I definitely like this author, however did not really relate to this book much, The main character is at a crossroads after the death of her pet and is ready for her next challenge: a baby. She finds out that there is a kink in her plan and then her life hits a snag. There was so much in this book that is just completely terrible really. Laine makes these big life decisions and everything is just cut and dried and set in place magically. This book needed to be messy and needed a character that was not completely flat. It seemed more like stuff was happening at her instead of to her. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley,

A feel good story that weaves together some tough family issues. Pagan's story kept be interested and wanting to know what happens next. I felt for the main character throughout as she dealt with some tough decisions....a very relatable story

a story that beautifully captures the dynamics of family relationships and the emotional struggles that come with caring for a loved one with memory loss. The character development is superb, allowing readers to connect deeply with Laine and understand her motivations and choices. The author delicately tackles the tough decision of whether to reveal a devastating truth that could impact her relationship with her sisters and her mother. Story is engaging and filled with heartfelt moments, as well as some unexpected twists and turns.

This is a truly warm and heart tugging story. It was honestly wonderful. The only thing I feel like I should mention is there should be some content warnings. This is an extremely heavy storyline: dementia, divorce, wanting a baby, family drama, etc. These are mostly handled with care and tenderness, although some felt like they lacked depth in places. It's a well written book, just extremely "heavy". It honestly took me awhile to finish because of this. Definitely not one to pick up if you're looking for a sweet swoony romance.

🌟🌟🌟/5

I received an advanced copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union, and Camille Pagan. ❤️

Very enjoyable read! Really appreciated the dual POVs, the overall writing style, and the entirety of the family dynamics. Definitely a new favorite by this author!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

All the freaking feels! So many emotions in this one for sure. Covering a lot of sensitive ground including Alzheimer’s this was a warm and heartfelt story. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for review

Everything Must Go tackles the issue of dealing with a parent who is suffering from dementia (and may not quite realize it just yet) as well as trying to navigate through a life that may or may not be what you intended.

Laine is in Michigan with her husband Josh. She's wanted kids; he isn't ready. She's 38 and is now called back to New York by her two sisters so she can take care of her mother. First, Laine has to learn to stand up for herself (this is clearly a work in progress).

She runs to New York and runs into her ex friend Ben from years ago. The pair almost got together decades earlier and then never connected again. It's easy to see where this is going and the book isn't full or any surprises.

I really liked how the dementia storyline is handled. I feel like this is very accurate and my heart aches for Sally (Laine's mother) and her family. I don't like how Laine's sisters basically told her what to do with no regard for her own life. I don't like how Laine didn't stand up for herself and basically jumped whenever anyone said to. These are part of the overarching storyline, but there were times when I just wanted to shake Laine (especially when it came to her husband)!

It all came together and was a good book.

Thank you so much @LakeUnionAuthors & @NetGalley for giving me this eARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 26 April 2022)

SYNOPSIS | Laine is a professional organizer, yet she cannot clean up the mess that is currently her life. She is grieving the loss of her dog & considering divorcing her husband of 14 years as she desperately wants a baby but he is not ready. On top of that, her mother might be in the early stages of dementia & she feels it's her responsibility to look after her.

WHAT I LIKED:
- I appreciated the portrayal of Alzheimers
- the epilogue from Sally's POV

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- I would expect more emotion if you were considering divorcing the person you've been married too for 14 years
- I love a HEA, but I want to go through turmoil to get there
- I didn't understand Laine's decisions & they often felt selfish
- this is ultimately a story about a woman wanting a baby which impacts every relationship & decision she makes & while I can appreciate that as a storyline, that wasn't what I thought this book would be about based off the synopsis

I thought this book was neat in addressing serious issues like divorce, marriage, care giving for sick family members, and such. I thought the character development was one of the highlights of the book, but I didn't like how manipulative Laine's family was to her. I also thought that the plot was interesting at the beginning but fell flat in the middle and the end of the book.

This is really a 3.5 because even though I liked the story and the two POVs between Lane and her mother, but I felt some parts were lacking depth and emotion. Lane definitely expressed her emotions about wanting a baby and her feeling for Ben, but what about her husband Josh? The divorce was so simple and amicable. Did she love Josh at all, because any divorce has some kind of emotions like anger and hurt maybe even a sense of failure, but she had none. It was too easy. Anyway, this is a good story about finding yourself, navigating family issues and learning to stand for what you want amongst chaos.

Thank you Netgalley and Edelweiss for the advance copies.

BOOK REVIEW

BOOK: Everything Must Go
AUTHOR: Camille Pagan
FORMAT: eBook
RATING: DNF (did not finish)

MY THOUGHTS

I started this book and found that I had a lot of difficulty connecting to the story. I did not finish it, not for lack of quality of the book but more so that I felt it was a “right book wrong time” situation where I wasn’t in the right mindset for this one at this time! Hopefully will be picking it back up in the future!

This seemed a little dry and boring to me. The plot was interesting, but the writing did not make up for it. There was no feeling or connection between Laine and her husband at all. I liked the realistic depiction of the main character's struggle and relationship with her family, her dilemmas and the path she was on to personal growth.

Pretty hard to read at times having had lost my own mother. But it was a great book otherwise. I think it was relatable, heart warming, and sad.

I think it was just too much for the grief for me to handle appropriately.

Everything Must Go by Camille Pagan is a solid women's fiction book that explores the dynamics of family - and especially of sisterhood.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

This was a cute quick read. I would recommend this if you are looking to pass the time and have a quick read.

I appreciate how the author injects bits of humor into her stories, even while they are addressing tough subjects. Three sisters are finding that their mother is suffering from memory loss. While this was a good story, I had a hard time with this since I’ve just gone through this with my own mother.

I have enjoyed Camille Pagán's novels over the past few years and Everything Must Go is no exception to that. It's so warm and genuine and I loved the family dynamics throughout the story. Laine is such an interesting and complex character. Her situation was easily relatable, as I also live in a different part of the country than my parents and sister and it sets a different dynamic. I could also understand why she felt torn about her marriage, even though I can't relate on that aspect, thankfully. Laine had a lot of decisions to make and some of them involved giving into everyone else's needs even if that didn't feel right for her.

I really liked the parts involving Ben and it was so interesting to backtrack to the start of their friendship and also see how things unraveled. I kept hoping for something good to come of their reunion as I really liked their connection.

The descriptions and dialogue in this novel are great and really move the story along at a nice pace. I could easily visualize everything without feeling like it took away from the narrative at all.

The only thing that didn't work for me was that I felt like Sally's secret was anticlimactic. There are actually two revelations and one of them is more startling for sure. The one revealed later on is the one that just didn't feel earth-shattering or anything.

Overall, this novel is worth checking out and I think you will enjoy spending time with the Francis family, just like I did!

Movie casting suggestions:
Laine: Mila Kunis
Josh: Rene Gube
Ben: Leslie Odom Jr.
Piper: Marie Avgeropoulos
Hadley: Minka Kelly
Sally: Kathy Baker

I adore this author’s previous works, but this one was y quite a hit for me. There were a few components of the story that were less than believable (Lainey’s unbotheredness by her ex’s… activities) and it really kept me from buying into the story. I’ll certainly pick up whatever she writes next, though!

Everything Must Go is classic Camille Pagan: heartfelt, entertaining, bringing wit and intelligence to real life issues encountered by characters you can't help but love.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy.