Invisible Woman is a story of a marriage, a friendship, and #MeToo. Joni Ackerman was once a trailblazing director, but her career took second place to her marriage and raising her children. Paul, her husband, has a high-powered career in the same industry, though they claimed different sectors, film for her and television for him. As the book opens, the family has been transplanted to New York for Paul’s career but with the children grown, she’s itching to get back in the fray and that would be in California, not New York. She feels out of place and displaced.

After the Weinstein scandal broke, the dam broke exposing other rapists. Joni reaches out to her former roommate, Valerie. They were best friends but something happened to Val and Joni feels culpable for not paying attention and for keeping it secret. She wants to go public. Val does not. Joni thinks Val blames her, but she could not be farther from the truth. Their once close friendship feels like estrangement. Val even takes out a restraining order on Joni.

Invisible Woman is a fast-paced thriller that makes many valuable points and for every revelation that people respect her more than she might think, I gave a little cheer. Go, Joni! Invisible Woman effectively shows how a woman’s confidence can be eroded with subtle, nearly invisible actions that undercut her efforts. It also shows the damage secrets can do, but also how the bonds of friendship can be pulled really hard and still bounce back.

I think the story would have benefited with just a bit less foreshadowing. The major revelations were anticipated. It was nice to see I guessed right, but I should not even be guessing so early. I think keeping a secret from readers is the essence of suspense, but I hate when I guess it too early.

I think Lief did well with her characters. At first Joni seems all put together, accomplished filmmaker and loving mother in a loving marriage, but the cracks start to show and you learn how she has been diminished over time as this feminist filmmaker conforms to gender norms and you see how her accomplishments are over-shadowed. As you learn this, you also start to reevaluate her husband, her children, and her friend  This is done brilliantly.

I also love the way Patricia Highsmith is such a catalyst in Joni’s self-discovery. It makes it even better to learn that the books were a gift from Val long ago. I love how different books appear to become almost part of the story.