Loved this novel and the insight into all the characters's lives. Each member of this family is so fleshed out and believable as a real person. The dialogue feels clunky sometimes and not how people talk in real life, but the emotions and experiences that the characters have are so real. And you can really see and feel the impact of these experiences on each character through the way Lombardo brings us into their minds and lives.

I hesitate to ever give less than 2 stars on a book and especially when I think it is a case of "not a bad book but a bad book FOR ME."  Then again, I'm not entirely sure I know anyone personally who would love this one.  For one thing, it is a massive book at over 500 pages with a big cast (the main family alone is 6 people) and multiple POVs and hitting a lot of topics that would be triggers for people (death, eating disorders, depression, miscarriage, drug use, alcohol, cheating).  It is not a badly written book and Lombardo clearly put effort and thought into her characters.  She knows them, knows their motivations, their thoughts, their desires.  The good, the bad, and the ugly.  She weaves together all of the storylines until you get as tidy a bow at the end as a family drama ever gets.  This is good and takes skill.

Unfortunately, in giving these characters such clear life, Lombardo also made the book unpalatable to me.  Hardly anyone in this book was likeable.  Even the ones you could feel sympathy for were still headaches.  The drama was shared around widely like some bizarre merry-go-round where I went into each chapter wondering which character I would loathe the most in that round.  Jonah, the poor kid, usually stayed under my umbrella of protection because he honestly had a rough foundation from the get-go (but I totally guessed who his dad was and was relieved that it wasn't the Most Drama Causing One - only the second most).  Also Violet's poor kids - she's 100% giving Wyatt every chance at a really lovely anxiety disorder.  But the others?  It was like watching multiple train wrecks at once.  Some were not avoidable.  Some definitely were.  

Maybe it's me, maybe it's the time (you know, this oligarchy-favoring hellscape), but it was certainly not the most fun I ever had reading about a cis white upper-middle-class family with loving (yes, we get it, you'd save at least 100 pages if you stopped writing it) parents who all managed to screw themselves and people around them spectacularly.

Very enjoyable the way the story jumps through time for all of its characters, so your constantly unfolding bits of the past that help you capture the details of their relationships. Constant discovery in that way. I found Wendy and Jonah to be a few of my favorite voices.  Love this book. 

I usually don't read books like this, but I am now open to reading more like it! I liked the book and was immersed in the world of David, Marilyn and their offspring: Wendy, Liza, Violet, and Grace. Wendy is the most complex character and the story kind of revolves around her and her struggles. Or really, her and Violet’s struggles of envy, co-dependency, and jealousy. The story bounces back and forth between the daughters’ and all of their issues and David and Marilyn’s seemingly perfect marriage. 

Because of David and Marilyn’s nearly untouchable love, I found their backstories kind of boring and it was only until it got to the part of when

David emotionally cheated with Gillian

that I was finally invested, but it didn’t last super long. I love their relationship and all they went through, even at the cost of them being considered boring. 

Regarding the daughters, I’ll start with the most boring of them all: Grace. It’s not her fault and I believe the author not really touching too much on Grace is a byproduct of her being the youngest. With the youngest, the parents are burnt out and barely care at this point, leading to the youngest feeling like they didn’t get as much attention or parenting as their siblings did. I felt bad for Liza and how she

had a depressed a** boyfriend who cared more about gaming than loving his GF. I sympathize with depression, but it felt like he just checked out of life and Liza just let him. It took like 8 years and getting PREGNANT that she realized that maybe Ryan isn’t a good life partner. Like DUH! And poor Jonah accidentally telling the tea! That was when Liza’s POV got a bit more interesting

. Violet was hard to love. I mean of course I feel bad that

Wendy was so jealous of her seemingly happy (and it seems like at the time it was) life so much that she located her sister’s child she gave up for adoption

. But ALSO Violet was messed up for

the baby’s father being her older sister’s sweet boyfriend. Like could you BE anymore jealous

?! Them two are a MESS and I’m glad they resolved their issues, but it was definitely anti-climactic at how they patched things up, I was expecting a little more, but I mean that’s sisters for ya.

Overall, it was a good read and it contained enough family drama to keep me occupied.

The writing of this book is reason enough to read it. I found myself immediately enthralled by the first chapter and wanting to know what else this author could possibly have to say about this dysfunctional, typical family going about their lives. If you grew up with siblings (specifically sisters) this is one that you should consider reading at your own introspective peril. Not for the weak of heart, this book had me viewing myself and my family in a light I didn’t really want to, especially at the beginning of the year. Am I happy I read it? Yes! Will I read it again? Dear god, no.

Wonderful generational novel about what it takes to make and keep a family with plenty of secrets, drama, and emotional baggage. The characters are beautifully complex and flawed. Marilyn and David's story which is woven throughout the present day events, really struck home, demonstrating how much conscious effort and sacrifice goes into staying in love for a lifetime, a love that many would mistake as easy and natural.

Wow I loved this one. Just such beautiful family relationships. The ups and downs of sisterhood. More about the characters than the plot but of course there are twists and turns too. Makes you ache for family in a good way! I really loved the writing. The book just felt like a hug. I will definitely be reading more from this author.