Reading Notes

Four things I loved:

1. "But this isn’t a story about cats, or even about dogs. It’s a story about horrible things that happen to people, and how on earth anyone can stomach raising children in a world where doom and disaster lurk around every corner. So, no, it’s not a story about a cat. It’s just a story that starts with a cat, and it goes from there." p15 Nice bit of meta and she's already got me in my feels– expectations raised!

2. The story here is remarkable and I love it, its so weird! Wonderfully weird!The family structure is like nothing I've ever seen– a couple and her diaabled ex-husband cohabitating, *and* the husbands are life-long best friends. I've never read anything like this and it makes me happy.

3. This book is quite a bit darker than I expected, but I'm all in!

4. This book repally leans in to life's tragic absurdity and it's working really well for the story in unexpected places, like tone and pace.

Two quibbles:

1. I keep thinking I'm picking up on political dog whistles and I do not find it pleasant. Normally it doesnt bother me much, but I don't know how to react emotionally to dog whistles. I'm not even always sure wherehow to interpret them. I find them an unpleasant fiction element.

2. Well... that was just a brick wall of ableism that I face-planted on, starting on p38. Such a common problem in fiction.

Notes

1. content warnings: car accident, human death, animal death, ableism, death of a child, poison, dog attack (off page)

2. DNF @ p38 for ableism.

Rating: DNF @ p38
Recommend? no
Finished: Apr 25, '25
Format: accessible digital arc, NetGalley

Thank you to the author Annie Hartnet, publishers Ballentine Books, and NetGalley for an advance digital copy of L.A Women. All views are mine.
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Hate to say it, but was my least fav of her work :( starting to feel like the themes are repetitive (grief, accepting family members…). Also normally her unlikable characters are still lovable, but PJ was simply not. It was infuriating to see an adult act in the way he did.

The content for this book was too dark for me. I can tell it has Harnett's classic humor filled writing, and I thought the characters of what I read were well developed. However I did not see a reality where those children were given to that man to be looked after. The descriptions of what happened to the children were too much for me.

First of all... PANCAKES!!!!! I NEED HIM!

Second...This was beautifully written. Annie Hartnett's style is so eloquent and conveys so much emotional depth. The characters are written flawed and at times I DID NOT LIKE THEM, but I understood them and empathized with them. There are some very dark tragic parts and at times my jaw was on the floor from one event to the next.

PJ is unlikely likeable, and I struggled with my feelings toward his character because of his flawed thinking process, however, his capacity for compassion and goodness tugged at all my heart strings. The kids have so much trauma and he is able to see them as children who need care even if he gets it wrong and at times is selfishly motivated. The stories he tells and how it has impacted everyone's lives are so poignant and show his growth.

This is not a lighthearted story, even though it has its moments. There are really hard topics discussed surrounding death, abuse, trauma, alcoholism and addictions, and fractured relationships. PJ's relationships are textbook codependent and dismissive at worst, and caring and supportive at best. I loved seeing how his relationship with his daughter developed and changed by the end of the book and definitely had tears in my eyes seeing them start to reconcile slowly.

4.5 Stars for this wonderful chaotic story of unlikely family and allies.

Lovely story of family and it includes a cat!! I loved all the characters. Hartnett's characters have real depth. These are fully realized people with struggles and foibles. i laughed and cried. This book is a winner

This might be my first ever 5 star road trip book (because they don't typically work for me)! The premise for this story sounds ridiculous and probably would’ve been in any other author’s hands. But, not Annie Hartnett’s. PJ Halliday is a 63 year old unemployed alcoholic who won 1.5M in the lottery years before. He’s recovering from the tragic death of his oldest daughter and his ex-wife is still more or less taking care of him even though she now lives with her boyfriend in a house down the street. He’s planning a road trip when he’s contacted by Child Services asking to become the guardian of his estranged brother’s grandchildren after they lost both their parents. So, the kids and PJ’s younger daughter join him on this road trip. I adore Hartnett's entirely singular, voice-y writing style. She confronts serious issues in her books, but layers them with dark, sometimes morbid humor and a heart-warming feeling. Every main character in this story is dealing with some sort of trauma in their lives (loss, grief, addiction) and this road trip is a healing mechanism for them all. Of course, ridiculous stuff happens to them along the way. This book felt like a warm bath. Characters I adored and was rooting for, chuckle funny humor, and themes of healing and resilience.

Why was this the sweetest book I read this year? I loved Hartnett's other book - Unlikely Animals, and this is just as good. The book is tender and perfect for the beach or the weekend or the subway.

I absolutely loved Annie Hartnett's previous books and was so excited to receive an early copy of this one -- and I really loved it! All of her books have the most unique and quirky characters and dynamics and this one did not disappoint.

While PJ drove me crazy at times, I really felt for him and how stuck in life he was -- and understandably. I loved seeing him reach outside his comfort zone and create strong bonds with his daughter and the kids. Parts of this is so sad and parts are so hilarious -- it's a great balance and I wanted to know what was going to happen.

I recommend this one to anyone who likes quirky novels, road trips, and endearing characters. I am so excited to read what Annie Hartnett writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

This is just the sweetest quirkiest wildest road trip of a book! It wanders here and there and you get small pieces of the story. The characters are very identifiable and lovable despite their faults. And the road trip just makes you want to get on the road and explore. I mean road trips... we all love them or we want to think that we do. And throw a cat into the mix and you just have total perfection, not in a road trip, but in a book. You can't help but root for everyone in this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. Fabulous summer reading!

Loved this book so much. It was funny, heart warming, emotional. So well written that I would highly recommend

PJ Halliday had it together at one point. Before his marriage to Ivy fell apart, before his oldest daughter Kate drowned in a few inches of water on prom night, before his drinking really got out of hand. Before all that, he was a perfectly pleasant fellow and a decently good dad. But now, PJ is a 63 year old bachelor who won the lottery and has nothing to show for it. And so when news of his childhood love newly-single status reaches PJ all the way out in Pondville, Massachusetts, he decides to plan a road trip to the Tender Hearts Retirement Community in Arizona to find her.

What he didn't anticipate, was said road trip including his deceased brother's newly-orphaned grandchildren and a cat named Pancakes (no relation to the family) who made a reputation for himself at the Pondville nursing home as an "agent of death" who could predict when someone's time was up. So with two children and one cat with exactly nobody in the world except for PJ, the roadtrip to Tender Hearts begins.

"The Road to Tender Hearts" is a somewhat darker, somewhat more tragic Fredrik Backman novel that will pull on your heartstrings in the best and worst ways. Annie Hartnett has penned an unforgettable and irresistible-despite-his-glaring-flaws character in PJ Halliday,. His relationship not only with his roadtrip companions, but with life itself, is a complicated and deeply-human one: to read this book is to love this book, readers, trust me. So much more than a found family novel, "The Road to Tender Hearts" is about picking up the pieces of your life, even when (and perhaps especially when) some of its most important pieces are missing.

This was a little darker than I expected and dealt with some real issues. The characters were strong as individuals and an ensemble that worked together to show the whole scope of life.

This was my first book by this author and it was great. I was hooked from the beginning. This was a quirky and fun story.

This book was a really enjoyable read. I loved the quirkiness they all had and getting to hear a little of each person's POV was a nice tactic. I felt each character was really well balanced- equally flawed yet redeemable. The author also did a great job of balancing more serious and dark topics with humor and reflection. One thing that I thought could use a little more exploration was the deaths that took place throughout the story. I just felt that element felt a little random and I had a hard time connecting it to the rest of the story.

It was cute and quirky. I could not stand PJ; his whole personality just seemed off and he was too much of a caricature. The kids and cat were great however, and I was invested in the story.

I loved this book. Moving and tender while not shying away from the difficulties of life, The Road to Tender Hearts follows PJ on his grand trip across the country to woo “the one who got away”. Accompanied by his adult daughter, two young kids he’s now the guardian of, and a death predicting cat, the book tackles redemption, change, and life after tragedy.

This was a gem of a novel: found family, personal growth, a road trip, and Pancakes, the cat that can predict death. I loved all of the quirky side characters, and I especially loved how much PJ loved this ex-wife and her new husband. Super quirky and cute—just my style!

This novel involves alcoholic lottery winner PJ who has never gotten over the death of his daughter or his wife leaving him; his daughter Sophie who hasn’t gotten over the death of her sister or her father’s unreliable alcoholism; 9 and 10 year old siblings Luna and Ollie who suffer a family tragedy; and a cat named Pancakes (whose thoughts we can hear) who is a harbinger of death, as they end up together making a road trip across America.

I don’t want to say any more about the plot than that, as it’s one best experienced rather than described. Let’s just say it’s a very quirky book, funny but also pretty dark - though luckily ultimately heartwarming! I also loved Annie Hartnett’s book Unlikely Animals - she really is an original one!

Filled with quirky complicated characters, this road trip book is chock full of laugh out loud moments and some great life wisdom. I loved that the characters are not perfect, just oh so human. And Pancakes the cat steals every page - best book animal!

I really enjoyed Annie Hartnett’s last book was excited to get an arc of her latest!

This is a very quirky book so if that’s not your thing- definitely pass on this one. But if you enjoy an unusual read, you will probably find this one fun.

I found it very heart warming and loved the kids and Sophie and of course Pancakes. I think what ultimately bothered me about this book was the main character PJ. At 63, he is the sweetest in that he really cares for people and is generous, but he is a complete buffoon who makes the lives of those who love him more difficult. He just didn’t feel like a real person but more of a cartoon character and I would have liked more from him. I could have done without PJ entirely and just had the other characters and this book would have been so much better!

Overall- I enjoyed it. 3.5 rounded up

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.