This is a great family drama that gives you a lot of feels. I loved the messiness and the heart of it all. We have all wondered these things. I liked the cover and I will look for more from this author.

Three sisters, Alex, Nancy, and Eva, gather with their families to celebrate their mother’s seventieth birthday, but a sudden accident unearths long-buried secrets and beliefs that threaten to unravel their bond.

Centered around the theme of “who is the favorite child,” the story explores how key moments shape the way we see ourselves and each other. Littlewood uses shifting timelines and multiple points of view to show how past perceptions influence present choices. The large cast of often unlikeable characters adds a sense of chaos that feels true to big family dynamics. I found that immersive reading and listening helped me keep track of everyone and stay grounded in the structure. The symbolism and imagery were clear and effective, noticeable without being hard to interpret. I really enjoyed this one, though I can see how it might not be for everyone.

Vivienne and Patrick have raised their three girls, and raised them well. They plan a vacation with everyone, spouses and kids included, which is where the drama begins. Something happens that forces Patrick to show that he has a favorite daughter. Now the family is stuck together for the week with that information swimming in their heads.

This book took me a solid two weeks to read, however, that does not mean I didn’t love it! For some reason I just really needed to soak in each sentence as I read, and it was definitely on the more character driven side! I think anyone with siblings has felt like their parent had a favorite, so the start of this book truly took off with a bang as Patrick shows his favorite without meaning to. It took some time for me to clarify which man was with which sister, and which kids belonged where, but I really loved that we saw both the present day, and the past of the entire family. This family was filled with all the messy sibling/family dynamics, and I really ended up enjoying this book!

Thank you to @henryholtbooks for my gifted copy of this book!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Loved the humor and drama in this book about how families can be complicated and the drama can span for decades. The character interactions with each other were entertaining and so relatable. Loved the timeline jumps that help explain the backstory along the way for each person.

There are times when the good people of Goodreads get it wrong. This is one of those times. Thankfully I requested an ARC for this title based on the description alone without popping over to check the average rating. If I had, I might have scrolled right by.

There are two seasons a year when I get in my feelings about being from a small family: summer and Christmas. I blame the social media posts of coordinating outfits at dusk and silly reindeer games around the Christmas tree. Then my friends from big families tell me what the pictures don't show and I'm thankful for my little squad.

The Accidental Favorite makes me feel that same way: both jealous and thankful. This book is about a family: a mom, a dad, three daughters, their significant others and kids. It's a story of marriage, parenthood, familial bonds, secrets, mental health, and aging. It touches on all of these (and more) in a very believable way. It would be a great book to discuss with other readers!

It's told in alternating perspectives and times to reveal the full picture. I couldn't read the second half fast enough. There was an added suspenseful element as two of the characters were on the brink, and I needed to know how it was going to end up. This book sits in my domestic family fiction happy place, and I'm so thankful to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for the review copy!

At first glance this book appears to be a family drama about a dysfunctional family- and don’t get me wrong, it very much is. But on a deeper level it is about sisters and the ever changing relationships they have with each other. Towards the end of reading this the quote from the old nineties TV show, Sisters (you know the one, with Sela Ward) popped into my head: “…The only ones who are there for you, from cradle to grave, are your sisters.” That quote sums up this book perfectly.
As with her first book, Fran Littlewood has written a book that will speak to most women. This encompasses the sibling rivalry sisters experience as children through adulthood. It delves into the complicated relationship that makes up sisters: how we love each other then hate each other and then end up loving each other again.
I love how Fran Littlewood set this in the same universe as Amazing Grace Adams giving us a fun Easter egg about 80% of the way through and I love that while this book was heavy and depressing for the first half to three quarters, it ends in a way you don’t expect.
Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for an advanced copy of this. The Accidental Favorite hit the shelves on June 24th.

For Vivienne’s 70th birthday, her husband Patrick, their 3 grown daughters (Alex, Nancy and Eve) and their families come together to send a week in a glass home in the country. When a tree comes crashing down, Patrick instinctively rushes to save his youngest daughter, Eve, setting forth a feeling that Eve might be her dad’s favorite kid.

As the week progresses, old memories are uncovered as the sisters and the parents reexamine the past, their old hurts buried but still shaping them into the people they have become.

I love a good family saga. Especially one with witty banter. This novel has both but somehow it just didn’t quite work for me. The sisters all irritated me but maybe it’s because I don’t have sisters? I don’t know. I loved Amazing Grace Adams and was excited for this one but it just didn’t suck me in. I will say that the narration in this one was quite good and that is the main reason I stuck with it.

Thank you to @netgalley @henryholtbooks @macmillan.audio for an early #gifted audiobook and digital review copy of this novel

This book is for the pretty one and the smart one. It’s for the good one and the troublemaker, the athletic one and the creative one, the overachiever and the mess.

The Accidental Favorite is the kind of family drama that starts with one tiny moment and suddenly, all the cracks in the Fisher family’s foundation are exposed. Three sisters, one glass house (metaphor much?), and decades of rivalry, resentment, and birth order baggage come crashing to the surface.

As someone with a younger sister and a very healthy (maybe) sense of sibling competition, I found so much of this to be uncomfortably relatable. The sisters are messy, flawed, and constantly measuring themselves against one another, which made me feel deeply seen and also mildly attacked. Fran Littlewood doesn’t just write family dysfunction—she dissects it, layering in memory, identity, favoritism, and the way our parents shape us even long after we’ve grown.

It took me a minute to find my footing in the multi-POV structure, told in multiple timelines, but once I did, I was all in. The flashbacks to childhood were both funny and quietly devastating, especially the sisters’ insistence that they had a “great upbringing” while listing off enough emotional neglect to fuel a decade of therapy.

It’s chaotic, layered, and just the right amount of uncomfortable. If you’re into sibling dynamics, family secrets, and reading passages that make you text your sister “Do you remember this happening or am I crazy?”, this one’s for you.

Strongly recommend!

Thank you to @netgalley and @henryholt for an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

It's Vivienne's 70th birthday, and three generations gather in a glasshouse in the English countryside to celebrate. The Patriarch insists on taking photos, and as he captures his three daughters, a tree falls, and he passes his two daughters to save the farthest one from him. This sets the tone for the celebration. There are plenty of emotions and rivalries, which make for some good old-fashioned family drama. I enjoyed the audio more once I figured out the names and who went with whom.

This was a pretty good exploration of sibling rivalry and family secrets. I had a hard time believing that the instigating incident would lead to everything that it did, which made the beginning kind of a slow start for me. I did enjoy learning more about each sister's backstory and how they have been shaped into the people they are today, and their relationships with their own children. The primary setting of the book--a glass house in relative wilderness-- is extremely atmospheric and contributes a lot to the overall mood of the book as tempers flare and secrets come to light. Overall, there was plenty of drama (both familial and romantic), and several characters were quite relatable, if not entirely likeable. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a tense family drama with plenty of angst that ultimately sees a resolution of sorts.

Sharp, witty, and emotionally affluent. The Accidental Favorite explores the true meaning of siblinghood, the intricate web of family dynamics, and how we all experience life a little differently despite growing up in the same home. As someone in a family of 3 children, this hits close to home, though I grew up with brothers. Littlewood so accurately captures the relationships between siblings; it's not always perfect and pretty, but there will always be love.

Alex, Nancy, and Eva are having a vacation with their families and parents when a near disaster occurs. And suddenly the question arises - do parents have a favorite? And what happens when that rears its ugly head?

I had a rash of books about sisters and what is that about? But anyway, here we are - another three sister saga. It seems Dad does indeed have a favorite, and that’s not even the biggest secret the family reveals. The sisters harbor long standing resentments and it times it gets tedious, but for the most part this is a well told story. I struggled sometimes with keeping the sisters straight, but once you get to know them, it’s easier. I would read more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available June 24, 2025.

Thank you Henry Holt and Co. and NetGalley for the ARC!

The Accidental Favorite was an exploration of familial relations after a surprise revelation. The book itself was interesting if not a little dry. There were moments that I really connected with, but it took me awhile to get through this book.

Thank you again for the ARC!

3.5 ⭐️
The Accidental Favorites is one of those books you will think about for a bit after. Immersed in family drama and complicated characters, this book is one for the books.
When the Fisher family gathers for their mother Vivienne’s 70th birthday, Pandora’s box is opened, by way of a tree limb falling. The three sisters are faced with questions after their father rushes to save the youngest disinter. Is she his favorite?
The premise of this book is wildly entertaining, and the writing so real and honest. I did struggle to connect with the characters, and like them. But I really did enjoy this read, and can’t wait to read Amazing Grace Adams, which I just found at a book sale. Yay!
Thank you netgalley for this arc!

I was instantly sucked in by the atmosphere and writing style.
The writing is exceptional and I was hooked after the first sentence.
The characters draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.
The characters were all realistic and very well developed.
I really enjoyed the writing style. I found myself hooked, turning the pages.

I thought I was going to like this a little more than I did, as I'm the oldest sister lol. As someone all too familiar with the intricacies of family dynamics, I found this novel both reflective and revealing. Over the years, my own family has often joked about who the “favourite child” might be so naturally, this story hit close to home.

The novel explores the complex relationships between sisters, between Vivian and Patrick, and between parents and their children with real nuance. It made me pause and reflect on my own family thankfully, our dynamics haven’t taken quite the dramatic turn that unfolds here.

The structure of the book mimics the way memory works: winding, sometimes fragmented, but always authentic. As the holiday progresses, buried tensions rise to the surface. What begins as a seemingly ordinary family gathering slowly unravels into something far more emotional—at times painful and raw, but also unexpectedly funny and sharply observed.

The pace does lag a bit in the middle, particularly during the more mundane recollections that reflect the everyday grind. But just as you're starting to settle in, the emotional stakes climb, and the atmosphere tightens with rising anxiety and stress, pulling you right back The characters were unlikable for me but I still enjoyed the story itself.

A must-read if you are craving family drrraaammmmaaaa! 3 sisters, each at different stages in their lives and with different familial roles, come together with their parents to celebrate the oldest sister having another baby, and their Mom's 70th birthday. When their father unexpectedly shows his true feelings about who may be his favorite daughter, things start to unravel fast.

There are so many secrets, long-held grudges, and unexpected twists that certainly kept my attention. The book often feels like a stream of consciousness, but that helped me get into the minds of the characters more. I just wish the sisters voices were written a bit more uniquely.

The book is very British, which was fun, and I always love a vacation setting (especially in a rich-person's vacation house, thanks to the youngest sister recently becoming a multi-millionaire). I kind of expected a few more shocking twists and turns, but in the end, it's a simple book about family drama, sibling love, and coming to terms with the past. An easy 4 stars and a great summer read.

They say parents don't have favorites, but we know that they do. The Accidental Favorite highlights this in a fun, yet still moving way. A perfect summer read.

I couldn't seem to connect with this book. It took me some time to get accustomed to the author's writing style. The characters were occasionally whiny. Thank you, NetGalley.

If you are looking for family drama, look no further! Thanks so much to Henry Holt for both the #gifted physical ARC and NetGalley ebook access in exchange for my honest opinions. It took me a little while to get into this read (and I am so glad there was a family tree to refer to!), but once I was into it, it was hard to put down. The end was especially engaging!
I’m an only child, and I particularly love reading about messy sibling drama because it’s something I've never had to deal with!
The title and plot of The Accidental Favorite stems from a family reunion where a tree falls when the dad is taking a picture of his three grown (40ish year old) daughters - and he bypasses two of them to make sure one is moved to safety, apparently showing a previously-hidden favoritism. As you can imagine, there is a lot more to the story than just that. Written through multiple POV (from all three sisters and the mother, both in the present and with occasional flashbacks to the past), this tale of sibling rivalry and family secrets, told by women who all have children, was really engaging. If you’re a fan of sibling and family sagas, I definitely recommend this one, which published 6/25. I enjoyed finishing the book on my couch with a delicious beverage from Trader Joe’s yesterday afternoon after my school year FINALLY ended. Cheers to books and beverages and summer break!