumb moves (you NEVER go back into the house alone!), on the whole she’s ahead of Jack and his bungled moves. What is important to Katie, unlike her husband, is her family. And when Jack takes himself out of that group, Katie’s children are the ones she is fighting to protect. Katie lost her parents and two younger brothers when she was ten, so she’s had to be resilient and strong, and she will do anything to make sure her kids are safe.
The suspense works effectively as we struggle to understand how and if Adam and Jack are working together, and the twist at the end that Adam reveals is especially touching. This is a very satisfying novel, and it’s a quick read not only because of its pacing, but also because of its lively and attention-grabbing narration and dialogue.
Please note: This review is based on the paperback book provided by Forge Books, the publisher, for review purposes.