The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman, 2011

Read in 2011

Synopsis:  Years ago, they were all the best of friends.  But as time passed and circumstances changed, they grew apart, became adults with families of their own, and began to forget about the past - and the terrible lie they all shared.  


But now Gordon, the youngest and wildest of the five, has died and the others are thrown together for the first time in years. 


And then the revelations start.


Could their long-ago lie be the reason for their troubles today?  Is it more dangerous to admit to what they've done or is it the strain of keeping the secret that is beginning to wear on them and everyone close to them?


Each one of these old friends has to wonder if their secret has been discovered - and if someone within the circle is out to destroy them.

At the end Lippman admits this to be her most autobiographical novel in the sense that she set it in her childhood neighborhoods.  Clearly she got lost in the nostalgia of her memories because she didn’t write a thriller or anything even close to it.  Long, meandering and mostly pointless she delves into the lives of her characters in both the past and the present.  The unknown, dark and ostensibly dangerous secret is none of those things.  The unseen and malign presence that is supposed to be threatening the long disbanded group of friends is non-existent.  There is no dread, no fear, no cringing doubt.  It’s a flat story about an unattractive bunch of kids who (surprise) grow up to be an unattractive bunch of adults.  I won’t say it was unreadable, because I was drawn into the story, but in the way that appeals to my inner voyeur, not because there was any kind of mystery or big revelation waiting for discovery.  That aspect was a yawn-fest, but the differing points of view were pretty interesting and the writing was strong as usual.  I just wish Lippman hadn’t gotten all misty-eyed on us and had given us a story with meat on its bones.