Evidence of the Affair

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What would you do if you found a letter from your husband’s mistress? Set in the 1970s, this entire short story is made up of letters, mostly between Carrie and David whose spouses are having an affair. The repercussions of an illicit affair unfold in this short story by bestselling author Taylor Jenkins Reid. Dear stranger… A desperate young woman in Southern California sits down to write a letter to a man she’s never met—a choice that will forever change both their lives. My heart goes out to you, David. Even though I do not know you… The correspondence between Carrie Allsop and David Mayer reveals, piece by piece, the painful details of a devastating affair between their spouses. With each commiserating scratch of the pen, they confess their fears and bare their souls. They share the bewilderment over how things went so wrong and come to wonder where to go from here. Told entirely through the letters of two comforting strangers and those of two illicit lovers, Evidence of the Affair explores the complex nature of the heart. And ultimately, for one woman, how liberating it can be when it’s broken. Evidence of the Affair by Taylor Jenkins Reid – eBook Details The entire story is told through letters between Carrie and David as well as the letters they found from their spouses. It was done so well in both the audiobook and the book. In the audiobook, we had a different voice for each person’s letter, and in the book she used different fonts. It was so creative! The repercussions of an illicit affair unfold in this short story by bestselling author Taylor Jenkins Reid.

I adored this little novel. This is not a spoiler, but it's about an affair. The two involved characters start a conversation by letters and they found out that their partners sleep together. The whole story takes place in the '70s. It was in turns sweet, thoughtful and melancholy as Carrie and David grow closer through the shared pain of their rejection and self-doubts, but also angering as their spouses’ hidden lives and thoughts are brought to light. My only complaint was that Janet and Ken’s letters felt a little too fawning and high school crush-like at times. Overall, the story, though brief, felt complete and the ending, though part of it was unexpected, left me satisfied. Because it is told in letter form between Carrie and David we obviously only know what we have been told, other things that have happened you have to piece together.

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The epistolary story evolves from here to also include the letters exchanged by their spouses, revealing their thoughts and feelings as they continue with their marriages as though nothing was going on. Carrie and David have never met, they live hundreds of miles away from each other, but Carrie feels that it is her duty to make David aware of the situation.

I love the premise of the story. A woman finds out her husband is having an affair; rather than confront him immediately, she gets in touch with the lady's husband and they start up a kind of pen-pal friendship, being a comfort to them both. After all, no one else in their lives knows just how it feels. I also like how the end of the story is kind of an "all's well that ends well" type of ending. People were still hurt; everyone still went through difficult things. And so begins an epistolary exchange between Carrie and David as they commiserate and lend support to one another about their cheating spouses over the next year and a half. Also shared with the reader are the letters between Janet and Ken, which reveal sides much different than what their spouses have believed them to be. It's an epistolary novella, featuring letters exchanged between a man and a woman who have discovered their spouses are having an affair together. It is compelling enough to keep me wondering how it would end, but it's unfortunate that everything went pretty much exactly how I expected. No surprises here. Evidence of the Affair is part of the Kindle Unlimited collection and includes WhisperSync for those who may prefer the audiobook format.I enjoyed the discussion between the main characters. We could see into the lovers' relationship and also the cheated person's life.

As their friendship grows, they struggle with what to do. Should they confront their spouses, which could lead to the end of their marriages? Is that what they want? Do they want to start life anew, or do they want one more try at recapturing the magic they once had with their spouse? Both Carrie and David aren't sure what they want, and they aren't sure at first what their spouses' next steps will be either. I listened to the very short (1 hour, 19 minutes) audiobook of Evidence of the Affair by Taylor Jenkins Reid last month and I couldn’t believe what an interesting and cool story it was. I didn’t write the review right away, so I read the kindle version today to refresh my memory. I loved it both ways! Taylor Jenkins Reid told this story in such a unique way. It’s 1976, and Carrie Allsop just found letters from another woman to her husband. After reading them, she realizes they are having an affair and that the woman is married to a man named David. So she writes him a letter.

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I read Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo a week or two ago, and it will undoubtedly be on my list of the best books I read this year. Once again, she proves she is an expert storyteller, and I can't wait to jump in and devour more of her fiction, because I love the way she writes. As the story unfolds, the letters reveal the complexities of their respective relationships and the toll the affair has taken on their lives. They navigate through a myriad of emotions, including anger, sadness, and moments of fleeting happiness as they find solace in their newfound connection.