A sweet, homespun story about family, love, and loss.

I confess that I did not read the summary or description of this book at all; I just really wanted to read Fowler's newest book because I thoroughly enjoyed her most recent preceding novel, A Good Neighborhood. For me, A Good Neighborhood was pretty fast-paced, so I was expecting the same from It All Comes Down to This. Instead, it was slow to start but picked up in the second-half. Still, Fowler weaves the characters' stories together really well. I remember wondering what C. J. had to do with anything (the book even starts by contemplating his impact on the Geller sisters' lives) and being more than satisfied by his role in the story.

I ended up really enjoying this book, but I agree with other reviewers that Marti's "big secret" was underwhelming. Her secrets that revealed earlier in the story were more shocking to me. I do wish we had gotten more about the sisters growing up; we just learn that they're are spread apart in age so they don't really relate to one another, but not enough of their interaction or relationship with their parents. (I also thought C. J.'s storyline felt a tiny bit forced, but I let it slide.)

Overall, I would recommend this book. All of the characters seemed real and (mostly) relatable, and there were some quotable nuggets of wisdom throughout. But despite the summer release, this felt like more of a fall read. It's a "cozy up on the couch under a blanket with a fire going" kind of read, one that you take your time with. If you're looking for the type of intense feelings and explosive conclusion A Good Neighborhood delivered, you'll want to manage your expectations. It All Comes Down to This is completely different, but still very good. I'll definitely be checking out Fowler's backlist and looking forward to her next works.

There is a lot going on in this sister saga. Their mother passes away and the sisters have to decide what to do with the vacation home in Maine. Beck, Claire, and Sophie aren’t the closest sisters but are drawn together over the loss of their mother. Secrets and realizations are unearthed and their lives will change.
I thought it was a decent read. None of the characters particularly resonated with me. It was all about sorting out their lives and finally living to be happy instead of just existing, as many people are inclined to do.

It All Comes Down To This is is Therese Anne Fowler’s most recent novel, to be released on June 7, 2022.

This novel is primarily about sisterhood. The Geller sisters are soon to lose their mother at the beginning of this story. Their mother, Marti, has cancer in it’s final stages.

The sisters all have their own personal issues going on in their lives, all of which contribute to the storyline as they manage their mom’s death along with selling the family cottage on Mount Desert Island.

I haven’t read A Good Neighborhood, but it’s on my list and I’ve seen a wide variety of reviews. I think we’re going to see a wide variety of reviews on this one as well. It was just OK for me; some items tidied up a bit to quickly and easily at the end, but I liked it. I could definitely see some readers absolutely loving this one. I plan to read A Good Neighborhood soon to be able to compare.

Beck, Claire and Sophie Gellar come together to grieve when their mother, Marti, passes away. Marti had everything prepared ahead of time, including that she wanted the sisters to sell their family’s cabin in Maine. All three ladies are each at a crossroads in their own lives, but coming back together forces them all to re-examine where they are headed.

I went into this book blind, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I love a good family drama, and I thought this came together well. Each sister had her own unique story, and their alternating viewpoints allowed them to give their perspectives in their own voices. I loved how the ladies, quite frankly, all faced the decision of whether they wanted to start over in their lives. That kind of change can be scary, but it’s something a lot of us face. I found myself relating to Beck in the sense of how her whole life has been devoted to raising her children. The question of what to do now that they were grown was something I’m sure a lot parents have.

Thank you to Netgalley, St Martin’s Press and Therese Anne Fowler for the ARC! This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (books_by_the_bottle) shortly 🙂

It All Comes Down to This releases June 7th!

Another great read from Therese Anne Fowler! I was so engrossed in this story of grief, family drama, and secrets. The Maine setting was perfect for a summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for early access in exchange for my honest review!

It All Comes Down to This is a slowly-paced family drama.

Marti Geller knows she will be dying soon. It’s only a matter of days. She has organized everything herself, including the directive to sell her summer cottage to lessen the burden on her daughters after she’s gone. There’s just one final secret that she’s ready to tell them.

After Marti’s death, the story follows Marti’s three daughters: Beck, Claire, and Sophia, as they process their grief and the messiness of their own lives. Then there’s C. J., recently released from prison and looking to buy a house in the same area as the Geller’s cottage.

There’s not really much going on in the terms of plot. It’s more of a domestic slice-of-life story.

It was somewhat difficult to keep track of all the characters at first but less so over time. And there was a bit of the male gaze, which was odd since the author is female.

The beginning wasn’t all that interesting, but the longer I read, the more I became invested in these characters’ lives. It didn’t blow me away, but it was a nice, slow weekend read.

I recommend it if you enjoy messy family dramas.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

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4.75 stars / This review will be posted on goodreads.com today.


Marti Geller has lived a long life. She had a wonderful marriage and three daughters. Now it’s time to go, and she has every intention of going on her own terms. Alone with her hospice nurse. No family members present.

Beck is the oldest daughter. Happily married and living in a New York City suburb. Claire is the middle child. A pediatric cardiologist in Duluth, recently divorced. Then there’s Sophie. The baby and the wild child. She runs with an elite crowd in New York and other locales.

Marti’s death is going to bring these sisters together in ways they never could have imagined. It’s going to be a life changing event, as it should, but each of them is going to have to face realities that they’ve buried for far too long. What an amazing story about family. The expected, yet unexpected, loss of their mother sends these three women in directions they wouldn’t have anticipated.

Fowler’s has an ability to convey each woman’s reaction and change related to their mother’s death in such distinct ways. As the story is told from the viewpoints of the individual characters, we get to really feel what each person is going through. We also learn about how they got to where they are today and why they are the people that they’ve become. We also get to see them change and grow.

Loved this book. I could read Fowler’s writing all day long.

Full review to come on Goodreads and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy.

Thanks to Netgalley for an arc: I thoroughly enjoyed this well written fiction, exploring three middle aged sisters as they navigate life after the death of their mother. The sisters, Becky, Claire and Sophie are all high functioning adult women, but have evolved into dysfunctional patterns: passionless marriage, work/life imbalance, depth accrued by work and lifestyle. Their mother, Marti, had secrets. Marti's will specifies that the family cottage in Maine must be sold and all three sisters need to gather there. As they learn the truth about their mother and themselves, the sisters all change their lives and create adult, honest bonds. The ending is "joyous" per the author, and it may ring a bit too pat, but as I read in May 2022, joy was much appreciated. The sisters are fully realized, well characterized complex adults and the writing is excellent. A thoughtful and well written book with adult characters who navigate orphanhood, family and mid-life.

This was another great novel by Therese Anne Fowler. The book is about three sisters and their relationships with each other and others. The sisters are all very different and all at different stages of their life. Their mother, Marti, dies without letting them know how much time she had left and she also reveals secrets through a video she has made for them to view together after her death. Much of the story revolves around a family cottage which Marti wants them to sell and split the profit evenly. The sisters all have different memories of summers at the cottage and different feelings about selling it. I loved the book and the feelings it generated. Fowler is an author that I will continue to read. The release date is June 7th.
Thanks to #NetGalley and St. Martins Press for this ARC.

At the beginning of this book, it grabbed my attention and I really thought I was going to enjoy it. It slowed down for me fast though and I had a hard time staying engaged in it after that. The characters were all uniquely different but I felt they were sub par and boring and I did not connect with them. The storyline did not grab my attention and I had to fight to finish it. Unfortunately, this one just didn’t work for me.

Thank you Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in return for my honest review.

While I was reading this I was immersed in the story of the three sisters--Beck, Claire, and Sophie. I always enjoy a Therese Ann Fowler novel and this was no exception as she delves into the dynamics of our family of origin and how it impacts us throughout life.

After I put the book aside my only quibble was how small the circle of involvement is for each character which made for some improbable plot points--but that is in hindsight because I thoroughly enjoyed this book as I read it. So, I'd enjoy the ride and then don't think too much about it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks # netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review. Excellent book. Enjoyed the family interactions. Listened to the audio book and enjoyed the narrator.

This book was just ok for me. I didn't really care about any of the sisters - especially the youngest. In this world of "influencers", I find them obnoxious. Glad to see Sophie grow over the course of the story. Beck is the oldest sister and married to Paul who she met as a teen when she had just had her heart broken. Beck is the main character of this story. Claire, the middle sister, is a doctor and recently divorced after admitting to her husband that she is in love with her brother-in-law Paul who returns her feelings unbeknownst to her. The story takes place after their mother passes and reveals a secret she kept her entire life - both from her husband (he has passed) and daughters. Am I to make assumptions as to what happened to the baby Marti was pregnant with as a young girl? I have visited Mt Desert Island and found it an interesting part of this story.

This was my first There Anne Fowler novel, and I quite enjoyed it! It's another dysfunctional family saga focused on a family with three middle aged daughters and their families (mostly relationships with husbands/partners).

There was nothing I disliked about the storylines/characters, and some relationships were very sweet, but the novel was not as well crafted and tight as I would have liked, which prevented me from loving it. It is not a short book, yet many aspects of the story and characters felt underdeveloped, or just not very tightly crafted and plotted.

The setting of the Maine house was lovely, and more of that would have been great for the summertime atmosphere.

Overall, I did enjoy the audio especially, and would recommend it as a summer read for dysfunctional family story readers!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

A good but not great dramedy of family relationships that seem ok on the surface but are actually deeply stunted by secrets and envy. Very character driven, mostly told in third person with each chapter focused on a given character. The plot was slow and a bit thin. Kept me reading because I wanted to find out how it all ended as truths were revealed.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins for the eARC, in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately this book is just way too slow moving to keep my interest. I have no idea where it’s going and I’m 40 per cent in. The characters are likeable enough but with very little plot I’m just not interested enough to finish.

Marti the mother of 3 girls is dying and she has a few secrets that she leaves for the girls after she dies. This novel is about relationships between mothers and daughters and sibling relationship as well. I feel the story was engaging and each storyline explained how the secrets came to be. . Thank you Therese Anne Fowler and Netgalley for the arc.

This was my first book by this author. I was looking forward to the story and it was an entertaining read but not fabulous. I couldn’t really connect or empathize with the characters. The story seemed too contrived and the author tried to fit too much in- drama, mystery, secrets, death, family dynamics, divorce, romance, etc. All are good elements for a rich novel but this seemed forced. However, I will try other books from this author. Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC.

This advanced copy was given to me via NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review, and I have to be honest-this was a hot mess. I read it simply to find out what happened so for that I’ll give it 2 stars.
The Geller sisters uncover family secrets after the death of their mother. The story starts in NYC and spends a lot of time in Maine but the dreamy setting and exciting premise do not make up up for adultery, marital musical chairs (the author’s words, not mine) and poorly constructed Little Women references.
I have enjoyed this author’s other novels but this one missed the mark for me.