Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

When twenty-nine-year-old Sunday Brennan wakes up in a Los Angeles hospital, bruised and battered after a drunk driving accident she caused, she swallows her pride and goes home to her family in New York. But it's not easy. She deserted them all—and her high school sweetheart—five years before with little explanation, and they've got questions.

Sunday is determined to rebuild her life back on the east coast, even if it does mean tiptoeing around resentful brothers and an ex-fiancé. The longer she stays, however, the more she realizes they need her just as much as she needs them. When a dangerous man from her past brings her family's pub business to the brink of financial ruin, the only way to protect them is to upend all their secrets—secrets that have damaged the family for generations and will threaten everything they know about their lives. In the aftermath, the Brennan family is forced to confront painful mistakes—and ultimately find a way forward, together.

Review:

As my bookstore owner friend says, " I love a book about a fu&%ed up Irish family"!  This book really reeled me in.  As someone who grew up with lots of siblings, I thought the book really captured how large families interact.  While the family loves to talk about each other, there's also lots of deals being made between various sibs and parents: "don't tell... (name of family member)".  Aside from the family dynamics, this book is mostly about how past mistakes and secrets, eventually, have consequences.  As a family, they can decide how to react.  Are they going to support each other, or rip each other to shreds?  I enjoyed the characters, and story, as well as the antics of a large family.  I would caution, however, that if you are triggered by sexual violence, to skip this book.

What I Liked:

Family Dynamics:

If you grew up in a large household, you'll recognize some of the ways large families operate.  There's often one family member who is the responsible one, and many who are oblivious to how much work needs to get done.  Of course they are willing to help, when asked.  But they are often plugging their ears, so they won't hear the calls for help.  Sunday is the caretaker of the family.  Perhaps this is because she is the only girl, but I think the men were happy for Sunday Brennan to step in and take care of things.  When she leaves, this leaves a hole in the family. Denny steps up.  But, like Sunday, he shoulders too much, and it's crushing him.  I enjoyed that the family, eventually, sees that other members need help.

Characters:

Sunday Brennan is a woman who's self-assured, and very caring about her family.  Which is why it's so puzzling to here sibling, Denny, that she gets into a car accident caused by her drunk driving.  Slowly, over the course of the book, we learn that Sunday was changed by a devastating event.  It was heart-breaking to see how her life changed overnight.  But I loved that she learns to let go of the past, and get on with her life.

Denny, the oldest of the Brennans, was the apple of his mother's eye.  He has acquired a deep sense of responsibility for his large family. Which makes facing possible financial ruin all the more terrible.  As the coddled son, he's not used to failure.  Both Denny and Sunday feel that by lying to their family, they are protecting them.  But all it really does is rob them of the opportunity to be supported by those who love them.   

Story:

The story centers on something that can be the cause of so much stress in a family.  Money problems break up countless marriages and families.  I think this is very much in our minds right now, as people deal with job losses and possibly medical bills from the pandemic.  Denny is close to losing his business, a pub that he owns with his best friend, and Sunday's ex-boyfriend, Kale.  

I think the story shows how crippling money problems can be.  Denny feels like he can't confide in his partner, or his wife, about the mounting debt.  And this snowballs into lies, and even more debt.  This burden is costing Denny his marriage, and risking his friendship with Kale.  But Denny tries always to show confidence in the face of calamity.  Thankfully, his family is there to help, when he finally tells the truth.

Sunday, is also dealing with the after-effects of lies.  Five years ago, something terrible happened to her, causing her, tragically, much guilt and self-loathing.  She abruptly leaves and breaks her engagement to Kale.  When she returns after her drunk-driving incident, she has to find a way to make peace with what happened, and to accept that Kale has moved on with his life.

Trigger Warning for sexual assault!

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date: August 3, 2021

Author:  Tracey Lange

Publisher:  Celadon Books

Genre:  Literary Fiction

Page Length:  288 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  This was a great examination of families.  I loved this novel.