My goodness this book tugged on the heartstrings. Angie and David's lives are shattered when their son is murdered point-blank by their daughter. They are torn between being heartbroken at the devastating loss of their son while losing their daughter at the same time as she is whisked away to juvenile prison. At a loss for what to do, David suggests calling in Angie's childhood friend, now lawyer, Julian. Julian and Angie have their own shared loss from a ski accident years ago that led to the loss of Angie's younger sister. We follow these characters as they deal with the intricate nature of these events.

This book reminded me of Defending Jacob. What do you do as a parent when your child has done something irrevocably wrong. There are so many discussions around forgiveness and what makes someone a good or bad person. Does one terrible act erase all the good? Koval does such a great job of writing these characters with true depth so that there truly are no clear lines to any of it all. There is a lot of grey, just as there is in real life. The characters are hard to put in any one box, including the child who committed the crime. If you love messy families, you will enjoy this one. This is a great literary domestic drama that has put Koval on my radar for future book releases. I read this in audio which was very well done. The narration clearly captured all the emotions felt throughout the novel. That being said, I have no doubt this book will have an impact on its reader no matter the format.

A beautiful DEBUT novel about love, forgiveness, family, redemption and justice. This novel reads like a suspense/mystery but also asks the reader to reflect on deeper themes, so if you enjoy Ann Patchett, Celeste Ng or Gillian McAllister you will not be able to put this novel down!

Penitence is told across two timelines:
- Present: which follows the Sheehan family (Angie, David, Nora and Nico) after a tragedy rips their lives apart and throws Angie back into the orbit of Julian, her first love

- Past: which depicts Angie and Julian's relationship as teens and into adulthood

The audiobook chapters are clearly labeled and alternate timelines throughout the novel, which I felt added to the suspense of the story and prevented me from being able to put the story down. I thought the narrator (Thérèse Plummer) did a phenomenal job with bringing this story to life and at times I was sitting at the edge of my seat waiting for the next reveal. This novel is more character driven than plot driven but the pace is still quite quick.

I think this will be a standout literary fiction novel of 2025 so I would add it to your TBR list asap!

✨This book left me completely speechless.  I can’t believe this masterpiece of a novel is a debut because, in my opinion, it’s an instant classic. 
 
✨ I was completely blown away by the cast of flawed but superbly authentic characters as well as the expertly plotted narrative which, quite honestly, is one of the best I’ve read.  I haven’t seen this level of depth in storytelling since Jodi Picoult.
 
✨ This book will be perfect for a book club selection with so many topics for in-depth discussion. 
 
✨Highly, highly recommend.  Go ahead and add this one to your TBR now.  It’s going to be a bestseller that everyone will be talking about. 

✨I have read this one in print and also listened on audio. The narration by Therese Plummer was absolutely phenomenal .
 
🌿Read if you like:
✨Family fiction
✨Themes of forgiveness and redemption
✨Dual timelines
✨Love and loss
✨Expertly crafted depth and complexity
✨Colorado setting
✨Ski culture
✨Jodi Picoult books
✨Book club reads

This was beautifully written and emotional. It was a bit slow moving for me but still managed to hold my interest. I think I set myself up for disappointment by expecting a major twist that didn't come.

For a book that overall moves slowly it packs a series of emotional punches. I started this one on audiobook and I liked the narrator a lot. I thought it made the story move a little better actually. I moved to the physical book because I wanted to finish it quickly. This is a book of a series of moral questions and I’m not sure I agree with where any of them landed, but that’s life and it’s grey and messy. Nora who is only thirteen shoots and kills her brother (who had just been diagnosed with Huntington’s) and then calls 911. Despite signs of a mental health crisis she is charged as an adult and her mother’s ex-boyfriend comes from New York to help with her defense. This book was beautiful but in all of the saddest ways even if it’s trying to explore the idea of forgiveness. It was a great book and I would definitely read more by this author.

Well, this book turned out to be quite a disappointment to me, unfortunately. :(
I loooved the first chapters. I was so in it for the mystery and drama of why the sister shot her little brother.
At first I was also very curious about the lawyer requested for the case.
I was genuinely invested in the story during the first 25-30% of this book.
What did not work for me was that this book spends a LOT of time in flashbacks and side plots about the lawyer, and that didn't interest me.
I can see a lot of readers enjoying that, but unfortunately, I wasn't. All I wanted was the murderer girl's storyline. Nothing else.
I'm sure this book will work perfectly for other readers, but it just didn't work for me that way.
The writing is gorgeous, but I wanted something else.
The audiobook is amazing. The narrator is wonderful. I highly recommend the audio format.

Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, for allowing me to listen to an advanced and free audio copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 stars

A family-drama that is character driven and thought provoking. There were some aspects that I wish were a bit more complicated (I had clocked some of the pieces early on). The audio was very well done, and I'm quite impressed that this was a debut. I do wish there was a bit more about the present timeline, but I also understand the need for an emphasis on the past.

Great for fans of Jodi Picoult, Celeste Ng, and When We Were Bright and Beautiful.

Penitence is an emotional story that will capture your heart. What I really liked was that this was unlike any book I've read/listened to before. I can't imagine what happened to these characters in real life. I think this book would make a wonderful movie. It's definitely a story that will stick with me for some time. I did enjoy it on audiobook. If you enjoy them, You will fly through this in no time.

Many thanks to Macmillan and NetGalley for my gifted ALC.

This review will be shared to my Instagram @coffee.break.book.reviews close to publication date.

Penitence is a great debut novel and the story lives up to its title - great regret and sorrow for past actions abound here. I enjoyed this one on audio and while the narration was fine, I think I may have liked it even better if I had read it. This is a double timeline family saga with multiple POV's that alternates between 2000-2001 and 2017. Angie and David are now married, Angie and Julian were a past couple and Nora (13), Angie and David's daughter, has killed her brother. Secrets abound but it is a very, very sad story.

5 stars

This is a memorable, layered read full of intriguing characters and thoughtfully intertwined events. It's made even more impressive by the fact that this is a debut!

The novel begins with Angie and David and their two children, Nico and Nora, but mostly the unbearable tragedy they all face. Nora, who is only 13 years old, murders her brother (Nico) with their father's (David's) gun. Though Nico has been diagnosed with Huntington's Disease, and a lot is made (in assumptions) about Nora's potential desire to spare her brother the continued related challenges, everyone is baffled by this turn of events. Angie and David have one child who has died and another who - it appears - is responsible and now incarcerated. For help, they turn to Martine, a local attorney and the mother of Angie's young love, Julian. This, of course, brings both characters back into Angie's life, along with many memories for every one of them.

I came into this book thinking I'd be reading a psychological thriller about the central murder (because I try to come into most reads with a vibe but as little information otherwise as possible), but that is an extreme oversimplification of what this book actually contains. There are three generations of love, hurt, loss, secrets, betrayal, and so much more here. It is gripping. I listened to this book almost straight through and was thinking about it every moment that I was awake and prevented from continuing for one reason or another. It's engaging, thought provoking, sad, and challenging, but there are also really beautiful moments throughout.

This author has absolutely won a place on my I will read what you write without question list, and I cannot wait for more from Koval.

Kristin Koval's debut novel, which I listened to, is much more polished than one expects from a first book. The story of a 13-year-old girl, Nora, who calls 911 after shooting her 14-year-old brother, is not unique. There are Angie and David, her distraught parents and Julian, the attorney brought in by his attorney-mother Martine and who happens to have been Angie's former lover, who propel the novel. The setting, a small resort town in Colorado, provides the backdrop. The twists, turns, revelations, and outcomes do not come as surprises. Yet, in Koval's capable hands, they reach the reader in fundamental ways, playing on themes of guilt, love, and forgiveness. The audio version is enhanced by Thérèse Plummer's expert narration. Readers and listeners who read in this genre will greet Penitence with joy.

Angie and Davids lives take a horrible turn when their son is shot and killed. They are desperate to keep the family they still have together and fight for their daughter. They turn to Martine in hopes she can help them without it costing everything they have, and some they don’t. But when Angie and Martine’s son Julian were young and in love, tragedy struck Angie’s family with the sudden death of her sister. When Martine pulls in Julian to help her with the case, Angie and Julian must revisit their past.

This was a fantastic debut novel and one that will leave me thinking about it for a while to come! I went into this one blind and I was really glad I did as it was a pleasant surprise! The trauma that faced Angies family as well as Julian was so heartbreaking, but the way their relationship played out was just as devastating. This is one of those books where you will wonder who to root for, and question what is “right” vs what is necessary to survive. If you are looking for a great book club read, I think this would lead to really great conversation!

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

3.5 ⭐️

In Kristin Koval’s debut PETINENCE the reader enters the world of forgiveness, as the title suggests, for some truly unforgivable actions. Angie and David’s 13-year old daughter Nora shoots and kills her 14-year old brother Nico. They enlist Angie’s first love Julian’s mother Martine as Nora’s criminal defense attorney. This brings up the convoluted past, denoted by both tragedy and secrets, between Angie and Julian.

While I thought at first this would be like DEFENDING JACOB, but PENITENCE doesn’t stay in the legal space. I’d say it’s more of a mash-up of DEFENDING JACOB with an Angie Kim novel.

PROs:
* This novel gives the reader a lot to think about.
* The world consists of shades of gray, and that haziness is explored.
* The twists weren’t shocking and were expected well in advance. I’d say this is a pro because it indicates the plot had good groundwork. This isn’t a popcorn thriller so I don’t want twist after twist.

CONs:
* It does come across a bit heavy-handed with its themes.
* I thought it could have explored Nora’s motivations more than it did, and it was difficult to get to know the main characters.
* Possibly tied with the previous, I didn’t always like the writing style. I tend to like a closer third person or even first person narration, and this felt too far removed from the characters, more tell and less show.

Therese Plummer is the audiobook narrator. I thought she did an okay job - not bad, not great. I’d suggest sticking with how you tend to like to read books with this one, whether that be print or audio.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advance listener copy in exchange for an honest review.

PENITENCE publishes January 28, 2025.

A family is rocked by a murder involving their two children and we follow the aftermath as well as past tragedies to see how they got here. It’s mostly about how mistakes can forever impact your life and the only path forward is forgiveness. Started off strong but the pacing was so weird and I was ready for things to wrap up way before they did. The character motivations made zero sense which really bothers me in such a character driven story.

The premise of this novel is absolutely heartbreaking. The writing was poignant, emotive, and direct.

Koval develops such strong characters and I loved that while the novel centered around an enormous and devastating tragedy, it encompassed so much more. I loved the backstory with Angie and Julian and how their love story and ultimate breakup slowly revealed itself across the span of the novel. The current timeline with Julian and his mother helping Angie's family during their tragedy was riveting and Koval clearly did her research. The information surrounding the juvenile justice system and procedures felt thorough, well-informed, and well executed within the plot.

Impressively, for such a profound and deeply tragic novel, I wasn't overcome with sadness or grief for most of the novel. I felt emotional with the ending, but most of the novel was conveyed in a way that wasn't hyperbolic or upsetting for the sake of being upsetting. This is something I actually really appreciated about the writing and really credit Koval for mastering that art of language.

I also loved the span of time with this novel. It felt relevant and relatable. I liked the development of people over time, the family grudges that festered and grew without oxygen, and the secrets that ate people alive from the inside it.

I listened to this novel and loved the narrator, Therese Plummer. Her voice was soothing and also exactly right during the heavier parts, even evoking some emotion of her own when necessary. It was perfectly acted and added a lot to the novel overall.

Penitence is a complex story - mostly about grief and facing tragedy. It's also about family secrets, forgiveness, survival, love, and our relationships.

Thank you to Celadon and MacMillan Audio for the copy.

I struggle with audiobooks, but this one really kept me engaged. I would call this more of a family drama than a suspense/thriller. I think as long as you know that going in, you will enjoy this story. I thought the narrator did a pretty great job on the audiobook. Definitely recommend!

A family drama with a horrible crime. Angie's and David's teen daughter has killed their young son. As the story unfolds with so many unknowns, it also becomes more complicated with some history in their family that makes all of this so much more painful.

I enjoyed this narration of a story that begins in Colorado and continues in NYC. The descriptions of each place felt spot on, making it feel more immersive. I was compelled to find out how this story would wrap up.

I recommend the audio narration of this book.

My thanks to Net Galley and Macmillian Audio for an advanced copy of this audiobook.

A very emotional family drama. It was less about the daughter Nora's crime & more about the parents' past, and how that shaped the present - I was hoping for more of a focus on the why of the crime, but you don't really get that. Overall, very powerful and moving novel and I still enjoyed it, but it was much different than I expected going in.

This book was floating around on bookstagram, getting a few five star reviews, so I figured I would give it a shot. Immediately I was hooked! The story is so intricately woven and deep, spanning decades in the character’s lives. It seems impossible that this is a debut, these characters and their stories are imprinted in my mind and I can’t stop thinking about them! There are two different families that the story follows and it goes back and forth in time showing how much they have impacted one another. The characters are flawed, make mistakes, broken, and that makes this story feel even more real to me. It is a story about forgiveness ultimately and how much heartbreak one can endure in a lifetime. I cannot stop raving about this book and won’t be happy until every one has read it! I did the audio and it was so perfect. I was able to completely get lost in the story thanks to the narrator!

Thank you Netgalley for this advanced audio edition of Penitence by Kristin Koval.

This story starts out with a bang when a young teenage girl is arrested for killing her brother. But it's not just a story of what happened, and did she do it. Instead it reaches way back, long before these siblings were born. To the life of their parents, the lovers of their parents, and everything that happened leading up to the tragic episode. It's so rich, it's vibrant, it's full of secrets and heartbreak, and not all of your questions will be answered. It was so worth the read, I thoroughly enjoyed it.