Wednesday, August 7, 2024

The Things We Knew by Catherine West (Review)

Genre: Women's Fiction
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Released: July 12, 2016
337 pages
About the Book:

When their tragic past begins to resurface, can he help her remember the things she can’t?

After her mother's death twelve years ago, Lynette Carlisle watched her close-knit family unravel. One by one, her four older siblings left their Nantucket home and never returned. All seem to harbor animosity toward their father, silently blaming him for their mother's death. Nobody will talk about that dreadful day, and Lynette can't remember a bit of it.

But when next-door neighbor Nicholas Cooper returns to Nantucket, he brings the past with him. Once her brother's best friend and Lynette's first crush, Nick seems to hiding things from her. Lynette wonders what he knows about the day her mother died and hopes he might help her remember the things she can't.

But Nick has no intention of telling Lynette the truth. Besides the damage it might cause his own family, he doesn't want to risk harming the fragile friendship between him and the woman he once thought of as a kid sister.

As their father's failing health and financial concerns bring the Carlisle siblings home, secrets begin to surface—secrets that will either restore their shattered relationships or separate the siblings forever. But pulling up anchor on the past propels them into the perfect storm, powerful enough to make them question all they ever believed in.


My Rating & Thoughts:    


There were things I liked but then there were things that I didn't like. The main characters we are following are Lynette Carlisle and Nick Cooper. Lynette is the youngest of 5 children and the only one at home caring for her father who is dealing possible Alzheimer's. Nick is a neighbor who grew up with the Carlisle children, was best friends with Gray Carlisle until a huge fight 5 years ago, and has a strained relationship with his father. These two are the main pov's we follow, but there are times it also switches to some of the other siblings. Between these two families there was a lot of disfunction going on - major secrets being kept, mentions of an affair, alcoholism, drug addition, domestic abuse and health issues. Nick was my favorite character, even through his relationship with the family is strained because of the fight with Gray and the secret he knows, he is determined to help them (in particular Lynette) during this difficult time. At first I found it difficult to keep everyone straight between who was who and what secrets they were keeping from the others, but as I got further into the story I was fully invested in the family repairing their relationships with each other and having their questions answers about what happened with their mother 12 years ago. Once the major secret is revealed I felt like the story ended too quickly afterwards. We don't really see how Lynette deals with the revelation of what she has been blocking from her memory for so long and the issues with the other siblings feels to be resolved very quickly. There was one sibling in particular I would have liked to get more from. I am disappointed with how the book ended. Yes some questions were answered and resolved but I feel left others were left unresolved. 

(I purchased my copy of this book; opinions expressed 
in this review are my honest opinion and completely my own.)

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