Thank you to NetGalley, Ann Napolitano and Random House Publishing for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

First off, I did not do my research before requesting this book. It wasn’t until I was about a quarter of my way through the book that I realized this is a reprint/republished edition of a book that was originally released in 2004. Which was entirely my fault. But also made a lot of sense, as this book had little references to cell phones or other social media or any current pop culture references that you would find in a book published in 2024. My bad! I promise I can read! I just get so excited when I’m selected for an ARC, and don’t always look before I jump [into a book].

That being said, I think my mistake actually lends to the timelessness of this story. I would have been 12 when this book was first published, but now I’m almost 32, and this book hit home for me. That is not to say that I have a large dysfunctional family that is anything like the McLaughlin clan. But the Irish-American family wielding their Catholic guilt trips and the multigenerational trauma that is in no way addressed or worked through by the older generation but instead dumped on their children by way of passive-aggression and the stunting of emotional relationships is basically every millennial’s origin story. And so the relatable-ness of this story is what drove me to keep reading.

This is a very character-driven book, and the characters were so well-developed, I felt like I knew them. Maybe because I know people just like them, or maybe readers can find bits of themselves in these characters (I know I can). The characters all reflect the age-old idea that we never really know why someone acts the way they do – we never really get a chance to open up their mind for ourselves and dig deeper into their background, their mistakes, their trauma. But we all have the chance to learn and grow from our own mistakes. To break the generational trauma, to work on ourselves for the benefit of others.

I’m so happy that my first Ann Napolitano book was actually Ann Napolitano’s first book. Can’t wait to jump into some of her other (more current) books.

DNFd at 15%… the first chapter was so awful and triggering I genuinely couldn’t get past it. PLEASE check TW for this one…

thanks to Netgalley for the eArc of this book. I loved it. Told from multiple viewpoints, the reader really gets to know each of the characters. The plot and the characters stick with you and it is a book that you think about long after you close it.
I highly recommend!

This is a detailed, in deapth look at a multi generational Irish American family in New Jersey and the secrets and bonds that keep the together and push them apart. Siblings, spouses, cousins and grandparents all connect in this family and the overriding theme I found is how to make this next generation “better” from the errors and sins from the previous generation. So many secrets keep this family from sharing their truths and feelings with each other.
There are moments of beautiful writing. When they reflect on the desperation to fix the broken bonds between generations-especially Catherine. But overall I struggled with this book and it took me forever to finish. I just found most of the characters unlikeable. I found it about 30% too long and I lost internet. I appreciated her prose and the take on fixing the family errors before a family splits off and loses all ties to each other. I felt very connected personally to that theme. I did appreciate how she wrote the relationship between all the female generations, especially the cousins and how difficult each one was, it was incredibly honest.

Thank you to Random House and Ann Napolitano for the opportunity to read and review this book

This was my first experience with Ann Napolitano, & I was disappointed with this story. I had trouble keeping track of all the family members, & the plot didn’t keep me engaged. I’ll still give her other books a try & hope for better results. Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of the ebook.

I will be upfront and say I had a hard time getting into this book and hated the characters. I requested this book because I had heard how good the author’s book “Hello Beautiful” was. I learned later that this book was actually the author’s first published book that was being re-released. The book read like it was supposed to be a memoir of a 4 generation family; instead of a work of fiction. I didn’t feel like there was a plot to the book other than sharing the plights of this very spoiled and dysfunctional family. Throughout the book, I kept repeating to myself “these people need therapy.” While it was not my favorite read, I have to give the author kudos for eliciting the anger I felt toward these characters. I would be willing to give another one of her books a try to see if I could get into it more.

⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This story follows the lives of a large Irish American family, told throughout several viewpoints. While I typically love family dramas, this one dragged a bit. I didn't feel a sense of connection to any of the main characters and it took quite a while to see redeeming qualities emerge from them. The last quarter of the book they seemed to finally let their walls down, come together in support of each other and demonstrate some character growth. I would have loved to see those ties strengthening throughout the book more.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“Really knowing someone is too messy and disturbing and even tedious for my mother.” -Lila, about Kelly

Like all Napolitano novels, this is the story of a large family who struggles to love and accept themselves and one another.

Told via multiple POVs, we meet the McLaughlins, an Irish Catholic family in New Jersey, over the course of nine months in real time and backstory.

Catherine, the matriarch, is seeing visions: of her family, of old neighbors, of the dead and of the living. She knows she doesn’t have much time left to bring her family back together, but when the birth of a new, unexpected baby is announced, she knows this could be the catalyst.

Kelly, her oldest daughter, is stuck in a marriage that feels over. Her devoted husband Louis can’t forgive himself for an accident on his job site that took the life of a worker, and so as penance, he’s distanced himself from his already distant wife.

Then there are Kelly and Louis’ two daughters, Lila and Gracie. Lila, the smart one, the top of her class, the medical student, the cold and distant daughter, much like her mother. She goes through life robotically, unfeeling, until she sees what joy looks like in the most unexpected place and moves toward it. Gracie, the free spirit, the sexually promiscuous daughter, the feeling and feeling and feeling one. She moves through life pulling people in to push them away. She’s untethered and drowning in loneliness but refusing anything more.

The characters in Napolitano novels are difficult to like until perhaps the final 15 pages when they come together and realize some sense of humanity. This may be a reprint of her first novel, written when she was 29 years old, but it has similar themes and characterizations as Hello Beautiful that you’ll recognize them as hers.

It’s worth the read, though I prefer Dear Edward first, then Hello Beautiful, and finally this one.

Thanks to @netgalley and @avonbooks for the ARC to read and review. Available April 30, 2024.

My advice to those who read this republished version is to read the author’s note in the back first. I wish I had done that, This story of family learning to openly love and communicate was made so much more meaningful to me learning about the author’s family background to the characters.

you can tell that this is a reissuing of napolitano’s first novel pretty easily. sadly, this didn’t even come close to the beauty of hello beautiful and dear edward, and I found myself pretty bored a lot of the time. such a disappointment, but i’ll look forward to her next novel (that’s not a reissuing). i’d probably give this 2.5 stars because of the lack of entertaining plot and, honestly, lack of likeable characters (I feel pretty indifferent about them) - but i’ll round up for the sake of providing an even star rating.

I really struggled with what to do with this book. I was invited to read this one by the publisher, so I felt some sort of responsibility to try and make it through to the end, but at 20%, I found myself looking at reviews on NetGalley and Goodreads to see if it was worth continuing for me. When I saw that many other reviewers were having similar issues connecting to even one of the characters, I knew it may end up being a DNF for me. I slogged through 7% more before calling it. I really was disappointed, because Hello Beautiful was such a fantastic read, but this one just didn’t seem to have a driving story, and touched on topics that often ruin a story for me, including unironic religion-based judgement, as well as ghosts. This book was actually written two decades ago by the author, and it shows. I could see a certain type of reader, perhaps one who had more of a connection to motherhood and their faith, finding this a compelling read, but for me, even though this was an ARC and I really try not to DNF ARCs, I couldn’t justify spending my time reading a book that wasn’t bringing anything positive into my life.

This one was a bit meh for me. I loved this author's Dear Edward and her next two novels haven't lived up. The family drama was just a bit too much for me.

I knew I wanted to read more of Ann Napolitano’s work after finishing Hello Beautiful earlier this year. This book is a multigenerational story about an Irish catholic family with each chapter being narrated by a different family member. What I love most about the authors books is her ability to make the characters seem like real people, they’re often flawed and imperfect which makes her stories very relatable. Her writing style is extremely immersive and you end up feeling emotionally attached to the family she is describing. This book shows the ups and downs of many families dynamic including the topics of unexpected pregnancy, grief and love. If you’re looking for a wonderful story told by many perspectives and includes lots of family drama this book is for you!

Really could not get into this book. Too many characters to keep straight, and none of their storylines held my attention. Knowing now that this is a re-release it makes sense that this author's writing got better, as I enjoyed a couple of her other books very much. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance copy.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5

Within Arm’s Reach❣️

Mini Review ⬇️

ARC - Pub Date April 30th

This book was okay. It held my interest and I was invested to see what would happen in the end. I found it well written and a bit unique.

The chapters were long which I always find a bit annoying and when you were stuck with a character you didn’t like it was a little tough to get through.

Overall, worth the read though 😁

Thank you to @RandomHouse and #NetGalley for the digital ARC of #WithinArmsReach. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

I discovered Ann Napolitano when I read "Dear Edward" and it was a 4+star read for me. I still think about it 3 years later and frequently recommend it to people. So I jumped at the chance to read the re-release of her first novel.

Within Arm's Reach is the story of the McLaughlins, a large Irish catholic family in New Jersey. It centers on Catherine, the matriarch, and her oldest granddaughters, Gracie & Lila. Lots of loss, secrets, drama and angst. The big cast of characters was hard to keep track of and the nastiness between the adult siblings made me sad (though I'm sure it's accurate). The ending was a bit abrupt. I wanted closure on the main storyline.

Overall, a well-written, engaging story for fans of multigenerational family drama.

Most avid readers know Ann Napolitano from her wonderful and highly successful novel, Dear Edward. Because of that success as well as the popularity of Hello Beautiful, her first published novel, Within Arm’s Reach, has now been reissued.

This is very much a character-driven novel of an Irish Catholic family, focusing on Catherine, the grandmother, her wife and son-in-law and their two grown daughters. Each chapter is told from a different perspective and as the reader you learn so much more than the family because they are terrible at communicating! If you are a fan of such novels and of Ann Napolitano, you will enjoy this book. The Author’s Note was also well written.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Random House for the opportunity to read this digital ARC.

Ann Napolitano is the author of one of my favorite books, Hello Beautiful as well as Dear Edward. So when offered an ARC of Within Arm's Reach, I didn't hesitate to say yes. After reading the blurb, I was even more excited to read the book. A family drama about a large Catholic family. What could be more perfect?

Within Arm's Reach was originally published 20 years ago. Since Napolitano's popularity has soared within recent years, the book was reissued. There's a reason why the book did not do as well 20 years ago. Within Arm's Reach is about a dysfunctional family, which is fine, except it's about a boring, dysfunctional family. None of the characters were particularly interesting and truly were just a mess and didn't seem to improve much as the story unfolded.

I am thrilled they re-released Ann Napolitano’s debut book.
It is a richly written story about three generations of an Irish American family.
I recommend this insightful and satisfying novel.

After reading Hello Beautiful and Dear Edward—both five star reads—I thought this was sure to be a home run for me. But the book never hooked me in like her other stories. There were too many character POV shifts and not enough continuation between events to keep the novel on track. After learning the novel is being republished after 20 years, it makes so much more sense why I've connected more with Ann's later works. She's grown so much as an author.