happy wife, happy life

Hank and Pam. Larry and Nancy. Andre and Shalisa. Dave and Marlene. Four happy couples who get together for drinks, boat rides, and just being a part of each other’s lives. And as they’re all getting older, they plan on retiring to Florida and leaving all the snow and stress behind them. Or, that was the plan, until a bad investment sunk their dreams. Now they need a plan B. And then it all fell apart.

Dave died in a horrible home accident, and Marlene was devastated. The other tried to be there for her, but she decided to cash in on his life insurance, and she took her million dollars and moved to Boca Raton. The other three wives watched her go, and while they were sad about Dave’s death, they couldn’t help but think about that life insurance policy.

Ever since the bad investment, a financial move the husbands had made without consulting their wives, the marriages have been a little rocky. The women have had to scale back, and stay in bad jobs, and put off the retirements they’d been dreaming of. The wives start to think of Marlene’s life insurance payout, and they can’t help but dream about what they could do with that million dollars too. And then there are those times that the men have been selfish and thoughtless. The women start to think about a life without their husbands. But would they really do anything about it?

Meanwhile, Hank is worried. He was the one who found Dave, and it had not been a pretty sight. Hank was worried that it wasn’t just a horrible accident. It was a message. Someone killed Dave, and they left behind a message for Hank and his friends. Hank worked security for a local casino, and he had hired Dave as a tech for the slot machines. Dave had figured out a way to rig the slot machines so they could get an extra payout. With Larry and Andre, they managed to save up more then enough to make up for that bad investment. But if someone from the casino is on to them and willing to kill them to get the money back, Hank needs a new plan.

The wives decide to hire someone to kill their husbands, and the husbands hire someone to try to figure out who wants to kill them. But with layers of secrets and intrigue, it will take more than a bag full of money to make it all the way to that happy life they all dream of.

The Retirement Plan is a debut novel about what it takes to retire with a happy marriage and the little daily choices that can get in the way. This story has so many twists and turns it started to feel like a farce, especially towards the end. The way it all fits together is masterful, and it’s genuinely funny besides, which sounds like an easy thing to do, but it’s really not. Every time I thought I knew where this story was going, there was a twist that both out of left field and that fit the story perfectly.

I genuinely loved this book, from start to finish. I feel like I said too much in my description above, but at the same time, I barely had a chance to talk about everything that happens in this book. There is not a word out of place. And while the characters are not always likable, they are always true to themselves. This book is a triumph.

Egalleys for The Retirement Plan were provided by William Morrow through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.