Thank you so much for the opportunity to read early.

Attached is a link to my review post.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMxVKbuLRUU/

I found this book to be a little predictable however, its themes do run with current modern day themes. You will find yourself rooting for the main characters, while somewhat despising some other background characters. I will admit, there is a somewhat surprising twist that you might see coming, but frankly I did n ot.

Thought provoking, heart breaking and hopeful. Strawser weaves a tale and keeps the readers reading. Emotional page turner at its best!!

Wow, this book had a lot of drama. Just when I thought the main characters were getting used to one thing, something else would hit them. It definitely kept me intrigued and interested. There were some things towards the end that really surprised me, and I liked the ending. Overall, this was a really solid read.

I enjoyed this book so much!! A Christmas present gone wrong when Caroline signs up her family for a DNA test and she discovers a sibling she didn’t know about. This book is fast paced and extremely enjoyable. The kind of book you read in one sitting while you race to the end. A must read!

A secret huge connected by DNA was what brought Caroline and Sela into each other’s lives.

My first book by author Jessica Strawser was filled with angst for the two protagonists. Caroline had a great life with a loving husband and family when a casual DNA test brought Sela into her life. Along with it came crashing the secret of her parents too.

Sela on the other hand was suffering from chronic renal failure and had a unique tissue type and needed a live familial transplant. And yes, you could guess the rest. But fear not, there were many unexpected twists too, spaced at the right time.

This was the story about both women and how they found a way to be comfortable with each other. The characters were real as their problems were understandable. Some sections about transplant meandered but overall, the story maintained its emotional pitch and showed how resilient humans were, especially women.

Many truths were hidden deep in the subplots, all to be revealed slowly. I quite enjoyed the book, but also admit it could have hit higher notes.

What a beautiful and heartbreaking story, not to mention the emotional twist in terms of Sela and her story.

I am glad I picked this one up!

A Million Reasons Why by Jessica Strawser is a heartfelt novel full of emotion.

This was such a thought-provoking read. I always like it when a story/plot make me think and imagine what it must be like to experience this story as one of the characters.

I really feel horrible about this, but right from the start I had a hard time believing the plot line, and unfortunately this did not change as the story progressed. The premise of this story in my mind is excellent, but the characters and their actions just did not seem real to me, and this kept me from feeling involved and engaged in the story. Moreover, I felt there was too much detail and the family drama was just too much at times.

If you are looking for a complicated family drama full of secrets and lies you may want to check this story out. There is definitely a lot of drama along with twists and turns to keep you turning the pages.

Thank you to St Martins Press and NetGalley for this gifted copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

I have really strong opinions on formula narratives and predictive narratives in storylines. The blurb was what pulled me in but once I started, I needed it to end

Wonderful story that gives you pause and makes you wonder " what if...?".
A chance DNA test links two women, one who's life has been dismantled after a devastating diagnosis of kidney failure, the other who's life is about to be disrupted by the DNA test.
Loved the characters and wonderfully written.
4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the Author and publisher for a copy of this book. The Opinions expressed are my own.

RATING: 3.5 STARS
2021; St. Martin's Press (MacMillan Audio)
Narrated by Cassandra Campbell

A Million Reasons Why reminds me of a Jodi Picoult novel, in that it takes an issue and gives us various perspectives on it. Recently, DNA ancestry sites have been super popular. Whether it is to find family members, what your own DNA says about you or solving cold cases, either seems like it's everywhere. What most don't think about is the consequences from doing said test for fun. Sometimes there are secrets that change people's lives for the worse. In this novel, we have two adult women who discover they are sisters, and this secret has everyone on edge. What really happened and what does the other want? Strawser take a few other issues and makes this a jam packed family drama. It was a great ride, though there were a few things that didn't seem to make sense, and I was left wondering too many things. A Million Reasons Why is my second novel by Strawser, and I enjoy all the thinking she makes me do as I read. I felt tugged by both women and that made them feel more realistic. I have added Starwser's other books to my TBR list.

***I received a complimentary copy of this ebook/audiobook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***

When 2 strangers take a DNA test and find out they’re half sisters all the family secrets come to light. As I read I found myself getting more and more absorbed into the story. This was my first read by this author but won’t be my last

This one took me a while, but I'm glad I took the time to read it. The story is told around two half-sisters who grow up not knowing of each other's existence. They have very different lives with one having a seemingly fairytale life and another struggling with a potentially terminal illness, a collapsed marriage, the loss of her mom and best friend, and trying to decide if she wants to fight for her life by looking for a kidney donor. They find each other through a DNA test which ends up with pain and betrayal, unearthed secrets, but also a chance at sisterhood that neither has ever had the opportunity to have. Even though it took me a long time to read this book because of outside circumstances, I never forgot what was going on or who everyone was, and I would quickly become immersed back into the book until I was interrupted yet again, lol! I really loved both sisters for different reasons, and I found their connection to be believable and found myself to be empathetic to both. This book covered so much about family relationships, what marriage can or should look like, how you can love people and still hurt them, but how you can also forgive even the most painful of hurts. I also appreciated all the research the author did about kidney transplants and the perspective of both the donor and the recipient, and how complicated it can all be. I also adored Janie, Sela's nurse, as well as one of the other donors that Caroline met on her journey. I would have loved listening to this as an audiobook, but also enjoyed reading it on my own. I would be interested in reading other books by this author.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

For me this was a perfect example of a book that dives you deep into “what if”, placing you in the character’s shoes and making me question how I’d react in a similar situation?

What if… you accidentally discovered through a DNA test that you have a half sister -- and she lives only a few hours away?

What if.. that sister had a secret , where she desperately needs your help, but is afraid to ask?

What if… your own parent knows more than they are letting on? And those secrets could tear your family apart?

Could you do the right thing, forgive the secrets, form a bond with that sister that lasts the rest of your lives?

These are the questions and so many more that this thought-provoking and carefully woven book posed for me.

Definitely recommend – a great page turner—with multiple several twists, turns, and complications that you won’t see coming!

A Million Reasons why is an emotional family drama. The characters are well developed and the story contains many thought provoking subjects.

Think this first time for me reading anything from Jessica Stawser. What a unbelievable story this turned out to be and what a small world as people say to find a half sister all through DNA. Follow two girls,women now as each one has a complete different story to tell about their lives and it all starts with needing a kidney and having fun doing a DNA test,who would have thought when all this started that so many people's lives would change. Some for the good some not,but then so many hidden secrets start to appear. The characters in this story you wil l begin to know and by the time you finish well grab some tissues! They all become so real to you from family to medical people. Watch how a tragedy can turn into happiness or will it? Received this from Net Gallery,thanks so much for letting me read such amazing story !

This was a did not finish for me. I wanted to like it as the premise sounded intriguing but unfortunately the pacing felt slower than I usually enjoy in a thriller and I didn't connect well with the main protagonists. It seems others have enjoyed it though so I wouldn't let this review stop you if the blurb sounds like something you'd like!

Note: I received a free electronic edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank them, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to do so.

I received the digital copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. My review is voluntary and unbiased.

Caroline is a busy mother of 3, an event director who finds her life turned upside down the day she receives an email from her “half sister”. She initially disregards this claim as a mistake since her father, a market research analyst, has always served as a role model. Caroline and Walt are married with 3 young children: Riley, Lucy and Owen.

Like a lot of curious families they decided to send in DNA ancestry kits. No one expected it to uncover many lies from the past. Ironically, it’s Caroline’s own father who states, “data, while itself trustworthy, could always be skewed-and often was.”

Meanwhile, Sela lives in N. Carolina grieving the loss of her mother Rebecca (Ecca). Her mother raised her as a single mother while working as an artist in Brevard. She has always kept the paternity of Sela’s father a secret. Unfortunately, Sela’s health is slowly failing as she also separates from Doug her husband who she feels doesn’t understand her grief. She fears she will never see her son Brody grow up or play with their dog Oscar.

Certainly, there is much more to both these stories which eventually entwine and unravel the truths and lies which have been buried but not forgotten. Betrayals which changed the course of people’s lives.

This is an interesting story about the pros and cons of learning the “truth” of our ancestry. In these present days, finding out about unknown relatives is possible. Can knowing the truth of the past help the future? How does someone hide his past to protect his reputation? Sometimes, stories aren’t so black and white and seldom do they involve just the person himself. Secrets always have a way of rising to the surface over time.

This book was quite hard to get into, because it asks the reader to suspend disbelief to a large extent. Some of the premises and setups in the book is so far fetched. Even for a fictional book which takes you on a rollercoaster, it was quite a lot to process.

A Million Reasons Why explores a popular contemporary topic: the disruptive impact upon families of DNA testing that yields shocking results.

When Caroline's husband, Walt, gave DNA test kits to the family for Christmas, she didn't complain. Although she had never seen the appeal of DNA testing, she was just happy that Walt helped with the shopping. An only child, she was confident there was no possibility that she would find a sibling she had no knowledge of. So when she receives an email from a woman claiming to be her half-sister, she dismisses it. After all, she reviewed her results and found no surprises.

Worse, Sela claims she is, like Caroline, thirty-five years old and their birthdays are just a couple of months apart. She lives in North Carolina, a half day's drive from Caroline's home.

Caroline determines that Sela's results were uploaded into the company's database after Caroline's. And Caroline did not request notification of subsequently-discovered close relatives. So when she logs into her account, the database updates, announcing that Sela Bell is her half sibling. She logs into her parents' accounts and discovers that they have not accessed the software. But when she clicks the opt-in box in her father's account, he receives the same notification declaring that Sela Bell is his daughter.

Caroline's life changes forever and irrevocably.

Strawser is not the first author to tackle the thorny topic of DNA testing bringing shocking and sometimes devastating results that change lives and shatter families. But she does so with compassion in a well-balanced story of half-sisters who would otherwise never have known each other existed.

The test results wreak havoc in Caroline's well-ordered life and close-knit family, and her father is forced to confess the truth that she was never meant to learn. But he is determined not to hurt her mother further, insisting that he will not meet Sela. Caroline doubts everything she ever knew to be true about her parents, their relationship, and the family in which she was raised. Now she has to face the disappointment, disbelief, and distrust she feels toward the man who raised her, loving her unconditionally. She naturally resents "having to think of who else he might have failed along the way." And further complicating matters, she learns that her mother has manipulated her life in unimaginable and, perhaps, unforgivable ways.

The two women forge a tenuous relationship. Caroline wants to meet Sela, feeling that her father failed Sela and her late mother, Rebecca. Meanwhile, Sela is being pressured to find a kidney donor while there's still time. She actually attends a seminar where participants are coached about how to handle "The Big Ask: The Big Give." After all, she needs to endear herself to her newly-found half-sister because she could be a match, a donor. But Sela is certain that she could never ask someone for a kidney, especially a sister she just found. But at every doctor's appointment, she is warned that her condition is worsening. And Sela is terrified that she will die and leave her beautiful two-year-old son, Brody, without a mother.

Strawser credibly portrays the inner turmoil that Caroline suffers when she learns about Sela. The revelation causes her to question all aspects of her life and values, and the foundation upon which she created a family with Walt, all of which is compounded by her determined search for answers about the past and Sela's actual circumstances. Strawser's characters are fully formed, layered, and each is sympathetic in his/her own way, despite the choices and mistakes they have made. A Million Reasons Why is devoid of heroes or villains but is, rather, populated by deeply flawed characters, some of whom did terrible things for reasons they believed to be justifiable.

Strawser cleverly injects twists and turns along the way that keep the story interesting as readers attempt, along with Caroline, to piece together the shocking and heartbreaking truth. Including why Sela is seeking a kidney donor on her own, rather than waiting to be selected from a transplant candidate list.

Through her characters, Strawser unflinchingly examines what it really means to be part of a family, and what, if anything, family members owe each other. She addresses mental illness, grief, and the catastrophic damage both can inflict on marriage. The story is timely and believable, and illustrates how scientific processes made commercially available to consumers can unearth decades-old secrets that were meant to stay buried, with unforeseen and far-reaching consequences. Strawser thoughtfully questions whether damage done to relationships when secrets are revealed can be forgiven and if things can eventually be made right again. A Million Reasons Why is thoroughly imagined and impeccably crafted. It's a poignant, sensitive, and thoroughly compelling story that would be a perfect choice for book clubs because of the numerous aspects of the story that invite discussion and debate.