Go Gentle: Oprah's Book Club
"Maria Semple is a treasure." —Los Angeles Times
The New York Times bestselling author of Where'd You Go, Bernadette returns to form in her most exuberant and life-affirming novel yet with the story of one woman’s cheerful determination to live a life of the mind only to have the heart force its way in.
Adora Hazzard has it all figured out. A Stoic philosopher and divorcée, she lives a contented life on New York City’s Upper West Side. Having discovered that the secret to happiness is to desire only what you have, she’s applied this insight to blissful effect: relishing her teenage daughter, the freedom of being solo, and her job as a moral tutor for the twin boys of an old-money family. She’s even assembled a "coven"—like-minded women who live on the same floor in the legendary Ansonia—and is making active efforts to grow its membership. Adora’s carefully curated life is humming along brilliantly until a chance meeting with a handsome stranger.
Soon, her ordered world is upended by black-market art deals, secret rendezvous, and international intrigue . . . and her past—which she has worked so hard to bury—lands like a bomb in her present. Inflamed by unquenchable desire, Adora finds herself a woman wanting more: and she’ll risk everything to get it.
Adora Hazzard’s journey of self-discovery will grip you from the start. Romantic, hilarious, intelligent, and bursting with the stuff of life, Go Gentle is a thrilling story of one woman’s mid-life transformation, cementing Maria Semple in the pantheon of our most exciting and important contemporary writers.
The New York Times bestselling author of Where'd You Go, Bernadette returns to form in her most exuberant and life-affirming novel yet with the story of one woman’s cheerful determination to live a life of the mind only to have the heart force its way in.
Adora Hazzard has it all figured out. A Stoic philosopher and divorcée, she lives a contented life on New York City’s Upper West Side. Having discovered that the secret to happiness is to desire only what you have, she’s applied this insight to blissful effect: relishing her teenage daughter, the freedom of being solo, and her job as a moral tutor for the twin boys of an old-money family. She’s even assembled a "coven"—like-minded women who live on the same floor in the legendary Ansonia—and is making active efforts to grow its membership. Adora’s carefully curated life is humming along brilliantly until a chance meeting with a handsome stranger.
Soon, her ordered world is upended by black-market art deals, secret rendezvous, and international intrigue . . . and her past—which she has worked so hard to bury—lands like a bomb in her present. Inflamed by unquenchable desire, Adora finds herself a woman wanting more: and she’ll risk everything to get it.
Adora Hazzard’s journey of self-discovery will grip you from the start. Romantic, hilarious, intelligent, and bursting with the stuff of life, Go Gentle is a thrilling story of one woman’s mid-life transformation, cementing Maria Semple in the pantheon of our most exciting and important contemporary writers.
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Community Reviews
Published on Peeking Between the Pages (https://peekingbetweenthepages.com/2026/05/go-gentle-by-maria-semple-audiobook.html)
I love delving into a novel from Maria Semple. Where’d You Go, Bernadette was a favorite of mine and so many others. She returns with Go Gentle which is not only one I enjoyed, but also one that was picked for Oprah’s Book Club. It’s such a great pick for book club discussions with themes like divorce, single mom and single life, romance, and mid-life issues.
Adora Hazzard (love her name) is a Stoic philosopher, divorced, and a single mom. She is living in New York where a group of older women are living on the same floor of an apartment building and have dubbed themselves a ‘coven.’ The goal is that these women will support each other into old age. I loved this idea of women supporting women instead of looking for the next romance. However when Adora meets a handsome man at the ballet she manages to get herself sucked into not only a steamy romance but also an art heist and all kinds of chaos ensues.
I really liked Adora and really never knew what she might do next. I loved the part of forming the coven of like minded women and her job as a Stoic philosopher since I knew nothing about that. I did find the story somewhat disjointed with all that was going in but I still really enjoyed it. I listened to the audiobook which is read by Saskia Maarleveld who is one of my favorite narrators. She brings so much emotion and feeling to her storytelling and adds that ‘something’ that makes a book so much better.
All in all this was a good listen for me. There are a lot of themes in this novel that may be triggering for some so take care. Recommended for those who enjoy women’s fiction mixed with a thriller/mystery vibe.
Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
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