The Float Test is a family drama set in Florida. Florida becomes a character in this novel as the main character researches and becomes obsessed with the nature and destruction of the wilderness. We see glimpses of the old Florida vs the new Florida. The siblings lead different lives but come together after their mother dies and their father is alone.

While the siblings have been raised in privilege most found their own way in the world without evidence of financial help. Some siblings struggle more than others personally and financially. One sibling finds herself at odds with the rest of the family who have trouble trusting her. The story does climax to a believable ending. The story mostly kept my interest. There were times that I wasn't sure if I was supposed to feel empathy for Fred. Her story did become a bit tiresome. Thank you Netgalley for the chance to review this book.

Lynn Steger Strong’s fourth novel, The Float Test, is a poignant exploration of familial relationships, grief, and buried tensions among the Kenner siblings following the sudden death of their mother, a formidable lawyer. Set in Florida, the novel centers around Fred (Winnifred), a novelist whose career has alienated her from her family. Tensions rise when Fred finds and impulsively takes a gun from her parents' closet during the funeral, introducing an undercurrent of suspense throughout the story.

Narrated by Fred’s sister Jude, who offers insight into the siblings’ innermost thoughts, the novel presents a compelling psychological portrait of a fractured family. Each sibling grapples with personal dysfunction—George hides his unemployment and failed marriage, while Jenn, the eldest, maintains an orderly life yet remains emotionally distant. Jude reveals herself more fully only toward the end, shedding light on her estrangement from Fred and the significance of the stolen gun.

Through richly crafted prose and astute observations of emotional dynamics, Steger Strong delves into the complexities of sibling bonds and personal identity. The novel is laced with humor and a constant sense of foreboding, culminating in a darkly comic ending that reaffirms the deep, if turbulent, connections among the family members. Although I found the pacing hard to follow at times, The Float Test offers a rewarding exploration of the intricate ties that bind and strain family relationships. It's a compelling read for those interested in character-driven stories that examine the nuances of family dynamics

I was really disappointed with this. I know it's on a lot of top lists, but I just didn't connect with the story or the characters.

In Lynn Steger Strong's The Float Test, someone is always diving under a wave, peeling off a shirt for a quick swim, or sitting poolside with their feet in the water. Characters are stretching long strokes out past the break or aiming for a distant sandbar. Rarely are they floating--"None of us had had the patience, the ability, to lie back and be still like that." "Us" refers to Kenner siblings Jenn, Fred (short for Winnifred), Jude (short for Judy), and George, around whom Strong (Hold Still; Want) builds a blistering novel about Florida and family dynamics, evoking heat and uncertainty as well as the comforts of home, no matter how long you've been away.

The Float Test explores the unhappy complications among these four adult siblings who are reckoning with their past and their possibilities after the untimely death of their mother. Jenn, the eldest and unofficial spokesperson for the group, delivers the eulogy at their mother's funeral: "She said a bunch of stuff about Mom that was at least half made-up." Strong tangles with this idea of partial truths or, in the case of writer Fred, truth masquerading as fiction. The novel gives readers the most access to Fred, but it is voiced by Jude. There has been a rift between the middle sisters, a betrayal obscured until nearly the end of the novel, and their physical estrangement makes for a provocative contrast with the narrative's intimacy. With so many cracks in this complicated family's facade, readers will wonder if they will be able to weather the storm

I wanted to like this one but it was boring writing that got me not be interested to finish this book. The narrator was detached and I could care less about the characters or the plot or what happens to everyone in the end.

I really enjoyed Lynn Steger Strong’s previous novel, Flight, so I was excited for The Float Test. Unfortunately, this one did not work for me and I decided to dnf. I couldn’t get into it or feel anything for these characters and it felt too similar to other books I’ve read recently with adult siblings coming back together. Thank you to the publisher for the gifted book.

This was a dysfunctional family story set in Florida, centered on four grown siblings—each dealing with something, though not always in ways that felt fully explored. The narration starts with Jude, then shifts between the other siblings’ perspectives in a way that felt disjointed, not just structurally but emotionally. Oddly, the oldest sibling, Jenn, barely gets any attention, which made the whole thing feel a bit off-balance.

The writing was concise—almost impressively so—but also pretty passive. To write that tightly, there has to be something layered underneath. Here, it just felt flat. Maybe that was the intention? If so, it didn’t land for me.

I also found the ending disappointing and unnecessary. I finished the book still unsure what the point was, or what role the mom was supposed to play in any of it. A lot of buildup without much payoff.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance review copy in return for an honest review. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The pace of this book was steady throughout but that also means it was kind of flat throughout. Taking a full star away for shooting the dog at the end because what was that?? What was the need for that? There also didn’t seem like any big story arc for most of the characters.

<i>What is the feeling that tells any of us, even after we're grown-ups and know better--know it's likely that they'll hurt us, maim us, leave us flayed open--to check in with the people with whom we share DNA?</i>

After their mother dies, the Kenner siblings gather at their parents's big house in Florida. It's not a coming together; Jude isn't talking to Fred, George is desperate to avoid their father, even though he also stays long after the funeral. Jenn is in and out, but too busy restocking the fridge and corralling her kids to interact with the others and their father is just sad, but their father has always been sad. The Kenner parents are wealthy. Not so wealthy that their father can't complain about the cost of riding lessons, but wealthy enough to own an enormous house on the water and to pay for each of the now adult children to be expensively educated. Now three of the four is flailing. George's wife has left him and he's been fired from his job. Fred has written some moderately successful novels, all of which offended one family member or another, but she's given that up and left her husband and has no idea what to do with her life and very little motivation to find something. Jude, now divorced, loves no one as much as she loves her teenage daughter, but her daughter wants little to do with her. Jenn seems fine, but who can tell, she's moving too quickly for anyone to get a good look at her.

This novel is told from Jude's point of view, but really it has an omniscient narrator (Jude is very much not omniscient). It's a character study of adults formed by the dysfunction of their parents, their father's depression, their mother's ability to turn from loving to vicious at any moment, and formed by their access to too much money, money that leaves them paralyzed with choice, while also expecting to live a certain lifestyle. This novel is less about character development than it is character studies of the members of this family. The the one character who has grappled with her past is not a family member, but she is the one to ask Fred why, with all her advantages, does she persist in feeling so sorry for herself.

It is frustrating to follow so many characters who persist in not developing, or if they move forward at all, it's with the sense that they will probably be back where they started from soon enough, where the hard fought truces are temporary at best. Where this books shines though in how fully it describes Florida; the beautiful, ruined ecosystem, the uncontained development, how nature still manages to inspire awe. Lynne Steger Strong is an author I always enjoy reading, and while I didn't love spending so much time with feckless wealthy people feeling sorry for themselves, the writing was so good, I had to keep reading.

I'm not sure this author is for me. Started out okay, but then I just got bored. The characters weren't interesting to me. It's more of a character study than a whole plot. The family has come together after the death of their mother, but they just don't like each other. I thought there was some climate fiction stuff in here, too, but there was not much.

@marinerbooks | #gifted I think the writing of Lynn Steger-Strong is a bit of an acquired taste. Her stories are often intense and can involve characters who aren’t always likable, but she’s a master at fraught relationships, especially family relationships. That is exactly what you get with 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗟𝗢𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧, her most recent book. The story revolves around the four Kenner siblings, who have come together after the death of their mother, who dominated the family. Now they’re left to help their father adjust to life on his own, while at the same time pushing and pulling on one another over past and present slights between them.⁣
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If you hear a criticism about this book, it’s likely to be in the narration style. The whole story is told by Jude, the third daughter in the family. She tells her parts of the story in first person. When covering the lives of her parents and siblings, she mainly delivers their lives in third person, but often inserts herself or her opinions back in first person. This was a little jarring at first and at first I did have to go back and reread paragraphs to make sure I got it right, but I quickly adjusted to this unique style. In fact, I came to really appreciate Jude’s narration.⁣
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I also appreciated the many layers of this story. The Kenners were a family of doers, but they often walked over others to get where they were going. This was something that they all understood about each other, but that none-the-less caused pain and division. I liked the way Steger-Strong wove this whole family together. For me, it was a story that just got stronger and stronger the more I read. With a sunny Florida setting, it would also make for a not quite light, but still excellent summer read. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

3.5 stars. This book really grew on me. I’d honestly give the first half of the book a 3 and the second half of the book a 4. At first I didn’t know if I was even going to finish it but as I kept listening the story became less whiny and more interesting.
The Float Test tells the story of 4 adult siblings and their father after their mother’s sudden death. All of the siblings (besides for the oldies sister who is the only one with her sh*t together) are annoying in pretty much all of the same ways (and honestly their storylines were all so similar, so much so that it was strange.) As we learn more about each sibling they become more humanized and their stories become more interesting. This is a good, messy family story but nowhere near the top of that genre. But despite any flaws, I flew this audiobook and listened to it in one day.
Thank you to Netgalley and Mariner Books for an advanced copy of this book.

The Float Test by Lynn Steger Strong is a deep and thought provoking novel about four adult siblings who come back together after the death of their mother. Steger Strong is a voice who fully draws out the complicated and sometime humorous relationships between siblings in her works. As with any family, alliances are formed, destroyed and reformed over the course of time and secrets revealed. I found that I was reading this novel at a slower pace than I normally would, simply so I could soak up all of the inner monologues and thoughtful insights of the 4 Kenner children.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the opportunity to read this novel.

Secrets. Conflict. Silence. Repeat.
The pain and power of family...

The Kenner siblings have returned home to Florida for their mother's funeral. It is where the three sisters and one brother grew up. The July heat is intense, as is the tension between the family members...

"The Float Test" is a character study of a family that has forgotten how to love, trust, and care for each other. There is no nurturing of relationships, only pushing, pulling, and avoiding—all of them, siblings, parents, spouses, living on the surface of life, afraid to dive in.

Youngest sister, Jude, is the omniscient, all-knowing-ever-present narrator. Her thoughts amble, then she digresses as she constructs her thoughts in short, choppy sentences, remembering specifics. The author's unique writing talent has me believing these horrible characters are real, undoubtedly true to life, and my emotions bubble over...I love to hate them all.

An immersion read, I partnered this gifted DRC with the audiobook, narrated by Andi Arndt, who gives life to Jude's character, recounting the story with clarity and believable gender voicing. I encourage an immersion read as the best way to experience this book.

"The Float Test" is my second Lynn Steger Strong read, "Flight" being my first. Similarly, they are about family, one of my favorite topics. Now I have my eyes on her second novel "Want" and hope to read it soon!

3.75⭐

Thank you to Mariner Books and Lynn Steger Strong for the gifted DRC through NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review.

It was okay. Learned quickly it wasn’t my cup of tea. Probably would recommend to my friends who love these type of books though!

I enjoyed this author’s last novel, Flight, but this one didn’t really work for me. It’s a slow story of four siblings and their lives after their mother has passed away. This one was just too slow for me. There were a lot of characters none of whom I felt deeply connected to.

Pick this up for a slow character driven family story.

Lynn Steger Strong’s The Float Test dives deep into the messy, murky waters of sibling dynamics, grief, and generational tension, offering a character-driven portrait of a fractured family reunited in the wake of loss. Set against the oppressive heat of a Florida summer, the novel follows the Kenner siblings—each adrift in their own crises—as they circle and clash around the open wounds of the past.

The writing is undeniably intelligent and layered, with Strong's signature psychological depth and eye for nuance. Fans of Ann Patchett and Clare Lombardo will find familiar terrain in the emotional unraveling of a privileged but broken family. There are sharp observations on motherhood, professional burnout, and the limits of storytelling itself—particularly through Fred, a blocked novelist who questions the purpose of narrative even as she inhabits one.

Still, for all its thoughtful prose and thematic ambition, the novel sometimes drifts too far into introspection. The slow pacing and the interiority of its characters—while realistic—can make it feel inert, especially when the central tension between Jude and Fred is teased for so long it risks deflating. There’s a sense that Strong is less interested in resolution than in excavation, which might frustrate readers looking for a more satisfying emotional payoff.

The Float Test succeeds in depicting the tenderness and toxicity that often coexist within families. But while it floats—it doesn’t always land.

This book wandered between pace being too slow and then hurry up and finish. I got bogged down in some of the political business that felt out of place in this family drama. Just didn't do it for me.

My new favorite thing is picking up books that take place in Florida. ☀️

The way this book was written, it read like a memoir. All the references to the political climate in Florida were current, or as current as they can be when writing a novel and it’s making its way through the publishing process.

Despite the lovely writing, this book was heavy. The characters are all a mess, as a family they’re a mess, they’re relationships are a mess, it appears they’ve always been a mess and they have all these very kind people around them, people trying to be their best and grow, and they just mess everything up.

And I’m sorry the horrifying moment near the end?! COMPLETELY uncalled for. Dog lovers be warned 😂.

I had a hard time when reading this trying to figure out where it was going. The ending was sort of sweet, but after that scene, like I cannot get over it why would you put that in there 😂😂😂.

You need to make sure you’re in the right mood to pick this one up. Like in the middle of the summertime sads and you want to be more sad maybe. Also if you love messy families and lots of family and relationship drama. And Florida.

Thank you @netgalley and @marinerbooks for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

A dysfunctional family and a few of their friends are trying to deal with changes in their life after the matriarch of the family passes away. The story jumps around and I had some confusion trying to remember who everyone was and their own family make-up. Possibly the best part of this book was the descriptions of the Florida climate and how they responded to it. There was a lot of swimming and a lot of angst. Very atmospheric and ultimately little hope. I'm glad that I was able to finish it despite wanting to give up on it a few times.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. It's a fine addition to the dysfunctional family genre.