Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

Toby Fleishman is in trouble, or rather, his marriage is. After fifteen years together, he and his wife, Rachel, have decided to divorce. Now Toby’s phone is blowing up as he ventures into the world of dating apps. He never entered the online dating world before and, not being terribly popular with the ladies in his youth, he is mesmerized by all of the females who are now clamouring for his attention. 

In sharp contrast to the endless stream of female persuasiveness taking place on his phone are his two kids, perpetually annoyed Hannah (twelve) and easy-to-please Solly (eight). Toby’s officially single and solely in charge of the kids since Rachel has suddenly stepped away from her life and disappeared to god knows where. Her phone's going straight to voicemail, her assistant is useless, and there are small crumbs of evidence suggesting a new man in her life.

Toby is a doctor, currently vying for a well-earned promotion, and needs to untangle all of this, so he sends his kids to summer camp for a month. He steps into his role of sole parent with an earnest passion, all while cursing his now ex-wife for being such a selfish parent for abandoning her children without warning or explanation. When Toby and Rachel were still married and hurling insults, the worst one Toby launched was to tell Rachel that she was a terrible mother. Now she appears to be proving Toby right. She definitely seems to be living up to that reputation. What kind of mother just ups and leaves? What kind of mother puts herself above everyone else and removes herself sharply and completely from her kids' lives, leaving them to wonder if she'll ever come back? If she's dead or alive? Toby just wants to move on, to make his job and his kids his top priority and provide them with some stability.

Meanwhile, Rachel is gone. But where the hell is she? Why did she leave? How could a mother do this? 

There are always two sides to every story. And, interestingly, Rachel's side perhaps isn't quite as we're led to believe...

Judge the cover: 5/5