I can’t say I loved this book, but I did enjoy it. It’s the story of two sisters who are inseparable, but one sister seems to enjoy the best in life, while the other makes sure never to rock the boat and upset the other sister.

There’s a whole lot of talk about soccer, as this is a soccer family, and although interesting, it was a lot. Family dynamics and tragedy pulsate through this book, which kept me reading rather than giving up, but I did find this one a bit of a slog.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the advanced reader copy.

This is an emotionally charged story of two sisters who love the sport of soccer and follow in their mom's footsteps in search of the ultimate goal and rewards of a star player.
However, life is not all it seems when one sister is a better athlete and the other moves forward with a different goal later on.
Will the girls remain close? It is not easy and yet neither can forget their love for each other or for their matriarch.

The journey as this family grows is challenging.
It is intense, emotional and definitely sad at times.
A good story and one i enjoyed!
Ii you like women's fiction then please pick up this story as you will definitely love these ladies.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @Random House for this ARC and allowing me to provide my own review.

Spectacular Things is a character driven family drama about two sisters, Mia and Cricket, united by a dream to achieve soccer greatness in honor of their mother, Liz. The book follows Mia and Cricket as they grow up and chase the dream of Cricket playing for the US Women's World Cup team. As the book opens, we know Cricket is on the 2028 Women's Soccer team for the Los Angeles Summer Olympics, and the book slowly moves forward from their mother's time in high school as a soccer star to 2028 to show how Cricket got to the Olympics with the help and support of her mother, and Mia, and her soccer coach.
This book was enjoyable to read, even to a non-sports/non-soccer fan, because it was a study on identity and how the relentless pursuit of a dream can come to define us, and our choices, and those of our friends and family as well. Mia and Cricket have a great relationship and their love for each other really showed through the pages. The growth that they both show as the book moves forward was well done and enjoyable to experience as well.
Thank you to Random House, The Dial Press, and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

When you put spectacular in the title of your book you set the bar pretty high, but Beck Dorey-Stein clears the bar with ease, creating a emotional journey around the dynamic of the Lowe sisters and the legacy their mother creates for them. That’s not to say the book is an easy read; it wrecked havoc on my emotions throughout the whole book. Liz Lowe has a promising soccer career ahead of her when she ends up pregnant with Mia. Liz chooses her daughter and a new life in Victory, Maine over a future in soccer for herself. Mia starts showing promise as a soccer player herself, but is quickly outshined when her younger sister Cricket comes along. Cricket’s talent level is so off the charts that the Lowe family adjusts to fit her potential future, meaning Liz is working two jobs to pay the bills and Mia has given up her own future in the sport to manage the finances and the household. Just when Mia is beginning to explore a future of her own choosing away at college, she gets the horrible news that their mother has been killed. Thus sets into motion even further the level of sacrifice Mia makes for Cricket, and Cricket’s determination to make it to the highest level of the game to justify all the time and effort she and others have put into her career. At times all three of them infuriate me. Liz, for asking Mia to give up so much to act as a second parent. Mia for almost never being willing to choose herself. And Cricket, for being so obsessed with her goals for the future that she never seems to see how much others do for her and how little she gives back in return. At the start of the book, we see Mia in a position where she needs something critical from Cricket, and then most of the rest of the story is about the three women leading up to that point. I don’t think I would have liked this book as much as I did if the characters didn’t have such complex layers, but I’m glad Dorey-Stein mixed in plenty of happy moments and a generally amicable relationship between Mia and Cricket. Some readers may be deterred by the sports storyline of the book, but even if you don’t understand soccer, it’s a really powerful story. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I actually want to give this one 3.5 stars. It's kind of refreshing to find a book that has well-drawn, relatable women characters and a story line that keeps you going to the end. I'm not going to summarize the plot here--other reviewers have already done that--but I will say that it's about moms and their daughters, sisters and their special bond, the power of friendship, and a cautionary tale about seeing what we want to see. I was happy to be reading a book with strong, but oh-so-human, women characters that didn't have men driving the plot. Minus a few points because the story sometimes veers into predictability, but generally enjoyable.

I’ll start by saying I did enjoy this book. Mia and Cricket are lovable characters, and I will miss reading about them. However, the book was fairly predictable and sometimes I don’t really know what the point of everything was. I did enjoy this, though!

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group / The Dial Press for allowing me to read this book early. The opinion in this review is my own.

This was such a good read and I hope more people give it a chance. It’s about two sisters, Mia and Crickett, who were raised by their single mother, Elizabeth, who also had a rough upbringing. This book brings up many ethical questions about when to expect things from your loved ones and when to love them no matter their decision. It also talked a lot about generational trauma and how it holds on.
The writing was excellent and the characters were fully fleshed out. Cricket and Mia are loving siblings who support each other, but have to make a very difficult, life-changing decision. As the reader, you think one decision is clear, but as you think on it, you have to consider what you’d do in this same situation.

It’s compelling for most of the time, but there were parts that dragged on a bit, which is why it’s only 4 stars. Sometimes, the story gets bogged down with details. I do still recommend this book, it is intriguing and thought-provoking.

Liz Lowe was a soccer phenom years ago. She got pregnant, and her career was over.

She put all her focus in making her girls into star players.

The older sister doesn't have the natural talent the younger does, and all focus was on Cricket.

This all comes at a price though, and it draws the sisters into difficult decisions.

This was a book I can highly recommend. The writing and the characters were so well done. I can't wait to read more by this author.

Thank you to Random House and Net Galley for a digital ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

#SpectacularThings #BeckDoreyStein #Netgalley #RandomHouse

Beck Dory-Stein’s Spectacular Things is a heartwarming story about three sisters who stick together through thick and thin. They’re all about supporting each other and making sacrifices for one another. The book talks about family bonds, dealing with trauma, and the sacrifices people make for what they believe in. An enjoyable read.

Having finished Beck Dorey-Stein's "Spectacular Things," I can say the core of the book lies in the fascinating and often complicated relationship between sisters Mia and Cricket. I was really invested in seeing how their bond evolved as they pursued their individual dreams and dealt with their family's past. The dynamic between the responsible Mia and the fiercely driven Cricket felt genuine and created a compelling emotional undercurrent throughout the story.

However, the pacing in "Spectacular Things" did feel a bit uneven at times. There were sections where the story seemed to linger, particularly when delving into the nuances of their individual journeys, which occasionally slowed the overall momentum. While these moments often provided valuable insight into the characters' motivations and the complexities of their choices, I found those parts a little drawn out. Despite this, the strong character development and the poignant exploration of sisterhood and sacrifice ultimately made "Spectacular Things" a worthwhile read.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review of Spectacular Things. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Random House, for this opportunity.

“Sisters function as safety nets in a chaotic world simply by being there for each other.”—Carol Saline

Author Beck Dory-Stein weaves an inspiring tale of resilience, ambition, and the power of family. Spectacular Things revolves around three women who are bound not just by their shared determination to achieve their dreams, but by the sacrifices they willingly make for one another.

Each character is brought to life with depth and authenticity, offering readers a glimpse into their unique struggles and aspirations. Liz navigates being a young mom determined to help her children succeed. Liz’s oldest daughter, Mia, sacrifices her own hopes and dreams to help her sister’s come to fruition while Cricket, Liz’s youngest daughter, struggles to balance her own strengths and vulnerabilities. Each of the women’s unique roles and responsibilities creates a layer that contributes to the story's emotional richness.

For me, what sets Spectacular Things apart is its exploration of the complexities of family and ambition. Dory-Stein masterfully balances moments of triumph with heartbreak, highlighting the sacrifices Liz, Mia and Cricket must endure to support each other in their journeys. I found myself immersed in this incredible story, unable to tear myself away.

Overall, Spectacular Things serves as a reminder that success often comes at a cost, but with a strong support system, no challenge is insurmountable. I absolutely love the themes of resilience, sacrifice, and the pursuit of happiness that resonate throughout the novel. I highly recommend this novel; it's an absolute gem!

Grateful to #NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

Liz Lowe is a single mother to two daughters, Mia and Cricket. Cricket is a soccer phenom, but achieving her dreams takes commitment and dedication from every member of the family. The novel explores what we sacrifice for the people that we love and the pressure that comes with needing to make someone else's sacrifices worth it.

This is one of the best books I read this year - I cried more than once at how absolutely beautiful the story is. The prose is stunning and the characters are so well developed. I cannot recommend this book enough.

This one didn’t hold my attention well. For some reason I didn’t love the characters - i just didn’t care for them. The writing is good and I will definitely take a look at this author’s first book as I found her to be a good story teller.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an early release in exchange for a fair and honest review.

What would you give up for the person you love most? What would you expect in return?

“She understands she is on Earth for such an indefinite amount of time and that the only guarantee is that life is short and unreliable and that it is easy to get waylaid in daily stress that doesn't ultimately matter.”

I really, really enjoyed this! I feel like I tend to gravitate towards stories about sisters, and this to me, truly encapsulates sisterhood. This plot was really entertaining and had me DEEP thinking about the experience these sisters are facing. I definitely recommend this, especially if you enjoy Coco Mellors, Ann Napolitano or Taylor Jenkins-Reid.

Thank you to Random House for the advanced copy! Release date July 1!

I enjoyed reading Spectacular Things so much that I found I didn't want to close my eyes at night. The family dynamic is what interested me so. Even within a splintered family (single mom, grandparents uninvolved) the the mother and daughters championed each other and always had each other's backs. Heart wrenching.

Liz gives up her dreams after a surprise pregnancy she has two daughters Mia and Cricket, Cricket is good at soccer, her mother's dream, Mia fives up a lot to support cricket, until something happens and makes cricket realize what Mia has given up for her.

This book was OK but not great. It started off well but found myself predicting the end and although I pushed through, it was also unforgettable once I was done.

This book explores the nuanced dynamics of a family- the women and their relationships. This book also explores themes of ambition, loyalty, and sacrifice. I was hooked from the beginning, with a semi cliff hanging intro to the main characters. Loved the way the author laid out their backgrounds and the history of the Lowe family (and others) in reverse chronological order, walking us all the way back to the present. While the book felt a little long, with some of the characters lacking depth, the story kept me captivated.

Beck Dorey-Stein, I will be reading more of your books!

Thank you to NetGalley and The Dial Press for providing me with early access to this book in exchange for my honest review.

"Spectacular Things" follows Liz, who once had dreams of playing soccer at UCLA but faced an unexpected pregnancy that changed her path. Devoted to raising her two daughters, Mia and Cricket, Liz hopes they will pursue the dreams she had to set aside. As the sisters grow up, Mia makes sacrifices to support Cricket's ambitions of becoming a soccer star. However, the dynamic shifts when Mia finds herself needing Cricket's support.

As a girl with two sisters, I found this story relatable and raw. The balance of love, sacrifice, and support in sisterly relationships resonated with me. Sisters have their moments; we argue and say things we don’t mean, but at the end of the day, it’s all out of love. This novel effectively conveys the emotional weight of selflessness and how one sister’s choices impact the other.

I won’t admit how many times I cried or screamed "holy shit" while reading this book, but through it all, I connected deeply with the characters and reflected on my relationships with my sisters. This book is definitely among my top reads of the year, and I will be thinking about it for a long time.

QUOTES I LOVED
"To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift."

"If something bad happens to someone you love, you check in. It doesn't matter if you're in a fight, you set aside your ego and you fucking check in."

I'm grateful to Beck Dorey-Stein, Dial Press, and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review of SPECTACULAR THINGS.

I was very much pulled into the story by a strong opening that successfully made me question how the characters had arrived at that point. Overall, I found the writing more upmarket/women's fiction than literary and I think it will be quite successful in that niche. The characters and settings are well defined and differentiated, and the pacing is quite good in that it moves along without significant lulls in the action. The downside of that is that this family seems to experience disaster after disaster on the page, which may strain credulity for some readers. I personally had some trouble with the fact that first Liz, the mother, first gave up her college education and soccer career to have her child but was never able to resume even her education. She was portrayed as having no ambivalent feelings about it. Then, when her older daughter--also a talented soccer player who'd already sacrificed her sport, also had to give up her Yale education again in favor of younger sister Cricket's soccer career, her feelings are portrayed as largely free of anger, struggle, frustration, resentment. Essentially, one of the major themes of the novel, the sacrifices one makes for love and family loyalty, seem almost too psychologically easy. Until they're not, once, for Cricket--who is the one who's never sacrificed before. But her initial reaction of "this is too much to ask," seems entirely normal to me.

There's a lot of melodrama in this novel and the ending is definitely very much is "happily ever after" tied up in a red bow ending. Many readers will love this and I suspect the book will be a hit. My criticisms aside, I did enjoy reading it, and I thought the author's take on the world of women's professional soccer was a bonus, and very, beautifully accomplished.