Sad and heartwarming and thought provoking. Even though lately I have shied away from sad stories that sometimes hit too close to home, this one had the right balance of uplifting insight and introspection to keep me going.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-ARC of A Quiet Life by Ethan Joella.
A Quiet Life is the story of how our day-to-day interactions can lead us to people who can make a difference in our lives. Three separate stories that are brought together through circumstances. Each person searching for meaning and finding it in unexpected places. Ethan Joella creates a beautiful story reminiscent of A Man Called Ove.

A Quiet Life starts slow, but continues to build. I found I needed to be in the right emotional space for this one. Very character-driven, as opposed to plot based, we delve into the lives of the characters navigating their way through grief and emotional turmoil. Ethan Joella writes with quiet grace as he examines the humanity found within us all.

I enjoyed this one but found it decently slow and pretty sad. If you are immersed in grief at the moment, it may not be the right time for this one.

A Quiet Life is a heart-rending and heart warming story of three grief engulfed strangers who come together in unexpected ways. I cried both sad and happy tears. It's a lovely way to spend a weekend.

The stories of Chuck, Kirsten, and Ella and how their lives intersect and impact each other, as they deal with their own grief and regrets.

I loved this book. So well told, with wonderful characters. The writing reminded me a lot of Jonathan Tropper. I immediately went and found his other books.

Adored this one but be warned you have to be in the right frame of mind to read.
Thank you NetGalley for providing a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Absolutely loved! A little hope was one of my favorites of all time and I was a bit concerned the second from this author wouldn't live up to my expectations. But I am so happy that wasn't the case. Bye-making this book my whole personality!

After reading and loving, Ethan Joella's A Little Hope, I was thrilled to be granted access to A Quiet Life. I'm always intrigued by how authors portray grief in novels and this was a gorgeous exploration.

Joella follows the lives of three people whose lives intersect as they struggle with their own pain. Chuck lost his beloved wife Cat and can't decide whether to continue with some of their beloved traditions. Ella is struggling through life desperately waiting for news about her kidnapped daughter. Kirsten is biding time working at an animal shelter, deferring vet school as she grieves the loss of her father to a senseless shooting.

Joella seamlessly weaves their stories and lives together in a powerfully quiet book about pain, healing and the beauty of community.

Thanks to the author, NetGalley and Scribner for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

In a Nutshell: A slow but fairly satisfying read. Character-oriented plot, so it won’t work for all. Good if you want to read stories about characters with emotional baggage trying to move beyond the grief that drags them down.

Story Synopsis:
Chuck Ayers, who is in his seventies, doesn’t want to go Hilton Head alone without his beloved wife Cat who passed away recently. At the same time, he doesn’t even want to stay alone in the home they shared for so many years.
Ella Burke is working hard at two jobs to keep herself going while she await news about her daughter Riley who has been missing for a few months. All Ella wants is her daughter back.
Kirsten Bonato, who works at an animal shelter, misses her dad who was killed in a convenience store robbery. She feels like her life has changed track after his death, but she doesn’t know how to get it going again.
How these three characters and their stories are interlinked is what you need to read and find out.
The story comes to us in the limited third person perspective of the three main characters.

Where the book worked for me:
✔ The three main characters are complex, layered people. Each is guilt-tripping over something in the past because of which they cannot immerse themselves in their present. It’s nice to see characters that feel relatable even if their circumstances may not be what we have experienced ourselves. Their journey to seek closure feels genuine. Also worth remembering is that each main character belongs to a distinct age group, so their situations and emotions are distinct to them.
✔ The link between the characters is well-explained without being too convenient.
✔ As with most character-oriented stories, this one too proceeds at a slow pace. But the progress is steady and you feel like you know the characters better with every turn of the page.
✔ The prose isn’t too jazzy but impressive enough to keep one invested. This book shows how good storytelling doesn’t need a thesaurus to buttress it. (I don’t know what made my brain think of the word ‘buttress’ when I am trying to prove that simple words work better! Yikes!)

Where the book could have worked better for me:
⚠ The story becomes a little repetitive in between, especially in Chuck’s arc.
⚠ It is somewhat predictable. Of course, this is not a genre you read for thrills and twists but for thought-provoking scenes and emotional content. In that sense, the book delivers, I just wish it had been braver about pushing the boundaries.


Overall, this is a story of broken hearts and unresolved issues. With the three main characters stuck in the past, disconnected from the present, and wary about the future, you get to see a variety of human emotions at play. Kirsten’s story was the least impressive for me, but Chuck’s and Ella’s tracks made the book a worthwhile read.

Recommended to those who like character-oriented emotional stories. (Think Hallmark movie without a Christmas theme.)

3.75 stars.

My thanks to Scribner and NetGalley for the DRC of “A Quiet Life”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Beautiful written story. A quiet life is about three people who are dealing with loss and grief in their lives. The story begins with Chuck. We learn he is in his early seventies and has lost his beloved wife to cancer. Next we are introduced to Ella. Ella’s life is at a standstill as she awaits news of the whereabouts of her young daughter who was taken by the child’s father. Lastly we learn about Kirsten. Kirsten is a young lady who works at an animal rescue and is torn between two coworkers she had feelings for. She lost her father when he was murdered inside a gas station during a robbery. I really loved how we gradually learned about each character and slowly realized how their lives intertwine and are dealing with similar experiences in their lives. This is such a great story about love, loss and grief. Many thanks to Scribner and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own

Unfortunately I really couldn't get into this one. It was solidly sad without a break at the point where I stopped reading. The writing was good it was just too depressing to continue.

A Quiet Life is aptly named. It is a lovely quiet story about 3 characters experiencing grief in their lives. Their lives are intertwined and the author does a nice job of helping the reader connect with each of the 3 characters. Joella is becoming very popular due to the heartfelt emotion of his books and I'll be interested in what comes next.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a reader's copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. A Quiet Life is on sale now.

A Quiet Life was exactly what the book title stands for. This book was quiet but packed quite the punch.

This book follows three different perspectives coming off of major events in their life. As you read in to the story you start to see how all three stories start to interconnect. While this story starts off dealing pretty heavily in the category of grief, hang on because there is a very, very sweet story coming.

This was my first book by Ethan Joella and it will definitely not be my last. He truly is a gifted story writer.

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner Books for allowing me to read an early copy!

I was really hoping to like this book because I’ve enjoyed others by this author but ultimately this books was a DNF for me. I prefer books that have more action and this didn’t move quickly enough to keep my attention.

“Be Someone’s Cardinal.”

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This was listed in so many people’s top five #books of 2022 and let me go ahead and tell you the high praise and rankings are merited. One of the most beautiful, poignant, bittersweet, uplifting, inspiring #books I have #read in years. Absolutely breathtaking.

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This one tells the story of three different individuals struggling with their grief: a woman in her twenties in the aftermath of the brutal shooting of her father, a mother whose child has been abducted, and an elderly man who has recently lost his wife, the love of his life.

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All of three of these individuals will find that their lives are surprisingly interwined, and as they work through their emotions and grief, from the lows to the highs, they will eventual find that the kindness of others will help them survive their loss and propel them into new beginnings and hope.

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I sobbed.

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SPOILER ALERT: When Chuck (Mr. A) goes to adopt Frederick and he’s already been taken I lost it. That really did me in. 🐖

I will read anything Ethan Joella writes. His books always make me feel all the feelings and this one was no different.
I love how he connects his characters throughout the story and I like how he can make everyday people interesting.
I felt so deeply about these characters and their experiences and I didn’t want this story to end.

A Quiet Life by Ethan Joella
4.25 stars

I was very excited to read A Quiet Life by Ethan Joella after having read, and loved, A Little Hope. A Quiet Life is good but I enjoyed the other more.

A Quiet Life centers around three characters: Chuck, Ella, and Kirsten, who have all recently experienced a traumatic loss of a loved one. They are all trying to figure out how to move forward n their lives.

If I were giving stars on the writing alone, this book would hands down be 5 stars, no question. Mr. Joella is a fantastic writer. This book is woven like a tapestry. Each storyline, starting on its own thread, is woven so beautifully into the others. It’s a work of craftsmanship, and for those of us who appreciate beautiful writing, Mr. Joella is a craftsman.

The storylines themselves were at times a little too quiet for me. The characters are processing grief, and loss, and sometimes that seemed a little repetitive to me.

I also was a little bit disappointed in some of the characters decisions, but not having experienced a loss of my own, perhaps I don’t have the understanding of why they made some decisions?

Overall, this is a good book. The stories are beautifully told. I cared about each of these characters and I wanted the best for them.

I look forward to reading more of Ethan Joelle’s books in the future. And if you haven’t yet tried one of his books, I encourage you to grab a blanket and a cup of hot coffee (or cocoa) and settle in for a good experience.

Thank you to #netgalley and #scribnerbooks for the advanced e-copy of #aquietlife.

This book published in November and is available where books are sold.

I loved this gorgeous tale of loss, grief, and new friendships. The story of twenty=something Kirstin, who recently lost her father, Ella, whose daughter is missing, and Chuck, and old man grieving the death of his wife, A Quiet Life is a gentle tale, rife with observations on life and loss. I was lucky enough to join the author in a Zoom book chat in January and I must say he is a must-read for me moving forward. I can't say enough great things about this book.