Wrong Parks-ing

Tell me the truth. Did Adele Parks really write "Happy Families," because it sure doesn't seem like her other novels. I have not read everything she has written, but the ones I have read always had sophisticated characters and here the protagonist is a ... suburban housewife. You can sense that she is out of her elements because the characters all seem bland: cardboards, plastic. And, dare I say it, dumb. There is a "misunderstanding" plot point that is too stupid to be believed, and the feel-good happy ever after rang false. I really don't mind predictable, if it is a sweet journey getting there, but this is just too sweet in the wrong sense of the word. 

BC- 8