"In her clever modern twist on the epistolary form, Rieger excavates the humor and humanity from a most bitter uncoupling."--Emily Giffin, The New York Times Book Review (Editors' Choice)
"A witty first novel . . . providing all the voyeuristic pleasure of snooping through someone else's inbox."--People
Sophie Diehl is happily toiling away at an old-line New England law firm when Mayflower descendant Mia Meiklejohn Durkheim strides through the door. While dining at the most chic eatery in town, Mia was handed a most unwanted substitute for the wine list: divorce papers.
Sophie reluctantly steps away from her criminal law casework to conduct Mia's intake interview and, to her dismay, Mia insists she take the case--Sophie is just who she needs to take on her soon-to-be-ex and his thuggish lawyers. For Sophie, the whole affair sparks a hard look at the relationships in her own life with parents, friends, and lovers.
A rich, layered novel told entirely through personal correspondence, office memos, e-mails, articles, handwritten notes, and legal documents, The Divorce Papers offers a direct window into the lives of an entertaining cast of characters never shy about speaking their minds.
"Brims with brio and wit."--Entertainment Weekly
"This comedy of manners . . . unfolds through e-mails, legal briefs, handwritten notes, and interoffice memos. . . . The texts offer a provocative glimpse of how intimately our documents reveal us."--The New Yorker
"[Rieger] uses office politics and legal clashes to brilliant and scathingly funny effect. Think The Good Wife but funnier and, in the end, more poignant."--The Christian Science Monitor
"Whip smart . . . The characters are hilarious and brilliant."--Lucky
"Smart, sophisticated, and incredibly fun, The Divorce Papers brilliantly combines the pleasures of snooping with the delights of great storytelling. I raced through these charming pages and enjoyed every one."--Karen Thompson Walker, author of The Age of Miracles
"Terrific fun. I relished every last letter, memo, e-mail, and legal brief in this sneakily clever, insidery peek into the world of privileged families and the lawyers who serve them."--Kevin Kwan, author of Crazy Rich Asians
"Rieger writes with such facility and humor in so many voices. . . . An excellent yarn about the nature of love, insecurity and commitment."--Minneapolis Star Tribune
"Exceedingly entertaining."--Real Simple
"Clever and funny . . . Rieger's tone, textured structure, and lively voice make this debut a winner."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A brutally comic chronicle of high-end divorce . . . Extremely clever."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Rieger brilliantly blends the serious and the comic. . . . If you like your fiction smart and witty, The Divorce Papers is a winner."--Shelf Awareness (starred review)