Thanks to NetGalley for ARC of this title. Pleasant but kind of lightweight YA title about podcasting twins who go on a public search for their biological father.

This book was outside my usual genres, but it sounded interesting so I really wanted to give it a try. I opted not to post my review during the blog tour because while I enjoyed the book, I didn't love it, so I decided to feature an excerpt for the tour, but still wanted to review the book.

The plot and storyline are good and I enjoyed the idea of Thomas and Savannah using their podcast to chronicle their attempts to locate their biological father. There were some aspects of the plot that I didn't understand, like the entire business model of Guava Media, and what the twins really got out of that partnership since they apparently didn't receive any of the income. But I am also not very familiar with podcasting, so maybe that is normal?

For me, characters are the heart of every book. And while all of the characters were quite likeable {with one notable exception, and this character wasn't intended to be liked}, I wanted more. I like to get deep into a characters persona, their fears, their passions, what makes them tick. I felt that this book just scratched the surface and didn't dive deeper into the individual character motivations.

Thomas and Savannah are typical siblings. They fight, they care for each other, they miss their mother, and they both have different reasons for wanting to find their father. They are struggling with moving into adulthood, changing expectations, etc. But in some ways I feel like their characters' reactions are younger than their years, more how a younger teen of 13 or 14 would react, rather than how a 17, almost 18 year old would.

And then there's Maggie, who is quite eccentric. And we know she's eccentric, and we're given examples of it, but no real look into why she is the way she is. She's a great character, don't get me wrong, I would just like to see a little bit more of what made Maggie, Maggie.

For me, the character with the most development and who we get the deepest look at is Jack. He goes through a shift throughout the story and we see why. We get to experience more of his inner thought processes, both good and bad, and for me that makes him a well rounded character.

The supporting characters are also good. I like the relationships the twins have with Nadine, Maggie has with Chef Bart, and Jack has with Janie. I would have liked to see more of the relationship that Jack has with the twins in the end though.

All in all it was a good book, and while it wasn't necessarily my favorite, I did enjoy it. I am sure that others are going to love it.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this book through the Harlequin Blog Tours on behalf of Park Row through Net Galley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“Some people are meant to stay put, and some people are meant to go. But running is different than going. When you're running, you spend the whole time looking over your shoulder. To go forward, you gotta look forward.”


Twin siblings Savannah and Thomas, already have a podcast featuring dinner conversations they have with the unusual people their grandmother brings to dinner. During a unique dinner with one of his grandmother's strays, Thomas announces he wants to find his bio dad. Due to the surprising success of this dinner podcast episode, a production company offers to aid Savannah and Thomas in the search for their bio-dad by backing a podcast series following the journey of their search.


I requested this book from the publisher when I read the publisher's summary. The suggestion of the incorporated podcast elements reminded me of a book I read a couple years ago by Courtney Summers called Sadie. I was kind of hoping for a less intense version of Sadie but this was a completely different read all together.


I really enjoyed the overall story of The Kids Are Gonna Ask. It was original in so many ways narrative-wise, but there was a disconnect for me between the emotional journey the characters were on and the lack of emotional depth I felt. Anytime a book has a new spin on a heavily trodden story arc, I expect that the "spin" adds to the way the story connects to the reader. In this case, I felt that the podcast elements as a whole, created a lack of accessibility to the character's thoughts and feelings.


The Kids Are Gonna Ask was a fun reading experience and maybe I am being to harsh on it because I am used to reading books a little more evocative in nature. I needed more self aware characters to bring this story to a heart space rather than the forced whimsical-fun, I felt "talked into" by some cutesy story details.


⭐️⭐️.5 stars rounded up to 3 on Goodreads!


Thank you to Harlequin publishing and Netgalley for an advanced reader's copy of The Kids Are Gonna Ask in exchange for an honest book review!


The Kids Are Gonna Ask is out now!

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing me with a copy of Gretchen Anthony’s novel, The Kids are Gonna Ask, in exchange for an honest review.

Seventeen-year-old twins, Thomas and Savannah McClair, have been raised by their grandmother, Maggie, after their mom was killed in a tragic accident. Their mom, Bess never told them who their father was, a secret that she kept from everyone.

The twins have started a podcast where they invite dinner guests into their home, and interview them over a meal. Their podcast has a small following, until one episode goes viral, an episode when they mention the desire to know about their father. They are contacted by a high-profile producer to create a new show that follows the search to discover the identity of their birth father. The twins are thrust into the spotlight, which includes being placed in the middle of the controversy over privacy rights.

I enjoyed Anthony’s debut novel, Evergreen Tidings from the Baumgartners, and I was excited to read her follow-up. The Kids are Gonna Ask didn’t disappoint. Anthony has a wonderful strength in writing endearing characters, and her stories have a lot of heart. It was the perfect type of read for these pessimistic Covid-times. This isn’t to say that her stories are trite or that her characters are perfect. For example, Maggie has to deal with some lingering anger she has towards her dead daughter, which is difficult as she is also grieving for and has a tremendous amount of love for Bess. The emotions are complex.

Although I know who my birth father was, he died when I was four. I could easily relate to the twins feelings of not knowing their parent, and have a whole missing piece of themselves. I can count the things I know about my dad on one hand. More to that, there is a chapter when Savannah is relating to Nadine, the daughter of the McClair’s personal chef. Both girls have lost their mother, and they mention how difficult it is, because it always creates an awkward situation. No one knows how to act or speak around children who have lost their parents. I have felt this the most. The twins lost their mother to a front-page new accident, where as Nadine lost her mom to a drug overdose, she only needs to share this info with the people she trusts. I lost my father more in the way of the twins, but just because everyone at school knew, didn’t make it easier. Divorce is fairly common, but I didn’t know anyone who had a dead parent.

The Kids are Gonna Ask dives into the idea of paternity secrets and privacy rights. Do the twins have the right to publicly air their search? What will they discover? They have to contend with criticism leveled towards their mother ignoring the paternal rights of their father. To add fuel to the fire, their producer seems to only care about controversy and ratings. It’s hard enough being a teenager, let alone being forced into the public eye.

Part of the story is set in Breckenridge, Colorado. I moved to Colorado in late 2019, and I have recently visited Breckenridge for the first time. It’s a beautiful area and I got a kick out of having a new connection to this place, and then having it appear in The Kids are Gonna Ask. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect! I love when a novel includes places that are familiar to me.

One of the pleasure of the story is the discovery that the reader has along with the McClair family. Anthony unfolds the secrets in a way that keeps the intrigue constant. I don’t want to give anything away, so I will stop here. The Kids are Gonna Ask is a thought-provoking story and the McClair family will steal your heart.

Thomas and Savannah are twins who are being raised by the grandmother, Maggie. The twins' mother, Bess, got pregnant during spring break three months before she was due to graduate college. She wanted to keep the babies, but did not want to involve the father. Tragically, Bess was killed when the twins were 13, leaving Maggie to take care of the children on her own. Maggie, always an involved parent and grandparent gave the twins and exceptional and supported life, so when the twins, at age 17, expressed an interest in finding their biological father, Maggie supported and helped them.

The search was conducted through a podcast which went viral and caught the attention Sam, an unscrupulous and selfish owner of a media company. Promises to the twins on the part of the company were made and immediately broken, and much behind-the-scenes string pulling happened. The twins' father was found and the twins were able to build a relationship with him and learn more about their mother.

This was an interesting book, giving one something to think about when considering finding birth parents who were not part of a person's birth and childhood. I thought the story was exploring a potential controversy that these biological parents might have a right to their privacy, but that turned out to be a manipulated issue on the part of the media company, so I ended up confused as to whether the author was brining up a potential perspective in these situations or it was contrived for the sake of exposing a media company as simply awful. Even though twins played the Sam and he got his 'comeuppance' in the end, I was disappointed because it just didn't seem that justice was fully served. I wanted more impact on Sam.

This was an okay story - not a standout for me, but it was and unique and creative story line.

This was a fun read. I loved the characters and enjoyed learning about their background. Maggie was especially wonderful.

What a refreshing read. I really needed something different, and this book was it.

Poor Savannah and Thomas have experienced their share of loss in their lives. Never knowing their father. Losing their mother. Its safe to say there would be questions. As curious teenagers, they come up with the idea of locating their father, and documenting their journey through a podcast. Secrets. Deception. Pain. This book covers it all. Of course, The Kids Are Gonna Ask!

A solid 5 stars for me.

I loved the concept of the book but the execution was a little off for me. Things were figured out pretty quickly and made the read a bit blah. I would still recommend this book because I just might not be its audience.

At the heart of this book is a coming=of age story. Twins Savannah and Thomas live with their kinda-wacky grandma (I love those types of grandmas) and start a podcast in search of their biological father.

Gretchen Anthony’s The Kids Are Gonna Ask is a poignant, uplifting and brilliantly written tale that charms, delights and entertains.

When Thomas and Savannah’s mother dies, their world is turned upside down. Having always been curious about the identity of their biological father, the twins realize that the time has come for them to find out where they have come from and to meet the father they never knew and build a relationship with him. Naturally curious, the twins think that they’ve hit the jackpot when their mission goes viral and an eccentric producer offers them the chance to host their own podcast as they search all over the country for the parent they had never met.

As Thomas and Savannah begin interviewing people from their mother’s past, they are stunned when their podcast becomes a word of mouth hit and soon becomes a phenomenon. However, they soon discover that there are downsides to fame and notoriety and not only do they find themselves caught up in a contentious national debate, but when they finally get a lead about their father’s whereabouts and identity, mayhem ensues!

Are Thomas and Savannah about to get the happy reunion they have always dreamed of? Or are they merely setting themselves up for heartbreak, anguish and disappointment?

An immensely enjoyable coming of age tale about finding out where you come from, taking chances and the ties that bind, The Kids Are Gonna Ask is a fun, moving and captivating read that tugs at the heartstrings and tickles the funny bone.

Smart, uplifting and brilliantly told, Gretchen Anthony’s The Kids Are Gonna Ask sparkles with warmth, wit and plenty of heart.

The characters in The Kids Are Gonna Ask by Gretchen Anthony, are quirky, sometimes too much so. Yet, I find myself rooting for them. The topic of podcasts and social media influence is timely, and I have never read a book featuring a podcast as a central component. Both the personal and the public stories of two kids looking for their fathers leave me with a lot to think about.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2020/03/the-kids-are-gonna-ask.html

Reviewed for NetGalley and the Harlequin Trade Publishing’s 2020 SUMMER READS blog tours for Women’s Fiction and Romance.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Kids are Gonna Ask by Gretchen Anthony.

Savannah and Thomas are fraternal twins who have never known their father, and who lost their mother to a tragic accident when they were thirteen. Now they are being raised by their grandmother Maggie. Maggie is a firm believer of bringing people to her table, so much that she has a nightly personal chef. After many dinners with random people that Maggie meets while running everyday errands, the twins decide to do a podcast about all the interesting people they get to meet. But one fated podcast launches a whole new story, who are the twins' father, and can he be found?

Starting off small, but then quickly gaining attention, the twins end up in the middle of storm of controversy that they never could have planned on. Does everyone have their best interest in mind? And will they actually find their biological father?

Sometimes books have a very distinct flavor, and one dip of my spoon and I just know that I'm either going to devour it whole, or choke it down. Unfortunately this was just not my favorite flavor. I can't tell you exactly what it was that turned me off. The characters and dialogue were a bit too on the edge of unbelievable, and it felt unnecessarily over dramatized. But, it also had great themes of love, forgiveness, and what it really means to be a family. And, I am kind of obsessed with dining with more strangers, what a cool way to get to know people!

Thomas and Savannah are trying to find who their biological father is after the death of their mother. A news reporter gives them the deal of a lifetime, to have a podcast called, “The Kids are gonna ask.” Now, Thomas and Savannah are caught up in viral debates, social media, and more. Will they find the truth?

I liked this book alright enough. It was somewhat like Serial and A Nearly Normal Family. For me, this was a little bit of a slow read.

Y'all, let's talk about how excited I am to FINALLY have a blog tour stop again!! This time, it's for The Kids Are Gonna Ask by Gretchen Anthony.

The book revolves a pair of teenage twins who have tragically lost their mother. They now live with their grandma. One question that has always lingered is who their father is as their mother raised them and never revealed his identity. Thomas and Savannah (the twins) decide to start a podcast about their quest to find this man. The podcast gets some "buzz" both in people who are intrigued by their question as well as others who think their father shouldn't be revealed in such a public way.

The book then focuses on each episode of the podcast, developments in their search for their dad, and some "drama" as others have opinions on what they're trying to do. I'll be honest that I really wanted to know even more about the kids in the story. The story was very much focused on their podcast and quest to find answers about their mom. I just was so intrigued by them, and because there was a story there, I wanted a bit more depth. I felt like it started to go there at the end with some other realizations, but I needed more!

Overall, I found this one to be an interesting read. I was particularly intrigued by the exploration of the world of podcasting and the feedback/backlash/buzz that was created as they went. This is some of what drove the plot. I appreciated that this was a unique dimension of the story.

Gretchen Anthony's new book captures what feels like a very current and specific moment, featuring teenage twins who set out to identify their biological father, documenting their journey on a podcast. Fortunately actual podcasting dialog is kept to a minimum in this book, and instead focuses on the relationships- between the twins and with their loving, lovely, flawed grandmother as well. The teenagers are appropriately teenaged- they don't always react well when confronted with problems, and they struggle sometimes to communicate their needs. The lingering sadness over their mother's death is also noticeably present. This book is at once charming and tender-hearted, while also being poignant.
As an aside, I think that you can tell a truly Minnesotan author at this point by how well they balance characters with very Scandinavian names with non-recognizably Scandinavian names. Gretchen Anthony hits the balance just right.

The story of twins searching for their biodad by creating a podcast sounds very up to the minute, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, I would put the word “biodad” in a category with “ merch” and “go with” as urban slang that sets my teeth on edge.. Toss in a portion of the narrative told in emails and texts and you have a story trying very hard to be trendy. There is a genre for that kind of story, and it usually is presented in a breezy, informal style to appeal to the young crowd. The plot centers on 17 year old Thomas and Savannah being raised by an oddball grandmother after their mother dies in a car accident. Their mother had never married and did not share particulars about the man who was their father. After four years without her, the twins decide to track down this man. Because each have unique talents in writing and audio production, a podcast seems like the perfect vehicle to help them achieve their goal. What a great set-up for modern genetic mystery.!
Unfortunately the author goes a different route and presents a story told mostly through internal musings. We get soliloquys by both twins, their grandmother and eventually their biological father himself. So much naval gazing soon becomes tiresome. To liven the plot the author introduces an opportunistic hustler who represents all the worst of social media. It is never explained to my satisfaction why they allowed him to take over the podcast and their search. It seemed to me all the progress being achieved was a result of the efforts of the twins. Adding this conman gave the author a chance to make social commentary but his actions and the way they dealt with him seemed contrived to me.
This was not a bad book, but I do think it could have been much better if the author had stuck to the formula it seemed to demand.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book for an honest review.

A Family Podcast Becomes a Sensation

The twins, Savannah and Thomas, lost their mother when they were thirteen. They live with Maggie, the eccentric and quite delightful grandmother. Maggie believes that everyone should have a voice and wants to expose the twins to many different people. She hosts dinners at her upscale home around her red table. At these dinners, the twins get to express their ideas and get to know people.

One sadness for the twins is that they don’t know who their father is. At one of Maggie’s dinners, the idea of doing a podcast to search for their father is born. The family produced podcast isn’t very successful, but when a professionally produced podcast replaces it, the family find themselves famous.

This is an enjoyable story of family. The twins are inquisitive and Maggie doesn’t hold them back, although sometimes she wonders about her decision. My favorite characters were Maggie and Savannah. Savannah grows through the story learning to express herself. Maggie is eccentric, but she loves the twins and wants the best for them. Thomas was harder to like. He acted arrogant and unpleasant through much of the story.

The story line in interesting, and I enjoyed the characters, but the pacing is slow. To enjoy this book you have to commit time to getting to know characters rather then fast paced action.

I received this book from Harlequin for this review.

Told through the voices of three characters - two of them being Thomas and Savannah - we follow these twins search to find their biological Dad in The Kids are Gonna Ask. Their mother is dead so they can't ask her and their amazing grandmother Maggie doesn't know either. However she is prepared to back them up.

They set out through the medium of a podcast to see what they can find out, on the premise that the more people they involve the more chance they have of finding him. Along the way they find out the pitfalls of social media, how friends can let you down, and that there are odious, self serving characters out there.

And as well there are are nice, supportive people who genuinely care and love them. Both Savannah and Thomas along the way get to know more about their mother, come to understand their grandmother Maggie more and they do find out about their Dad.

This is a coming of age story, it explores choices and friendship and how a loss of loved ones leaves big gaps.

It was interesting to see the falsehood of social media versus the real life genuine relationships.

I am not sure where you'd place this book, it's rather young adult with something for adults as well.

What a unique premise for a family driven story! When 17 yr old twins have developed their own podcast, the subjects are continuously changing. Raised by their grandmother after their mother's death, the two have a very different view of the world at large and their immediate surroundings. Their grandmother's friends and acquaintances have served as the main guests on their podcast until they decide it is time they found their biodad. This premise turns a unique story line into a really entertaining look at how situations can get out of control quickly and regrets are always too little, too late.

Gretchen Anthony has skillfully taken a handful of characters and turned them into a family that is made up of more than blood. She has made them 3 dimensional and given them strong emotions that will lead them far from their original quest. An absolutely brilliant book that I'll share with everyone of my book buddies.

This had an interesting premise but I didn't like the execution or the writing and I didn't care about the characters. I got around halfway through it before completely losing interest.