Pleasantly surprised by this one!

Vivian and Lucy meet unexpectedly at their dad’s lake house. Lucy has always known about Vivian, but their father never told Vivian about her sister - instead spending one month a year at the house with Lucy. Now they’re forced to grieve his together, no matter how much they don’t want to.

Grief, relationships, forgiveness and redemption are all examined under a beautiful Maine setting. A very solid contemporary fiction novel with great character development.

Thank you to Dutton and NetGalley.

𝐌𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒
Hannah Orenstein

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ // 5

Any book about sisters, sign me up for! 👯‍♀️ Being a younger sister, going through the phases of liking/disliking my own sister while growing up, and then becoming best friends as adults has made me love books about sisters.

This book is very parent trap style and I was allllll for it. Two women who kind of knew about each other are forced to finally meet once their dad dies and leaves a lake house behind. There are definitely a lot of topics covered in this book and at time I felt like it was information overload, but it was still a really seeet book that I feel like a lot of people would enjoy.

If you like romance with a twist of drama, this is for you!

Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. This book publishes 5/13/25 and it’s definitely worth buying!

This was such a complex and nuanced look at families. Vivian and Lucy go through so much in their summer together and their journeys were so well done. I really loved the look at each girl’s perspective and relationship with their dad and how it differed from the other. I will say, there were definitely times I wanted to shake both of them because they were being either incredibly self righteous or petulant, but at the same time, with a situation like the one they were in, I couldn’t help but give them grace. I also liked how both women looked at the romantic relationships in their lives and realized what they wanted and just as important, what they didn’t want. This was a very emotional book, dealing with grief and lifelong secrets, but I think both were handled so well and really allowed there to be room for complex feelings about loved ones. Also, the setting was written so incredibly atmospheric. I’ve only visited Maine once, but now I am clamoring to go back! Really glad I read this book and I think a lot of readers will enjoy it so much.
CW: death of a parent, infidelity

Thank you to Dutton Books for the digital reader’s copy!

The cover of the book and blurb drew me to this book right away. Lucy and Vivian are half siblings from their dad, Hank, who reunite at Hank’s lake house after his death. The book starts off with them navigating this newfound relationship and the impending sale of the house. The majority of the book does a deep dive into both characters and their various relationships (which were very messy, but definitely gave it a more realistic factor). The characters and plot took a really long time to develop but the last 20% really took the story for a turn. I appreciated the way their friendship/sisterhood developed and the people they grew to become at the end. Really felt like the end of the story was only the beginning.

Thank you NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for this honest review.

ARC review: Maine Characters by Hannah Orenstein ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 🌶️.5

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton Publishing for the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this story. Maine Characters is a dual POV story between Vivian and Lucy - half sisters who’ve never met until the dad they share suddenly dies. Lucy and Vivian enter a battle of wills regarding whether to sell their father’s waterfront cabin in Maine. I enjoyed how Vivian and Lucy had such different experiences with their dad and grew up in different circumstances- it really helped their dynamic and their personalities develop. I don’t have too many notes, other than I really disliked Vivian’s mom, and almost wished she added more drama to the plot. But overall it was an enjoyable read and I will definitely read more by Hannah Orenstein.

Maine Characters released May 13th 2025!

Maine Characters by Hannah Orenstein is a great summer read about family drama, heartbreak and healing. Early reviews that I have seen are calling this women's fiction novel a grown up Parent Trap.

Vivian Levy and Lucy Webster each spend a month during the summer with their father at his lake house in Maine. Even though the two are half sisters, Vivian has no clue Lucy even exists. After her father's unexpected death, Vivian goes to the lake house to spread his ashes and deal with the sale of the cabin, but finds Lucy there waiting for his return. Faced with uncomfortable questions about their past and their father, can these two sisters help each other heal from not only the grief of their loss, but from the truth about their parents past?

This is going to be a great summer read! The vivid detail of Maine and the emotional depth and humor that fans of Orenstein love, this book will resonate with people looking for a messy family drama. I really liked the way Orenstein handled the theme of grief in such a beautiful way and how Vivian and Lucy were working through it, both together and separately. Vivian and Lucy, while not always likable, are flawed and vulnerable characters that people can relate to. Overall a summer read that is perfect for fans of Carley Fortune and Kate Spencer!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Hannah Orenstein, and Penguin Group Dutton for this ARC!! Publication date is May 13th 2025.

It was a bit of a slow start for me being I’m not the biggest fan of third person pov…but once the book picked up for me (around the 35-40% mark), I could not put it down.

These 400 pages took me for a RIDE. I grieved alongside all the women in this story. I felt their pain & held onto their resentment toward Hank, Oscar, Caleb, Harrison, and Patrick for all their shortcomings—big and small. I hated, and understood, and empathized with Vivian and Celeste. I cried for Lucy, Dawn, and what could have been. I celebrated all the small victories our “Maine” characters experienced from beginning to end.

This was a heartbreaking story that beautifully illustrated how different people have their own unique experiences with (and thus varying perspectives on) the same person; how parents make mistakes too; how children carry the burden of unlearning and breaking cycles of intergenerational trauma; and how, in order to move on, sometimes you have to learn to forgive those who never had the decency to be sorry in the first place. The varied timelines & dual perspectives from each sister, unearthing of secret after secret, and little dashes of romance had me hooked. A perfect book to add to your summer TBR 🌞

Thank you Hannah Orenstein and Dutton Books for my #gifted copy of Maine Characters and the adorable wine label sticker and thank you PRH Audio for my #gifted listening copy! #PRHAudioPartner #PRHAInfluencer #DuttonBooks #PRHPartner #MaineCharacters #hannahorenstein

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐡 𝐎𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐢𝐧
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐬𝐨𝐧
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟏𝟑, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

When I read the description and saw this one was set in Maine and was like The Parent Trap for adults, I knew I had to read it. Each year, Vivian Levy and Lucy Webster spend a month with their father at his lake house. Separately. The two have never met. Vivian is a sommelier and Lucy is an English teacher with a marriage that is about to explode. While Lucy knew about Vivian and kept tabs on her from afar, Vivian never knew about Lucy. Now, after her father has died suddenly, Vivian has returned to the lake house to spread his ashes on the lake and sell the cabin, and is surprised to find Lucy there, waiting for her father to return to spend their scheduled month together. Instead of grieve the death of their father, the two go head to head because Lucy does not want to sell the house and Vivian is set on making the sale as quickly as possible. After an entire lifetime apart, can these two half-sisters find a way to reconcile their differences?

This was a cute book with characters that had lots of secrets and family drama. I definitely enjoyed watching Lucy and Vivian and their relationship change throughout the course of the book. There was a lot of character growth and this would definitely make a great summer read!

🍷Parent Trap Vibes -
🍷Family Drama
🍷Maine Setting
🍷Lake House
🍷Heavy Topics (Grief, Divorce, Cheating)
🍷Dual POV

🎧I read both the physical book and listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by the talented Mara Wilson. I always love when I get to listen to Wilson narrate a book, and I thought she did such an amazing job as the voice of Lucy and Vivian. She brought the right amount of emotion and energy to her role and I thought she was just perfect for this book!

Posted on Goodreads on May 12, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around May 12, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on May 13, 2025
**-will post on designated date

This is an adult take on The Parent Trap, and I really liked it. I’d label it more of a family drama than a romance, though there is some of that, too.

I liked the premise, half sisters who have never met are connected (much to their dismay) following the death of their father. One’s eager to sell his house and move on, and one’s holding onto it at all costs.

This is a story of grief, family, childhood, sisterhood, love, divorce, and more.

3.5 stars rounded up!
I’m a sucker for a summery book set on the lakes! This one was filled with heaps of emotion, grief, drama, family secrets, and an abundance of character growth.
I cried through the end of it and was so pleased with the character development for both FMCs. I definitely didn’t find either of them too likable in the beginning, but I truly loved them by the end. I also don’t typically enjoy reading third person narration, but Orenstein executed it in a way that kept me interested and wanting more! Her writing was lovely and she conveyed so much in these pages. This isn’t your typical summery lake novel, it’s so much more!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Lots of old pain and new pain in here. Several characters were difficult to like and made awful decisions but I appreciated their growth throughout. A quick read.
Thanks to Netgalley via publisher invite for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review, book publishes 5/13

This story of two sisters, one who didn't know the other existed, isn't a romance. Sure there is a little of that here, but it is only background to the fall out from secrets long held. I loved the back and forth between Vivian and Lucy and the clash of their two worlds. I really liked how each sister had an entire life full of issues unrelated to the new problem of an inheritance, an unknown relation, and what to do about both. The character development was excellent and it was great to see them grow, despite already being adults. I also appreciated that the author did not take the easy way out and let her characters continue to be human. This will make a great vacation read with the descriptions of the lake and small town life.

Maine Characters makes my Maine girl heart happy. Reading it is like a warm summer day, where you can just picture yourself at the lake, can practically smell the sunscreen. I loved this story of two sisters getting to know each other and developing a relationship, of finding themselves and what truly makes them happy. I hope this book is in beach bags everywhere this summer, because it's the perfect warm-weather read, whether you find yourself lucky enough to be in Maine or not.

Lucy and Vivian are half-sisters who have never met. Vivian doesn't even know Lucy exists, and Lucy has long wondered what it would be like to meet Vivian. When their father dies, they are thrust together for the first time, unraveling a lifetime of complicated feelings about their parentage and personhood.

Vivian imagined she would sell her father's cabin and use the money to start a business and Lucy imagined she would always keep her father's cabin. These two could not be more different and the book spins their many, many frustrations out.

Maine Characters is a careful study of grief and the complicated nature of family, and many readers will find a lot to dig into in the dynamic of the sisters. It is not however an easy beach read and the cover might be a bit misleading in that way. This is a heavy book full of real life complications. Altogether, I think it works, and I am glad to have read it.

1⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for an advanced copy of Maine Characters.

Vivian and Lucy each spend a month during summer with their fathers in Maine. What they do not realize is that they are half sisters and share the same father. When he passes away they meet for the first time and are shocked by their father’s deception.

The cover is what made me want to read this book and I am sad to say it is the best part of the book. The plot had potential but the execution was poor. I did not like a single character in this book. I was not a fan.

When a father dies, her adult daughter goes to Maine to sell his cabin but finds a half-sister she didn't know about at the cabin. A long summer in Maine ensues with the two navigating each other and their relationships. The first 2/3rds of this book was a chore to read. It got better in the end, but it took too long to get there.

If the Parent Trap met Bravo. The two female MC's are stuck in their ways as they learn of their late fathers' infidelities which leads them to being half-sisters and in a predicament over their Maine Cabin. I was an early fan of Lucy but at times also didn't like her stubbornness. The least favorable characters were certainly Patrick and Oscar so I am glad the girls got smart in the middle of the book and became true friends/allies and moved on from toxic male partners. The ending was fast, but a nice lead into a potential second book.

Vivian would spend every August with her dad Hank at his lake house in Maine and Her half sister Lucy spent every July with him; except Hank never told Vivian about Lucy and therefore also never introduced them. Vivian grew up with her dad and mom in NYC and is now a sommelier for a hot restaurant and Lucy grew up with her single mom in the small town in Maine while dreaming of meeting her sister. When their dad dies and Vivian goes to the lake house for the summer, Lucy is there and the two must learn how to coexist, and maybe they can even learn how to be sisters.

In many ways this felt like a grown up version of the Parent Trap. I generally enjoyed this story but did have some issues with the novel; that being said, I did enjoy watching the women learn how different their lives were and how to reconcile expectations with reality. Both sisters grew through the story and I appreciated it, but I did feel that Lucy had a lot of unfair expectations and judgments that she never really compromised on any of them while Vivian made a much bigger emotional journey. I was surprised there was only one narrator for both sisters but I actually didn’t find it confusing and I ended up enjoying the audio.

3.75 stars

Thank you to Dutton Books and NetGalley for the ARC to review

Family drama in and about a lake house in Maine. Lucy has always known about Vivian but Vivian has only suspected about Lucy and now they're 31 and their father is dead. These two are vastly different as Lucy is a teacher in the small Maine town and Vivian runs the wine program at a NYC restaurant. They are alike, however, in their romantic distress and their dislike for one another. Now they're sharing the house and making decisions about their future. Know that they both seem remarkably immature at first but then the story settles down. Although she's got a huge chip on her shoulder, I found Lucy more sympathetic and likable which I suspect is intentional because you'll see the biggest change in Vivian. And then there's Celeste, Vivian's mother who is a best selling author who kept a secret until......I liked the Maine atmospherics (and the house atmospherics). I also found myself rooting for both women. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A good read.

Maine Characters is going to be a book of the summer in 2025, perfect for book clubs and introspective summer reading. At the center of this complex family story is two sisters: Vivian, a cosmopolitan New York City native and sommelier at one of the city’s most celebrated restaurants, and Lucy, the illegitimate daughter of their financier father, who was born and raised in the small Maine town where her parents met and where she still lives today. Upon their father’s untimely death, Vivian makes for Fox Hill Lake, Maine to sell her father’s beloved lake house in order to earn the money to embark on her professional dream of opening her own wine bar. She’s shocked to discover that standing in the way of her plans is the sister she had never met, whose upbringing—and relationship with their dad—are the polar opposites of Vivian’s.

Over the course of a summer together in Maine, Vivian and Lucy both grow in many unexpected ways, breaking out of old patterns and assumptions and forging a new sisterhood to enter a new chapter in side by side. No one in this book is perfect—the characters all are grieving their shared loss while wading through the pain of all the secrets that kept them apart. Everyone is deeply flawed, but this messiness makes the story feel real, and makes the happy ending even more well earned. Ultimately, Vivian, Lucy, and both their mothers walk away from the summer with a healthier relationship and hope for a new chapter.

I recommend Maine Characters for fans of women’s fiction and anyone looking for a complex but relaxing read this summer! Thanks to NetGalley and Dutton for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.