All of Us and Everything
Fiction
Bantam Dell Publishing Group
2015-11
Paperback
352
Publisher via She Reads
"Life as Augusta Rockwell knows it changes once she unearths a box of old letters written by her estranged husband, Nick Flemming, the love of her life and the father her children have never known. She's told her daughters that their absent father was actually a spy, which is why he couldn't be part of their lives. But the letters reveal that Nick has secretly been keeping tabs on his family all these years from afar --a discovery that while shocking, has the potential to mend the fractured and wayward lives of the three Rockwell sisters"--
My review:
3.5/5 stars My software does not have the ability for 1/2 stars (ahem....neither does Goodreads, grrr), but I felt that this book fell somewhere in the middle of I liked it and I really liked it. Here is what I really liked about this story. It was a theme that hasn't been done over and over, something that I appreciate with the number of books that I read. The characters were quirky and different, and the family dynamics were spot on in so many places. I adored the fifteen year old daughter, she stole the book for me and I thought she was developed perfectly! This book had a lot of hidden humor even though the subject matter was not necessarily geared toward a funny story. The parts that were not quite as strong for me were that I wasn't as enamored with the sisters, and I couldn't relate much with the mother. They all did some rather strange things (particularly the mother), that I didn't get the reasoning behind. I'm not sure if it was just me, or if these characters were not developed enough for me to get them? Parts of the epilogue were satisfying, but other parts were unnecessary since those characters were not very prevalent in the story as to merit a mention.
Overall, a cute quirky story about an unconventional family, highlighted by some great family dynamics. If I had been more invested in all the family members, this surely would have garnered an additional star.
Thanks to the publisher, who provided me a copy of this book (which is one of the She Reads books of spring). My opinions are my own.
For some reason I had a completely different idea of what this book was about. It does look interesting though I wish the characters had been a bit more engaging. I have a feeling that that will keep this book from being a really great read for me as well. Despite that it still sounds entertaining and worth picking up. Great review!
It was an entertaining read, and a pretty quick read as well. Definitely worth picking up. Thanks for visiting 🙂
This is on my list to read next. I am looking forward to it, although now I will be on the look out for the things you mention!! But readers differ so will see how I respond to it.
I agree, you may love it (my sister did!). It's definitely worth picking up.
I ordered the paperback of this one just as it released and still haven't read it. I kept putting it off because I thought I'd made a mistake in ordering it after seeing several not so good reviews about it. I do love quirky characters, so I might take the plunge and read this one soon. Thanks for the insight (and push I needed).
If you like quirky characters, this may be just what you need. It's worth a read, just not one of my highlights of the year.