Other People's Fun: A Novel

A chance encounter draws two old classmates toward an unforgettable reckoning in this "very smart and darkly funny" novel exploring power—and how it tangles with privilege, marriage, motherhood, and midlife—from the acclaimed author of Alys, Always, and Her (Flynn Berry, author of Northern Spy).

"I look. I can’t stop looking. That’s the deal, isn’t it? We all know that’s how it works. If someone wants to be seen—and oh, how they want to be seen—then someone has to watch."

Ruth is alone, unnoticed, and at a loss: her marriage has ended, her daughter is leaving home, and her job is leading nowhere.

But luckily Sookie is back in her life–vivid, self-assured Sookie, who never spared the time for Ruth when they were teenagers, but who now seems to want to be friends. But as Ruth is caught up in Sookie’s life, she sees that everything is not as Instagrammable as Sookie would have you believe. As the truth about Sookie becomes clearer, so too does the choice Ruth will have to make.

Unputdownable, spiky, and subtle, Other People’s Fun is a novel about modern life, from the little lies we tell our neighbors, friends, families, and ourselves to the hall of mirrors that is social media. Filled with Harriet Lane’s trademark creeping unease and forensic observation, this page-turner considers how desperately we want others to see us as we are—and what happens when they finally do.

“This deliciously twisted tale is a one-sitting read steeped in tension and unease.” — Red Magazine (UK)
“If you loved Notes on a Scandal, then this is for you.” —Prima (UK)