Juliet and Liam aren't sure they will ever fit in when they move into her late mother's home with their young son Charlie. Magnolia Road is the picture perfect image of domesticity with big houses, and large cars and neighbors full of parenting and relationship advice. As Juliet begins to resent her own role in the house as breadwinner while her husband Liam hangs out with the other primary caregivers for content for his new novel, an accident puts everything into perspective.

I really enjoyed this - I thought it was a very good story that managed to capture that time in your 30s and 40s that is a bit manic, full of exhausting 9-5s, housework and parenting while also trying to upkeep a successful relationship and somehow not mess everything up. There is a slight element of Keeping Up The Joneses in it too as we see others covet what their neighbour has, or listen to everything the Queen Bee has to say.

I did keep expecting something really dark or twisty to happen and was surprised when it didn't and I realised this book wasn't a suspense or a thriller - it was just a slice of life, fiction book that still had me very much hooked on everyone's lives even though they were so normal. The characters surprised me as they all ended up being pretty decent people - again, just your average normal neighbours as you realise that while some people look like they have it altogether, they might be struggling themselves with other things and nothing is 100% happy for everyone all the time and everyone has their ups and downs be it with marriages, kids or work.

I listened to this on audiobook and found it really enjoyable.

This was an interesting read, liked the way that it turned it on its head and it was a stay at home dad. I laughed at at a few moments and remembered all the insecurities I had when I went to the school gate. So all in all a good read.

I was given a free copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

Everyone is Still Alive is set in a suburb of London and follows the lives of Juliet, a working mother, Liam, her author husband and stay at home dad to their young son, Charlie. Moving into her late mother’s house on Magnolia Road, the family get to know their neighbours and we follow the lives of them all as they navigate modern life, parenthood and relationships.
The book was at times funny, thought provoking and heartbreaking. As a working mother of young boys myself, there were many relatable moments.
The switch in points of view between the characters have an interesting switch in perspectives between husbands, wives, mothers and fathers.
The book highlighted the importance of cherishing what we have, and communication with those we love. Great writing from Rentzenbrink.

Broader and more reflective than I was initially anticipating, this was a captivating read as Rentzenbrink pulls in multiple stories of secondary characters alongside the main story of Juliet and her family. For parents of school age children, the struggle to keep up with the other parents will feel familiar, and although very middle class, the themes of community, parenthood and keeping up with the Jones are fairly universal. I didn't think Liam was quite Juliet's equal but was pleasantly surprised that this novel didn't follow the plot I was anticipating of infidelity. Would recommend it to fellow literary fiction lovers.

This is a nice enough book. It’s an easy read and perfect for when you don’t want anything too heavy. I didn’t particularly like all the characters through the earlier parts of the book but by the end I felt I knew them and they were better for knowing.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for an honest and unbiased opinion.

Fish Eye Lens…
Character led tale of a small community through a fish eye lens. Well portrayed and with a fluidly drawn cast. Emotional and heartwarming in places but perhaps not delving the real depths of humanity. Overall an entertaining read.

Everyone Is Still Alive by Cathy Rentzenbrink

Having read & loved Cathy’s other (nonfiction) books I was so pleased to get the chance to read her first novel.
I just knew it was going to be a great read and boy I was right! EISA is totally my kind of book, family life, relationships, relatable characters, lots of funny moments, happy moments and a few lump-in-the-throat (ok, actual tears) moments as well. I loved it. Cathy is a great writer and I can’t wait to see what she does next.

Thanks so much to Netgally & to the publisher Orion for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a tender, insightful look at family life, parenting, marriage and loss. An entertaining read.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Set on Magnolia Rd, this novel centres around Juliet, Liam, their son Charlie and their friends’ and neighbours’ lives. It’s really well written and for that reason I kept reading, but I’m not sure I liked all the characters, they felt sometimes negative about parenthood and marriages!!

What s great book. A warm and witty book about family and relationships, it's full of emotion and perception. Thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

Practically despite myself I was drawn into this story of crumbling and revitalising friendships .. confident writing and great central figure lured me on .. reading what is not my normal fare ( usually crime/speculative/murder) ..

I receivedan ARC of this book vianetgalley in exchange for an honest review. I have read one other book by this author, although it was non-fiction there are some similarities in that writing and reading and literary quotes feature in both.

This is a nice book in the way thay nice can mean ordinary or uneventful. It has a cast of married couples all living in the same slightly upmarket suburban area outside London. They bond over children and the everyday lifestyle issues. As the title suggests the plot really has little influence on theit normality and everyone is still alive at the end.

For me it is too tame, arguments between husbands and wives about who does the lion's share of the work; suspiscions about affairs and affairs themselves; worries about children and whether theirs are fulfilling all expectations. The crux of the novel centres around an accident which doesnt occur until 75% through and is all but over and done with in the space of a few pages although it does make everyone reassess what they want.

A quote from the book seems to me to perfectly describe the book " I started writing about Sarah's dishwasher and Lucy's au pair and then I got a bit fond of them all. I didnt want to make bad things happen to them." I think this author spent so long describing the lives of her characters that she couldn't put any jeopardy into their lives.

It did not hold my attention and has taken 3 days to get through what is essentially chick lit. I decent enough distraction for on the beach but lacking depth and narrative drive. I find it difficult to rate these sort of books would probably not rate as high as 2 or as low as 1 star but will err on generosity on this occasion

Enjoyable enough, as far as these keeping-up-with-the-school-gate-mums novels go, but also completely forgettable. The focus slipped too far from the central couple and their life story. More might have been made of Juliet’s grief (Rentzenbrink’s recurring theme, and the best aspect of the book) and Liam’s novel in progress. The central crises were such clichés, and the West London setting wasn’t brought to life in any meaningful way. I hoped for deeper insight into suburbia and gender roles in parenting, along the lines of Sarah Moss or Tom Perrotta, but this remained determinedly lite in the vein of Rachel Johnson and Nina Stibbe. Page 247 in the Phoenix hardback could have worked as the ending. (2.75 stars)

Everyone is Still Alive is one of the best written books I've read in a long time. Subtle, nuanced, and absolutely filled with wholly accurate depictions of marriage and parenthood.

Juliet, husband Liam, and young son Charlie, have just moved to Magnolia Road - into her late Mum's house. It's a period of adjustment and grief for Juliet. She works while Liam stays at home and writes. She feels like she's failing as a mum. And is resentful of still having so many domestic duties to do.

Liam makes friends with some local Mums, who seem at first glance - Ghastly. Competitive. Pretentious. He has the idea to use their lives as inspiration for his novel.

We get a glimpse into the lives of three other couples, all with young children. I don't think I've ever read such accurate depictions of the strain raising children puts on a marriage. The writing is so so clever here. We read one spouse's side of the story, and feel empathy. But then we read the other side, and everything we believe is questioned. We all have our version of the truth, and lack of communication can lead to such stalemate.

This is a story that is more about creating an intimate human portrait. There is some drama. But the point of this is not action, but delving deep into the lives of others.

Truly remarkable writing, I enjoyed every word.

Just beautiful, an amazing read. I was gifted a hard copy . I will definitely read more of this authors work. Would recommend for sure

I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher.
At first, this book was a pretty bleak portrayal of the mundanity of marriage, being a parent, and of everyday life, where sometimes the struggles, dramas, and trivialities seem insurmountable.
It ends with a near tragedy and a redemption arc for all characters which puts things into perspective for everyone involved. All very neat and tidy and wound up in a bow. A feelgood and unrealistic ending, but pretty depressing at the beginning!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and Cathy Rentzenbrink for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This book is based on Juliet and her husband who move into her mother's house after she passes away. Unfortunately, I didn't find this book to have any depth or interest and found myself uninterested in the lives and story.

I am disappointed as I had heard good things about Cathy's writing. Maybe it was just that I wasn't interested in this type of book at that time, but it just wasn't for me.

Cathy Rentzenbrink can do no wrong with anything that she writes. She is able to write a funny, moving and wise reflection of modern life and marriage as she portrays the social hierarchy and competitive social goals of of a number of families on the street that Liam and Juliet move into. For a bulk of the book it seems to be a suburban study of various married/separated couples in the street until a party at one of the neighbours houses ends in an accident.
Everyone is Still Alive sums it up, a near miss, a chance to put it all in perspective and reassess what is important in live. Cathy writes with heart and captures the inner thoughts of us all in her portrayal of a small neighbourhood. The book should do well as a study of relationships, family and love. Its not a fast burn but a slow steady read that is rewarding and full of heart.

I quite enjoyed spending a few hours in the company of the inhabitants of Magnolia Road, a group of privileged middle-class, financially comfortable young parents of small children as they forge friendships and alliances to support each other through the oh so onerous first-world problems of marriage, relationships, parenting, jobs and just general day-to-day existence. The book is well-observed, reasonably insightful, mildly amusing at times and is a pleasant enough if ultimately pointless read, especially with its too neat fairy-tale ending, but overall not one to get excited about.

I loved this book it’s a honest reflection on life after loss and the changes of love and family over the years. I loved the dynamic of the street and all the different families in and out of each other’s lives. Some times things change but you just need to remember to make time for your loved ones and not get caught up in all the other rubbish of life and ultimately even in death you can remember the good times and the memories will one day make you smile again.