This was a nice family dynamic story with a few situations that were over done and I didn’t like some of the characters. Overall it was a quick read. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for read and review

Lovers and Liars by Amanda Eyre Ward is a riveting family drama about the Peacock sisters! These sisters were raised in a dysfunctional family and are now adults dealing with their own dysfunctional behaviors. The characters are well-developed and the reader can't help rooting for each one to overcome their issues! A good portion of the book takes place in a rundown castle in England. Ms. Ward does an excellent job of describing the scenery! I loved this book and highly recommend reading it! Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Publishing for the ARC!

Slyvie, Cleo, and Emma are three estranged sisters that are brought back together when Slyvie invites them to her wedding at a castle. Each chapter switches POV between the three sisters and each sister is dealing with her own troubles. When the sisters arrive at the wedding they fall into old patterns of supporting each other and protecting each other, especially from their mom.

There are certain things about this book I enjoyed. I liked the sisters and I wanted to keep reading to see how each one of their situations was going to turn out. I absolutely couldn’t stand their mom, but that was on purpose. I honestly had a hard time with some of the storylines seemed stagnant at times but overall not a bad read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

Thank you, NetGalley and Randon House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this advanced reader's copy. I read this author's 2020 book, The Jetsetters, as it was picked by Reese Witherspoon for her Book of the Month May pick. I really enjoyed that story, so I was excited to get a chance to read her new family drama. This book does not disappoint. Talk about family drama! All the sisters have their own issues, Sylvie, Cleo and Emma. The sisters are getting together for Sylvie's wedding, at the castle estate of the man Sylvie is marrying, Simon Rampling. Of course, their mother shows up and then things come to a head. There are some funny parts and there are some ridiculous parts, but overall, this is a an easy and fun read.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really fun book. I enjoyed it a lot!

Sylvie, Cleo and Emma are sisters who all have secrets that could potentially ruin their relationships with their significant others and each other. When Sylvie meets Simon, she is swept off her feet in a whirlwind romance. They get engaged quickly and are to marry in Simon’s castle over in London. Cleo finds out some unsavory information about Simon and decides she needs to tell her sister before the wedding. I enjoyed this one, it kept my attention, I read it in 3 days. I enjoyed finding out about the secrets and how people reacted when they learned them. I was happy with the epilogue, it wraps everything up nicely in a bow for all the characters. This book is divided into many parts, each one having multiple chapters told through each sister’s POV. I loved getting into their heads!

To me this is less a romance and more a sister story where the family dynamics unfolds in the context of an upcoming wedding of the primary character, Sylvie. The other two sisters, Cleo and Emma, have their own challenges. Cleo is not in love with her live-in boyfriend, she’s in love with her best friend Isaac, but for some reason, she’s too afraid to act on it. Emma is self-destructing under the mask of a multi-level marketing scam and she’s lost the family’s savings. They all have a strained relationship with their selfish mother. Simon, is Sylvia’s fiancé and the heir to a castle where the wedding will be hosted. As the book progresses, we get a clearer picture of the sisters and their struggles. I would say this is more of a cozy story vs. literary fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed the story but felt it lacked a depth I would have appreciated more. Will be a great summer read however.

3.5 stars
Sylvie, Cleo, and Emma grew up with a horrible mother, and it's shaped them as adults. Then Sylvie also has grief from her first marriage. Most of the characters are keeping major secrets from each other. Of course everything comes to a dramatic head during the wedding weekend.
The book was well written, but a bunch of the circumstances of the characters just seemed really extreme to me. While I sympathized with some of the characters, I think I also blamed some of them for the messes they got themselves in. The bright spots were probably Rich, Emma's husband, and the kids.

This family is a MESS! And it is delightful. The build up is a bit slow, but once things pick up, they're full speed ahead. I was rooting for every character involved (besides the mom, of course) and truly felt attached to each sister; and the side characters to be honest. Add in a dreamy English castle as the setting and make it hilarious? I'm in!

What looks like a perfect family on the outside doesn’t necessarily match what goes on inside. Seriously complicated sisters, self doubt, shame and internal loneliness undoubtedly from a cruel, narcissistic, broken mother and losing their beloved father too soon. Cleo the oldest, a successful NYC lawyer full of anger, in therapy, carrying a decade old secret and staying in an unhappy and unhealthy relationship. Emma who stayed in Montana a wife and mother the middle child unseen no matter how hard she tries to stand out. Over her head in debt trying to make a business work. Sylvie the baby, tragically widowed young, a librarian engrossed in her books. So very good at pretending everything is all right, but never dealing with her past. She finds her second chance at love, Simon wealthy, charming and into books! A quick romance and even quicker engagement,a wedding in a castle in the UK. What could be more magical? Sylvie hasn’t seen her sisters in 10 years, why have they stayed away or what kept them away? Will their past ruin them, will their selfish Mother dredge up all the crap she put them through? Airbrushed versions of events or people can wear you down, will these sisters fight for the love they once had or fall prey to inner demons?
Wonderfully written, pulls at your heart strings.
I received a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
Thank you random
house publishing

Lovers and Liars follows three sisters navigating life, marriage, death, friendships, and more. The sisters did not have an easy upbringing and what should have made them closer ended up pushing them further away with the secrets they kept from each other. A wedding brings them all together and secrets unfold. This was a cute novel!

Thank you for the arc!

This story of three estranged sisters starts a little slow but by the end of Part II, I could not put down this book. I was rooting for all three Peacock sisters: Cleo, the workaholic attorney in NYC' Emma, the wife and mom who stayed in Montana, and Sylvie, the widow librarian in Miami. This book has multiple complicated relationships, a toxic mother, a whirlwind romance, and a rundown English castle. What's not to like? I also liked that the kids in this book were regular kids who aren't overly precocious or bratty or only for comic relief. Every character in this book is likeable - except for the toxic mom - and I wanted them all to be happy and loved.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the advance reader copy. I am required by law to disclose this.

Three somewhat estranged sisters are brought together when one of them plans a wedding at her fiancé’s Englishside castle, resulting in family issues to be confronted, as well as each individual sister’s personal struggles. With short chapters switching perspectives, this is a light family drama that is makes for a perfect beach read.

I have only read one other work by Ward, The Jetsetters, which I did not enjoy nearly as much. Each sister in this novel has redemptive qualities about them, despite the personal messes they find themselves in. Plenty of depth, heart, and humor to this one with a fun setting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine books.

Amanda Eyre Ward's newest novel follows three sisters - Cleo, Emma, and Slyvie Peacock as they reunite at a castle in England for Slyvie's wedding. Each sister is struggling with their own secrets, which of couse, come out during their family reunion. As the sisters begin reconnecting the lies that they have hidden from their lovers and loved ones threaten to ruin Slyvie's wedding and the lives they have built for themselves.

This was an unexpectedly fun pager! Anyone with siblings or sibling-like relationships will connect with the Peacock sisters' struggles and interactions with one another at some point during this read.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, and Amanda Eyre Ward for this ARC. This has all the components for a great beach read!

A captivating novel of the insecurities and mistakes of two sisters unraveling at the wedding of a third sister’s wedding. The bride is haunted by memories of her deceased husband and doubts she is worthy of love and joy. Every lie and mistake spill from the pages as it becomes too hard to keep them any longer.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I so enjoyed this family drama full of quirky characters and clever dialogue (maybe too clever in the case of teenagers sounding like adults). The character growth is wonderful and I was rooting for the cast of misfits.
The plot centers on three sisters who have varying degrees of trauma from being raised by a narcissistic, truly awful mother. The sisters were once very close but are now estranged. They come together in England to celebrate (or in Cleo’s case, to gently sabotage), Sylvie’s sudden wedding to a suspiciously rich Brit. All the sisters are dealing with their own personal drama (mostly thanks to mommy dearest).
Some of the plot was very predictable but, honestly, it was still a pleasure to read.

*I received this book from NetGalley for a honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity.*Funny heartfelt and relatable.
A story of 3 sisters told from 3 different points of view. The sisters grew up with a narcissistic parent which resulted in a traumatic childhood. Everyone experiences trauma in their own way and this books looks at how each sisters experiences their childhood trauma deeply and in their own diverse way. A story about love, loss, secrets and turmoil. A quick easy beach read! The short chapters had me finishing the book much quicker than anticipated.

Amanda Eyre Ward is fully herself when her books are full of complex characters that are struggling with the complexities of family and obligations. This book is no different but takes a look at 3 sisters, their relationships with each other, their relationships with their mom, and the way they build other relationships because of their past.

Told in chapters that alternate between the sisters, some past and some current as the youngest sister prepares to marry, the Peacock sister were funny, layered, emotionally off kilter but just a blast to spend time with.

#arc
#netgalley
#loversandliars

There was a lot to like here: multi-faceted women, fairy-tale romance, CASTLES, precocious children names after booze. Unfortunately, it felt like the author had zero confidence in her audience to understand nuance or grasp foreshadowing. There were multiple instances where it felt like phrases and passages were copy pasted throughout the book instead of finding a new way to say things.

I wanted to like this so much more than I did. The premise was cute, but I think the conflicts once addressed resolved themselves too quickly for me. Overall, it just fell flat for me.