French Exit

Frances Price, wealthy widow of high-rolling lawyer Franklin Price, has made it her mission to spend every dime of her inheritance. As the story opens, she has very nearly accomplished this goal. She and son Malcolm find themselves forced to sell everything of value left to them. With their cat, Small Frank, they take up residence in a friend's apartment in Paris. They collect a variety of roommates, including the owner of the apartment, a lonely expat, a wine merchant, a private detective, a clairvoyant, and Malcolm's fiancée. When Small Frank goes missing, Frances calls on the clairvoyant to contact him. At the story's dark and emotionally complex end, they all get what they want—more or less. Acclaimed author deWitt (The Sisters Brothers) crafts a story that entertains to the last page. His characters are quirky caricatures, warped by their social position and wealth by their nurturing (or lack thereof) and mostly bereft of any practicality. The result is both comical and sad. In the long view, the moral seems to be that money can't buy love, so you might as well spend the cash.