The Closer You Get

The inspiration for The Closer You Get came when author Mary Torjussen heard about a woman she knew who had an affair with a married man. He left his wife and moved in with her, but the relationship did not last and he ultimately returned to his wife. Torjussen says she pondered what would happen if two people who were both married began having an affair, contemplating whether one could "ever trust someone enough to be the first person to leave home?"

The Closer You Get challenges readers to consider the question that propelled Torjussen to write the book . . . and other troubling questions, through the eyes of Ruby, a woman who endured disapproval and harsh judgment from her mother while growing up, and has seen the man she married become increasingly dogmatic, controlling, and cruelly critical as the years have passed. During the early days of their marriage, Tom was loving and attentive. Now he insists that everything be in accordance with his wishes and desires, and even demands that Ruby pay half of the household expenses despite the fact that he earns far more money than she does. He demands that she wear the FitBit he bought her, using it to check up on her activities. Ruby tells her friend and coworker, "He kept a check of everything I did, Sarah. Every step I took. I couldn't bear it." In contrast, she and Harry had undeniable chemistry from the moment they met when Ruby began working at his company eighteen months ago. They had long conversations, and he valued and respected her. Eventually, they acknowledged their feelings for each other, and vowed to leave their unhappy marriages, making a pact to launch a new, happier future together.

So when Harry doesn't show up at the hotel where he booked and paid for the room they would share, Ruby is understandably shocked and devastated. She realizes she left a beautiful home and financial security for a man who didn't even bother to tell her he changed his mind and decided to stay with his wife -- after she trusted him to keep his word. As the days pass, she resents and is angered by Harry's behavior. "In the pit of my belly was a growing fury that he thought so little of me that he couldn't even be bothered to tell me it was over." To make matters worse, she is summarily and humiliatingly dismissed from her job when she arrives at the office on Monday, and discovers that she has been blackballed so her prospects for securing another job are bleak. She confides in Sarah, and writes a letter to Harry when she is unable to reach him by telephone. Sarah vows to deliver the letter to Harry.

Torjussen takes readers on Ruby's journey to make a new life for herself. Returning to Tom and the home they shared is not an option, although his sudden consideration and kindness, coupled with requests that she come home, tempt her. Determined, she rents a dilapidated apartment and accepts a temporary position that will barely pay enough to cover her bills until she can secure suitable employment. Ruby quickly discovers two things. First, she does not know herself. She acceded to Tom's wishes so consistently that she no longer even knows what kind of food she likes. She permitted Tom to make decisions for her, just as she allowed her mother to make decisions because her family "either did things her way or we suffered. . . " Ruby enjoyed only a few years on her own before she met Tom and went right back to permitting someone else to manage every detail of her daily life for her. Now she is overwhelmed by the choices available to her, even while performing the simple task of shopping for food. Second, she quickly figures out that someone is stalking her. She returns home to her apartment to find that things are not as she left them. She can't remember, for example, hanging her dresses in the closet. She thinks she may simply be forgetful until someone tails her in a vehicle she doesn't recognize as she is walking home one evening. And she observes that vehicle pass by her apartment as she peaks out the window. But who is slipping into her apartment when she is away? And why?

Alternating with Ruby's first-person narrative is that of Emma, Harry's wife, who openly declares that she is going to "blow up" Ruby's life. With that mindset, Emma sets in motion a series of events and circumstances that have lasting repercussions for all concerned. She has no intention of letting Harry leave her, but also wants to ensure that Ruby is held accountable for her role as the "other woman." Emma has no idea, of course, of the lengths to which Tom will go in order to get what he wants.

Torjussen propels the story forward at an unrelenting pace. As it progresses, it is apparent that the characters are neither aware of the information that the other characters possess nor how they will use their knowledge in order to plot and scheme to achieve their own goals. Each character proceeds in accordance with assumptions that frequently turn out to be horribly inaccurate. And when they discover the truth and are forced to pivot, they continue to make choices that lead them in unplanned, unforeseen directions.

At the outset, Ruby is a woman with no confidence or voice who is wooed by a man with his own flaws. Emma is calculating and confident, but is forced to deal with the consequences of her own actions. The Prologue reveals that someone will end up dead and Torjussen gradually intensifies the action leading up to the revelation of how that death came about, as well as the aftermath. But in the process, she injects red herrings and shocking revelations that make The Closer You Get a first-rate thriller with a surprising, but satisfying ending.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.