Adam Gardner, a brilliant scientist, is on the cusp of both his 70th birthday and his forced retirement. Determined to make one last discovery, he deliberately stops taking his medication for bipolar disorder, hoping to control the mania that might help him achieve brilliance. While he's trying to hide his weight loss, talkativeness, and other symptoms from his two children, they are also keeping secrets from him. Ambitious Ken is making the business deal that he hopes will propel him from very wealthy to exorbitantly so, while also planning a congressional run. Meanwhile, Abby's career as an artist is about to take off, while she's harboring another secret.

At the same time, new mother Steph is determined to meet the family she never knew she had until her pregnancy revealed facts about her biological father she never knew.

Taking place in the fraught summer of 2016, when the country is aghast and divided over the presidential campaign (and the characters in this novel are sure they are about to witness the election of the first woman president), this family saga intertwines suspense, romance, and drama. #LittleMonsters #NetGalley

3.75 out of 5 . This is an interesting family drama, or what could be called a collection of all possible terrible family relationships. I mean I really felt bad for Abby. I don’t know what is worse her relationship with her father/ her brother/ her “boyfriend”, there are just toxic relationships all around but all the more power to her that she perseveres through all the proverbial shit! The art descriptions were gorgeous - I could imagine the art so vividly and it was delightful.

I make a point not to jump on the bandwagon of trending books. I like to go into the read and my review with an open mind. I tried that with Adrienne Brodeur’s new novel “Little Monsters”. Just a few pages in, I knew this was going to a 5-star satisfying read.
Abby Gardner, who lost her mother as a child, is an aspiring artist, waiting to be discovered. Her paintings are dark, multi-layered, open to interpretation. It’s obvious she’s fighting demons, although her personality and attitude seem positive and wholesome. Abby’s brother Ken, on the other hand, is angry, money hungry, never quite satisfied and married to Abby’s best friend. Reigning over these two is Adam, the bipolar father who’s approaching his 70th birthday and decides to celebrate by stopping his meds. It’s really the only way he can speak with the humpback whales, so obviously he’s doing the right thing. Slowly spinning around this nucleus of a family is Steph. She has recently learned that Adam is her birth father and is slowly inserting herself into their lives.
This story is set in the beautiful landscape of Cape Cod. I’ve never been there, probably never will be able to, but while reading this novel, I was there and was able to watch the events unfold.
There’s a deep dark past for the kids, and Ms. Brodeur is absolutely superb in her art of foreshadowing. I will gladly recommend this to readers who love stories about family dynamics, mental health, and childhood trauma.
Thanks to Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date was June 27, 2023.

Little Monsters by Adrienne Brodeur contains multitudes! The book centers around a broken family who succeeds (and fails) as individual members within that greater whole. And that the secrets we keep come back to both haunt us, and become our greatest blessings. The characters are tangible and felt real to me throughout the book, even the most unlikable ones, at times, were still rendered in a very relatable and multifaceted way.

The story takes place in 2016 under the emergence of the political upheaval that followed and does so under the naivete that many of us, including myself, were living (in hindsight).. Nevertheless, the hope that was transmitted by the story itself, outshined even the reality we were heading into.

A theme of the novel is the art of "Kintsagi" https://mymodernmet.com/kintsugi-kintsukuroi/ and it was beautifully interwoven within (both in Abby's art and in the breaking down and rebuilding of people and relationships. Building something new and even more beautiful by tangibly taking action - calling secrets to light, taking brave steps to grow through pain.

Abby was "...lauded a brave artist who used personal narrative to question the social landscape and challenge the existing male-dominated art canon." The novel is triumphant, and kept me invested right up until its satisfying ending. I highly recommend Little Monsters.

I wanted to like this one more than I did. I was drawn to the family drama aspect, especially coming from an author who put out a pretty captivating memoir about that very thing, but it fell flat for me. The Cape Cod setting was done well, but the characters were one dimensional and there were plot holes that are still bothering me. I felt like Adam's mental health wasn't explained enough and I had so many questions about what was going on with him and what his relationship was really like with his children. Ken and Abby both had their skeletons in the closet, but I still have a ton of unanswered questions about their childhood relationship. Throwing another 'unknown' sibling into the mix that was doing a suedo-investigation also added to the confusion. There was a lot of mess, which I am normally here for, but it was poorly executed. There is this propulsion towards Adam's birthday party that is alluded to throughout most of the book, but once the climax hit, it was pretty underwhelming. If you pass on this one, you won't miss out on much.

Adam Gardner, a bipolar brilliant marine biologist, single parent raised his two children, Abby and Ken on Cape Cod. Their family has lots of hidden secrets and this is the story of the summer they all unravel.
I love reading about interesting and complicated families, but something about this whole story just kind of didn’t work for me. I didn’t feel like I got close enough to any of the characters so didn’t care as much what happened. I almost think it would have worked better if we weren’t allowed inside each character’s head - maybe only a couple? I loved Brodeur’s memoir Wild Game and would definitely read her next novel.
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC!

This is psychological, dysfunctional family drama at its best, set in Cape Cod, 2016, the year of the Presidential election when we all thought the USA would have their first female President. But like that election not all is what it seems and life unravels in the lead up to Adam's 70th birthday.

It's a tense but easy read, with lots of needy and demanding characters, each with their secrets.

Each short chapter is told from the point of view of one of the many characters, which slowly builds up the drama between them all.

Brodeur creates great scene setting and her description of the scenery really brings the setting alive. And it was this that kept me reading.

A good holiday read. 3.5⭐️

I listened to the audio version of this book and it's fantastic. It's narrated by a full cast which really makes the listening experience so much richer and makes it easy to follow the multiple points of view as they're read by different people.

This book is about a family set in Cape Cod - this family has secrets, sibling rivalry and struggles with mental illness and loss. While it's got some intense subjects, the author does a fantastic job of handling them with care and making the reader invested in this family. It's definitely a character-driven novel. Having read the author's memoir, I can see some of themes from her own life playing out in this fictional story about family dynamics, including parental neglect, narcism and more. It's also set against the backdrop of the 2016 political scene in America, which is intense and emotional for many of us.

I could not stop listening to this story though - the writing was fantastic. It gets 5 stars from me.

Trigger Warnings: Mental Health, Infidelity, Narcism, Parental Neglect, Childhood Loss of a Parent, Child Abuse, Alcoholism, Sexual Abuse.

Anticipation, hope mixed with dread, a rollercoaster, anxiety-ridden final third--why do we readers inhale books with these features?!

Little Monsters by Adrienne Brodeur delivers on EVERY level. I loved this book and devoured it in 2 days. And it is available now.

Another family drama, the book is set in Cape Cod over the summer and early fall of 2016. We all know how that fall culminated, and setting this family's drama, as they plan their father's 70th birthday party, against that political drama felt like a true act of genius. The characters, of course, are all flawed people who have secrets, and wowsa, can Brodeur mix those ingredients and bring them to a roiling boil!

"Wounded people wound," says one of the characters early on in the story. So profound, on so many levels.

I usually enjoy books centered on family dramas, so my love for this book is no surprise. But I've read several others this summer, and Little Monsters is a stand out. From the first chapter, Brodeur builds the tension methodically and brilliantly. But during the last quarter or third of the book, I could NOT set it down. Probably not good for my blood pressure, but I had to know how these people were going to deal with their internal demons.

I'm thinking I need to investigate her backlist. Recommendations?

This is a slow burn lyrical story about a family rooted in Cape Cod and stressed to the breaking point in the summer of 2016.
There's Adam, the scientist who is trying to harness his bipolar disorder to make a discovery that will be his legacy since his 70th birthday and retirement are right around the corner and there are his children.
Abby his artist daughter who was impacted by loosing her mother before ever being able to know her, is hiding a pregnancy from her family waiting for just the right moment to break the news and it seems her art is on the brink of a breakout moment as well - right on track for national recognition. Then there is Ken, her brother, a real estate developer who made the deal that will allow him to launch a political career lined up with his ambitions, if only the other people in his life, his wife and kids would line up just as nicely ... He is also in therapy after his wife ran in on an interesting "chat session" he was having- but maybe he can manage the therapist just like he is trying to manage everyone else ...
Last but not least there is Steph - the daughter
Adam doesn't know about - his misstep still haunts him though ..
.. how will he react now that she is trying
to carefully reach out to all three of them.
And what about the wife and mother dead since right after Abby's birth but always present in all of their lives I enjoyed the whole story of this messy, complicated family! Told through alternating chapters and characters, you get everyone's side of the story. I loved this dysfunctional family story. If you like slow burn, character driven books with a strong sense of place, this will be for you. I would have loved a longer epilogue, I need to know how they are after five years !

I was excited to read this as the description sounded great. But as other reviewers have mentioned, there were SO many issues covered in the story that are all important but I don’t feel the author went really deep into any in particular. The characters were well drawn and I loved the detailed descriptions of the Cape. It’s an easy read and keeps you engaged but the ending was really disappointing to me. Some of the family conflicts were quickly glazed over and too neatly wrapped up.

Thank you to @NetGalley for the ARC and my honest opinion.

Many thanks to the publish and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

This was ok.


It was a bit over written for my taste. I kept waiting for something to happen but it just felt like a slow trudge through life’s little nuances. I didn’t love the political or religious sides of the story and I really only enjoyed Adam’s POV. I enjoy a family drama but this was lacking in the dramatic department.

This was a beautiful story - I can see it being many book club picks! It was a page turner for me and I highly recommend this one.

I adored this authors memoir and was so excited to read her fiction. I loved it. The messy family dynamics were so well developed.

I really felt drawn to this cringe worthy dysfunctional family. Stephanie, the police officer, was probably the perspective I liked best for her no nonsense approach to concluding her quest. Adam was not likable but someone I was rooting for. And that is the art of this story, finding redeemable qualities and the vulnerability in each family member. Loved the art references and descriptions. An author new to me that I will read again.

Copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

I loved reading Adrienne Brodeur's memoir, Wild Game, and was looking forward to this one. Little Monsters was also loaded with family drama and Brodeur's knack for being able to perfectly describe the natural settings of Cape Cod. It was thought-provoking, very readable and had a few little twists. I particularly enjoyed the fact that it was set in the very recent past with a few clever nods to the future.

Thank you to Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster and #NetGalley for allowing me to read a pre-release of this novel. My review is voluntary, and all opinions are my own.

Rating: 3.5

I was a big fan of the author's memoir Wild Game, so was looking forward to this novel.

The setting is perhaps what I liked most about Little Monsters. I didn't connect with any of the characters, and other than Abby, I didn't care about the rest, and a few acted in ways that didn't really make sense. I was hoping for more resolution at the end of the story--there were still so many loose ends/plot lines that were never addressed in depth, more just heavily hinted at). Specifically, I would have liked to see more resolution with Ken and Abby and their childhood issues. I don't think the character of Steph added much and the plot could've progressed more without her addition.

I think this novel will ultimately do very well, it just wasn't a big hit for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a very good book about family dynamics and secrets. I have read many books in this genre. This one was excellent.

(𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 @𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 #𝘨𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬.) I feel like the Debbie Downer of book reviews here. Recently my reading has been on the extremes. Either I love a book, or I just don’t. Unfortunately, 𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗧𝗟𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦 by Adrienne Brodeur is one of the later. It’s about a Cape Cod family with two adult children raised by their single father. Mom died when Ken was only 3 and Abby was just a baby. Complicating things further, their oceanographer dad, Adam, has been bi-polar his whole life, mostly well managed. There is lots of tension between the siblings, and Adam, approaching his 70th birthday, longs for one more great discovery so opts to go off his meds to open up his intellectual prowess.⁣
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I liked certain parts of the book a lot. Abby was an artist and that creative process is something I always enjoy. The setting, of course, was wonderful. There was an additional character that added depth to the story and a pair of twins who I loved. My issue with the book was that I just couldn’t buy into a lot of it. Too many times I was in doubt of plot points. The chapters focused on Adam and his oceanographic pursuits just plain bored me. I had to skim. And finally, I somehow found the book both too messy and too neat-and-tidy. To be fair, I’m the outlier here. 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 has a 4.16 rating on Goodreads, which is an impressive average. For more favorable thoughts on it, check out the reviews of @bookaddictpnw and @heyjudereads, and then decide for yourself!⁣
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I really enjoyed these characters and the family drama and dynamics. The story is beautifully written and touched on so many issues, including misogyny, aging, mental illness, brother-sister relationships, female relationships, career choices, adultery and family drama. My only complaint is I was not ready to leave the characters and would love a sequel to see how they continued to grow and change, as well as to see how they handled the unexpected 2016 election results. 4.5 stars