Oh this book was wonderful. Told in duel timelines you get the story of Susan Bliss and also her children. The lives of the children before she died and after. Viola and Sebastian are so different and process their mother`s death in totally different ways. The writing in this novel pulls you in and the characters keep you there. Yes there is drama and love but most of all great storytelling!

Family Drama opens with a striking image: the sea burial of a soap opera star witnessed by her young twins. From that moment, the novel begins peeling back the layers of Susan Bliss, a woman who split her life between the demands of stardom and the realities of raising a family.

Rebecca Fallon writes with clarity and compassion. She gives Susan the space to be magnetic, flawed, and ambitious without forcing her into a single narrative. We see her through her own eyes and through those of her adult children, Sebastian and Viola, who are still working to understand the version of their mother that each of them knew.

The characters are vivid. The grief feels real. The tension between career and caregiving is never treated like an easy choice.
This is not just a novel about fame or family. It’s about how memory works, how people disappoint each other, and how love survives.
#simonandschuster #familydrama #rebeccafallon

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This book was written like a work of art and the past and present switch makes it easy to follow and understand. I love that we see Susan’s life and how she navigated being a soap opera actress and a wife and mom. I absolutely fell in love with her character and her passion in life oozes from the pages. But I was fascinated at what we are shown with her children and what life was like for them growing up with her being so caught up in her career. This book did a fantastic job of showing how it shaped their lives and how they learn more about her even after she’s gone. This book was so beautiful and it is truly a treasure.

I love this book. Fallon's prose strikes a delicate balance between sharp observation and emotional resonance, managing to weave together moments of heartbreak with scenes of high drama. Family Drama succeeds in raising fundamental questions about sacrifice, whether one can simultaneously be both a devoted mother and an accomplished artist and how spiritual legacy passes between generations. This is a promising debut that demonstrates Fallon's ability to handle complex themes with remarkable subtlety and psychological depth.

Susan wants it all. A career as a popular soap star and then a happily married mother of twins. Something has to give when she’s exhausted from flying back and forth across the country every week. Great exploration of a set of twins and their lives together and apart. And a love story that has has many obstacles.

FAMILY DRAMA BY REBECCA FALLON
Story of a young woman who wanted to become a star and did – but prior to she met Alcott, a professor, and her world changed – married Alcott and then found she still wanted that other world of stardom – that is when their lives changed – she also became a mother of twins – going back and forth to California to keep her starry life – but things again changed. Her children didn’t really know her since she was rarely home – and then a sickness happens. I was not sure I would like this story but I found myself engrossed – story of Hollywood – home base – stars and who they love and don’t love. I am sure you will enjoy this “starry” story – it is a different kind of Hollywood story. Read and enjoy! Thank you to #Simon & Shuster and #NetGalley allowing me to read this good story.

The opening of this book was startling and frankly somewhat upsetting. Seven year old twins witness the at sea funeral of their unconventional mother. And of course that sets the narrative for the rest of the novel. And did I mention the wake that followed?! Their mother, Susan Bliss, was a soap opera star. She spends time shuttling between LA and the East Coast. Of course this dynamic affects the twins after her death and their formative years. Sebastian and Viola, process this in very different ways. A family saga that will pull you in from the beginning, with beautiful writing. Recommended for all public libraries.

Family Drama by Rebecca Fallon had me hooked from the premise alone, imagining what kind of chaos comes from a soap star mom living a double life between Hollywood glitz and raising twins in New England? It opens with a wild Viking funeral for a former soap opera star and then unravels this tangled and beautifully messy story of love, ambition, and complicated motherhood. Susan Bliss is a fascinating character, part radiant TV icon, part emotionally unavailable mom. I loved how the book moves back and forth in time, showing us Susan in her prime while also giving voice to her now adult twins, who are still trying to make sense of the woman she was. But Viola and Sebastian couldn’t be more different in how they deal with their grief and confusion. This book is full of messy families, complicated women, and just enough drama to keep things juicy! If you like layered family stories with emotional depth and a bit of Hollywood sparkle, check out this debut.