This is probably one of the best books of the year. This story about family, love, addiction, and grief will most likely hit on something that will feel very familiar in some way to many people. I loved the love in this book. Lillian and Ryan get married and have a baby, Georgette. Ryan becomes an alcoholic, like his father, and leaves the loves of his life. Lillian raises Jet (Georgette) but never quits loving him. Jet grows up with a loving mom, unreliable father dealing with addiction, a loving Nana and a best friend from childhood on, Kendi. What happens to each character is such a good story and written about beautifully. It feels like nothing is held back, you get it all - just like in real families - the good, the bad, and the ugly….all the things. The story is raw and serious and you can feel everyone’s emotions in the way the author writes about them. The ending wraps everything up and is heartwrenching and heartwarming all at once. Amazing book and definitely book club discussion paradise.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to review this book.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 is a poignant novel that still resonates with me even after finishing. Sarah Damoff intertwines themes of addiction, family, resilience, love, and forgiveness into a narrative that conveys both sorrow and optimism.

I was engaged in each character’s journey and it’s remarkable that this is a debut novel! The lasting and generational effects of alcoholism on family and loved ones is a challenging subject but Damoff handles it in a very nonjudgmental way.

I loved the cast of narrators for the audiobook. If you love family sagas, don’t miss this one!

Thank you to the publisher for the #gifted audiobook provided via @libro.fm.

It seems hard to believe that this is Sarah Damoff's first novel! The writing is phenomenal. It's the story of a family, taken from four generations. The story is one of addiction, love, loss, and forgiveness. There was so much emotion in the writing that I could feel everything the characters in the book felt. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that likes to read family drama. It's too good to not read this one!! Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the advanced copy of this book in return for my honest opinion.

This was by far one of the best books I read all year. I cannot believe this was a debut. I wept for a solid hour once this ended.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

5 STARS ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

OH... MY... I was not prepared for this book! It was emotional and beautifully done. I'm still processing what I just read, but I can confidently say I loved this generational tale.

This is storytelling at its finest—you really get to know the characters, and then you hear their perspectives in such a powerful way. I loved this book, and it’s an easy pick for your summer MUST READ list!

Damn this book is a stone cold bummer! I mean, it's good. But it's a bummer. And I can't really expound on that without giving too much away. Family drama at it's finest, we follow the Bright family's highs and lows, from the 70s to mid 2010s. With any family, there are highs and lows but man, this family is pretty unlucky!

I'm not going to deny that the book did move, and another example of a book that I probably would have ready different before I was a Mom. Mothers and daughters is a huge theme of the book, and perhaps that's what exacerbated the emotions for me. It is an impressive debut, I thought that story was solid and the writing strong. I just felt like I was always on guard waiting for the next bad thing to happen to this family!

When you read a book that is this heartbreaking, you have to be able to connect to the characters. I couldn't, not one of them. I didn't feel anything for anyone except maybe Davis and Elise. The rest were overly annoying, and I seriously found myself bored throughout the book. I love emotionally charged books but I didn't get what I was expecting. This was one of the most anticipated reads for 2025, and sadly, it let me down.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Shuster for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lillian and Ryan Bright are living the American dream. Happily married and parents to a beautiful baby girl, Ryan is chasing his dream of owning an art gallery with full support from Lillian, who is also involved in the project. As their life together flourishes, they reflect on their turbulent upbringings and resolve not to repeat the past. No matter how hard they try to give their daughter Georgette a beautiful life, the weight of self-imposed pressure eventually takes its toll on Ryan, pulling him down the same slippery slope of alcoholism that once consumed his father. As the years go on for the Bright family, we become witness to Ryan in the throes of recovering from and relapsing into his addiction, his daughter Georgette’s tumultuous upbringing and the appearance of an unknown family member turning their world upside down. As hidden truths come to light, the Brights must confront the past in order to heal and find their way forward together.

🌿This book painted a beautifully tragic portrait of the Bright family. It was an incredibly honest portrayal of the ripple effects alcoholism can have on a family and the rollercoaster that addicts go through with the back and forth of working toward beating addiction and relapsing.

🌿I truly appreciated the multiple POVs throughout the book. It contributed greatly toward a full understanding of the impact that addiction can have on everyone involved. I feel that it’s rare to find a story that offers both the perspective of someone battling addiction and the viewpoints of those impacted by their struggle.

🌿 I’m a sucker for generational family sagas and I thought this was a beautiful debut from Sarah Damoff!

Well shoot I'm crying now! I know I will reread this book at some point as I loved it. The Bright Years is Sarah Damoff's debut novel and it is fantastic - the writing, the story line, the realistically flawed characters, the addiction brought to life - all of it. This is the story of the Bright family, Ryan, Lillian, and Jet, starting when Ryan and Lillian meet. Their love is big and beautiful and I admit at one point I thought they were too perfect and I considered putting the book down. I'm so glad I did not. That perfection was what happens at the beginning of every love story and then real life creeps in and that is when I found the characters relatable. Told from three POVs in both the past and the present, the Bright family story is full of love and heartbreak, joy and pain. The growth of the characters is exceptionally beautiful! I will be thinking of this book for days to come.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the DRC in exchange for my honest review.

The Bright YEars was a super interesting read. I loved the character study and the writing felt propulsive. I'd read more from the author.

The Bright Years is a moving and reflective novel that explores the bittersweet beauty of life, love, and loss. The story centers around a woman at a turning point in her life, reflecting on her past while trying to make sense of her present. Through a series of memories and emotional revelations, she revisits defining moments—some joyful, others heartbreaking—that have shaped her journey. As she reconnects with old friends and reconciles with lingering regrets, she begins to see a path forward, lit by resilience, forgiveness, and the enduring power of hope.
This was a great book that struck a delicate balance between sadness and hope. Sarah Damoff’s writing is tender and introspective, capturing the emotional complexity of life’s brightest and darkest seasons. While some parts were undeniably heavy, the story never felt weighed down by despair. Instead, it was a reminder that even in the midst of sorrow, there can be beauty, connection, and healing. The Bright Years is the kind of book that lingers with you—heartfelt, honest, and ultimately uplifting.

As soon as I finished this book, I wanted more from this author. Come to find out this is her DEBUT? I am stunned. This is a beautiful book, gloriously written, and it broke my heart into a million pieces. That is the best kind of book after all, isn’t it? This is a book about family, about addiction, about loss, and about grief. It’s also full of hope and forgiveness. I loved following this family for more than one generation, seeing how they grow and change, and how their decisions have an impact on future generations. If you love a book that will break your heart and piece it back together, READ THIS ONE. Thankful to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of this one! I can’t wait for more from this author!

I didn’t love 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 by debut author Sarah Damoff. I had expected this book to be a flat out win for me. It’s a multi-generational family story, which is right in my wheelhouse. It’s told from multiple points of view, another thing that really works for me in books. There’s love, addiction, trauma, grief, growth and so much more that should have made this book a slam dunk, and yet, it fell kind of flat for me.⁣
⁣
Why, you ask? Well, it really came down to one thing. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 was a story that leaned into telling rather than showing. That got old for me. I grew weary of this story being recounted to me. I wanted to see, to feel more of it happening. I wanted to know more about motivations and interactions between characters. In my mind, these gaps grew larger and larger as the story progressed. This was particularly true of Jet, who took up the largest portion of the book. It was in her section that I began to feel disappointed.⁣
⁣
All this is not to say that the story didn’t get to me at all. I got teary a couple times and I felt a lot of potential in this one. I definitely want to see what Damoff will write next, but sadly her debut didn’t quite hit for me.⁣
⁣
Thanks to @simonbooks for an electronic copy of #TheBrightYears.

“𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙢. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙘 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙪𝙥𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙮.”

A raw, beautiful story with the utmost truth and tenderness.

“𝙃𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙬𝙚’𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙩; 𝙄 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙩.“

Sarah Damoff delivered a novel that not only tells a story but also pours out her soul. You can feel the heart woven into every sentence. They say, “Write what you know,” and that’s exactly what she did.

“𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙖 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣’𝙨 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩. 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙡 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙪𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨.“

This is a book about life in all of its complexity, from the messiness of family, love in all shapes, and the aches of being human, of living.

“𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙜𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙛 𝙖𝙩 𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙠𝙚: 𝙜𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙜𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙣’𝙩.”

What drew me in most was the story behind this. You could tell the author put her blood, sweat, and tears into writing this. And thank God she did, because this is a story full of truth, and it’s breathtaking.

“𝙄𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙧 𝙗𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙘𝙤𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙘, 𝙞𝙩’𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙘𝙤𝙝𝙤𝙡, 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚.”

The characters are perfectly imperfect: flawed but endearing, lovable but frustrating. They were written in such a beautiful way it made the story dazzling.

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙗𝙮 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨, 𝙨𝙪𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙘. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙛, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙞𝙙𝙬𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙜𝙪𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙. 𝘼 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙢𝙚: 𝙉𝙤! 𝙇𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧! 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙨. 𝙒𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙗𝙮𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙨 𝙬𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙤. 𝘿𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙝, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙪𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙨.”

This isn’t a book I’m rating based off of plot or writing—though both are arguably pretty good. It’s the realness beneath every word that’s the reason I’m giving this 4 stars.

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙂𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾!

This is hands down one of the most beautiful, poignant, heart wrenching, and keenly observed novels I’ve had the pleasure of reading in the last decade. And I read…a lot. In my experience, when subject matters such as addiction, domestic abuse, and adoption (all of which I have personal experience) are written about, I oftentimes feel the topic is broached from a distance, without an authentic view of just how multi- faceted and non- linear these experiences so often are. After all, people are complex, and so much of human behavior is therefore best viewed in shades of grey. This is what The Bright Years does so perfectly- addiction isn’t cast as a human failing- it’s simply human. Domestic abuse isn’t an unforgivable sin-it’s a symptom of someone in pain caught in a generational cycle of learned trauma. And giving a child up for adoption? It’s not taboo, and it’s not the worst sin a mother can commit-it’s an act of love that even when separated by time and distance, proves the unbreakable biological bond that exists between mother and child.

This book healed me, comforted me, and most of all- made me feel seen in a way no other book has yet to do, and I’ll be recommending to absolutely everyone for years to come.

Thank you NetGalley, for this gem of a read.

This emotional family saga completely wrecked me—and I mean that in the best way. We follow Ryan and Lillian Bright from the start of their relationship through marriage and raising their daughter, Georgette. But both parents are hiding something—and when tragedy strikes, those secrets unravel in painful, powerful ways. Years later, Georgette returns home and is forced to confront her family’s history.

Told through three perspectives, this debut explores addiction, family wounds, and the complexities of forgiveness. As someone who’s been close to loved ones dealing with alcohol addiction, I found this book incredibly poignant, relatable, and at times—so hard to read. It made me cry! I read passages aloud to my husband because they were so stunning and really hit home on some tough but real topics.

I do wish the story had more time to breathe - I’d loved for it to have been a bit longer! But the heart of this book? It’s something special. 💟

✨Readers who enjoy…

💔Emotional family sagas
❤️‍🩹Stories about addiction and healing
〰️Multi-POV narratives
🧑‍🧒Complicated parent/child dynamics
🙏🏻 Second chances and forgiveness
💟Contemporary fiction with heart

…will likely find something to connect with here. I’m already looking forward to what Sarah Damoff writes next. 💔📖💫

I am absolute sucker for a multi-generational family saga. Throw in an addiction storyline and it's probably going to be a 5 star for me before I even crack the spine. I absolutely cannot believe this is a debut novel - Damoff paints such a vivid picture of the struggles of this family and I was completely engaged from start to finish.

I cannot wait to see what this talented new voice comes up with next.

I enjoyed this book and have recommended it to many friends. The relationships were complex and heartbreaking. It dealt with addiction and how destructive it can be to all relationships. It also showed how families are affected but the main characters actions.

Another debut novel that blew me away.

The Bright Years tells the story of the Bright family, beginning with Lillian and Ryan and eventually shifting to include their daughter Jet’s perspective. Through alternating timelines, we uncover Lillian’s devastating losses, Ryan’s struggle with addiction, and Jet’s quiet insecurities. Each point of view not only deepens our understanding of the individual characters but also paints a layered, emotional portrait of the Brights as a family.

Despite the frequent shifts in time and perspective, the narrative flows seamlessly. Sarah Damoff’s writing is raw and honest—this novel had me in tears more than once. Without ever feeling preachy, Damoff explores themes of love, grace, and redemption with remarkable insight.

As someone who grew up in the Metroplex, this book felt like a heartfelt love letter to Fort Worth. I smiled at every reference to Cowtown.

Grab the tissues—the Brights will steal your heart and all your tears!

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and of course the author Sarah Damoff for the advanced copy of the book. The Bright Years is out now. All opinions are my own.

😭😭 This book was so good! I loved the format and how it is told over a span of so many years with 3 different parts and POVs.

This is set in Texas, which is where I’m from, so it was interesting to see some of the callouts to Texas places and events. It made this a little more relatable for me.
This family has my heart. The way this book showed the true repercussions and impact of having abusive parents , addiction, and loss… I’m gutted. It was so real and so sad. There’s so many heavy themes in this book and they were all done so incredibly well. I think it’s such an interesting way to show that the choices we make affect everyone around us. Your choices affect other people’s choices. They can not only affect one lifetime but multiple lifetimes. And sometimes bad things happen regardless. It was heartbreaking and beautiful.
There’s a lot of pain and a lot of love throughout these pages. I loved it. This one will stick with me for a while.