While I found the narrative's voice to be clever and engaging, I also found myself asking why I should care, so I ended up not finishing this one.

The moody and witty writing of Alexandra Turner had me sold from the first page. Worry is MY kind of beach read, the sister story I didn't know I needed, and I can't wait to read more from Alexandra.

Sharp, chaotic, and painfully relatable. This debut nails the anxiety of modern womanhood with biting humor and millennial dread. Dysfunctional sisterhood never looked so good.

Well, this book turned out to be more than I bargained for. I kept reading in hope that the themes would somehow become more relevant and relatable to me. But beyond our shared ancestral heritage and use of social media, I don't share much of anything with the two sisters, They both come very clearly for, dysfunctional families with a horrible mother that takes the guilt pushing Jewish mother stereotype to the level of needing to go NC (no contact), The two sisters are lost in similar ways but Poppy at least tries to climb out of her chronic pain, her depression, her lack of direction, she tries to change, Jules, ell, I just want to smack the phone she is so addicted to for (validation? Sadness? Emptiness?) out of her hands. She learns nothing, she finds nothing, she is just lost and I can't stand a character who literally has all the signs not only in front of her face, but is literally being recited to about what's happening to her, and just does nothing, Not a fan. Also wtf with the ending! I don't understand what happened. Like why did I just spend 2 weeks reading the book to get nothing in return?

This book is the definition of “no plot, all vibes” — and I mean that in a good way. It has a meandering, slice of life feel that lets you just sit with its wholly dysfunctional (and strangely compelling) family. I enjoyed the messy, complex sister dynamic. The characters are deeply flawed and often refuse to grow, which may not work for everyone, but I found their unlikability refreshing. If you’re into character driven stories that embrace chaos and don’t rush toward resolution, this one just might surprise you!

oh no oh no oh nooooooooooooo.. i really thought this was going to be relatable and funny but I seriously would rather rip my own teeth out than even think about this book again.

I tried to give this one a shot, but it was very much vibes with no plot.

Which can be a plus for most people but it’s not the type of story I’m interested in. DNF around 30%.

I really wanted to like this one. The cover alone was so cool and it felt like a young, interesting new voice in lit fic. However, god were these main characters obnoxious and the book just was not really about anything? I love a slice of life but this wasn't it for me; plus tw animal abuse.

This was one of my favorite 2024 reads. I found that Jules reminds me of myself and young women around me. The doom scrolling, keeping up with Mormon moms on social media when we really judge them the entire time... Like so many, Jules is surrounded by family that is incredibly different than her and must find herself. I enjoyed that her relationship with her sister is complicated. She wants to be there for her sister but also wants to be a separate entity. Their relationship in this novel shows perfectly how complex relationships with your sister, mother, friends, coworkers can be...

A very character driven book with dark humor. An amazing weird, sad girl novel.

Thank you to Net Galley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Worry by Alexandra Tanner!

Worry is a late-coming-of-age, millennial-slice-of-life novel about sisters named Jules and Poppy. It’s the spring of 2019, and Jules is floundering in a dead-end job, using her spare time to scroll the feeds of the Mormon mommies she follows on Instagram instead of writing her novel, when Poppy comes to stay with her – indefinitely – in her New York City apartment. Poppy, the younger sister, is trying to find footing in her own life after a suicide attempt a year ago, which only Jules knows about. Together, Jules and Poppy must navigate the changing landscape of their lives: out-of-touch parents in Florida, a three-legged rescue dog named Amy Klobuchar, job uncertainty, chronic health issues, and their own fraught relationship as sisters.

Worry is the very definition of a “sad girl” novel, with a narrator who is a 20-something woman, chronically online and adrift in her life. I like the “Seinfeldian” description provided by the publisher, because it truly does feel like a book about nothing that is nevertheless very funny and completely engrossing. It’s not a plot-forward book at all; instead, it’s driven by the characters and their crackling dialogue, and Alexandra Tanner’s wry writing. It’s at turns absurdist and wistful, hilarious and heartbreaking. Tanner’s character work is impeccable, and I found this difficult to read at times simply because Jules’ and Poppy’s relationship felt so raw and real: their cruelty towards each other, their fierce protection of each other. Through them, Tanner explores several aspects of contemporary life: doom scrolling, influencer culture, right-wing extremist conspiracy theories, dysfunctional family relationships. The commentary is thoughtful, integrated in a darkly funny way.

Even for a book that was all vibes no plot, though, I still expected the conclusion to bring some sort of resolution to Poppy’s and Jules’ story. Unfortunately, the book ends with a shocking, traumatic scene, which happens for seemingly no reason and feels out of sync with the rest of the book. It didn’t seem symbolic in any way that I could parse, it just seemed cruel and there was no context or explanation for it.

I liked the fact that Tanner set Worry in 2019, with the pandemic looming on the horizon. It was interesting, reading about how the 2019 versions of Jules and Poppy handled their circumstances, to think about what their lives would look like the next year in lockdown. I guess we’ll never know, but I have my suspicions after spending time with them in this book.

This was one of those slice-of-life books that pulled me in with its longing, anxious narrator and kept me hooked with dry wit and understated drama. Jules and Poppy felt real in that perfectly flawed, messy way that makes millennial fiction so compelling to me nearly every time. As someone who enjoys narrators teetering on the edge of existential crises, Jules' self-deprecating humor and passive drifting through life really worked for me.

The book balances absurdity with emotional depth- Poppy's ongoing battle with childhood hives, a rescue dog named Amy Klobuchar, and a mother lost in conspiracy theories add just the right amount of weirdness without losing the core focus on the sisters' relationship. Tanner captures that sibling dynamic in such a unique and relatable way- the mix of love, competition, resentment, and dependence was a really believable balance. I will say, the longing throughout the novel (whether for connection, purpose, or simply stability) hit me hard. It’s one of those reads where not much happens, but it still feels like so much is happening below the surface and keeps the narrative going. If you’re into quiet, introspective stories tinged with humor and just enough chaos, Worry delivers on all counts.

This is such a great book for the niche group of people that love Otessa. This is "weird girl lit" at it finest. I love seeing books like this in the mainstream.

"Worry" by Alexandra Tanner is a beautifully crafted exploration of anxiety, offering readers a deep, empathetic understanding of the emotional landscape of worry. Tanner's prose is both poignant and insightful, making this book a must-read for anyone seeking comfort and connection in times of uncertainty. The narrative's gentle rhythm and relatable themes leave a lasting, positive impact.

Worry is an interesting look at growing up and dealing with sisters and maternal relations while basically full of first world problems. It's satirical look at some trends and juxtapositions like Mormon women on social media or passive aggressive, oblique familial communications.

Worry was a really fun read. I appreciated the sister relationship and the millennial/Gen Z angst. Could have done with the dog plotline

I love sister stories. Sister relationships are so unique and special, I loved reading this story and reflecting on my own relationship with my sister.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an eARC.

anything with girlies and their messy life is a must read for me. I really enjoyed reading this, though at times it was getting too much drama for me. I don’t have a sister so I don’t really know what it’s like, maybe that’s why. Anyway, all in all a good book and would recommend.

And like poppy said boycott🫡

This deeply relatable story of sisterhood had me, an older sister, feeling far too many feelings. Being a sister is hard. Having a sister is harder.

Alexandra Tanner's debut novel Worry follows two sisters-turned-roommates over the course of 2019 as they fumble around Brooklyn, work stupid jobs, bicker over nothing, adopt a three-legged dog, navigate family drama, and overall learn to coexist in a late-capitalistic hellscape. It brings the chaos of shows like Girls and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and combines it with sharp, witty, and insightful writing that masquerades as blasé but really cares a whole lot à la Melissa Broder, and tops it all off with a bleak-adjacent tone that reminded me a lot of Ripe by Sarah Rose Etter. (Though way less of a traumatic reading experience, lol. And I say that as lovingly as possible to SRE.) When you put it all together, that's a combination that I absolutely tore through. If you like any of these pieces of media, I think you'll fuck with this book as much as I did.

*mild spoilers for the ending*

I will say though, as much as I absolutely devoured this story, the ending was deeply unsatisfying, maybe even annoying, and probably unnecessary. As much as the Goodreads reviewers would like you to believe it, it's not *technically* animal abuse. (It's dog-on-dog violence.) That said, it's still unnecessary. Earlier in the book, the MC mentions liking the writer Ottessa Moshfegh, and I know that Moshfegh has said in interviews that she likes to insert highly disturbing/gross scenes for the sake of being memorable (I'm paraphrasing), and it seems like that's what Alexandra Tanner was channeling here. It felt like she didn't know how to end a no-plot-just-vibes kinda story, so she decided to just traumatize everyone and call it a day. While I don't think an ending that tied everything up in a nice bow would've been the right call either, I think there would've been a better way to handle the ending, for sure.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital advanced reader's copy of Worry in exchange for an honest review! I also listened to a portion of this audiobook through my personal Everand account. Worry by Alexandra Tanner is out now!