A review by marissamf
The Latecomer by Jean Hanff Korelitz

3.0

My family dynamics are somewhat similar to this story (including a brother who is 17 years older than me) so that might be why I had a hard time with it honestly. It definitely had its moments (particularly the last ~150 pages when things actually start happening) but the first 200 or so pages were such a slog. Until the titular “latecomer” is given time to share the story, each character is more unpleasant than the last, and it felt like the story spent too much time discussing the family dynamics rather than showing them. And unfortunately that poor pacing made the ending feel unearned.