Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
Audio Version. So I enjoyed this book. It was kind of silly but it was fun. I liked the characters and watching them untangle all their secrets and lies. I liked the dynamic of all the family members and how everything was resolved in the end. It was funny and charming at times. A good beach read.
This is a wonderful women’s fiction novel. Often funny, other times poignant, the book is told from multiple points of view. So, we see the grandmother, Annette, dealing with her grown children that she feels distant from. She remembers all she did for them when they were children up through college. The son, Freddy, remembers how he was never good enough compared to his perfect sister. The daughter, Elise, remembers how her mother endlessly gives her beauty tips that make her feel belittled. Then there are Elise’s husband and two children and their secrets.
All of them have their own secrets, which we, the readers, quickly become privy to, but because the family won’t tell each other what’s actually going on in their lives, we can just wait for this combustible situation to explode when they all meet aboard a cruise to celebrate Annette’s 70th birthday.
I chuckled. I teared up. I identified with the challenges of being in a family and not always saying what’s on our minds, including apologizing and thanking one another. Recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkely for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES JULY 23, 2019.
For more reviews, please visit http://www.theresaaalan.net/blog
All of them have their own secrets, which we, the readers, quickly become privy to, but because the family won’t tell each other what’s actually going on in their lives, we can just wait for this combustible situation to explode when they all meet aboard a cruise to celebrate Annette’s 70th birthday.
I chuckled. I teared up. I identified with the challenges of being in a family and not always saying what’s on our minds, including apologizing and thanking one another. Recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkely for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES JULY 23, 2019.
For more reviews, please visit http://www.theresaaalan.net/blog
Had to jump ship on this one. I tried to finish it but I just could not connect with the story or characters.
First off, this cover art is amazing. I’ve been saving this one for our family beach vacation and I’m so glad I did. This was a light beach read! It was a little serious and a little fun, nice blend for a women’s fiction book. There were times I was frustrated with a few characters but I think that’s the intentional, families can be frustrating! Eliza was the worst.
I loved that this poor family was stuck on a cruise ship together. Cruises sound like a great place to get e-coli, discover a debilitating claustrophobia and see Cher impersonators. It got a little slow and I could have taken even more crazy, family drama!
I loved that this poor family was stuck on a cruise ship together. Cruises sound like a great place to get e-coli, discover a debilitating claustrophobia and see Cher impersonators. It got a little slow and I could have taken even more crazy, family drama!
This was an okay read! It didn’t captivate me or anything but was a decent family drama.
dnf @ pg 146. pacing is way off, characters are boring, and it would be way better if it was in first person
None of the characters were particularly likeable, but it was interesting to read about the Feldman family dynamic. Showing the underbelly of each character’s inner life, thus making them slightly off-putting, fits with Friedland’s plan of the family’s issues coming to a head on this cruise.
Yeah, it could've been good. It should be. Suffers from a boatload of (likely intentionally) unlikable characters making predictably bad decisions based on inadequately sourced dysfunction. And I took away 1 star for the truly awful wave-a-magic-wand-and-everyone-is-yaay wrap-up (I mean really -WTF?).