This book was kind of an abysmal reading experience for me, personally. I understand its exploration of modern zillenials in this generation - but these characters were so frustrating. However, there was nothing to really learn from it. Plus, the ending’s events were way too unnecessary.

I wish I could rate with half stars. If I could it would be a 3.5 star read.

This book made me feel so horrible the entire time while reading this, in a good way. I really found myself drawn to these two sisters & their constant arguing. I found Worry to be a “no plot just vibes” kind of book, which is one of my favorite subgenres. The ending wrecked me for sure.

This was funny. Like <i>funny</i> funny. This may solely be due to the fact that the author is only two years younger than me, so we have several cultural touchstones that might not ring true for every single reader. But wow! I just had a blast reading thing one. I found myself laughing quite a bit and loved the love-to-hate relationship Jules had with her online mommy bloggers. This novel did a great job capturing the wild state of the internet today; the absurdity was on point - a little sad, a little frightening, but also, pretty hilarious.

What felt freakishly real (to the point that it left me questioning my own originality) was the relationship between the mother and her two daughters. It perfectly captured my experience as an older sister in adulthood serving as a mediator between my own mother and younger sister. It felt like the banter and strife the two sisters dealt with paralleled my own relationship to a frightening degree. The main character's sense of existential dread and ennui felt like looking in a very sad mirror.

This is another plotless novel, but one that I was 100% invested in. It just had *it* and I really liked reading every page.

Now that I have given this some space, I've settled on a solid 4 stars. 100% would recommend to any young millennial. Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for the advance reading copy!

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holy moly - i really <i>really</i> enjoyed this debut

rtc (i want to give this five stars, but i need some space before committing)

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Yay!! Got this ARC too!! I’ve been so lucky lately 🤩

I don't even know where to begin with this one - this is messy girl lit-fic at its finest. Poppy & Jules are flawed, constantly-bickering sisters and we are immediately immersed in their world. Everything feels so real and relevant. It is 300 pages of emotional chaos that I could not put down - completely binged it! The writing is so solid, the author's voice and style clear and steady throughout. The characters, while not necessarily likable, are fully fleshed and you learn so much about them in each snippet of their life we're shown. This is definitely for the no-plot-just-vibes girlies, for the finding-my-way-in-NYC peeps, for anyone who has ever had a sister, and for anyone who just recognizes how hard it's been to be a human person in this world the last 5 or 6 years.

Alexandra Tanner is now an auto-buy author for me. I wish this review was more articulate but all I can say is I loved it. I don't think I've devoured a contemporary fiction book like this maybe ever. It definitely makes you feel - not always good things, this is an anxious, sometimes manic book, but boy do you feel something. A stunning debut.

Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC!

I've had a couple five star reads this year, but I have been searching desperately for a FIVE star five star, you know?
This was it. Oh my goodness.
This book won't be for everyone, especially those who use reading as escape from the day-to-day life. This book is HYPER real, committing to the bit so hard that I'm not sure it will make any sense in 2-5 years (my favorite!!!). If you're sick of scrolling through your phone and would like to look over the shoulder of someone scrolling through THEIR phone, this is for you.
Also for you if...
-The Ned Fulmer scandal forced you to admit to your friends that you never really got over your YouTube phase,
-You're worried you might be self-centered and then worry that thinking so much about whether or not you're self-centered means you definitely are,
-You like real-life stories that painfully remind you that real-life stories don't often have much of a narrative arc,
-You have a list of dog names on your phone,
-You have a list of every girl from your high school that joined an MLM on your phone,
-You're the frenzied little sister or the frazzled older sister or the only child that needs whatever the opposite of FOMO is
Anyway. More of this. But not too much more, idk if I can handle it.

It’s been said in other reviews but this is “no plot just vibes” and I loved every minute of it!

Two sisters are living in NY. One’s suicidal and the other has her own set of problems that don’t have a diagnosis from what I remember, but she’s obsessed with racist/antisemitic/homophobic moms on Instagram. Their mother is a RAGING narcissist and everyone in the book is a pussy. I think the book’s purpose is to show you just how much of a pussy they each are. I’m not even kidding. Everyone in this book is manipulative and awful in their own way. It’s fantastic.

The dialogue was at times not realistic. It was like hearing someone say their personal thoughts or diary entries butto their sister who they mildly hate? In detail. But at the same time, I think this was on purpose and most of the quotable moments were pieces of dialogue.

The strength of the book TRULY was in its characterization and its obscurity. The most memorable parts are the from the mother. Just the nastiness that comes from her. I would probably also have mental issues if that was my mother. I think the dynamic between the MC and her sister was at the forefront of the book and still, they always ended up where they started. My only gripe is that I hated when they spoke in unison.

But this was super cool. What can I say! You have to be in the mood for something weird and character driven. And it can be sad at times. Like, it describes being in pain so well that it makes you remember you're suffering too and the world is awful. This is such a double-edged sword because it can make you feel icky and depressed. But it's written well and feels so real, which is impressive and makes you want to keep reading. If that sounds like you, you should like this one! It goes by super quick, IMO.

Talk about a dysfunctional family. && where did that ending come from?? I flew through this one and found it so easily digestible. I enjoyed it.

Oh my gosh, yes!! I absolutely devoured this book. It is the epitome of all vibes, no plot and I loved every single minute of it. From the raw and honest intrusive thoughts to familial and sisterly drama to the emotional attempts at understanding life and where you fit into to the world. What an incredible debut novel!!

I would recommend this to fans of "No One Is Talking About This" by Patricia Lockwood, and novels that integrate the internet and social media into the plot and characters. Everyone has their own "mommies" on Instagram that they keep up with daily, like the protagonist, and that little reality keeps the dialogue so realistic. This novel reminds me of the show "Girls" in that it represents a very zeitgeist-y sibling, friends, and dating relationships from 2019. I think other readers will identify with the two sisters in ways they haven't seen in literature yet, which was my experience!

Thank you to NetGalley, author Alexandra Tanner, and Scribner for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

Oof, feeling very seen as a mid-20s Gen-Z woman reading this. I didn't fully resonate with all aspects of this book, but as someone who is semi-chronically online and has my days of questioning wtf I'm doing with my life, I definitely saw aspects of myself reflected. Tanner has an intriguing writing style, and I thought the slightly stream of consciousness narrative worked well for the story. As an older sister, I could relate to Jules's anxiety of making sure she was doing her best for Poppy while also not knowing what her best was. However, I could also relate to Poppy trying her best to simply get through and be who she was. I do wish the book would have leaned into the characters a bit more, as it would have helped the story to be a bit more flushed out. If you enjoy "hot girl books" (with sad, "unlikeable" girls a la My Year of Rest and Relaxation or The Guest), you will enjoy this read!

I really thought I was going to love this one, and I really loved parts of it, but overall it disappointed me. The characters are a lot meaner than I expected. I would never speak to my sister or mom the way these characters did. The ending was also unnecessarily upsetting. There were absolutely parts that cracked me up, and I wish there had been more of those moments. Or maybe if the characters redeemed themselves in some way? I was really looking forward to this, and it just didn't live up to my expectations.

"Worry" by Alexandra Tanner is a humorous and relatable coming-of-age novel that follows two sisters as they navigate the tumultuous journey of their twenties while living together in New York City. As they strive to find their purpose and happiness in life, the sisters encounter a series of challenges, including job struggles, relationship woes, health scares, and family drama.

Despite the ups and downs they face, the sisters find moments of laughter and joy amidst the chaos of everyday life. From adopting a dog to dealing with the trials and tribulations of adulthood, Tanner offers a painfully accurate portrayal of the trials and triumphs of coming-of-age experiences.

Through witty dialogue and vivid storytelling, "Worry" captures the essence of young adulthood with humor and authenticity. Readers will find themselves laughing out loud and nodding along as they recognize their own experiences mirrored in the lives of the characters. A must-read for anyone navigating the unpredictable journey of their twenties!

Overall I thought this was a very enjoyable read but had some issues with certain points of the novel. Thanks to NG and the author and publisher for an arc.

MY SYNOPSIS: It’s 2019 and Poppy comes to crash with her sister Jules in Brooklyn a year after a suicide attempt that only Jules knows about. The two twenty something sisters search for meaning and grapple with what they want their futures to look like while Jules spends way too much time doom scrolling and stalking Mormon mommy bloggers on the internet. Meanwhile, their mother seems like she might be slowly turning into one.

WHAT I LIKED:
The first half of the book was laugh out loud funny. Tanner uses satire to poke fun of millennials and radicalism. She examines issues such as mental health, sisterhood, social media, politics, extremism, and dysfunctional family relationships. She does a great job of shedding light on hypocrisy in a lighthearted manner. The characters were layered and flawed which made them interesting to read about…for a while.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE:
There was absolutely no character development from most of the characters. I felt like the sister relationship was still just as toxic and dysfunctional at the end of the book; there was no conflict resolution. Beyond that, they didn’t seem to learn anything about themselves by the end of the book. I’m okay with “thoughts not plots” but there HAS to be character development or it feels pointless. This also ended so abruptly with a drastic change in tone from the rest of the book. The last 35% of the book also felt like a slog.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:
This book had so much promise and there were elements I enjoyed but ultimately it fell flat for me. I was left asking myself “what was the point of this?” I would’ve liked more character development and a more fitting ending. I was so excited about this and I am so sad that it didn’t work for me.

Thank you to Scribner & NetGalley for the eGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I can't find one good thing about this book. The characters were awful and with the most annoying conversations. I love a good no plot just vibes book but this one was just nonsense. And there was too much animal abuse. This was one of the worst books I have read in a really long time.

Absolutely insufferable. Way too much talk of anti-semitism, anti-vaxxers, and just THE MOST annoying conversations on anything and everything political. I was looking forward to reading this because I knew it was about sisters and since I have a sister, I was interested in seeing their dynamic but holy sh*t was I wrong in assuming I would enjoy any part of this book.

Really eye-catching cover with one of the worst books i’ve ever read on the inside.

This book was neither plot or character driven, it was all vibes. There were times it was easy to relate to the MC especially when it came to the mismanaged free floating anxiety. By the end of the book I felt like I knew her pretty well but still didn’t necessarily like her. The book definitely got some chuckles out of me and the author’s observations on doom scrolling and some influencers were absolutely spot on. Thank you so much to Scribner books for the ARC!

One of my favorite books of the year - devoured it. Viciously funny and manic. The narration reads like the author popped an Adderall, tapped into the collective internal monologue of every 20-something woman, and put it up to a funhouse mirror. Narcissistic, uncomfortable, and, at times, painfully accurate - it's giving My Year of Rest and Relaxation except I didn't despise the main character. Highly, highly recommend.

I tried this one but just ultimately couldnt get myself to care. felt like i was listening to girls have an annoying conversation in a coffee shop while im trying to work. sorry - not for me

For a book full of unlikeable characters, I sure found myself thinking "I've had this conversation before" way too many times to be comfortable.

There were moments when I was laughing then crying then scratching my head in confusion (as someone who doesn't have a sister, I can't relate to the highs and lows of sisterhood) but I devoured this book so quickly. I think sometimes when reading a book when their isn't a clear goal, I find the writing to lag and the pace to be slow but not with this book. The rapid ways the main characters could flip between thoughts/topics/passions/mental health crises was astounding and I could not put this down.