This book was courtesy of NetGalley and holy crap I couldn’t put it down. I’m left moody and speechless in the best way.

5 stars are hard for me to come by but this book is so good it should be taught in high schools. If you’ve ever not understood what addiction means, this book goes through all the motions. And, what it feels like to be rejected and invisible. This public health crisis needs more attention—and it isn’t just adults who struggle. If you need a lesson in learning empathy, this is that book.

I received an ARC of this book from #Netgalley.

The author does a nice job navigating the life of a teen, whose brother struggles with addiction, without being too “after school special.” The complexity of life for a lot of adolescents is glossed over in literature frequently. I find that YA tends to focus mainly on young/first love. While this is a component, I appreciate that the main focus here is the love a sister has for her brother.

The most impactful quote for me came in the last few pages. Like Emmy, I too tend to say “I’m fine” more than I should:

“I’m fine with that. Wait, I don’t want to use the word “fine.” I’ve been thinking about that word so much for the past year and a half. How we say we are “fine” when we really aren’t. How we use it to accept a situation we don’t know how to deal with. “It’s fine.” When really, in our heads, if you could see, would be these words, scrawled in giant permanent marker: “Help me.”

A decent, albeit somewhat cliche, story 9f addiction and family dynamics. A bit slow moving and gets pretty preachy toward the end. But the predictable story arc will greatly appeal to teens.
I receive an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely amazing! Handles the struggles of being a teenager and trying to figure out high school and just life over all. Depicts a very real story of not only the dangers of drugs but also how people can easily become addicted as well as how addiction effects not only the users but also their loved ones. A lot of the topics discussed in this book hit home for me and helped me to feel less alone.

I very much enjoyed the book but I do think it got a little slow in the middle. However I still think it is worth the read and highly recommend!

I loved the way Joey’s path was not a predictable one and kept me guessing throughout. Not every story has a happy ending and in this book, the entire Ward family was fair game. I like that it was told from Emory’s point of view, and I appreciated the depth of the supporting characters of Liza, Daniel, Jeremy, Gage, Maddie and even the drama teacher. I’ll be thinking about this one for a while.

You’d be home now is a book that will make you feel uncomfortable. But in a good way. You’d be home now is a book that will make you cry. You’d be home now is a book that will make you think about the power that addiction holds and the affect that it has on families. You’d be home now is a book about addiction but also so much more than that. It’s about family ties, relationships, high school norms, falling in love, and insecurity. As someone who has experience loving a family member with addiction, this book was sometimes hard to read because I could see myself in Emory’s shoes. The main reason that this is a 5 star book for me is that Kathleen does not glorify addiction in any way: the trauma, relapse, the choices that a person makes while addicted both good and bad are all covered. I would definitely read the trigger warnings prior to reading the book. Overall Kathleen continues to impress me and I hope to see her write many more books in the future. Also I know her books are considered YA but as an adult I enjoy reading them.

5/5 Stars

You’d Be Home Now offers an honest breakdown of addiction and mental illnesses, but it also offered a dynamic story of two a family who is torn apart that has to rebuild their relationship. Just like Kathleen Glasgow’s other books, this book will definitely stay with me for a long time. The characters all feel so real and kept me engaged throughout the course of the book.

Rating 3.75

The author did a great job of showing what it is like to be a family member of someone struggling with addiction. Her whole life Emory has been taking care of her older brother Joey. She would make sure he was up in time for school, she would do his homework, his chores, and would even try to hide his drinking/drugs from their parents. She did all of this because she thought she was helping him and did not want to see her parents mad. Unfortunately, she can only do so much to help someone who didn’t want to be helped. No one truly knew how bad Joey’s addiction was until a fatal car crash that killed an innocent girl. After that the parents were forced to take action and send Joey to rehab to get help. Their parents weren’t perfect parents but let's be honest none are. Both the mom and dad work too much and are not involved in their kids' lives. The mom loves controlling the kids' lives, for example, forcing Emory to take dance but doesn't care to accept or listen to them. That is why their parents basically ignored Joey’s problem because they were so obsessed with perfection they didn’t want to admit they had a child who was struggling with addiction. They never took the time to wonder why he needed/wanted drugs to help him cope. They didn’t want their perfect image to be ruined like it was after the car accident. If only they got him the help he needed sooner Candy would have never died.
Emory’s character was great even though she upset me at times. Her character was so real for her age and she lacked the confidence I wish she had. The whole book I was screaming “Please, just stick up for yourself”. Emory deserved to be treated better by everyone, especially her family. Her parents and siblings expect her to be this pure, sweet, perfect daughter/sister that does no wrong. Honestly, it would be exhausting to go through that and it makes sense why Emory has the personality she does. Her character is almost boring because she has no uniqueness to her. She’s been forced to be cookie cutter and it has left her a shell of a person. This also adds to her being invisible. Before the car crash no one noticed Emory and after they only noticed her as being someone who was in the car or being an addict’s sister. Her parents still expected her to take care of her brother but now she felt even more pressure. Emory would blame herself if she was the reason Joey had a relapse. Like Joey, Emory also struggled with addiction but it wasn't addiction to drugs but instead a certain person and an action she did (will stay vague for spoiler reasons). Doing these things made her feel alive and gave her the happiness she was lacking from her day to day life. Honestly, just writing this makes me feel for Emory all over again. It makes me sad to know that there are kids struggling with addiction or trying to help a loved one overcome their addiction.
Overall, this book was good but since it is very realistic the story is slow moving. Be warned, the topics discussed throughout this book are heavy and honest but so important to read about. This book deals with addiction and finding yourself in the best way it could. The author did a great job of not victim blaming. The characters throughout the story show growth and the book leaves you wishing all the best for them.

Should you read “You’d Be Home Now”?
Yes, this is a fantastic coming of age story about a girl finding her voice to finally stick up for herself. This book deals with real life problems such as substance abuse, addiction, depression, and family drama. Even though this is a heavy book, it has its humorous and lovable moments.

**Received an advanced copy through NetGalley in return for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. So many books present addiction as "poor", "wrong side of the track" "wrong color" disease and it isn't. It can happen to anyone, at anytime. Kathleen Glasgow's "You'd Be Home Now" shows this so spectacularly well. She also shows the pain of everyone that addiction effects. The family and friends of the person with the disease. And rehab is not a one time fixes all. This was such a true to life story.

Inspired by a combination of her own experience and the Thornton Wilder play, this story looks at the effects that substance abuse have on a nuclear family that, on the outside, looks industrious, well-off, and generally successful. The protagonist, the sister of a boy just released from rehab, has adopted the role of appeaser, and we see the toll that caring for her brother, under the strict watch of their high-achieving mother, takes on her. The story asks us to contemplate what we owe others, what we owe ourselves, and what the limits are to our ability to help loved ones with substance abuse problems. Characters are well fleshed-out, and speak in specific, believable voices. These people feel real, and the reader roots for this family and their friends to make it. Terrific read. Author's note and list of recommended resources comprise back matter.

This book in 3 words: Outstanding. Authentic. Impassioned. 
This is absolutely incredible. A story about addiction... how it manifests, continues, tears people and relationships a part, and what it takes to attempt to put them back together. You'd Be Home Now features Emory, dealing with the aftermath of her brother almost overdosing, and being in a car where an accident kills a classmate.

Kathleen Glasgow attacks this difficult subject matter in a kind and realistic way. Sometimes society forgets about humanity... how we are all just people doing our best, and most of the time, falling short. I found myself fully invested and caring about almost all of the characters. Emory and Joey's pain bleeds through these pages and the love they have for each other is astounding.

I loved how this book was as engaging as it was heartbreaking. I was pulled in, from the very first line (like I actually had to stop, read the line out loud a few times, before continuing on). Books like this are so necessary and hard to come by. I wish every middle school student, along with their parents, were required to read this. 

I can't say enough wonderful things about Kathleen Glasgow's writing. She is a truly phenomenal writer with the structure and pacing of a literary queen. It's like each of her stories finds a way to burrow pieces of themselves in my soul, and I'm thankful to keep bits of them forever. 

[tw: drugs, addiction, substance abuse, bullying, death, depression, trauma]

This book didn’t really do it for me. Bit slow, and the subject matter was pretty depressing at a time when I could use more of a feel good vibe or at least a faster pace so I could move through the difficult parts to a light at the end of the tunnel.

Emory has always been invisible. She isn’t he beautiful older sister, and she isn’t her older drug addict brother. Between her family and school, she flies under the radar, except for when she is needed to watch out for her brother. After a car accident leaves her and the driver injured, a peer dead, and her brother in rehab, Emory is no longer so invisible, and her life begins to unravel.

Damn can Kathleen Glasgow write a heart hitting book. This review is so hard to write. There are moments throughout this book where you want to judge each and every character, but if you really think about how you would react in the situation, you really begin to empathize. I honestly can’t say I would have done anything different than the parents or Emory in the situations they faced. Addiction is such a hard disease to face, and I loved that Glasgow wrote this from the point of view of the family. While addiction is hard on a person, it can be just as difficult for family and friends of the addict. I also really loved how she dove into how Joey became an addict, and showed how such a simple thing turned into such a possibly life ruining situation. I think this book would be a perfect fiction/non-fiction pairing with Empire of Pain. It will infuriate you, but I think it is something that we all should be learning more about. Addiction is a disease. It’s not as easy as saying, “well just stop.” Kathleen Glasgow won my heart with How To Make Friends With The Dark, and made me love her even more with this new novel.

In my early 20’s, I dated an alcoholic and Al-Anon was honestly life saving. If you love an addict, I highly recommend going to a meeting. If you need help finding AA, NA, or Al-Anon in your area feel free to dm me and I will gladly help you find a meeting!

This was a fabulous novel and I would highly recommend it for a high school library. It deals with many topics that students face in their daily lives such as dysfunctional families, drug addiction, sex issues, social media, peer relationships, friendships, and bullying. The characters in this novel are so diverse that I believe any high school student will be able to relate to someone. It could open up great discussions in the classroom where students can talk through the characters rather than reveal their own personal issues. I was unable to put the book down because I enjoyed it so much.

This is an intriguing read with tough subject matter, the opioid crisis is just insane right now. Good writing style, some of the chapters are long winded and could use a trim down. A decent read I would recommend

I’ve read all of Kathleen Glasgow’s book and to be honest, they didn’t impress me much. Yes I know they’re YA and I’m over 30 but I’m still 16 in my mind sometimes!
Anyways, this one is completely different, it hooked me and kept me interested all the way through. I love the dialogue and the family dynamic. All the details of how the family interacts is so well done.

"You'd Be Home Now" is a heartbreaking reimagining of the classic drama, "Our Town." Emmy, our main character, finds herself struggling through her own mental health as she balances loneliness, friendship, love, and the opioid crisis of her small town. This novel accurately portrays the huge struggles of a family dealing with and trying to overcome addiction within the household and ends in a very bittersweet way. There is not a traditional happy ending, but there is hope and resilience.

Five stars for Kathleen Glasgow! This story is so powerful and real and everything I think people need to read these days. A raw and honest take at addiction, the pressures of teenage-dom and childhood, and growing up. Beautifully written, hard-hitting, and something I'll be suggesting friends and family to read for years to come.

Emory and her family are used to the pressures that come with their name. Each family member has their purpose and does it well. Maddie is the pretty popular one, Joey is the "bad" one, and Emory is the good and quiet one. But Emory's world is rocked when she finds herself in a car accident that kills a popular girl named Candy, sends the driver to Juvie, and her brother Joey overdosed on Heroin. Going into Junior Year is hard enough, but doing it with the "druggie brother" and having been a part of the car accident that killed Candy is making it even more difficult. Emory deals with her issues quietly while trying to be the good quiet one her parents expect from her. But she begins to see there's more to every person she meets and even more to who she is. This is a coming of age and coming to your true self book if I've ever read one.

I was scared going into this book that I might not like it. But it just sounded so good. I also just demolished it pretty much in just over 24 hours. It was amazing. OMG the feels of this book. It literally felt real. Addiction is real. Families get hurt around it are real. High school being hard is sooo real. This author just gets it. Emory you heart just goes out to her. We all have had the boys flirt with you to get something and slowly fall a bit in love with them anyway. I felt for her. I felt for her brother. This book was a true enjoyment and not in a pretty, shiny, rainbow way. Life is messy and hard and this book literally nails it. I could not recommend this book enough.

Triggers: addiction, slut shaming, reference to a kid who committed suicide.

You'd Be Home Now
by Kathleen Glasgow
Pub Date: September 28, 2021

First, content warnings are important here. There are major themes in this book and while they are heavy and uncomfortable, they are real. Content warnings - drug addiction, substance abuse, suicide, death, car accident, depression, trauma. I'm sure that's not a complete list, but those stuck out to me most.

[From Goodreads]: Inspired by the American classic Our Town, You'd Be Home Now is Kathleen Glasgow's modern story of a town and the secret lives people live there.

[From Store Bought Epiphany]: Phew. This book was amazing. I have to say that it is such a heavy YA read I'm not sure if it should be YA or more of a New Adult. I do understand that the reality of our world is that - addiction, temptation, and drug abuse start so young now. With all of the accessibility to serious drugs, young kids in high school and possibly younger, do get the exposure and unfortunately, it's a reality that our youth can become addicted. This book explores truth, sadness, family, secrets, and at the end of the day - love.

Our main character, Emory, has to grow up so much faster than she should. She feels the weight of the world on her shoulders and at the same time is invisible to those who matter. She is the epitome of showing that if one family member is a victim of drug abuse, the rest of the family disappears. In her world, she is responsible for her brothers failures and missteps while trying to figure out high school and who she is outside of being her brother's keeper.

This is a dynamic story of a family torn apart by outside influences and realizes, possibly almost too late, that to fix their family, they need to come together rather than hide and ignore. I imagine this book will resonate with so many on so many different levels and on several different subjects. For that reason, I recommend this read to adults as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's/Delacorte Press for allowing me the digital e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.