*3.75 stars rounded up to 4 stars*


This is a truly wild ride through sisterhood and the reality of our existential world rooted in the internet. Worry publishes on 3/26 and I recommend recommende it to anyone who is chronically online or hasn’t quite found their place in the world yet.

The plot follows Jules after her sister Poppy moves into her NYC apartment after their parents kick Poppy out. As the older sister, Jules is superficially more established than Poppy, but suffers crippling anxiety working a dead end job writing book study guides and obsessing over her doomsday and Mormon “mommies” she monitors on a secret Instagram handle. Poppy meanwhile is trying to find her footing in NYC after a suicide attempt, sharing Jules’ space along with meals and every day happenings. Together they do their best to face their toxic mother, Poppy’s hives, Jules’ ennui, and the general shitshow world around them.

This novel is deadpan funny, dark, and brutally relatable. This author has her finger on the pulse of the growing generation, as I couldn’t help but see myself in the compulsive tendencies of these characters. I felt really seen by the casual writing style and Jules’ worry spirals. Jules teeters back and forth on the sister spectrum, at points trying to live up to the expectations of sisterhood, and at other points honestly saying, “can I just be mean for a sec” and commits. The relationship between Poppy and Jules perfectly captures the humor of the Zillenial generation, and the creeping existential dread is too real. Special shoutout to the toxic mother of the story, whose lines were so accurate to my life that they actually made me WINCE while reading (a feat).

This novel is structured like a sitcom, with every chapter functioning as its own episode with the overarching life of the characters. A great book to pick up in little pieces if the reality gets too triggering. I highly recommend for NYC girlies, compulsive worriers, sisters, and anyone looking for an honest laugh in a book.

Thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Worry is about two adult sisters, Jules and Poppy, as they navigate their careers, relationships, and mental health while sharing an apartment in New York City. It was easy to get sucked into their lives because it felt so current and alarmingly close to real life. From hate-following beautiful religious zealots on Instagram, adopting a three-legged dog named Amy Klobuchar, and realizations that you haven't left the house in days, Worry offers a lot of quirkiness that made this such an enjoyable book.

The dialogue was a lot of fun, but the (often strained) relationship between these two sisters was what interested me the most. They argued, laughed, and grew together, and it was exciting to find out how living together would impact each sister over the course of a year.

The ending took a turn that I didn't love. But, more than anything, I'm a big fan of character-driven novels, and this did not disappoint.

I loved this wild story about two sisters. Tanner's writing is so good and spot on. When sisters Jules and Poppy end up living together in New York City, their relationship is tested.

I think Tanner did such a good job making the interior lives of these two characters come to life. And this book is genuinely funny! Jules and Poppy's conversations are the types you could only have with a sister (or a friend is close like a sister).

But the novel also has a dark edge to it. Jules and Poppy both have their darkness that they grapple with. And their family dynamics. And the ending! I was so curious to see what kind of ending this book had, and while hard to read, it was such a perfect ending for this book.

I always wished my younger sister and I were closer in age so that we could have either gone to college together, or somehow lived together outside of our childhood years. When we are together now, we are constantly talking, referencing things from childhood, over-explaining stories of our current life, showing photos, laughing, arguing, cooking, shopping....we are on the go 24/7 until we leave each other's presence. It's fun, but it also is us in a contained set of time. If we lived together for an extended amount of time, crammed in a small, Brooklyn apartment, I'm sure we would have fights similar to Jules and Poppy.

Jules and Poppy Gold are living together in Brooklyn. Well, Jules lives in Brooklyn, her sister, Poppy, crashes in Jules's extra bedroom/office. They have a close relationship, but also full of anxiety and anger.

What Alexandra Tanner has done with "Worry" is so spectacular and of the moment, I don't know if anyone else has captured the modern sister relationship so well. Internet speak, job anxiety, dating, parent relationships, mommy bloggers...it's all here in these tightly written pages.

I loved every single word. It's scheduled to be released on March 26, 2024.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to the publisher for reaching out and sending me a copy of this! I was intrigued by the cover and the description the first time I saw this book but didn’t feel the overwhelming urge to read it. The second I picked it up I was so mad at myself for not reading it earlier.! It feels like it was perfectly crafted to appeal to me as a 28 year old who just had her sister move in with her. Alexandra Tanner made a lot of references to memes and topical issues but it wasn’t overdone - it was genuinely very funny. The relationship between Jules and Poppy is the driving force behind this novel and as someone who loves character driven novels with less emphasis on plot, that really worked for me. Everything that happens in the book feels unreal and every character was deeply unlikable but it all culminated in a novel that I could not stop thinking about once it ended. This book will appeal to readers who enjoyed My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh.

loved this. funny and caustic and angsty and honest. i loved the dynamic between these sisters, the push/pull of loving/hating, not being able to live or live without. also a huge fan of self-soothing via hate stalking mormon mommy bloggers.

it's giving the guest, it's giving happy hour

I adored this book and yet it also gives a “what did I just read??” feeling upon ending. I wanted to continue hanging out with the characters forever. It’s one of those books I wanted to never end and I feel like I’m going into withdrawal. I found it so funny and relatable and everyone was just annoying enough to be realistic and amusing but I can also see how someone else who doesn’t recognize themselves in any of the banter could think the whole thing was pointless. If you’ve ever been in your 20s, had a writing job, been Jewish, lived in New York, had a sibling, been a person - probably you’ll find something to relate to. But if you take yourself a bit too seriously you might not get it.

I was entranced reading Worry by Alexandra Tanner. Following the life of Jules, with her younger sister Poppy beside her, Tanner presents a realistic yet wild look at two sisters living together in Brooklyn during their late 20s. Featuring lots of, as the book is aptly named, worry from both sisters, as well as a slew of childhood trauma, some individual and some shared, this book was a great example, at least for me, that our own worries are not always so specific too ourselves, and that we are all a lot more alike than we realize.

I saw a lot of similarities to my personal relationships with my own siblings through the bickering and disagreements between Jules and Poppy, as well as the occasional moments of kinship. I think often in most media we see more of the loving and caring sides of sibling relationships, and less of the strains that many people have between their families, so this detection was refreshing to see.

An excellent debut! Thank you so much to Scribner and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Worry, the story of two sisters who end up living together in a small apartment in New York. Two sisters who learn boundaries, and secrets, and to rely on each other. Two sisters who deal with regular life, parents and adopting a pet.

I think I was three pages in when the MC mentions something about fear of food, and having safe restaurants, I paused my reading and thought “Holy shit is this book going to be about me?” and while i related to a lot but also didn’t relate to some I enjoyed this book A LOT.

nothing really happens but character development, and good character development that you can see happening. The story moved along quickly through the year and while the book is roughly 200 pages i never felt like anything was pointless to be written about.

I loved the beginning and middle the most, the ending lacked something for me (i have an issue with endings). But still, a very strong, well written, intriguing, book about mental illness, sisterhood, life and a dog.

Funny and good writing, but borderline cringey and not in a good way. Some books capture the zeitgeist with a light enough touch to be simultaneously current and timeless. This is not that book. It is extremely online while also ripping off preceding cultural touchstones. Perhaps it would work better as a movie so there would be some quieter times with a strong visual language, but then it would just be a ripoff Frances Ha ten years later.

I really liked this book. Nothing really happens, and the characters are difficult to like, but I loved reading their story. I laughed a fair amount, I almost cried. The ending kind of made me mad, but overall I'd recommend this to anyone with a sister.

Thanks to Netgalley and Scribner for the ebook. Such a fun and sharp book about sisters living together in Brooklyn in 2019. They love each other and drive each other crazy as they try and find meaningful jobs and try not to constantly scroll through the horrors of their social apps. It was so much fun following these two as their mother yells at them from Florida and they adopt a three legged dog named Amy Klobuchar.

"Worry" offers perceptive insights into the lives of Jules and Poppy, skillfully navigating their challenges. While the narration excels in capturing poignant moments, the ending feels somewhat disconnected, contributing less to the overall storyline or meaning.

I had never heard of this book nor author before seeing it on NetGalley, but the cover and synopsis had me so intrigued!

So many parts of "WORRY" reminded me soooo much of two of my favorite books of all time "The New Me" by Halle Butler and also "Big Swiss" by Jen Beagin. If you've read either book, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. It also gave me serious Otessa Mosfegh vibes, too. The holy trinity of authors, if you will.

This book was sweet, really gross at times, SHOCKING, tender & loving, and ultimately made me feel really thankful to have a sister while simultaneously making me sad that I am estranged from 2 of them. :( In fact I'm going to go give my little sister a hug right now.

This was an EASY EASY 5 stars and I will literally read anything that Tanner puts out in the future. I will 100% be buying a copy of this for my personal home library and will be recommending it to all of my lit-fic friends..

This was so so so so good! Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this gem. I honestly have zero recommendations or any constructive criticism to give. This was truly a 10/10 no notes book.. A++++

Worry is abrasive yet soft, the exact feeling of having a sister. The secondhand embarrassment next yet not trivial in the slightest. It’s undeniable how realistic this depicts two girls, bonded forever by their childhood traumas and shared blood, traveling on their way in NYC. This one was really no plot only vibes and it absolutely delighted. It made me miss my sister yet reminisce about the times growing up where we bickered about absolutely everything and everyone. I loved it.

thank you @netgalley and @scribnerbooks for letting me read this one early! i absolutely loved ‘worry’ by alexandra tanner!

two sisters, a three-legged dog, mormon mommy bloggers, a jewish mother investing in MLMs, this book truly has everything. the two sisters, jules and poppy remind me a bit of my own sister and i (but also not at all). it was weird, simple, eccentric, and an overall great read.

for lovers of patricia lockwood, ottessa moshfegh, and/or mona awad you’ll love this one. super excited for all my friends to get to read it.

I’m a sucker for stories about dysfunctional Jewish women in NYC (as a dysfunctional Jewish woman originally from NYC), and this was definitely one of the best ones I’ve read. I found the story to be very engaging, relatable, and funny, and I couldn’t help but devour this story in less than a day. A very charming and very honest debut.

i love a dysfunctional sibling dynamic. jules and poppy were fun to read about but the novel felt like it was lacking something. i kept waiting for just an ounce of character development but there was none. not bad overall but fell a little flat for me by the end

DNF, not funny, unrelatable characters. Not plot driven, which may appeal to some, but the characters aren't interesting enough to support the story.

Two sisters living in New York City, trying to get through the day with an overbearing mother and clueless father that keep calling. The older sister Jules is also trying to keep her little sister Poppy in check with her narcotic and irrational behaviors getting the both into trouble. A darker slice-of-life story for sure.

Such an interesting look into sister relationship dynamics plagued with meddling parents and very different lifestyles. While this book went into a weird direction I was not expecting in the slightest, the main premise was so engrossing that I could not put it down.