In an insightful new novel from France,
Couple Mechanics, by Nelly Alard, a strong and lovely working mother, nearly 40, discovers her husband is cheating on her, when he
tells her. Instantly, she recognizes that he is paralyzed by the affair: It could sink him and their marriage, or not. It's up to her to save or scrap the relationship. Does she want to stomp out, feeling wronged, or stay and win—by reinventing the relationship on terms she can tolerate? This novel is bracingly pragmatic in its perception that an affair involves at least three people, not just two. The betrayed party has power, and in this novel, wields it, impressively adding to the reputation of French women for savoir faire.
