A Very Typical Family

A very engaging novel of the family dynamics in the relationships of siblings Natalie, Jake, and Lynn. When Natalie was a teen, her actions led to prison terms for Jake and Lynn. Upon the death of their mother years of estrangement later, the siblings are all to regroup at their ancestral home to satisfy the terms of the trust. It is a trying time of wanting to rebuild their relationships in a sea of misunderstandings and lost time.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The title is misleading. The family is anything but typical. At the age of fourteen Natalie called the police when she found her brother and sister at a party where they were all high on drugs and one teenager actually died. They were both sent to prison and neither of them had forgiven her though they are both out of prison now. Years have gone by, the family has split up, no communication between the mother and Natalie either.

Natalie faces obstacles of her own at her job in New York. Ear marked for the top job, she is ousted at the very last minute by her boyfriend of whom she had such high hopes of making the relationship permanent. Heart broken mainly by what she feels as betrayal at work, Natalie is then faced with a letter from a lawyer, saying her mother has died and left the ancestral home to the three children who can inherit provided they actually come together to the house. The lawyer says there is no acknowledgement to the letters sent to her siblings upto date.

This is how the story starts. Natalie undertakes the long journey back home, hoping to get some space from her relationship and her heart break and try to overcome the break up with her brother and sister as well. The story goes through several hiccups at every stage before a reunion of any kind can happen.

Trying to put a dysfunctional and deeply hurt family together again is never going to be easy. The story is emotional, draining but a very good
one.

"A Very Typical Family" had the perfect mix of humor, mystery, and unique family drama to keep me engaged from beginning to end! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

The Walker family in Sierra Godfrey’s debut novel, A Very Typical Family, are the victims of “One False Step.” That step you take with assurance, but the instant your foot hits the ground, you know with cold, spine-tingling certainty that it was a bad move. A move with repercussions that will adversely affect your life from that moment on. For the Walkers, that false step was That Night At The House. Two of the three siblings went to prison. The third, Natalie, isolated herself on the other side of the country. The family was broken.

Then fifteen years later, their mother dies and leaves them her house. The three of them must collect their inheritance together. Somehow, they must do the impossible, overcome that false step and all its repercussions. If this sounds sad and heavy, it isn’t. Sierra Godfrey deftly reweaves the threads from this tragic backstory into a relatable, enjoyable novel that keeps you glued to the pages to the very satisfying end. Even though the book deals with issues of pain, regret, and remorse it is a remarkably happy story that will leave you with a smile. I don’t know how the author did this, but I’m eager to see her do it again! Thanks to Netgally for providing an ARC.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the eARC!

I cannot believe this is a debut author! This book was so well written and kept me interested from the start. Perfect amount of family drama, but also amazing character development. Characters were easy to connect with and root for as well. Looking forward to more from this author!!!

I want to say thank you so much for the opportunity to read the ARC of A Very Typical Family written by Sierra Godfrey. I couldn’t put this down, reading it over the span of a day. I love the way the author includes so many controversial topics in her writing like: incarceration, murder, drugs, family, forgiveness, domestic abuse, etc. Godfrey’s use of dark humor and the complicated character relationships she created made this book easy to want to read more and find out what happened in the end. I loved the way Godfrey was able to weave one of her main characters, Natalie, self-discovery journey throughout the whole story. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good dysfunctional family story about forgiveness and growth and is able to understand no one is perfect.

Wow! What an amazing debut!

Although, NOT a very typical family I found these siblings and their relationships to feel so genuine and relatable which is an absolute MUST in a story that is this character driven! Their stories were so beautifully woven together and I loved how even through Nat’s single POV we got to know Lynn, Jake and Kit through their honest interactions and shared memories.

I was rooting so hard for these siblings and their second chance at finding happiness and a family in one and other and their journey getting there absolutely did not disappoint!

If you like a good family drama featuring some badass women finding their way, with a hint of romance and mystery, I highly recommend you pick this one up on September 13th, 2022!

Thanks to the author, netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the chance to read this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A very good, very fast read. I felt so many things for Natalie; she really pulled at my heart strings. I’m an only child and have always craved the camaraderie that a lot of siblings have.

A Very Typical Family
A Novel
by Sierra Godfrey
All families are messy. Some are disasters.

Well, this book is a lesson for me. It was a wonderfully written book . Not one I expected to grab me so deeply. I felt, I suppose in some ways I did relate to my own family, but this shows enduring and forgiveness. Brilliant and so NOT typical.

A fantastic read that dives into some thorny subjects like family alienation, the unexpected death of an estranged parent, traumatic childhood events, and domestic abuse. It also dives into subjects like family reunification, healing old wounds, and coming home to oneself. I love how this book explored the way that childhood trauma can impact all the choices a person makes in life; seeing main character Natalie reckon with the fact that she'd chosen her college studies, her career, and even her relationships (platonic and romantic) as a form of punishment for a choice she made as a teenager was enlightening and helped me look at some of my own life choices in a different way. The characters were well developed and so easy to empathize with, and I loved seeing their relationships with each other change throughout the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read this book!

I love family dramarama. In this one, Natalie, who hasn't spoken to her mother or siblings in fifteen years, has to go "home" to Santa Cruz to inherit part of the family home. (Her mom died two months ago and she didn't know!) All we know about the reason she has been ostracized from her family is that it has to do with her actions in sending her brother and sister to prison.

I loved this very entertaining and enlightening read. The themes of family, staying true to yourself, and especially forgiveness gave me all the feels. I liked how the sisters came together to figure out a way to find their missing brother and how Natalie grew as a person along the way. She didn't take the easy way out and I admired her for that. The story itself was very intriguing and the plot is character-driven, I liked that about it. I loved being taken away to California and the author's descriptions of Santa Cruz put me there. This is a wonderful love letter to family and the ties that bind, such an impressive debut.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, SOURCEBOOKS Landmark and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Wonderful read, spectacular story, well-written, lovely characters. A beautiful portrayal of family, disappointment and life.

“A Very Typical Family” by Sierra Godfrey is not a story about a typical family. This is a very character driven novel, which I rather enjoyed. I had a few issues with the book - a number of them dealing with Natalie’s boyfriend but also with the reason for the family’s falling out (although in the interview with the Author Ms. Godfrey explains why she chose that example). Having been to Santa Cruz a number of times, I greatly enjoyed Ms. Godfrey’s descriptions of that quirky town - from the Blue Whale skeleton (Ms. Blue!) to the Santa Cruz Bookstore and the glorious Boardwalk. I did like how the siblings all took tentative steps to rebuilding a relationship of some sort. Rebuilding family relationships is not easy - whether it be siblings or parental - thus why you might find yourself cheering on this family. Because this story focuses on Natalie, I have to say that it took me a while to warm up to her and some of her life choices. However, in the end, I wish her well. What I really liked was the engaging writing. With that in mind, I hope that Ms. Godfrey writes another book and I’ll be interested in reading that one too. Do read the interview with the author at the end of the book!

Spectacular debut! I loved this story so much! It is full of hope, regret, forgiveness and, ultimately, lots of love!
Natalie lives in Boston, has what she considers is a good job and a great boyfriend . She has been estranged from her older brother and sister for ten years. She was responsible for them going to prison. She had arrived home as a teenager and found they were having a party and drugs were involved. Her sister fell and seriously hurt her head and a friend of the brother apparently took an overdose of heroin. After that night Natalie fled to California and had no contact with her mother or siblings. After those ten years, Natalie receives a letter from a lawyer that her mother had died and left them all her house but they had to appear there all together to inherit. What follows is the best story ever! Do they get together? Can Natalie let go of her regret and guilt? Will her siblings forgive her? Will they be a family again?