I was so grateful to receive a copy of this book from Ann Napolitano (who wrote Hello Beautiful) via NetGalley. I read through the whole book before I realized it was a re-release of her first novel that she published in 2004! Her readers were trying to find more copies of her earlier books after the success of her recent novels and so her publisher re-released it- how cool is that?! Within Arms Reach is the story of an Irish Catholic family in New Jersey told from the point of view of three generations- grandmother, mother and two daughters/sisters as their family deals with an unexpected pregnancy and their grandmother aging. I really loved the way it was written and the story. If you have been a fan of other Ann Napolitano books, I would suggest going back to her debut!

The cast was a bit large and the story fell a little flat for me, but I've heard such amazing things about her two other novels, so I can't wait to read more from Napolitano. Thank you NetGalley for the eARC

Within Arms Reach by Ann Napolitano ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for this advanced reader copy!🤗

“The old woman doesn’t look surprised or even sympathetic when she says that, and I find myself thinking, not for the first time, Boy, she’s a hard one.”

The McLaughlin women are a force to be reckoned with. With their Irish Catholic strength - and guilt - they are proud, resilient, and stubborn. This novel follows the McLaughlin women through the messy, complicated, beauty of life. There is Catherine, the matriarch, who is watching her children and granddaughters navigate life, and quite clumsily, she might add. There is Kelly, her oldest daughter, whose marriage is on the rocks and she is beginning her midlife crisis journey. There are Lila and Grace, her granddaughters, who are both living lives that they are not in control of.

In a similar style to Hello Beautiful, this novel is not action-packed. It slowly unravels and reveals characters who are flawed and complicated and deeply human. It is about people and relationships and family. It is about the ties that bind us - for better or worse - and the complexities of love.

This novel was released on April 30th, 2024 and I definitely recommend it!

I wanted so badly to love this book, as I am a massive fan of "Dear Edward" and "Hello Beautiful." I do realize that this is a reissue of the very first book she had published, and you can see the drastic improvement almost immediately upon beginning this one. I didn't know how to root for a family that was content to sit and mope around in their depressed states. Every single one of the main characters were sad, whiny, and had zero perspective on reality. I also had a lot of trouble with the family being SO VERY OFFENDED about a 29 year old woman being pregnant and, heaven forbid, not being married. If it had been set in Mormon Utah or the Deep Christian South, that's one thing. But it was in New Jersey.

A multigenerational novel about a large Irish American family in New Jersey. The matriarch and Six of her family are the main characters. Multiple themes-sibling rivalry, child abuse, a grandchild pregnant and unmarried, marital difficulties and betrayal, and mental illness. The book is long and the reader really does need the “ flow chart” provided by the author to keep the characters straight.The writing was just okay (not of the level of her other works-DEAR EDWARD and HELLO BEAUTIFUL) and I thought the ending left the reader hanging with too many unresolved issues.
Okay-but just okay.

While I really enjoyed the author's writing style, I found it difficult to track all of the different characters in the book as we jumped around so many perspectives. What I did love, though, was the perspectives from the different generations as I felt that they were distinguished very well.

“Within Arm’s Reach” by Ann Napolitano is a stunning debut novel that delves into the multigenerational dynamics of an Irish-American family. Narrated through six distinct voices, it skillfully explores themes of guilt versus loyalty, the past versus the present, all while maintaining a hopeful tone and sprinkling in moments of humor and wit. A rich and multi-faceted character study, this book weaves together overlapping viewpoints, revealing the complexities of family relationships

Another feel good novel from Napolitano. This novel relates the story of three generations of a family told through six narrators.

I was a big fan of Hello Beautiful, but this one did not live up to the same stage. I enjoyed it, but it fell flat for me

This story that follows a big, complicated, somewhat screwed-up Irish family through various intersecting crises in their daily lives has all the hallmarks of the author’s gifted writing - characters that you find yourself annoyed with and committed to in equal measure. I wanted the story to go further than it did and found there wasn’t as much resolution as I hoped for. Though it’s not my favorite of her books, I will continue to read everything she writes!

The McLaughlins are a big, complicated Irish family. At the helm is Catherine, who is starting to have visions of people she's lost: her husband, her mother, and three of her children. Despite her decline, she vows to care for her granddaughter Gracie and the baby she is expecting. The rest of the family is not as accepting, and they struggle with their own choices and next steps in life. Napolitano examines how an already complex family is complicated even more by past and present secrets.

These complex family dynamics seem to be Napolitano's specialty, and she also explored them in Hello, Beautiful. While that one didn't resonate with me as much as it did with many other readers, I still enjoyed it and felt the ties between the characters. I felt it less with this book; the different threads felt disjointed and I struggled to care about some of them salvaging their relationships. Napolitano is a beautiful writer, so I can't fully count out any of her books, but this won't stick with me.

Within Arm's Reach is a female perspective multigenerational story of a large, strict, Irish Catholic family, the McLaughlins. I loved Hello Beautiful and Dear Edward Ann Napolitano's writing draws you in immediately.
Each chapter is narrated by a different family member. I really loved reading each member's perception of themselves and then reading how other family members really felt about them. The story was a lovely nostalgic journey for me. The story of the McLaughlin family is genuine and it portrays the good and the bad that we all experience in families and hopefully love wins out in the end. Within Arm's Reach was actually written before the author's prior novels. I am very happy that it is receiving the recognition it deserves.
For me this it a five star book and I look forward to more novels by this author.

I'm always game for a story about a big, messy Irish family.
This one, which follows an aging matriarch trying to manage her wayward brood, was pretty good, but there were some plot points/character developments that I didn't really care for. Definitely not this author's best.
Thanks to #netgalley and #dialpresspublishing for this #arc of #withinarmsreach in exchange for an honest review.

I hate to even be writing this, but I was sadly disappointed by this novel from Ann Napolitano. I became a fan of Ann's writing after reading Hello Beautiful (which was INCREDIBLE!) and I was super excited to be able to read Within Arm's Reach with this republication of the book. I was expecting an emotional family drama, complicated characters who I would love or hate, or even hate to love, with stories woven together over the generations of their family. I think that there was some of that - but not enough for me. The story started off slow, and a bit complicated with many characters to follow (the family in this story spans 3 generations), and while it did start to pick up about midway for me, I found the ending very abrupt. Once the middle of the book hit, I knew who everyone was, I felt invested in their stories and I was looking forward to what was to come... where the book would take these people and what they would overcome before it ends. However, I felt like the story abruptly ends right after I had bought it. I feel like I did not get any 'wrap up' of their stories, or any real indication as to what happens to anyone after the book ends, or what I was supposed to envision happens. I was shocked when the next page I clicked too was the author's note.

I'm not one to give up on a book or give a negative review often but unfortunately this one left me wanting more.

I still remain an Ann Napolitano fan - and plan to read Dear Edward, and honestly whatever Ann publishes next. I know this was an earlier book of hers and I absolutely think over the years she has changed as an author. :)

Thank you for the Netgalley and the opportunity to read and review this book!

DNF @ 62%

Had very high hopes but I spent months trying to read this. Honestly I just did not care much for the story and the over explained verbiage.

My book club picked Hello Beautiful last year as one of our picks and it was my introduction to Ann Napolitano. She writes sweeping, mulit-cast family dramas that delve deep into the mind of each character. While sometimes the pacing is a bit slow for me, ultimately, I know each thread will beautifully weave together a braided complete story. Similar to Hello Beautiful, I did have trouble initially because I disliked some of the characters and their choices. But much like real life, Napolitano, has a way of creating true images of people - both the good and the unlikeable. It is that ability - to craft such true to life people - that I admire most in her writing.

Beautifully written emotional family drama. And by drama I mean wow, a whole lot of complex and heavy issues that occur within the multigenerational McLaughlin family and how they deal with them. I enjoyed that every chapter was told from another members perspective. Allowed me to get to know each character and to keep track of them. Would have rated 3.5, upped to 4 as half not available.

I didn't realize going in that this was Ann Napolitano's debut novel being republished. Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful are both books that struck me to my core and have stayed with me since I read them so I knew I needed to read this one too. It was similar to Hello Beautiful in that it was about a multigenerational Irish Catholic family and how childhood and tradition stay with you well into your adult years. In hindsight, knowing that this is Napolitano's first book, I could see the potential in this work but realized why it fell a little flat for me.

The book beautiful weaves the stories of 6 family members through past and present events. The past is the foundation of the family they have become. It rings true the notion of younger generations knowing the history but not truly knowing the impact it had/has on the individual family members. Many traditional Irish catholic beliefs and traditions are clearly outlined and practiced. The story itself was enjoyable and I grew to love the characters which is why I was itching for more from each of them when the story ended. Although each persons storyline had been explained and provided closure. I was left wondering more about what happened to the Leary and McLaughlin Family.

Another great story by Ann Napolitano. All of her books teach and make you think of your own life and experiences. I love her writing style and her storytelling skills. A must read for 2024 and this book will make a great book club discussion.