May 30, 2016
Fans of Giffin’s will find much to love in her chronicle of the rocky relationship between two disparate sisters 15 years after the death of their older brother, Daniel. Meredith is now a lawyer who’s always felt that she’s needed to make sacrifices in order to keep her fragile parents happy. She’s been married to Daniel’s childhood best friend, Nolan, for almost seven years, though she’s long doubted their love for each other. Josie is content as a first grade teacher but longs to be a mother herself, though at 37 she’s thinking about giving up on dating and having a kid on her own through a donor. Her decision is spurred by having in her class the daughter of a former flame, which also triggers memories of his role in the night that Daniel died. Meredith views Josie as self-centered and immature, while Josie sees her sister as tightly wound and judgmental. Chapters alternate from each sister’s point of view, convincing the reader to see things from both perspectives. In her lead-up to the book’s climax and big secret, Giffin manages to explore numerous themes about this sibling relationship: holding on to the past, expectations, and forgiveness. This is Giffin at her finest—a fantastic, memorable story.
April 15, 2016
A family struggles to define their new normal 15 years after a tragic loss. Sisters Josie and Meredith couldn't be more different. While Josie is an occasionally capricious, still-single elementary school teacher longing for a child of her own, Meredith is a diligent and obsessive lawyer, mother, and wife. Though Meredith desperately tries to create a "perfect Facebook facade," there are definite cracks at the edges. She is uninterested in trying for a second child, feels listless in her career, and questions the foundation of her marriage. Josie, meanwhile, is attempting to cope with the heavy emotional burden of having her ex-boyfriend's--the one she still isn't completely over--young daughter assigned to her class. At nearly 38, with no romantic prospects in sight, Josie decides that she will have to take charge of her desire to be a mother, setting off Meredith, who considers this to be just another one of Josie's whims. At the core of this troubled family are the grief that lingers over their brother Daniel's untimely death, the questions that swirl regarding what exactly happened on that fateful night, and the rapidly approaching milestone anniversary. Bestseller Giffin (The One & Only, 2014, etc.) juggles Josie's quest for motherhood and Meredith's internal conflicts deftly, with the third force always being their lost brother and the feelings of what their family could have been had things worked out differently. While Josie and Meredith sometimes seem just a touch too self-aware considering their foibles, Giffin paints a realistic portrait of the troubled and complex relationship between a pair of sisters. Beyond the sisters, the novel is rich with well-drawn characters, from Gabe, Josie's best friend and platonic roommate, to Sophie, Daniel's girlfriend at the time of his death. Giffin's fans will be pleased with this fast-paced, witty, and thoughtful new offering.
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May 15, 2016
Fifteen years ago, the tragic death of 25-year-old Daniel Garland devastated his family. His sisters, Josie and Meredith, have built very different lives for themselves in the wake of their loss. Wild-child Josie became a schoolteacher but hasn't found anyone to settle down with aside from her platonic best friend and roommate, Gabe. Serious Meredith gave up her theatrical aspirations to become a lawyer and then married Daniel's closest friend, Nolan. On the cusp of turning 38, Josie shocks her family by announcing that she's decided to have a child on her own. Meredith is infuriated by what she sees as a reckless choice on Josie's part, but she's also grappling with a problem: her growing dissatisfaction with her marriage to Nolan. When Josie makes a devastating discovery about the night Daniel died, she hesitates over telling Meredith, knowing that it could destroy their already tenuous relationship forever. Moving and complex, Giffin's latest, following The One & Only (2014), proves she's still at the top of her game.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)
June 1, 2016
Sisters Josie and Meredith are each struggling with tough life choices testing their fragile sisterly bond as the 15th anniversary of the tragic death of their brother looms. Free-spirited Josie is ready for motherhood. But as she nears 40 without a serious romantic relationship, she opts for a sperm donor. Meredith has gone the more traditional route to motherhood and has a young daughter with her husband, Nolan. But all is not as idyllic as it appears to her Instagram followers or even those who know her IRL (in real life), and she has an increasingly difficult time hiding her unhappiness. As she and Josie begin to face the truth surrounding their brother's death, their relationship is called into question. This well-written and engaging story explores how relationships evolve and people can surprise us if we let them. VERDICT With a theme similar to other women's fiction dealing with sisterly conflict, such as Jennifer Weiner's In Her Shoes, Giffin's latest (after The One & Only) is sure to be a great discussion starter for book groups and a hit with the author's many fans. [See Prepub Alert, 12/7/15.]--Karen Core, Detroit P.L.
Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
January 1, 2016
Meredith has found love, marriage, and a baby carriage but is beginning to question it all, while sister Josie is enjoying her single life but really wants a child. Their conflicted desires pull them together after years of estrangement. Giffin's The One and Only hit the top of the New York Times best sellers list last year.
Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.