There is no other way to say it - I simply adored this book. It hit all my sweet spots - a mother daughter dilemma (several!), a mystery at the novel's core, strong Jewish characters (and how they interact with characters of several different faiths in this fraught and …more polarized world of ours), an inside look at the newspaper profession, and I could go on and on. I adored Rieger's two previous novels (The Heirs, and The Divorce Papers) but this is now officially my favourite. Come for the family drama, stay for the humor, wry social commentary, and satisfying conclusion. Highly recommend. Thank you Random House and NetGalley for the ARC. (less)

Every now and then a book comes along that is so good that it is also so hard to read. This is one of those books. This book has possibly the best propulsive opening scene I have ever read, followed by one of the hardest chapters dealing with sexual transgressions and drug …more use that I could barely stomach. Then we veered back into a chapter that was so funny that I actually laughed and laughed.

Brodesser-Akner is a gifted writer. I enjoyed Fleishmann is in Trouble, but perhaps not as much as my peers. But her NYT article on attending a Taylor Swift concert was one of the best pieces of non-fiction narrative writing I have read. This book contains multitudes. The kidnapping of a family patriarch based on a similar incident of someone Brodesser-Akner knew when she was a child. The story of Jews in America - how they got there, what they did when they arrived, and where they are now. The story of unlikable adult siblings managing their scarred and traumatic upbringing. And bigger questions - about how money corrupts and soothes, how generations evolve and adapt, and more. Highly recommend. (less)