This was a little slow for me but I really appreciated the alternating childhood memories which were beautifully written. It is probably more of a reflection on my attention span at the time of reading than anything else and I am sure that other (more patient) readers will enjoy.

I quite enjoyed finding out about the characters in this character driven read, although it is lacking in plot and not an easy read. It is well written and gives an insight into family relationships but it is just too slow for me. The ending was unsatisfactory and overall, just not for me. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Peter and Kate were in each others lives from birth and always were drawn back to one another. Life is a series of ups and downs and for Peter and Kate and their respective families this was certainly the case. This book focus is on family and the strength of Thai unit despite everything. You really get an inshight into different family members and their lives.

Well written but it’s more about the characters than the plot and the ending could have been better.
Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC.

This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended

Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane is a beautiful and gripping family drama set between two neighbours in suburban New York. Kate Gleeson and Peter Stanhope form a deep connection that, in spite of a tumultuous history and present-day hardships, develops into a bond of deep love.

The story moves back and forth between Kate and Peter's childhood memories, with the history of both families unfolding to a crescendo as it reaches its devastating climax. Through the memories and stories, we understand the relationships between family members, as well as between each family and the town they inhabit, more fully. The result is a powerful and intricate story that touches on family secrets, guilt, faith, and forgiveness.

Ask Again, Yes is a beautiful and emotionally stirring story that touches on all aspects of human life - its loves, pains, and mistakes - and a powerful reminder of how love can ultimately triumph over violence and hurt.

I accidentally placed the wrong review in here, I will amend this ASAP with the right one. Apologies, I'm not sure how to retract the full review

Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane is set in America, and is the story of two families, who live next to each other, a traumatic event happens, and then they live with the aftereffects over the following years.

Kate and Peter are friends from the two families, who are pulled apart by the events, but have a bond that pulls them together.

It has love, mental illness, living with trauma, forgiveness and is an emotional story.  I did enjoy it, but it is a hard read, with a very moving story line.

Ask Again, Yes was published on 8th August 2019, and is available from Amazon, Waterstones and Bookshop.org.

You can follow Mary Beth Keane on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and her website.

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Penguin Michael Joseph.

Lena Gleeson loves the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, so is not convinced when husband Francis suggests a move to the suburbs. However she soon settles in and to her delight one of her husband's police colleagues moves in next door with his wife. Two young families living side by side will be bliss but the Stanhopes don't see it that way.
I often find prologues confusing and unnecessary but this set the scene nicely as we meet young Francis Gleeson embarking on his new career in the police force. It was obvious that I read predominantly thrillers as I was expecting Francis's life to be cut short straight away but thankfully I was wrong and we follow the Gleesons as their family grows over the years. However the story that unfolds is not all sweetness and light as when the Stanhope's move in next door they bring baggage with them both literally and metaphorically. Anne Stanhope was a puzzle that I was determined to figure out and her unpredictability made for great reading if not the kind of person you would want next door in real life. I found this book to be very easy to read as I was invested in the characters. Keane painted a vivid picture so that I could visualise everything clearly in my head. However with sagas I like to feel as if I am reading in real time but with this the years seemed to whizz by far too quickly which was frustrating as I wanted to soak in every part of these families lives. I would have also liked a more linear narrative because at times I lost track of where I was in the time line. Overall this book is jammed packed with drama but it's a shame some key events were glossed over.

Ask Again Yes is an emotionally charged read which I enjoyed but it could have packed more of a punch.

Omg......... this book was amazing I flew threw the pages with Olympic speed I was hooked from the very first page. I found it full of twists and turns threw out and it kept me on the edge of my seat all the way threw  I would defiantly recommend this book if you like a good book to keep you reading threw the night hopefully you enjoy it as much as I did

I really struggled to get into this book I don't know what it was but for the life of me I could not get into it. I tried many times to pick this book up and each time I was just bored.

A beautifully lyrical tale - a brilliant piece of literary fiction full of intriguing characters and a pacy plot!

It was not a favorite, but I like when a story is told through generations. It's going to talk about life, love, family, mistakes and the tragedies of everyday life as well as alcoholism, friendship, forgiveness, mental illness, love and tragedy. It's a heavy book and I believe you won't be disappointed.

Thank you to the publisher for my eARC copy of this book. Unfortunately I didn’t love this book and therefore didn’t finish, I just didn’t connect with this one. Not for me, sorry.

review found on my old phone;

This book tackles some difficult topics and questions, grief, alcoholism, betrayal and loss, childhood tragedy and the responses of such trauma. I find different viewpoints sometimes difficult to follow but Mary Beth Keane does this well, it is a story of two neighbouring families, and Peter and Kate who met as children reconnect later in life. This book was emotionally driven and fantastic.

What a beautifully written family drama, that takes us on the journey of two neighbouring families and the reverberations they experience after a serious incident occurs.

Mary Beth Keane has managed to create a novel that is filled with love, hope, forgiveness and explores what it means to move on brilliantly. Through her excellent characterisation, she has written a novel that draws you in and immerses you in the characters lives. The changing viewpoints work so well and by doing this we see the situations from different characters, emphasising their various feelings and how the ripples of situations effect them all.

Whilst this took me a while to get through as it’s not a fast paced novel, I found that taking the time to read it created more of an impact and the story stayed with me for quite a while afterwards. A beautiful book that shows the importance of love and forgiveness!

This isn't usually the type of book I'd pick up, but I'm very glad I did. It did take a while to get going, but once I'd got past the first ~20% the pace picks up and you start to see the pieces fall into place. The writing is beautiful and I enjoyed the character development throughout the book.

I think that the students in our school library need to hear lots of diverse voices and read stories and lives of many different kinds of people and experiences. When I inherited the library it was an incredibly sanitised space with only 'school readers' and project books on 'the railways' etc. Buying in books that will appeal to the whole range of our readers with diverse voices, eclectic and fascinating subject matter, and topics that will intrigue and fascinate them was incredibly important to me.
This is a book that I think our senior readers will enjoy very much indeed - not just because it's well written with an arresting voice that will really keep them reading and about a fascinating topic - but it's also a book that doesn't feel worthy or improving, it doesn't scream 'school library and treats them like young reading adults who have the right to explore a range of modern diverse reads that will grip and intrigue them and ensure that reading isn't something that they are just forced to do for their English project - this was a solid ten out of ten for me and I'm hoping that our students are as gripped and caught up in it as I was. It was one that I stayed up far too late reading and one that I'll be recommending to the staff as well as our senior students - thank you so much for the chance to read and review; I really loved it and can't wait to discuss it with some of our seniors once they've read it too!

We follow Peter as he grows up. We see how the start of his life unfolds with his mother and father. His childhood best friend and how their families collide. As he makes decisions through life alone, can his childhood friend help to turn his life around?

A book that has stayed with me, thinking about how I would feel and what I would do if I was Peter.

A beautifully crafted family drama that explores love, forgiveness and the ability to move on.
Do you have the strength to move past a tragedy? Come out the other side stronger? Or will the crushing weight of it all define you, re-shaping your life?