Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by abigailcarol
The Altruists by Andrew Ridker
4.0
Follow me on Instagram @bookmarkedbya / instagram.com/bookmarkedbya and see my full review at my blog: https://bookmarkedbya.wordpress.com/2019/04/21/the-altruists-andrew-ridker/
*Thanks to Viking for the free book.
The bewildering story of a deeply dysfunctional family that comes together for a long weekend - each for their own personal, and selfish, reasons.
Siblings Ethan and Maggie are living in New York while their estranged father Arthur is behind in their hometown of St. Louis. When their mother died a few years ago, she left a previously secret large sum of money to only her children. Arthur can’t pay the mortgage, and so he devises a plan to guilt trip his children into giving him some of their inheritance. Hi-jinx, discomfort, and secrets uncovered ensue.
This is such an odd, unique family drama. Each family member is totally self-involved and terribly unlikable. While I usually hate unlikable characters, the Alter family is laughably oblivious and the hatred I feel for them is a bonus to the story rather than a hindrance. The weekend in St. Louis, as well as the many flashbacks throughout the narrative, are extremely interesting and help develop the super dynamic characters, all of whom have fascinating motives and reasons for why they’re so terrible. I liken this book to reading a Wes Anderson movie - pretty weird but really good.
*Thanks to Viking for the free book.
The bewildering story of a deeply dysfunctional family that comes together for a long weekend - each for their own personal, and selfish, reasons.
Siblings Ethan and Maggie are living in New York while their estranged father Arthur is behind in their hometown of St. Louis. When their mother died a few years ago, she left a previously secret large sum of money to only her children. Arthur can’t pay the mortgage, and so he devises a plan to guilt trip his children into giving him some of their inheritance. Hi-jinx, discomfort, and secrets uncovered ensue.
This is such an odd, unique family drama. Each family member is totally self-involved and terribly unlikable. While I usually hate unlikable characters, the Alter family is laughably oblivious and the hatred I feel for them is a bonus to the story rather than a hindrance. The weekend in St. Louis, as well as the many flashbacks throughout the narrative, are extremely interesting and help develop the super dynamic characters, all of whom have fascinating motives and reasons for why they’re so terrible. I liken this book to reading a Wes Anderson movie - pretty weird but really good.