Elizabeth Acevedo has done it again with a beautiful and thoughtful work of art. This truly lived up to every expectation I had after reading all of her other books. Her prose is as beautiful as her verse. I enjoyed every word of this book.

Content warnings: child abandonment, parental abuse, infidelity, miscarriages, sexual assault, physical violence

If you enjoy sweeping family histories comprised of intricate generational experiences layered on top of one another, you'll love FAMILY LORE. Acevedo will easily hook new readers as she moved into writing Adult Fiction.

For me personally, this is lacking the magic of Acevedo's YA books and I found myself getting lost in trying to follow the threads of the plot with so many characters jumping in and out of the narrative (along with the time line jumping back and forth). It's all well executed, the miss is on me as a reader for this one.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley and Ecco in exchange for an honest review.

Elizabeth Acevedo never disappoints. This is multiple point of view done right. Every character's narration advances the story and the narrative is better and more endearing than I expected.

Acclaimed Young Adult author Elizabeth Acevedo’s first novel for adults is about a multigenerational family of Dominican women as they navigate the complexities of sisterhood, marriage, motherhood, migration and magic. Yes- magic. You see- magic runs in the family. As the novel opens- Flor, who can foresee death- sees her own, and decides to have a living wake. What follows is 3 days of preparation for the event and through that- we hear the stories of the lives of her sisters, daughter and niece. Written in a beautiful prose, this novel will appeal to readers interested in the Latinx Diaspora, magical realism and women's stories.

For fans of Angie Cruz, Nicholasa Mohr, Isabel Allende, and especially Julia Alvarez.

I have traditionally loved Acevedo’s work, but this one just didn’t speak to me the way her YA works have. I always love her narration, and that was no different here. I found the structure of this story hard to follow. The timeline jumped around so much that I couldn’t always follow who’s story was happening when, etc. I enjoyed the characters and the idea behind the story, but there was just too much jumping around for me.

I love everything by Acevedo and I think this had really good bones. I love family dramas. I loved the connection between the sisters. It was a little hard to follow at times though. It wasn't one that was just unputdownable. But I feel like that could definitely be the timing.

A fragmented multi-POV, multi-generational, women-centric saga of the Dominican-American Marte family in the inimitable style of Elizabeth Acevedo, which doesn't transition between YA novels in verse to adult literary fiction completely smoothly, but enough to ensure a compelling story that makes you a) want more, and b) want to keep an eye on future offerings in this genre.

Flor Martes has always had an affinity with the spirit world, always known when and how someone would pass. When she decides to throw herself a living wake, everyone wonders whether this is it for their sister, their mother, their aunt. Her daughter, Ona is an anthropologist. She has the sole first-person POV in the story as she records interviews with all her family members - the wake is the final trigger for her finally turning her attention to research and record her own lineage, heritage, and family history; from the rural backwaters of the Dominican Republic, to the capital Santo Domingo, to modern-day New York City.

I feel like this wouldn't have been as engaging if I wasn't used to Acevedo's narrative voice and style already - many of the stories jump back and forth in time even within the same POV and it can often be a little jarring, But I was still invested in these very distinct, real, and three-dimensional characters.

I love everything this book has to offer like strong female characters, family traditions, and multiple stories. As always, Elizabeth Acevedo's writing is really strong. The time jumps did confuse me and that took me out of the story. However, there is still so much to love about this book.

I've been a fan of Elizabeth Acevedo's YA books for years. Clap When You Land is a particular favorite. I was excited to see what she would with her first adult novel and she definitely does not disappoint.

The Marte women are a formidable bunch. Sisters Matilde, Flor, Pastora, and Camila have seen each other through many seemingly insurmountable obstacles in their homeland of the Dominican Republic and their home now in New York. The sisters each have special gifts that are not able to be be explained away by logic. Flor, since she was a child, has dreams that predict with accuracy when someone will die. When she decides to recruit her family and all of her friends far and wide to attend a "living wake" that she intends to hold for herself as a celebration of her life, her sisters fear that Flor is telegraphing the end of her life. Flor's daughter, anthropology professor Ona begins trying to capture Flor's recollections of her life and her stories before it is too late.

As the different generations come together to explore the past and prepare for the unknowable future, Flor's wake invites everyone to examine their own life choices. Multiple character voices and dual time periods weave throughout the novel as we look back at the sisters' core memories in the Dominican Republic and in the present that includes Ona and Pastora's daughter Yadi.

I was entranced by this novel. It was an epic family saga that was reminiscent of the writings of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. She captivated me with these characters' struggles and the themes of love, lust, forgiveness, and redemption echoed throughout the pages.

Be warned that at the beginning it would be best to thoroughly examine the "family tree' of characters to keep everyone identified-I didn't and needed to refer back continually. But that's a small sacrifice to make to be invited into Acevedo's world.

I am dazzled by this novel and excited for people to experience it.

I am a huge fan of Elizabeth Acevedo's YA books, so I was definitely intrigued that she would write an adult fiction book. While some of the stories/chapters were beautifully written in her voice, I found myself being confused with the multiple characters. I thought the stories needed to be linked together a bit better.

I could definitely consider myself reading this book in the future, but for right now, it does not interest me.

This multi-generational family saga has all the hallmarks of a book that I would love; strong female characters, connected families, multiple stories, traditions, etc. I just didn't feel very engaged. There wasn't a character that interested me enough to feel invested in their story. I had high hopes for this book but it just wasn't for me. The writing is strong with solid descriptions but it wasn't enough to carry the day.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for this advanced readers copy.

A dark, heartfelt exploration of family, sisterhood, womanhood and generational trauma in the midst of a death seer of a Dominican-American family deciding to plan her own living wake. Acevedo's prose is as alluring as ever, pulling the reader into this family's magical, extensive lore and stripping each member to her rawest form. While it took me a bit of time to get into the tale (due to the sheer amount of characters, history and POV switches) I soon found myself entrenched in this family's story. The dynamics between each character, from sister to sister to mother to daughter, was oh-so-realistic, making the ending and its reckonings all the more heartbreaking. I do wish there was even MORE to this family's lore - more to their magic/gifts, more to their reflections on their ancestral lineage, more to their reckoning of their mental health struggles, more to Ona's POV as a whole as she strives to tell her family's story via interviews and footnotes scrawled beneath her cousins', mother's and aunt's narrations. In the end, I felt there was a gaping hole in this family's story and I hungered to get to the bottom of it. With that said, I still thoroughly enjoyed this latest novel of Acevedo's - it only served to remind me how masterful of a writer she truly is!

Thanks to eccobooks and NetGalley for an advanced copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

Elizabeth Acevedo’s newest novel, ‘Family Lore’, follows the Marte sisters: Flor, Pastora, Matilde, and Camila, along with Pastora’s daughter, Yadi, and Flor’s daughter, Ona. Originally from the Dominican Republic, the sisters all found their way to New York City, but they did not arrive burden-free. Each of the Marte women has an element of magic, though specific and minor. Flor knows when someone is going to die, and the book takes place in the week leading up to her living wake (as she refuses to confirm to her family whether she has actually had a vision of her own impending death). The novel flashes between past and present, with each of the six women as the focus of their own chapters.

The premise of this novel pulled me in, and I was excited to see how the author utilized magical realism. Due to the structure of the book, with multiple viewpoints and interstitials, it was hard to find the voice of each character until I was well into the story. However, once I got to that point I found the women to be well thought out and full of complexities. The inclusion of Yadi and Ona’s viewpoints allowed for an exploration of generational trauma, which was deftly handled. The author also weaves in plenty of phrases and dialogue in Spanish, which felt authentic to the story but definitely lost me at points.

Overall, a compelling story of strong and passionate women across generations. Content warnings for graphic sexual descriptions and discussion of sexual violence.

Rating: 4/5 stars

My thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for the opportunity to read Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo. A multigenerational women's story that grabbed me quickly. Ms. Acevedo's words are poetic and lyrical.

I loved the complexity of these inter-generational characters and relationships. There were so many gorgeous lines that I highlighted as I read. But I got kind of confused as the story jumps from present to past, and between characters.

Special thanks to eccobooks and NetGalley for an advanced copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

Flor, Pastora, Matilde, Camila, Yadi, and Ona are family. That's what ties them together in the deepest of ways. Yet they all have secrets. As the past catches up to them, each of them has to make a decision about what to do next.

I love the risks Elizabeth Acevedo takes with her books. Each one is so unique in style, and tackles such different topics. Unfortunately I struggled to follow this one. Between the multiple points of view and lots of flashbacks, everything felt very disjointed. And then there was the sex. I am not one to appreciate lots of graphic sex in the books I read, and this one had a lot (added to that, I'm not really sure what the point of it was). However, I still enjoyed getting to know the characters. Each of the six main characters had some aspect I connected with, which made them very relatable. Per usual, the best part was how Acevedo wove her mother tongue into the book. I think it could possibly make a great audiobook as the idea behind the book is to be like stories your grandmother might tell you before she dies.

CW: sex (including masterbation and pornography), drinking, abuse

This was an awesome, multi-generational family novel about the Marte women. Originally from the Domincan Republic, sisters Matilde, Flor, Pastora, and Camila escape the countryside first to the capital and then eventually to New York City, where they all are at the start of this story. All of the Marte women have magic of some kind, and Flor's is that she can sense death - she's been able to predict it and sense it for her whole life. So when she decides to throw a living wake after seeing one in a documentary, her sisters, her daughter Ona, and her niece Yadi are all concerned. Each of these women is dealing with something serious - fertility issues, infidelity, broken hearts, and more, and Acevedo manages to tell their stories richly through alternating chapters about each Marte women. There are also interstitial excerpts of interview transcripts with the women for a project than Ona, an anthropologist, is working on, and I really liked having those first person voices to round out the characterization.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ecco Press for allowing me to read an advanced digital reader's copy of Elizabeth Acevedo's "The Family Lore." I had the privilege of meeting Ms. Acevedo at a lecture, and she autographed a book for my youngest daughter. Afterward, my daughter purchased several of Ms. Acevedo's books for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. "Family Lore" is Ms. Acevedo's first foray into adult lit, and she did a great job with the transition. Several scenes and discussions in the book were indeed for adults. "Family Lore" is about the Martes sisters, Matilda, Flor, Pastore, & Camille, and two of the sibling's daughters, Yadi and Ona. Three of the sisters have magical gifts; one doesn't. Flor, who can foretell death, announces that she wants to hold a "living wake," which sends the family members into a tizzy. Throughout the story, family members and the reader try to figure out who will die.

Initially, I had difficulty following the storyline because each chapter presented the alternating perspectives of one of the six characters - Matilda, Flor, Pastore, Camille, Yadi, and Ona. Some chapters were in an interview format because Ona, an anthropologist, interviewed and recorded the history of her mother's and tia's (aunts) childhood in the Dominican Republic (DR), their move to New York, and their relationships with each other, their husbands, and their offspring. Halfway through the book, I got used to the novel's structure. The Martes sisters and nieces were fierce women who experienced the universal trials and heartbreaks of women-infidelity, infertility, betrayal, insecurity, finding self-worth, self-realization, and independence. The Martes sisters love each other dearly, fight like sisters, worry like sisters, and protect like sisters.

The story takes place over a 3-day period, which seems longer. It was nice to see all the family and friends come to Flor's "living wake" to celebrate her life and give her accolades while she was alive. I hate our tradition of sending flowers to the family of the deceased, which the deceased can't smell or touch. Nor can the deceased savor all the acknowledgments from the individuals whose lives they touched and positively impacted. The story was poignant and uplifting, with many important themes, especially that of a mother's love and misperceptions. Daughters sometimes believe their mother doesn't love them because of how she reacted to an event in their life, not realizing that their mother's actions and reactions were to protect, not abandon them.

You cannot go wrong reading "The Family Lore." I plan to buy the book when published and expand my Elizabeth Acevedo collection.

The premise of this one drew me in right away: a large multigenerational family, some of whom have 'supernatural gifts,' are drawn together when one of them decides to throw herself a living wake. Acevedo's past books have shown her to be more than capable at writing unique stories and the female relationships that exist at the center of them. Unfortunately the strong premise wasn't enough in thise one. I found myself often confused in the ever-shifting POVs and didn't really feel that the character's voices felt all that distinct from one another. This made it hard to connect with, and in turn care about, what they were going through. The small asides throughout the book also added to the confusion, as it wasn't clear which character was talking, who was reminiscing, and who was interjecting into the story.

I think that there was a lot to be discovered in this one, but the structure and lack of distinct characters made it hard to get there.

After loving Clap When You Land, I was really looking forward to picking up Elizabeth's Acevedo's debut adult novel. I loved the unique family drama but the elements of masturbation and pornography weren't to my taste. I was hoping to skim through these portions of the novel but they were frequent and didn't further the story in my opinion. I really enjoyed Acevedo's writing style and will consider trying whatever she writes next. I think this story will be popular with readers, but it wasn't my personal favorite.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.
RATING: 3.5/5 stars (rounded up to 4 stars)