A HelloGiggles Best New ReleaseA PopSugar Best Book of JulyA BookBub Editor’s PickA SheReads Best Book of SummerA GoodReads Buzzy New ReleaseA Mind Body Green Best Book of JulyA PureWow Best Beach Read of Summer 2018“An effortless page-turner, almost a movie treatment more than a novel…intelligent commercial fiction.”–The Wall Street JournalAfter five years of marriage, Cass Coyne has lost … fiction.”–The Wall Street Journal
After five years of marriage, Cass Coyne has lost some of her boundless confidence. Her husband sees their ups and downs as normal challenges in a healthy relationship, but Cass lies awake at night wondering what you do when you need a break from your marriage?
It comes as a shock to Jonathan when Cass persuades him to try a marital “intermission”: a six-month separation during which they’ll decide if the comfortable life they’ve built together is still the one they both want.
Six months apart from their beloved dog is a different story, so they agree to meet once a month for a custody exchange. Time apart on opposite coasts makes the Coynes realize their problems may lie deeper than sweaty gym socks left on the bed and an empty container of milk put back in the fridge.
Can a marriage experiment go too far for two people who once thought they had it all figured out?
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Smart, captivating, and expertly crafted, The Intermission takes a fresh spin on how one couple hits the pause button to reboot their marriage. I cheered and I cringed through their rises and falls as they dealt with the obstacles in their marriage to rediscover themselves and their relationship. A delightful read that sucked me in. Perfect for book clubs and summer reading. I highly recommend.
I absolutely loved The Intermission, a smart, thoughtful exploration of the nature of marriage and relationships.
The Intermission deftly pulls apart the puzzle of one couple’s marriage and lays the pieces bare, posing the question: would you walk away from your marriage in order to save it? A provocative, insightful look at the intricacies of marriage, the role of fate, and the unpredictable nature of love.
Through her wonderful writing and pitch-perfect storytelling, Elyssa Friedland examines how far we would or should go to salvage a marriage. This book is smart, tender and thought-provoking. I loved it.
Cass and Johnathan have been married 5 yrs and besides the small quirks that erk, which every person/relationship in world has some of… their marriage is near perfection.No matter how great a relationship is though, time brings changes. The kind that drive Cass to question her marriage to Johnathan, and their future together: Sending her brain, heart, emotions, senses, and finally but most damagingly – her insecurities, into overdrive. She questions everything to the point of obscurity until the only idea she can make any sense of is an “intermission”. When Cass springs the idea of the separation on her unknowing-unsuspecting husband they go from the bliss of their beautiful life together; to obtaining the space and insight thought needed to figure out what they really want out of life and what they need out of each other, all while moving on with their lives in every sense of the word. With their beloved dog Puddles trapped in the middle, they begin exploring different relationships as well as old flames, and new places. This story of this couples past, life, love, their trials together, and their lives together, as well as apart, is smartly told alternating narrators between both Cass and Johnathan which does wonders for this title. For one, it makes the pace of the book lightning fast and even more importantly, the reader is given the whole entire story by having the insight of both characters. Because of this, split/alternating narative the novel is never one sided which boosts the interest level similar to the equivalent of juicy gossip. The intermission starts a different journey of self discovery and a search for inner truth but what will Cass and Johnathan discover? Will their marriage survive it? I would recommend Elyssa Friedland’s ‘The Intermission’- a realisticly intimate, juicy portrayal of a marriage, to anyone looking for an easy to read heartfelt beach novel. This is my honest un-biased opinion and I give my Thanks to Penguin First To Read for an advanced copy of this novel!
After years of a happy marriage, Cass Coyne begins to question the relationship that she has built with her husband, Jonathan. In the beginning, their budding romance was filled with many happy memories; but over the years Cass begin to feel as if their life was lacking the lust that they once had.
Cass decides that a six month “intermission” might be the key to saving their marriage, and sets off on a trip across the country to discover herself. Both Cass and Jonathan adjust to their separate lives while sharing custody of their dog. They soon find that the distance between them might be causing more harm than good and their darkest secrets may soon be revealed.
Will their marital intermission solidify that they are meant to be together until the end of time? Or will their once-happy life together be just a memory in the past?
(I received a copy of The Intermission from Penguin Random House in exchange for my honest review.)
After reading almost two-thirds of The Intermission I decided that this novel just wasn’t my forte. I felt that the history between Cass and Jonathan became very repetitive and the story contained a lot of “filler” information that wasn’t needed to help the tale progress. This is a very lengthy novel that could have been reduced with by a lesser amount of the un-needed background information.
With precision and empathy, Elyssa Friedland offers a fresh take on a timeless question: Just how honest should you really be with your spouse? The Intermission is a smart, moving, and refreshingly candid examination of the way small omissions can lead to enormous rifts in a marriage. I couldn’t put it down.
I like the idea of this book. The idea that marriage can get hum-drum boring is not a new idea. I am happily married and there are times that we have to shake it up some. That is what Cass wants to do. She needs to make sure that she is happy with her life before starting a family and committing to the rest of her life with Jonathan. Do I agree with her way? Nope, not even a little but I respect that she doesn’t want to start a family and then tear it apart if she is that unhappy that she cannot stay with her husband.
The book is divided into three parts with alternating chapters between Cass and Jonathan. There were quite a bit of repetitive thoughts, a lot of talking about what might happen, what could happen, what should happen but yet not much happen. I struggle to connect with anyone in the story. Cass seemed to want the separation but then didn’t want Jonathan to find any happiness without her. Jonathan was a pushover. He couldn’t make Cass stay but yet gave in to every request she made without pushing for what he wanted.
The premise of the story was interesting and the ending was predictable. I couldn’t not finish the book once I started reading because I had to know if Cass and Jonathan actually ended up together but it was slow reading for me.
The Intermission takes on real world marriage issues and serves them on a “What if” platter. What if you and your spouse could have time apart to see if you were happier, with no rules? That is the essence of this book. I admit that parts were tough to read, as I found myself relating to the very real characters and could easily imagine myself in their roles. I did enjoy the book, the author’s writing style, and the character growth throughout the book.
The only thing I liked about this book was the cover which features a really cute dog. I couldn’t get into it. Not my kind of book.
Interesting
With all the drama and intensity of live theater, Elyssa Friedland puts a seemingly solid marriage on display — and through the toughest of tests — revealing quirky flaws, unraveling dark secrets, and sparking emotions from tenderness to fury. Fans of Sarah Dunn and Taylor Jenkins Reid will relish the raw honesty and high-stakes tension as the pasts of Cass and Jonathan come roaring into the present.
Taking a pause to dissect what makes a marriage tick is terrifying, enlightening, and, in the case of Cass Coyne, even hilarious….With observations both acute and quirky, Elyssa Friedland points out the flaws and perfections that make marriage work, the secrets they contain, and how a desire for total honesty can bring both pain and freedom.
A pitch-perfect beach read that pulls back the curtain on what really happens after we say I do.
Friedland’s engaging characters and smart writing style will hook you from the first page. Soulful and bittersweet, The Intermission puts a young couple under a microscope to show how one small crack in a marriage can lead to many crevasses, and how the struggle to put the pieces back together can seem insurmountable.
A courageous and clever look at the frustrations and disappointments even the best marriages face. Elyssa Friedland pulls no punches with this provocative story that challenges our expectations about commitment and love.
3 1/5 stars for this quick read. After 5 years of marriage Cass asks for an ‘Intermission’ from Her marriage to Jonathan. Marriage is hard, but these 2 seem so not ready for it. Secrets before going in and secrets in the marriage. I really could not relate to either and couldn’t root for either. But, it’s a fast paced read, great for beach, or snowy winter day.
I received an ARC from Greats Thoughts Reading Ninja Team. All opinions are my own.
Great summer book