Colleen, Lena to her family, ran away to NY after catching her fiance and younger sister kissing on what was to be their wedding day. Ten years later she returns home to help her brother and sister take care of their father who has been diagnosed with Alzheimers. While putting together a Memory Book for their father, they find some discrepancies from the stories their father told them. Not only does Colleen have to deal with her sisters betrayal, she has to uncover the secrets of her father's past.

This is the first book I have read by Patti Callahan Henry. The story tells of the all to real facts of Alzheimer's and the decisions a family must make to take care of their father. While dealing with her sister Hallie, Lena must decide if it is better to forgive and move on or let the memory keep her from enjoying the family she loves. The family dynamic was real with interesting characters. It is a story of love, family, and forgiveness. Thank you Patti Callahan Henry, Berkley Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC of this book and this is my honest review.

Lena’s sister betrayed her on her wedding day. Leans runs away to the big city of NYC and does not speak to her sister for over a decade. She receives a call from her brother begging her to come home. Her dad is going downhill and he needs her. Lena is unsure how to even deal with going home. But, her dad is her rock. So she heads home to hopefully heal her family.

I can’t say enough about how much I enjoyed this read. I read it on the plane to BookExpo. I was so engrossed in Lena’s story. Lena is escaping a hurt. Maybe she should have stuck it out to help keep her family ties together. But, it just was not in her. Lena has to come to terms with her sister, her hurt, and her ex-fiancé. This is easier said than done. And her sister does not make it easy!

This is not just a story about betrayal. It is a story about love, healing, and family! Captivating, heartbreaking, engrossing…I could go on and on. Patti Callahan Henry hit it out of the park with this one.

I received this novel from Tandem Literary for a honest review.

Paperback, 368 pages ISBN13: 9780399583131
Published June 4th 2019 by Berkley Books Rating: 5*.

I am sorry to say that this was my first experience in reading this author’s work, but after this taste of her prose, visualization and emotional pull on my very soul, it will not be the last. What a blessing it is to discover an author who can write such a moving and relatable tale with such insight into the aftermath of both the protagonists aching hearts.

It was ten years ago, when Lena Donohue experienced a wedding-day betrayal so painful that she fled the small town of Watersend, South Carolina. After coming to terms with broken heart she reinvented herself in New York City. Now as a freelance travel writer, the one place she rarely goes is home – until she learns of her dad's failing health.

Returning to Watersend means seeing the sister she has avoided for a decade. But she can’t ignore her brother who runs the family's Irish pub and has borne the burden of his sisters' rift and the brunt of watching his father slowly succumb to the despicable disease of Alzheimer’s. Seeing firsthand how their father's memories are slipping away, the siblings rush to preserve his life in stories and in photographs. While doing the research into her father’s life and memories, some inaccuracies started to unfold which lead Lena to discover the truth of what set her apart from her best friend and sister even before the betrayal of the wedding day disaster.

I admit to being easily and emotionally moved and truthfully I had to put this book down several times before I could continue reading because of the tears that came to my eyes. However, I wouldn’t have missed the chance to experience this story and thank God that I had the opportunity to read and review! Excellent and brilliant!

Marilyn Rondeau

In Patti Callahan Henry's most recent return to the Lowcountry, we meet the Donohue sisters on big sister Lena's wedding day - but when she finds her sister Hallie kissing the groom, clearly the wedding is called off. We pick up ten years later when Lena (now Colleen) has not spoken to her sister in ten years and has not returned home, until now - when their father is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

The Favorite Daughter is a beautifully written story about love, betrayal, family, rebuilding and most of all, coming home. It's about the bonds of blood and those formed by the truest love. Doing what she does best, Henry brings all the emotion and heart as we navigate these bonds with the Donohues and find out if its truly possible to move on and come together once again.

Thank you to Berkley for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

I love books about families, relationships, and working out differences, so this one fit that bill to a T.  It also had the bonus of being set in the South and a bit of a mystery, too. The two sisters in the book had been exceptionally close growing up, best friends in fact. But then Lena found her sister together with her fiancee moments before walking down the aisle. Lena left her home to get away from the pain and ended up working as a travel writer in New York.  Lena is forced to face the past when she returns home to Watersend, SC after her brother Shane's plea to assist with their Dad who has declining health due to Alzheimer's.

In this engaging novel, the author has vividly drawn characters.  They are well-drawn, imperfect people, struggling through the past while trying to take care of a problematic situation in the present.  My one small complaint and the only problem I had with the characters was in the sister, Hallie's, attitude when Lena returned home.  Rather than being repentant, she was angry at her sister for staying away so long and couldn't seem to understand why her sister wouldn't want to be in contact with her. I had trouble buying into that.  The father Gavin was such a wonderful character and great Dad to Colleen, so it was hard to watch him losing his identity with his disease.

Memories play a large part of this book.  The importance of memories is highlighted in many ways from currently dealing with past memories as well as losing those memories through Alzheimer's.  The author does an excellent job of shining a light on this horrible disease and how it affects the individual and their friends and family.

This is an author I have not read before, but I will be reading her future books as well as looking into her past books.  So if you are looking for a book about relationships, forgiveness, and strong family ties, pick this book up when it goes on sale in June.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book for review.

I would actually give this book a 4.5 Rating

𝒮𝓉𝓇𝓊𝑔𝑔𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝑜 𝓇𝑒𝓂𝑒𝓂𝒷𝑒𝓇. 𝒯𝓇𝓎𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝑜 𝒻𝑜𝓇𝑔𝑒𝓉.


Patti Callahan Henry has written a beautiful story full of memories, family, and forgiveness. A decade ago Lena was devastatingly betrayed right before she was about to walk down the aisle. Completely destroyed and mortified Lena packs her bags and heads to New York to lick her wounds and start over. Lena gets a job as a travel journalist, traveling the country and the world, but rarely returning home to Water’s End South Carolina. After receiving a phone call from her brother Shane Lena realizes she needs to return home and face her past. Lena’s beloved father Gavin has been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s and it is only a matter of time before he will lose all his memories. What transpires is a lovely story about the struggle to remember and the desire to forget.

This story completely captured my heart. These characters, this family, I was completely invested. Lena’s struggle to face her sister Hallie after 10 years of animosity was heartbreaking and uncomfortable. Some things are hard to forgive and even harder to forget and I am not certain if I would be capable myself. I really felt for Lena and understood her actions. HallieWas a bit of a hypocrite and really frustrated me. And poor Shane was so caught in the middle just trying to keep the peace between his sisters. Loved how the siblings were working together to create a book of memories for their dad, they really wanted to do just about anything to keep his memories alive. Gavin had a big personality and a big heart and it was heartbreaking to see his health and memories deteriorate.

So many pieces to the story that when put together were pure magic. The story was captivating, the setting was stunning, and the characters were authentic. The ending was so touching and it hit me right in the heart! Another remarkable story that you definitely need to add to your summer TVR!

*** Big thanks to Berkley for my copy of this book ***

The story of Colleen (Lena) Donohue and her journey back home is full of estranged relationships and a sense of never quite feeling like she was loved in the same way as her siblings. Leaving her childhood home is only the geographic separation she’s created. When she found her sister Hallie, whom she thought her very best friend, in a kiss with her fiancé just minutes before her wedding, Lena is broken, and she leaves Watersend as quickly as she can. Now she must join with her sister and brother through the murky waters of Alzheimer’s as it is taking away so much of their beloved father.

Patti Henry adds another dimension to her books. The addition of setting as a character. This book reminded me of her gift so well. The Low country, the marshes and rivers and estuaries of South Carolina are all a critical part of this book. I felt like I was there, sitting out back with my morning coffee, watching the dock and the water flow by. The sounds of Colleen’s home become the safe haven and the torment of her searching. Patti has drawn a picture for her readers and it was a such a joy to immerse myself in Watersend SC. The Lark, family pub and town hub, is every bit as important as the town people who help the Donohue children piece together the memories of Gavin, and discovering that their father has deep secrets.

Family, forgiveness, love, are all unforgettable themes in this book. Having personally experienced a parent with Alzheimer’s disease I felt a kinship in the heartache the Donohue’s were faced with. The details Patti wrote about where factual and devastating. This kind of research makes a difference when writing about a topic.

I loved this book, how it made me feel, how I wanted Colleen and Hallie to mend their sisterhood, and how I wanted them all to love one another. We all know families are messy, but the work is often worth it. Grab this book everywhere today, and if audio books are your favorite this one is narrated by Joshilyn Jackson, a true voice of southern fiction!

My father in law had Alzheimer's so when I read the description of The Favorite Daughter, I knew I had to read it. After a horrible shock on her wedding day, Lena leaves her hometown and family. 10 years later, she returns to help her siblings deal with their Alzheimer's stricken father. While planning a memory book and timeline for their father, they discover a discrepancy in the dates of their parents' marriage and Lena's birth. While the siblings dig a little deeper into their father's past, he is quickly succumbing to the memory loss. I loved this story! I loved being able to learn about the characters layer by layer. The Favorite Daughter is my first book written by Patti Callahan Henry but not my last!

I loved The Favorite Daughter! It is a story full of interesting family dynamics and a little bit of mystery as I tried to determine just exactly which daughter is the 'favorite daughter'.

Colleen runs from her wedding and stays away from her family for ten years, that is, until that same family draws her back when their dad starts declining. She has to face the people who betrayed her, while still trying to be supportive of her dad.

As the siblings work to compile a memory book for their dad's birthday party, some things from the past just don't add up. Family secrets? Or misremembered memories?

"Memories aren't always the truth. They aren't always true."

The Favorite Daughter is a spellbinding story that grabbed me from the very first chapter and had me racing to the end. It has interesting characters dealing with an issue that a lot of people are having to deal with—elders losing their memories—and a plethora of other challenging family issues. I highly recommend that you to add it to your summer reading list.

A Story of Love, Betrayal, and Family

Lena is thrilled to be marrying the man of her dreams. Everything has been planned to perfection thanks to her sister Hallie, a party planner. She and Hallie have been as close as twins, and she’s thrilled to be with her sister on this perfect day. Ready to walk down the aisle, Lena goes in search of her sister and gets the worst shock of her life. She leaves her home in Watersend and relocates to New York City where she’s a successful travel writer.

Lena has been home to see her mother, father, and brother, Shane, but she hasn’t seen Hallie for ten years. Then a devastating call comes from her brother. She has to come home. Her father has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and the family is needed to help. Lena returns. She still doesn’t want to see Hallie, but she’d do anything for her father.

As she siblings work together to build a memory book for their father, gaps appear in his life. There are secrets that must be faced, particularly for Lena.

This is a strong story of family and betrayal showing that in the end family bonds can overcome even the most grievous hurt. Lena is a character you can relate to. Her emotions are raw even after ten years, but her love for her father is so important that she will do anything, including try to reconcile with her sister, to help him.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

The Favorite Daughter is a deeply affecting and poignant story about family, home and finding forgiveness. This is the first book by Patti Calahan Henry that I've read and it certainly won't be the last. I've read plenty of books that made my heart ache, that made me sad and angry, but this story absolutely gutted me on so many levels. I haven't cried to the extent this book made me cry in a VERY long while.

PCH's writing is absolutely stunning. The story is perfectly plotted out so that the events that bring Colleen home also compel her to reevaluate her stance on what drove her away. And it is a doozy! She is not a woman prone to dramatics and as she spends time with her family, we experience all the heartache that's kept her away. The full extent of the effects of the betrayal is profound and made me so incredibly angry. I would say I felt inexplicably protective of Colleen, but I think it can be attributed to PCH's writing talent.

So while I cried about the heartbreak she experienced and is clearly still impacting her relationships, a larger heartbreak is still to come and one that would be cathartic for me. I was most touched because the situation with her father is one that I've experienced. Early onset Alzheimer’s is devasting to any family, that I can attest to. In The Favorite Daughter, the heartache of the diagnosis is compounded by the stress and separation of the family. There are some major revelations that come to light as the siblings, Colleen, Shane, and Hallie work to give their father Gavin Donohue a memorable birthday. But will proximity to each other makes it worse, or help them to heal? While I sat bawling on my sofa I wondered how things would ever be made right. I had some strong doubts it could be done but PCH made it happen.

Reading this book really felt like a journey. The underlying theme of this book is about memories. What they are and how they define us, more so how we let them define us. The takeaway being that is we are open to a change in perspective, that may change a memory. They are not always factually based. In fact, they are mostly about how we felt or feel in a moment and that perspective can change your memory of an event; good and bad. PCH started every chapter with a quote and I looked to that to give me an idea as to what was coming. I have soooo many highlights and just reading back through them brings up all the feels. I rarely re-read books but I already see myself embarking on a second and third read through and I predict it will be in the very near future. It might not be for everyone, but I HIGHLY recommend this book. It's smart, easily balanced between being thought-provoking and emotion-inducing. Exactly what makes for a great read by my standards.

This was a bit of sad read due to the father’s Alzheimer’s. I felt the story itself was a bit slow paced and although I did like it overall, it was not one of my favorite reads. The wedding day betrayal was a common trope and the hidden family secrets were not so shocking. It was a middle of the road read for me.

What an absolutely beautiful novel. Family, memories, betrayals, secrets and finding home are central to this novel. Lena (Colleen) left her hometown after the ultimate betrayal by her sister and has avoided her in the 10 years since. When her brother tells her it’s time to come home, she has to put aside her feelings to work with both her siblings to help her father who has Alzheimer’s that is advancing quickly. As they work to find the best options for her father and create a memory book of his life, they discover secrets that help Lena understand and come to terms with parts of her past. Lena also has to find her way to forgive her sister and rediscover her friend and family, while finally finding what home means to her.
The characters are well-developed and the story was well-written, evoking tears in many spots. The descriptions of the setting made me feel like I was there; I am ready for a trip to the coast of South Carolina. Once I started, I couldn’t put it down; I couldn’t bear not knowing what would happen next and leaving the characters for even a moment. You will also start thinking about home and where it is and what it means to you.
This was the first novel I have read by Patti Callahan Henry, and I have to say, the accolades are well-deserved and I will be heading to her backlist and catching up.
#tallpoppywriters #bloomreads #tallpoppyreviewer

Colleen (Lena) Donahue ran from Watersend, South Carolina 10 years ago after a bitter betrayal. Now she has learned that her beloved father is showing signs of Alzheimer's and her brother needs her help. While she would do anything for her father and brother, returning home means facing the sister that she hasn't spoken to since she left. While the siblings struggle to come to grips with their father's diagnosis and preserve the pieces of his past in a memory book, long-hidden family secrets are revealed.

I enjoyed reading this book and I loved the theme of the family coming together and working past prior issues for the greater good. The father, Gavin Donahue, was definitely my favorite and I enjoyed his parts in the book the most. The pace was good and I was curious to see how it all unraveled. Overall though, I don't know that this book was for me. I had a hard time relating to Colleen who I felt was a bit self-absorbed and cowardly and while the book did take a few bends, I found myself hoping for a bigger twist.

Thank you to #NetGalley, the Tall Poppy Writers, Tandem Literary and Berkley Publishing Group for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Ugly cry potential: Medium-Low
LOL: Low
Character development: OK
Unputdownable-ness: Medium
Originality: Medium
Quality of Writing: Good
Intellectual Depth: Medium-Low
Emotionally Trying/Hard to Read: Low

A friend warned me that the ending of this book might necessitate tissues, and she was absolutely right. I've read nearly all of Patti Callahan Henry's books over the years, and this might be her best yet. Colleen is called home for the first extended visit she's made since leaving town after finding her fiance kissing her sister... on their wedding day. Now her beloved father is showing signs of Alzheimer's, and her family- including her sister and her fiance turned brother-in-law- need her. Colleen is struggling with whether or not to rebuild the relationship with her sister (and how), and her place in the family now that the family member she was closest to is becoming unrecognizable.
Having gone through the experience of a family member with Alzheimer's, parts of this story hit that raw, emotional place where you recognize the story. As a person with sisters, parts of this story resonated personally, too. But it was Colleen's experiences in the last quarter or so of this book that really had me getting out the tissues, and I haven't been through what she has. The author created a really special character in Colleen- she could have come across on the page as whiny or self-indulgent, but somehow I never felt that her behavior was unreasonable. Other characters were well-written, as well, and anyone who has read Henry's previous books knows how well she writes a place.
Bravo, Patti Callahan Henry, for a heartfelt, emotional family story! I'll definitely be recommending this one.

After finding out the ultimate betrayal on her wedding day Lena left home and never spoke to her sister again and only came home if she never saw her sister either. However, after a call from her brother she comes back home after her father is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and her family needs her help.

She is close to her brother who has taken it upon himself to care for his dad and now runs the family business, a pub he knows his father needs the family more than ever and calls on Lena and her sister in hopes they bury the hatchet and come together for their father’s sake. Growing up Lena always felt a distance of sorts from her mother but never knew exactly while but soon she will discover a long kept secret while sorting out her father’s belonging. This happens when they agree to have a party in honor of their father in hopes of celebrating his life before the disease takes all his memory away.
In time we learn why Lena ran off from her family and why she and her sister don’t talk. We also learn why Lena always felt like a stranger in her own family and why her father was so close to her.

This is a story with secrets coming out of every angle, which I loved! I felt like it was the gift that kept on giving, with layers upon layers being peeled back and the truth being revealed. I felt as if there were two storylines being told one was the conflict between Lena and her sister and the other the secret her father held from her. Both were amazing stories and tied together beautifully, I especially felt as if Lena finally came into her own and made peace with herself in the end.

The Favorite Daughter is an amazing story with a great storyline about family and forgiveness. While forgiving others is great I find that forgiving within yourself heals yourself like nothing else. It gives you that inner peace that nothing else or no one can give you. This is a great book for the summer one that needs to be thrown in your beach bag and be read by the pool, beach or simply in the comfort of your home.

As I sit here with tears streaming down my face, I think of my own family and how much our shared and individual memories of our lives shape us into the people we are.
Henry's latest is a gorgeously rendered tale with so many profound thoughts about one family's past, present, and future and how their experiences affect them depending on the lens they view those experiences through.
I feel like this book is wrongly titled for a few reasons. One of which is unfortunate, that a thriller of the same title was released just a couple of weeks ago. Another is that it doesn't capture the essence of this book at all, because although it is somewhat focused on the sisters (each of whom believes the other is the favorite daughter), it is truly the story of a family: two sisters, estranged by terrible circumstances in the past, their brother who kind of runs interference, and their dad, who has recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
Nothing about this book is predictable, every time I thought I knew where the author was going to go with the story, she takes it a different, but wholly right for the tale, direction. There are heartbreaks, betrayals, secrets, discoveries, and love. I thought the author have the characters take the easy way out of various situations so many times and she never does--the characters own their pain, their missteps, their choices, even if those choices seem wrong to everyone else. They don't forgive too quickly, others or themselves (which would have tied the story up in a pretty bow, but isn't realistic) yet the love is still there, still waiting just beneath the surface.
Such a beautiful, beautiful story.

An emotional and heartfelt story about family, regrets, loss, and forgiveness.

This story took off right away in the first chapter. The author's writing pulled me in and had me invested in the two sisters relationship.

The protagonist, Lena receives sad news about her father. He has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and she must return home before it is to late. I loved the message of capturing moments in life that bring family together and letting go of the past.

The story is multi-layered and the characters all felt so real. I loved following Lena on her journey and the ending was just perfect.

I'm thrilled to have found a new author I enjoy and look forward to reading more from her.

Recommend to fans of the genre.

Thanks Berkley for my review copy. Available 6/4/2019

On the happiest day of her life, Colleen suffers the ultimate betrayal, and leaves her home and her family to start a new life and escape the painful memories of that day. 10 years later she returns home to help her father, whose health is failing, and is forced to confront her past. The Favorite Daughter is a touching story of forgiveness, memories, and home.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Bookshop at Water’s End, here is a lush, heart-wrenching novel about the power of memory, the meaning of family, and learning to forgive.
This was truly a moving account of how families can be torn apart by secrets and how even if you love someone, it can be very hard to forgive them. The characters were memorable and easy to relate to. I could not put this one down and give it a very strong 5 stars.