What I loved about this book was the way it really evoked the people of Ireland and relationships within families, especially love of parents for their children, not just their birth children but nieces and nephews who they had helped to raise. I loved the humour although that was more present in some parts than others and I would have liked even more of it and I loved the foibles of characters such as John, Lady V and Annabelle. Having finished the book, I am going to really miss some of these characters.

A warm and engaging novel with a family in the centre. I enjoyed reading this book but did feel that the book had a lot more to offer, but overall I thought it was an interesting and thoughtful read.

I almost gave up on this one in the beginning, lots of characters and it took a while for the plot to emerge . But this book reeled me in bit by bit and became a page turner. Mainly about family relationships throughout different lifetimes and told from different perspectives, the book is mostly set in Ireland.
Well worth perserving with, the characters are well portrayed and emotions dealt with realistically as well as the impact loss and grief can have to individuals and within a close family group . It gives you plenty to think about and after the first few chapters, a couple of stories start to emerge. So five stars from me !
My thanks to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I loved this book - a story full of familial quirks and relationships and complexities that totally drew me in. I loved following each character's path as they worried over Molly's disappearance, and it's one I will definitely be revisiting.

This is a book where very family member has a chapter. You get to know the family in details. This was quirky and unusual but the story slowed for me from the middle onwards and the promising start faltered a little. I liked that the book was unusual and captured the dynamics of family with humour added in. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

A brilliant insightful book, I thought it was going to be light and fluffy ( which I was happy about) but it was so much deeper and complex as you kept reading. Family and what home means , it was beautifully written and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would.
Highly recommend and thank you for letting me read this book.

I have just spent about a week with Molly. Molly is an Irish Woman living an, apparent, carefree life with her best friend in London. Molly is struggling though. Having lost both her parents, she is struggling with grief and with where she fits in, and then Molly goes missing.
Back in Dublin all of Molly's Aunties, Uncles, cousins and friends are affected by her absence, and despite Molly being nearly thirty they organise, and, plot, and, plan to bring Molly back home to Ireland, to her family to show her she is loved: "There are few things in life better than kindness, It is better to feel all the things than feel nothing at all, and always carry a spare pair of knickers in case you need to run away'.
With elements of child sexual abuse, depression, racism, and sexuality, this is fantastically funny tale. All of the characters are beautifully written, and come alive on the page. An excellent story

although this started out slow (very slow) and the manner it was written was difficult at first to get though, I LOVED IT. This is why I love so many new authors- they take a story and flip it and turn it to something else. I will be recommending this quite highly. Can't wait for more!

Molly has disappeared and not for the first time. However, this time her note says she is not coming back. Her extended family are worried and they want to find her. A tale of loss and grief. The Black family each tell their part and you can't help but love them. Knowing you have a family who love you and a home to go to is at the centre of this lovely story.

Took me to almost the end before I had sorted out all the characters all of whom were larger than life. I’ve read Marian Keyes books and thought this was along the same lines. The storyline sprawled along but didn’t grip me.

Molly Black comes from a big Irish family. After travelling with her best friend, known as B, the duo decide to settle in London. B becomes involved with Jeff, and Molly decides to take herself off someplace, encouraged by Jeff. Her family back home in Ireland are worried, even though they know that Molly has done a disappearing act before and endeavour to track her down.

This story contains a big cast, and it took a while to get everyone straight in my mind. It's written with warmth and wit and this is a tale of loss and grief that manages not to be melancholic. It takes the reader on a journey that reveals the vagaries of families and is a delightful, poignant debut. I intend to pick up Alice Ryan's next offering.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Head of Zeus, Apollo via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

From previous reading, this is a story of a typical close knit Irish family. Their individual idiosyncrasies are portrayed so well that the Black family are a pleasure to meet. Molly is at the centre of the story. Having lost both parents before the age of 20 Molly is always on the move, never settling, and childless Uncle John in particular is concerned for her welfare. He shows this by arranging family meetings where everyone has to attend. These are hilarious and you can just picture all the characters - down to Blur (or is it Oasis) with his athlete's foot!! When Molly disappears the whole family, plus her best friend, B, are galvanised into action to find her. They find themselves along the way. A real story of self discovery, humour and the wonder of love. #netgalley #TheresBeenALittleIncident

Alice Ryan’s debut novel is the sprawling tale of Molly Black and the Black family, an exploration of unresolved grief, trauma and all-encompassing familial love.

The books opens with Molly, who abruptly runs away from her life in London, having been unable to engage her family to speak to her on the phone. The Black family has been summoned by patriarch John, Molly’s uncle, to an emergency meeting to decide how to go about finding her (and not for the first time).

The Black family are a mixed bunch - a former model and gym tycoon, a benign alcoholic, a straight-laced emotionally repressed accountant, two students nicknamed Blur and Oasis, a gay rugby player, an emotional uncle, a dithery grandmother: you get the picture.

Going into the book, purely based on the book cover, I expected Meg Mason, but what I got was more Marian Keyes and I think comparisons with the Walsh family are inevitable. I find the sketch of the eccentric Irish family a bit tiresome, but I think there are lots of people out there who will relate to and love this story.

There’s a subplot running through the book concerning an unrelated Irish woman (Sheena) who is missing in London. It was layered on to what was already quite a chaotic, cluttered cast and I’m not entirely sure it added anything substantial.

While the book periodically lapses into caricature, there is lots of warmth and heart in it. My favourite parts of the book were those that explored the relationship between Molly and her late mother Annabelle, and uncle Danny and the intervention - actually, a lot of the flashback chapters were melancholy and moving - pitch-perfect.

I think the book will appeal to a wide audience so if you’re a fan of Marian Keyes, definitely give it a go. I’ll post a couple of reviews on my stories from others who enjoyed it more than me.

*Many thanks to @headofzeus @bloomsburypublishing for the ARC and to @gillhessltd for sending me a copy of the book. As always, this is an honest review.*

The story of the extended Black clan looking for their missing orphan Molly and the truths they find out about themselves along the way. Eccentric and intriguing characters abound.

My thanks to Head of Zeus Apollo for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘There’s Been A Little Incident’ by Alice Ryan.

This Irish comedy drama focuses upon the eccentric Black family. The family becomes concerned when Molly Black, who lives in London, disappears. She has always been rather flighty, yet according to her hastily written note, this time she's gone for good.

This causes the Blacks to hold an emergency meeting in Dublin to discuss what to do next. Pretty much everyone wants their say before embarking on a journey to the other side of the world to locate and bring her home. There is also a subplot about Shenna, a missing nurse, that Molly may have important information about.

Ryan does well in establishing her characters, moving between various points of view. There are also shifts in time that serve to fill in past events. All this hopping about does require close attention.

Even though Ryan does provide a helpful Black Family Tree at the opening, with ensemble cast like this it took me some time to get to grips with who was who.

Overall, a promising debut that is full of wit and heartwarming moments. It also explores grief and loss as well as the meaning of family. Definitely a novel that is full of feels.

Molly has gone missing so her large extended family rally round to find her & bring her home.

I have no idea what this book was about. The family are all very odd in their own ways. Were we supposed to find them charming, funny, eccentric? I found myself warming to some of the characters, in particular V, Anne & John, but there were just far too many of them.

Many times I thought about not finishing the book but decided to keep going despite my irritation, assuming there would be some point where the story all came together. It didn’t. Others seem to have loved it but it definitely wasn’t one for me.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a mixed one for me, I really thought I was going to enjoy this with the introduction of the family and the humour it seemed very promising but as I read on I found I was growing bored of the storyline it didn't seem to move anywhere very fast. I did enjoy the different characters but think it made it feel like the booked dragged by being told by some many different points of view.
Thanks to #Netgalley for this ARC.

There’s Been a Little Incident by Alice Ryan

Uncle John, patriarch of the Black clan, has called for a family meeting. Molly has disappeared (again) and they need a plan to find her.

There are many players in this story, and like any family, they all have their strengths and weaknesses. Watch as they grow and morph into different and better humans as they search for Molly.

The fun of this story is getting information from the author about each person in dribs and drabs. Eventually, you can put together the whole person. You may need a family tree sketch to keep track of everyone, but just do it.

An entertaining read for almost any reader and an excellent book club choice, I’m giving this title five stars along with my thanks to #BloomsburyPublishing and #NetGalley for this ARC.

EXCERPT: Who were we without Molly?

No matter how exasperating she was, somehow Molly had a special connection to each of us. Molly and Blur shared a history of minor crime and rescued each other from dodgy situations without alerting the wider family. She and Oasis led marches to government buildings about the environment. After babysitting late one Easter weekend, Molly accidentally got hooked on the Masters and, ever since, she and Uncle Mike compared notes on all the Majors - a more unlikely golf fan there never was. Molly indulged Aunt Angela by attending 7 a.m. mass although, unbeknownst to Angela, Molly spent the time alternating between meditating and singing the soundtrack to Evita in her head. Molly brought Ann to life, was more reasonable than Even-Steven and ate Helen out of house and home. Aunt Frances approved of Molly's non-conformist walkabout lifestyle and, weirdly, Molly and Bobby both loved swimming in the rain. There was a reason John was so worked up - sometimes it seemed like Molly was the daughter he'd never had. Molly had a connection to each of us but, more than that, she brought us all together - for good reasons and bad. Molly Black was like electricity - sometimes she lit up the world. Sometimes she electrocuted you.

ABOUT 'THERE'S BEEN A LITTLE INCIDENT':
'There's been a little incident...'

Molly Black has disappeared. She's been a bit flighty since her parents died (sure, hadn't she run off with a tree surgeon that time?) but this time, or so says her hastily written leaving note, she's gone for good.

That's why the whole Black clan – from Granny perched on the printer all the way through to Killian on Zoom from Sydney – is huddled together in the back room of Uncle John's semi-D in the Dublin suburbs, arguing over what to do.

Cousin Bobby's having a hard enough time of it as it is, convincing his family he's happy single and childless. Lady V reckons this is all much too much fuss over a thirty year old. And Uncle Danny knows all too well how it feels to be lost with no one trying to find you.

But Uncle John is determined never to lose anyone again. Especially not his niece, who is more like her mum than she realises.

MY THOUGHTS: Warm and witty doesn't even begin to cover it. There's Been a Little Incident is a story of grief, of family, of love, in all it's various forms.

This vast extended family reminds me of the diagram of an atom; you remember the one with a nucleus and all the particles whizzing about it? Only I'm not quite sure who the nucleus is here. It could be Uncle John, who loves to be the centre of things; the organiser. But it's more likely that the nucleus is fluid and that each individual slips effortlessly in and out of the role in some strange uncoreographed dance that only they know the steps to.

Molly is a wonderful character. She seems to be a free spirit, but perhaps she's simply lost, untethered, unsure of her place in this world. She appears relaxed and nothing seems to irritate her. She sings 'Don't Cry For Me, Argentina' (off-key) when she's driving, and counts upwards in fives when she's stressed. She can't stay in any one place for any length of time; she is always on the move - running, running, running, mostly from herself and the insurmountable grief that she doesn't know how to live with. But, of course, the problem with running away is that you take yourself with you.

I love the dynamics in the Black family; the way they both support and gossip about one another. Electrons and neutrons.

I also enjoyed the mystery that is woven into this story. Because Molly was not the only person to disappear that night . . .

There's Been a Little Incident is a superb debut novel and Alice Ryan is an author I will be watching for.

Family was sometimes simultaneously not enough and too much. You needed them and there were times when what you needed was not to need them.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.2

#TheresBeenALittleIncident #NetGalley

I: #AliceRyanAuthor @headofzeus

T: @Alice_Ryan @HoZ_Books

#contemporaryfiction #familydrama #friendship #irishfiction #mystery #romance

THE AUTHOR: Alice Ryan grew up in Dublin. After moving to London to study at the LSE, she spent ten years working in the creative industries, holding roles in publishing, film and TV. She was Head of Insight and Planning at BBC Studios before returning to Ireland. She now works at The Arts Council of Ireland and lives in Dublin with her husband Brian and their daughter Kate.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Head of Zeus, Apollo via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of There's Been a Little Incident by Alice Ryan for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

The title of the book was what intrigued me to read but really that seemed the best part of the book. There seemed to be too many characters, it continually jumped around making it hard to keep up with what was going on that I found myself more skim reading it. Not a book I’d recommend but thanks for the opportunity to try it.