I enjoy reading real stories where all is not sunshine, roses and happily ever afters. I found both the characters and story to be believable. I could associate with this story. Jack & Ellie have real life problems as do their children.
Thank you Rachel Cullen and NetGalley for allowing me this advance copy in exchange for my honest feedback.
I highly recommend the purchase of this book.

I really enjoyed the premise of this story and the fact that it features characters that Are relatable and deal with issues that, at times, hit close to home. The multiple points of view helped with character development and ultimately helped me to gain insight into their individual lives.
At times, the writing felt a little too predictable and I thought the ending was not all that realistic and seemed oddly convenient. Overall, it was an enjoyable and quick read.

First Came Us is the concept that is buried under the routine of everyday life in this delightful and very realistic novel. Communication is also forgotten in this twisty story, full of secrets and misunderstanding.

Jack is an Economics Professor at Yale and Ellie owns and teaches at a yoga studio in nearby Westport. They face the usual problems with their three children - schedules, school pick ups, sports practices - until. the cracks in their happy family start to appear. The first is a secret from Jack’s past that he doesn’t think he can explain to Ellie. The second secret is Ellie’s and she can only share it with a friend. While their three children seem problem free, teenage Sydney has her own secret and the pressure of hiding it is coming at a great cost.

As the plot careens toward a somewhat expected conclusion, all secrets are revealed and relationships are strengthened. Although the ending does tie everything up too neatly, I really enjoyed First Came Us. Told in different points of view, it is well written and the characters feel like they could be living down the street from you. This is a great rainy day read! Four stars.

Thanks to NetGalley, Independent and Rachel Cullen for this ARC.

This was a really great and interesting book. a plus was that it was easy to read and the writing was easy to follow. Only minus was that some places it was too fast phased and some too slow, i wish there had been more to it - more things happening or take more time.

Ellie and Jack, a yoga teacher and an Econ professor, have a good life with their three children. They are flat-out rich like many of their neighbors, but they are comfortable and happy. Sydney, their oldest child, is going through some typical adolescent changes, but lies to a college student she meets at a party about her age and circumstances. So begins the secret-keeping by all three of them. This is an engrossing story on several levels - lots of plot twists and emotions, lots of misinterpretations on everyone’s parts. Rachel Cullen gets the point across very clearly that communication has to be clear to be key.

A bit of every day drama in a normal family living their life with all the daily struggles, having to balance work schedule and kids and love moments. It’s told in different points of view and although I wanted a bit more of certain characters, the story was interesting enough to keep reading.

Realistic drama, different points of view and an all-around entertaining read! I highly enjoyed First Came Us and will be looking for more from this author in the future. While certain aspects felt predictable and it was a little odd to never hear "from" the other two children, there were plenty of small twists to keep the story moving forward and I was invested in finding out what happened to all the characters. Overall, a fun read!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own. received this book for free from net galley in exchange for an honest review.

I started this book in the hope that I'm going to read a cosy family story. And I was not disappointed. The story revolves around 3 members of the family and how they see each other and what are their thought processes. The advantage of the three pov's is that we get to see each character as an individual person and I think that was one of the advantages of the book. But otherwise, I didn't feel connected to the story. And the characters were flat and forgettable. I can't connect with the characters as a person and I frequently hot diverted from the story. Overall, it's a short easy read and can be done within hours.

A family drama with potential, but unfortunately it fell flat. It seemed that there were multiple problems that took up 80% of the story with drama, when at the end it truly wasn’t relevant. Not my cup of tea.

I received this book for free from net galley in exchange for an honest review.
This book was so warm and cozy, for a read on a cold winter night. It was told from three different POV’s and I enjoyed that. Getting to see what the husband, wife and daughter were thinking during certain events was wonderful. The husband and wife felt like people to me, dealing with real problems. There were a couple twists and turns in this book, even though I figured out some of them, I enjoyed it thoroughly.
I feel that only hearing from one child, we didn’t really get to learn about the other two. Like what happened with max, they just kept walking by his room and never went in.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and I would recommend. It was very easy to read. I couldn’t put it down because I wanted to find out what happened to the characters.

I received a free e-book arc of this book from Netgallery in exchange for an honest review! Overall, I liked this book. I enjoyed how the story line and characters had a wholesome feel about them in regards, that the family had a believable husband and wife with problems that were, at times, real life issues. I enjoyed the children, although I felt I got to know one of their children more than the others. I liked the multiple POVs, which helped the reader understand the character developments and made for some interesting misunderstandings. I kinda felt there was a lot of time spent on the build up and the action parts of the story all collided together for all of the characters at one time and then were easily resolved with just a couple of simple conversations. I liked how the ending turned out even if it was a little too convenient. Overall, I would definitely like to read more from this author and would highly recommend this book for a cozy weekend or beach read!

This comedy of errors tells the story of a family as told through three different points of view: the father, the mother, and the oldest teenage daughter. They each have a secret they’re trying to hide and this shapes how they interact with others. The narrators each had unique voices and storylines that showed how harmful a secret can be. Even though some of the plot was a little predictable, this was still an entertaining read that had me rooting for the whole family.

4,5 stars ⭐️
I absolutely loved this adorable book!
There are, however, some controversial topics and I did find some of the plot predictable.
I loved seeing the lives of a married couple and their children and I think this is an interesting approach to romance and different from the other “typical” books! I connected with the characters and it was a very easy read, I almost didn’t want to stop reading!

*arc provided via netgalley*

I thought this one will be a good read but unfortunately I couldn't get into the story. I don't know why, maybe it's because of characters or it starts with a cheating scene. Not a bad story but didn't work out for me.

Having been exposed to the affluence and materialism of the suburbs, this is a true depiction of how it is. I felt connected to Ellie and Jack and could relate to the teenage struggles of Sydney. This was a warm hearted and good read for a person who valued their family and realize that love not money is truly what is important. It is also a great lesson that keeping secrets only drives people farther apart.

Really enjoyed this family drama with well developed characters and a fascinating storyline that make this a must read. Highly recommended.

This was a cute story about a family that overcame a lot of familial issues. I definitely enjoyed the twists and turns, even if they were predictable. I had a hard time connecting with the characters, but it did not keep me from enjoying the plot line. Definitely a fun, easy read!

I absolutely adored this book. I loved how Rachel wrote the book with different angles of the characters. Highly recommend! It has everything. Love, loss and learning to live again.

Loved this book!! It’s a story that could take place anywhere. You could see this going on in your own town. I loved it so much!!