The Geometry of Sisters

This was the fourth book I read.
The Geometry of Sisters by Luanne Rice I got at the library. I saw it on the new releases table and thought I'd heard something about it from other people.
Turns out I was wrong.

Here's Publishers Weekly's review:

The prolific Rice contemplates class, family and math in this disappointing outing. After her husband dies and her eldest daughter, Carrie, runs away, Maggie Shaw moves her remaining brood—level-headed Travis and troubled Beck—from Ohio to Newport, R.I., where she will teach English at the prestigious Newport Academy, where the kids also enroll. Apathetic Beck strikes up an easy friendship with Lucy, who hopes her mathematical prowess will somehow help her bring back her own dead father. Rice's simple writing style suits the kids well, but doesn't work as well with Maggie, who has mixed feelings about reconnecting with her estranged sister. All the while, Maggie continues to search for the missing Carrie, who eventually steps onto the page to deliver her side of the story. Beck warms up as the narrative progresses, but the plot becomes increasingly and pointlessly convoluted, lending a soap opera feel to an initially promising setup. It starts strong, but falters and never recovers.

That really explains it well. It started out strongly and very well written, then it sort of petered out then just fizzled completely.
It also frustrates me when I read about romantic relationships of people that "just can't help it" and are drawn to each other. You don't just slip and accidentally fall into bed with someone. There are small compromises, small choices, often deliberate that lead you down that path. I hate when adultary and cheating are considered excusable just because you "can't help how you feel"
It felt like the story line of Carrie was more thought out when other characters were talking/thinking about her. When it came time to tell her story things were rushed together it felt and the reader was asked to assume a lot about her story that I couldn't find any reasonable cause to have assumed about Carrie's story line.

It was a nice mindless read, but I could have lived my whole life without reading it and been totally ok.