I received an ARC of this book from Zando via NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. I am honestly kind of mystified how to rate it. Ms. Grabowski is very clearly (IMO) a talented writer. Every chapter kept my interest, and the format is quite unique. I enjoyed reading about every single character - I didn't find anyone boring or repetitive.

However, I had a hard time keeping track of who was who and how they were related to Lucy. I think most characters who later had a voice were mentioned in other characters' chapters. But further on in the book, some of them I wasn't sure if J had heard mentioned at all, which got confusing - who is speaking???

I also thought we would have more of a conclusion/ reveal/ answer to what happened, and unless I missed it, we did not. That always frustrates me.

Ultimately, I am rating 3.5 stars rounded down.

Beautiful writing - I loved this and wanted to spend more time with each character.

Multiple perspectives can be a hit or miss in storytelling and this was done so well - ten chapters, each told from the point of view from a different woman living in a small Northeastern town. How each character is connected to the central plot (a young woman dies at a party) is not always clear from the start of a chapter. The author does a lovely job of revealing how all of the women’s lives are intertwined as the story unfolds.

Thank you very much to Zando and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this excellent debut.

Women and Children First is told the perspective of 10 different woman in a small New England town, with the death of one character Lucy the basis for their stories.
To me the book reads more like a collection of short stories with a thread that connects them through out. I’m not sure why some of the chapters were relevant to what the author was trying to convey.
That being said the characters were well delevoped and the author had important things to say about living in a small town and how women are treated.
Thanks net galley for providing me this book in advance in exchange for an honest review.

How we all are connected as women is examined in Women and Children First through the eyes of those most affected by the death of local teen, Lucy. Mothers, teachers, siblings, friends speak in first person to their relationship to Lucy no matter how small that connection seem to be. All the women featured have some sort of tie-in with one another such as roommates, co-workers, and friends.
The secrets each person holds about Lucy or that she held about them are revealed and show the complicated world in which women navigate.
At times a bit overwhelming as so many characters and even more side characters that the loss of Lucy and who she was gets lost in the story until closer to the end. I had to reread sections as I got confused as to who a character was referring to or who was speaking. So, clarity of prose was an issue for me which guided my rating.

Ultimately I understood the message of what it is to walk in this world as a woman.

3.5 Stars

Thank you to Zando and SJP Lit for access to an early e-copy via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

f women and children first by @alinagrabowski_ isn't on your radar, then it should be.

this novel took me by surprise in the best way and i absolutely loved it. the writing is stunning, immersive and gripping.

WACF unpacks the events of a teenage girl's murder, told through the perspective of 10 different women and its impact on them. each chapter also has its own unique voice because each one is told from the perspective of a different character.

i loved this novel so much, the writing is gripping and beautiful and i loved the different perspectives of each of the characters and how they intersected.

if you like a fast-paced novel, you won't find that here but because there are several different POVs, it keeps it interesting.

even with several different POVs, the novel doesn't get confusing.

if you love a lit-fic heavy novel with elements of mystery, WACF is absolutely worth picking up.

thank you @alinagrabowski_ for the gifted copy! WACF comes out on may 7.

Thank you to Net
Galley and Zando, SJP lit for this book.
I put off reading this as I was unsure of if I would enjoy the read. Boy I wish I had read it day one.

So happy to have discovered Alina Grabowski. Such an amazing writer.

The multiple points of view were spectacularly done. I lived haw they were seamlessly woven together.

The story was spell binding. I look forward to discovering more from this author.

Recommend

I wanted to love this because the description was so interesting but unfortunately, I could not connect with any of the characters.

DNF'd at 20%. I think that this book will work well for a lot of people, especially fans of Sally Rooney. Unfortunately I struggled to connect to the characters enough to care about the plot. My biggest issue with the characters is that I felt like they were overly depressing. I can understand a character having issues because of trauma, poverty, etc., but there needs to be some sort of redeeming quality that gives me hope that their life will turn around. Instead they felt like sullen and dramatic teenagers that wanted to stay sullen and dramatic. I felt like the characters behavior was supposed to shock or disturb me into interest. Instead I just couldn't relate. Maybe I am just not the right demographic for the novel. I do not rate books that I DNF under 50%. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was an adventure that was confusing at first but eventually got me hooked till the last word. It was a book that made me realize how tragedies often bring individuals together without us even knowing. It showed the strengths and weaknesses often found or present in its female characters. However, these characters are not just women living in comfort, but all are diverse and see the world through the lens of broken homes, tragedies, and dark pasts. It’s not an easy book to read due to its pacing and subject matter, but it’s a book you will learn from or be inspired by. I enjoyed this book but there are some aspects of it that could be better written or omitted. The author did a good job at creating the intricacies of the characters and the way each woman's lives intertwined especially in the middle. A great debut novel indeed!

I am definitely in the minority when it comes to this book. I did not like it and was unable to finish it. When I first began to read this book, I was very excited. It held my interest but I got lost and confused each time a new perspective was brought into the book. After awhile I just gave up. It was too much work for me to keep straight. I wish I could have enjoyed it as much as the other readers. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary digital ARC. This review is my own words and opinion.

This sounded like the type of literary fiction that I would like but I cringed through the girl in the first chapter and the second woman’s story was worse. I struggled through the rest of the book but wish I would have DNF'ed after the first chapter.

Very rarely do I DNF a book. This one sadly made it on the list of books I forced myself to stop reading because I found myself picking up my tablet in dread instead of my usual excitement to see what's next. I like the premise of the plot. Something happens to a student and the story of her death unfolds through the stories of 10 different people in town. The different perspectives do make the story unfold in a unique way, but 10 different perspectives was too much for me to keep track of and remember the details as I stopped and started the book over the course of a few days. As a busy mom my limit for different characters in a book retelling events is usually about 4. 10 was overkill.

It could have been that the version of the book I was reading was still awaiting a final edit, but the chapters did not have quotations to indicate when a character was talking so that also made the story very confusing. I found it hard to keep up with the constant jumping from past to present as the characters told their stories. I feel like this book would have been more interesting to me if I could have devoted a day to read it in one sitting, but the details began to blur as life and the joys of being a mother forced me to stop and start it again and again. I wish this author success and will definitely check out other books by her, but this one just missed the mark for me.

hank you to Zando, SJP Lit and Netgalley for sharing a advance copy of this book.

3.75/5 ✨

It’s very rare. To be feeling something as deeply as someone else at the exact same time. Rarer still for you both to know it

It’s always seemed strange to me— that we’ve not only agreed to a single narrative but that we aspire to disrupt it as little as possible. Divorce, career change, tragedy: all generally undesirable aberrations. I wanted something different

I honestly thought I was going to not finish this book when I started it. I'm not a huge fan of reading really depressing stories, so it's not an indictment on the author or the writing. But once I understood what the author was trying to do with the story, it got me hooked. I love the way each narrative is stitched together like a quilt, but it isn't without some faults. I didn't enjoy the bits where the author wanted the readers to wonder about who a certain character is or their relationship to the character we are familiar with, without explicitly describing their relationship until later, which made me feel like the author is holding a carrot over my head asking me to beg for it (it's an irony that one of the character in the book does this exactly to another character) the wait is worth it, because the story is so interesting, but I would have appreciated it if it were more clear. Also there are some questions that aren't answered or explained clearly like why a certain character hates trains (even though there was a mention about something in their past, the author could have mentioned what exactly happened instead of keeping the readers in suspense and just ignoring it at the end)

Because this story is told through ten different characters, there are instances where I didn't like reading a character's POV and there are other moments where I felt it would have been nice if another character's POV was extended to more pages. Even though the story was depressing from start to finish, devoid of any hope, there are moments within it that were beautiful.

I thought the premise of this book was interesting! Unfortunately, it didn’t keep my attention. I enjoyed some points of view better than others, but it was hard for me to be invested in this relatively short book with so many characters and jumping timelines. I wish I had liked it more!

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

At the outset, the narrative was rather perplexing. I had to put in a lot of effort to discern the identities of the characters. Perhaps a guide detailing the relationships between the women mentioned would have been beneficial. The story is divided into two parts - one before the death and one after. The initial part is recounted by five different women, while the latter part is narrated by another five women. Initially, I found it hard to engage with the story, particularly as the central plotline of the girl's death failed to evoke any emotions due to the lack of connection in the first half.

Eventually, my perspective on the book shifted, and I was deeply moved by the poignant narrative. The death of a young girl in a small coastal town serves as the backdrop for the ten women who share their experiences. For some, Lucy's death was life-changing, while for others, it was inconsequential. I found myself questioning the callousness of some of these women, but then again, isn't that the reality of life? This book portrays the harsh truths of life, where people do move on. Those who were not close to you move on easily, while those who knew you take longer but eventually move on as well, because that's how life works. Initially, I struggled to grasp the essence of the book, but gradually, I realized that as readers, we were slowly approaching the death of the girl, gradually getting closer to her as we learn about her through the perspectives of others. Initially, she was just an acquaintance to people, but as we delve deeper, we get to know her through the eyes of her best friend and mother. This book may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is undeniably heart-wrenching and unforgettable. I am certain that this book will linger in my thoughts longer than I anticipate.

A quote that I liked:
"In my personal opinion, no one needs closure; they need to accept that whatever they wish still existed is actually dead in the water. But if you go around telling people harsh truths, they tend to get offended."

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

Strong debut novel from Alina Grabowski. There are an abundance of mysteries told from multiple perspectives these days, but the gorgeous writing and unique ways each character was impacted in the wake of this tragedy made the style well-suited to the story. I believe this will be on many people's booklists this summer!

Ohhh depressing litfic right on the cusp of feminine rage, you will always be That Girl to me.

Set in a small coastal Massachusetts town, this stunning debut revolves around the death of a young woman at a house party and the impact it has on the tight-knit community. The story is told through the eyes of ten local women through a series of vignettes, and each of these women provide their own perspective and connection to the deceased girl, Lucy. This unique narrative structure provides a multi-faceted view of the events surrounding her death and the subsequent ripple effects on the town.

The novel explores themes of grief, womanhood, class, and sexuality, painting a vivid portrait of a community grappling with tragedy. Grabowski skillfully weaves together the lives of these women, creating a compelling narrative that captures their interconnectedness and the complex emotions they experience. The story delves into the relationships among mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends, revealing the fragility and strength of these connections.

The characters in "Women and Children First" are well-developed and realistic, with unique voices and perspectives that add depth to the story. The shifting narratives and timeframes keep the reader engaged, creating a sense of mystery and intrigue. The book balances the darkness of the tragedy with moments of hope and resilience, offering a poignant exploration of love and loss.

There's emotional depth and unique structure present here that, in my opinion, make this a compelling read for those interested in literary fiction with elements of mystery and drama.

This story is a captivating and insightful novel that explores the impact of tragedy on a small community. Its complex characters and intricate storytelling earn it a solid 5-star rating. This book is likely to resonate with readers who appreciate literary fiction that delves into the human condition and the bonds that connect us.

Thank you to NetGalley, Alina Grabowski, and SJP Lit for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book is out May 7!

I love a literary mystery, so this was right up my alley! I think the author did a good job of balancing the two and the small town setting was perfect. Really excited to read more from this author!

An interestingly woven story told from the point of view of ten women, all connected by the death of a teen girl at a party. A good concept, but I found that there wasn't much difference in the voices of the narrators' voices making it difficult to remember which character was narrating. While I really like the multiple points of view, ten was so many the whole story felt disjointed.

This was very different and interesting. Each chapter is told by a different woman, 10 in all. They all have had some sort of relationship with a girl that died at a party in some way. Some more than others. I really liked how this story was told and almost wish the chapters could have been their own books because I enjoyed the writing so much.