The Ryan sisters—Cait, Alice, and Maggie—haven’t all been together in their family home in years. But this Thanksgiving, they’ll all be spending the holiday together, despite the misgivings and unspoken resentments each feels.
Twenty years ago, their brother Topher was involved in a boating accident that killed the younger brother of his best friend. The resulting lawsuit and the requirement that Topher admit guilt destroyed their family, and ultimately sent him into a downward spiral. But all those years later, Cait still feels immense guilt about her role in the accident.
Maggie, the youngest, is bringing her new girlfriend Isabel home with her. It’s the first time she’s brought anyone home, since her devoutly Catholic mother has never really accepted that she’s gay. But amidst the nervousness about the situation, Maggie is worried her job might be in jeopardy for a mistake she made.
Alice lives very near to their parents and has taken responsibility for their care, something she resents her sisters for. She, too, has a secret that has the potential to destroy her marriage and her future ambitions. All of these issues will be brought out in the open, as is often the case with the holidays.
Heather Aimee O’Neill is a terrific storyteller. While there’s a lot happening in this book, she deftly steered the plot away from too much melodrama or shocking pronouncements. I wanted to shake some sense into the characters at times, but I want to do that to people IRL sometimes, too. This reminded me a bit of Tracey Lange’s books. Can’t wait to see what O’Neill does next!
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