This book was an absolute pleasure to read. Believable characters, whose lives intersect in completely organic ways made it both believable and uplifting

Loved this book from the author of A Little Hope. Perfect for a cold winter afternoon, it's a beautifully written story of loss and grief. Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for the opportunity to read it.

A deep, poignant read told from multiple POVs of three people dealing with loss and grief and healing. This book will break your heart then piece it back together. Beautifully written and thought provoking

Thank you to Scribner and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. A Quiet Life touched me by showing the manner in which we are often interconnected without realizing it. Chuck has just lost his wife, and he can't bring himself to move forward with some of the fun that they used to enjoy. We have Ella, working hard at both delivering papers in the early morning and working in a bridal shop in the afternoons. Her daughter is missing, and she hopes and prays for answers.
Set in a close-knit Pennsylvania suburb in the grip of winter, A Quiet Life follows three people grappling with loss and finding a tender wisdom in their grief. Finally, there is Krista, who had dreamed of becoming a vet, but she put those plans on hold. She knows she enjoys the work, but she's not quite sure where the rest of her life is headed. The characters are so well done, and just heartfelt. This book was just what I needed to remember that all humans aren't bad. So much better than I'd even anticipated.

Ethan Joella did it again! I was kind of worried because I loved his debut so much and I didn't think he'd be able to top A LITTLE HOPE. 🍁

I'm happy to say that I actually liked A QUIET LIFE even more 🪟

I cared about every single character so much and every plot line was equally as captivating. He has a unique way of weaving seemingly random characters together in the most beautiful way that will leave you in awe!

I want to read this book again right away and cannot wait to keep reading everything he writes in the future.

P. S. if you were a fan of Remarkably Bright Creatures, you'd love this one!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you so much to Scribner books for an e-copy and physical copy of this book prior to its release in exchange for an honest review. This book will be available for purchase on November 29th!

I turned the last page and could scarcely catch my breath. What a story. And still I wonder what so captivated me about this work—the beautiful, expressive writing or the story? A QUIET LIFE is a clear guide, a pathway through grief and healing. Ethan Joella, an English professor and author of A LITTLE HOPE (a Read with Jenna Bonus Pick), opens the novel with three individuals who have each suffered a traumatic loss. Weaving the lives of Chuck, Ella, and Kirsten together in a most natural way, this master wordsmith draws the reader into the same world of losses, of sorrows, and of bitter-sweet memories that are part of the emotional process of healing. This story overflows with hope and human kindness. It’s a miraculous tale that reveals how the worst events can sometimes change us for the better.
The characters are so authentic and well-described that I feel I’ve known them for years. Animals add a unique touch to this novel. Watch for any mention of cardinals, the rarest of birds who stays with us in winter when all the others leave. I believe that A QUIET LIFE is perfect for these uncertain, often contentious times and a story that whispers, “Be someone’s cardinal.” Is it sad? Oh, yes, there is a sadness that is exquisite, that is rich and deep—and yet perhaps even divine.

A Quiet Life, much like Joella's first book, delves into different characters whose lives eventually intertwine. The character development in this novel is exceptional, and I kept turning the pages, eager to learn about each person's connection with one another. I loved the simplicity of the story, and the message of love.

One of the most believable stories in grief. Sat down to read for an hour and couldn’t stop. Loved these characters. Ethan Joella is a strong voice in contemporary fiction!

I have not read Ethan Joella's debut novel, but after having the pleasure of reading A Quiet Life, there is nothing higher on my TBR list than more of this author's heartfelt writing. The book hopes to make sense — or at least, make accepted — grieving and loneliness, weaving together the stories of three characters who have recently experienced their own form of loss in a small Pennsylvania town. I immediately came to care for our three protagonists and looked forward to hopping back and forth between their viewpoints, eager to read on and discover how their stories would ultimately intersect. The peaceful solitude of the plot is the perfect background for Ethan Joella's prose. In fact, I think I'm obsessed with his writing style. He doesn't try to do too much, but quietly, unassumingly, the truth of his words creep up on you. So many lines in this book ring true and became deeply personal and relatable. I can't wait until this book is published so I can settle in and read it again, this time on a winter evening.

A Quiet Life by Ethan Joella is a beautiful novel about three adults living near a close-knit Pennsylvania suburb.

Written so beautiful, A Quiet Life invites us into several different stories in one small Pennsylvania town.
They experiences some relatable topics. I loved how they come to life so vividly.
The intertwining stories were beautiful, emotional, hopeful and powerful.
The writing style was so impressive. I loved this character driven story, and how each of the stories weave together beautifully.
Joella's writing is superb! Empathic storytelling, a good character-driven novel.
Warm, compassionate and deeply moving. I didn't want this book to end as soon as it did.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Scribner,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC for an exchange for an honest review.

A good book worth reading.

✨ This book feels like… losing what you love. Like the emptiness that’s left behind. Like the flicker of a flame not quite extinguished. ✨

“Maybe loving someone so deeply means accepting the fact that they occupy a specific, clear place in you. You accept that there will be a hhttps://www.instagram.com/p/ChVPxxKp4mY/ole if you lose them—the same way a painting or photograph will leave its shadow on the wall after it’s gone, the way a tree will leave a crater where the roots and stump were.”

✨ After the loss of a loved one has erased their voice, how do you move on in the silence?

✨ This is a heartwarming story with characters you can’t help but root for. For those coping with loss and looking for hope.💛

This is a very sweet book about an older man grieving the loss of his beloved wife, and his healing through human connections from people in his community who are struggling with their own issues and losses. It’s relatively quick and readers will feel for these characters. The storyline has been done many times and a bit better by Fredrik Backman and others. I would still recommend this heartfelt and eventually uplifting book.


Thank you very much to NetGalley and Scribner for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

If you enjoyed his debut novel “ A Little Hope” you will enjoy this one as well. A touching drama about loss and unexpected connections.

2.5/5

There's really nothing actively bad about this novel, and I can appreciate its intersecting depictions of grief and loss, but almost everything about it feels pedestrian and lacks color. The characters often feel like light sketches rather than people, and it's not just for lack of space to fully develop them, as a lot of time is spent reiterating their struggles rather than expanding upon them (or the characters as a whole), which can feel particularly repetitive with the interlaced structure. I tend to like quiet books and books that don't have much of a plot, but there isn't anything special in the language or prose here that would provide the intrigue and momentum that the story itself can't provide. Then once you get to the final third or so of the novel it cranks the plot up considerably and then it feels like that's all there is. Intriguing and gets the pages turning, sure, but it's abrupt and feels like it pushes the characters along too quickly. I don't feel it does anything especially interesting with the concept of an intersecting tapestry of characters beyond what you might expect - conveniences and we're all connected and all that. Conclusions and realizations that occur in the final chapters feel relatively unearned because of how minimal the characters are, and it all comes to a typically broadly satisfying end.

I liked aspects of the story and there was some poignancy at times that feels relatively genuine, but virtually everything about this book is middle-of-the-road. A fairly light and enjoyable read, but likely easily forgotten.

I just loved this story..
Chuck is in his early seventies and has lost his beloved wife to cancer.
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.
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.
Three lives in a Pennsylvania town, that come together in beautiful ways and help each other to cope.
Wonderful characters!

Thank you to Scribner and Netgalley for the ARC!

This book was lovely - both heartbreaking and hopeful.

The live of three very different strangers experiencing their own unique loss come together when their lives intersect. Their meeting allow each of them to help the other and shows that life can be bigger than loss. Ethan Joella shows each character's raw pain and makes the reader feel their anguish, but he also shows the way out of the darkness.

I highly recommend this book to all!

Thank you Netgalley and Scribner for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of A Quiet Life.

I've never read the author's books before but the premise was intriguing so I was pleased my request was approved.

This is about three very different people struggling with loss and grief in a small PA neighborhood; Chuck Ayers recently lost his wife to cancer; Kirsten is mourning her beloved dad, killed in a sudden act of violence, and Ella is hoping her young daughter is alive and well, missing after her ex-husband kidnapped her.

The writing is great, filled with warmth, heart, and emotion; the author describes the characters and their loved ones well, adding depth and insight as to what made each person special to the loved ones mourning them.

Nothing much happens; I mean, stuff happens, mostly at the end, but this is about how each person struggles with how to live after losing the one they love.

There are a lot of flashbacks, regrets recounted after the fact, and retelling of happy memories.

In a way, the narrative became repetitious; Chuck thinking constantly about whether he should return to the vacation home he and his wife visited every year; Kirsten's confused feelings about David and Grayson, and Ella wondering where her daughter, Riley, was and thinking about all the things they used to do together.

I liked Kirsten's storyline the least; her attachment to David screamed 'Daddy' issues and the tease of a love triangle between her, David and Grayson was too creepy for my taste.

What I did like the most was how the men were all good people (minus Ella's ex); Chuck, his buddy Sal, David and Grayson, Kirsten's dad. They were loving, respectful, kind and supportive.

I wouldn't mind a Grayson in my life.

A Quiet Life is about regular people struggling to survive, coping with loss and grief, and finally realizing that there's nothing wrong with accepting help from neighbors and friends.

We all need support and understanding, and sometimes it comes from the most unlikely places, and from people we don't even know.

I would like to thank Ethan Joella, Scribner Books, & NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

This story was sad, and heartwarming. Captivating, and beautiful. A tale of loss, growth, and love.

The story starts with three individuals going through their own traumatic loses. Joella beautifully weaves their stories together, and allows you to find the beauty along the way.

"Be someone's cardinal."

Beautifully written examination of grief and healing. Ethan Joella's background as a professor is evident in making each and every character live. This kind of quiet, nonconfrontational novel was just perfect for these turbulent times, a story that lives up to its description and title and with a lovely cover that conveys its meaning in, yes, a quiet image.