I think everyone with a family either small or large can recognise and relate to at least one of the characters in the book.
It does centre around Minnie, at the age of seventy she and her husband Bert want the whole family around for Christmas, just in case it's her last one with all of them together.
But with her eldest son Owen that hasn't been home for over twenty years because he had a massive fall out with his mother regarding his then girlfriend Nora and her middle daughter Lizzie avoiding coming home to be criticized about her unorthodox life and unhealthy drinking habits and her and Bert's youngest daughter Jess about to give birth, will anyone have a happy Christmas?
There are so many secrets and stories to tell in Every Happy Family.
An absolute gem of a read

Just couldn’t get drawn into the family. It’s the genre of book I’ve often enjoyed in the past but somehow this one missed the mark. Lots of characters with different time lines maybe a bit too much of both.

It only took this one book to make Sarah Stovell one of my new auto-buy authors. I’m absolutely blown away by this story! Such a powerful, heart-wrenching and engrossing novel filled with emotion, and I loved every page.

Every Happy Family is such a powerful story of family, drama, secrets and quite frankly, life’s ups and downs, sometimes in the most saddening and terrifying ways. The book covers a lot of ground in its 366 pages, and I was hooked from the very start. Despite tackling the tough subjects of domestic abuse, drug abuse and postnatal depression, the author has done this in a respectable way and balanced these dark elements with light-hearted humour and positivity. Character development is some of the best I’ve seen and I’m confident their journeys will stay with me for a lifetime. An absolutely flawless read and an unforgettable ride.

The easy-reading writing style draws the reader into this family drama, but the journey it takes readers on is complex, emotional and dramatic. The family initially seem unremarkable; I recognised the behaviours and the family dynamic, but as the story delves into the past, it's darker, and the humour is replaced by drama and heartbreak.

The secrets and darkness simmering beneath the supposed normality define this story, but the characters still have likeability, and the reader is invested in their happiness. I like the story's believability, the detail, and the relationship dynamics.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

I was torn between wanting to read this book all in one sitting and making it last as long as possible. An utterly wonderful read and I knew once I finished the last page I would miss the characters and I did, immensely!

Just a wonderful book!

A lovely domestic drama read, set in a small town where secrets have been hidden within a family for twenty years.
I really enjoyed this book. I couldn’t put it down, gripped from the first chapter. The story is told in both the past and present. It’s really well written and descriptive. The characters are all likeable and believable.
Definitely recommend if you enjoy family drama.
Thanks to NetGallery and HQ for an arc of Every Happy Family in exchange for an honest review.

I’d like to thank H.Q. and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Every Happy Family’ by Sarah Stovell in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Minnie Plenderleith is looking forward to having her three grown-up children, Lizzie, Jess and Owen, and their families around her and husband Bert for Christmas. Lizzie’s friend Tasmin, her enduring feminine ally, is also going to be there with her children together with Owen who’s coming all the way from Australia, minus his wife, and can always be guaranteed on to bring chaos along with him.

‘Every Happy Family’ is a domestic drama about a dysfunctional family where more than one spanner is thrown into the works when Owen’s ex-girlfriend Nora Skully turns up. The characters are colourful, the story amusing, but I found it hard it hard to work up any enthusiasm for the family and was glad when I finally reached the end. I’m glad to see that my comments are in the minority as there’s nothing wrong with the author’s style of writing which flowed well and was easy to read, but more probably my frame of mind and it not being the type of book I normally enjoy.

Minnie's family are all coming for Christmas, even Owen is coming over from Australia.
The big question is whether the family's trials and tribulations from the past will rear their ugly heads?

This is an easy to to read book about a normalish family and things that have happened to them in the past and how they are facing up to them.

I really love Sarah Stovell’s writing and raved about Other Parents last year. I’m delighted to report that Every Happy Family is just as good.
Minnie and Bert are eagerly awaiting the return of their children and grandchildren for their first Christmas all together for many years. Lizzie is coming with her teenage daughter and her “Enduring Female Ally” Tamsin. Jess is on the way with her girlfriend, young son and newborn daughter, and Owen is flying in from Australia having barely seen his family for years after a massive falling out when he was 19. The stage is already set for a very stressful Christmas when Minnie finds out that Nora, an intrinsic part of that fallout, is also back in town.

Sarah Stovell is brilliant at characterisation, within a few pages of their introduction, you know the characters and their motivations. The flashback to the events leading to the fallout are cleverly interwoven with the present day; the reader is soon desperate to know what actually happened. The underlying issues of alcoholism and violent marriage are handled sensitively and the way that the teenage girls view the adult world around them gives the reader another way of viewing the family drama. For all this, it isn’t a heavy book, there is a lightness of touch and the flashes of humour you would find in any family. The ending is positive and believable without being cloying.
This is a great novel, I shot through it in a couple of days, Sarah Stovell is a writer to watch.

This is a story about a family who is struggling to stay united. Minnie eventually fulfils her wish of having her adult children, their spouses, and their children all in one place for Christmas, after years of hoping. This gives the family the opportunity to catch up on old times and to revisit old secrets that have lingered for some time.

The writing style in this book is captivating and enjoyable, and the author exceeded expectations with this new release. She writes the delicate topics carefully, making them believable and easy to relate to. This gives readers an expansive view of the past and present of the family from various perspectives, and this helps give a powerful understanding of the struggles that have made them an imperfect family. Chapters of multiple view point makes for a gripping and tense read! All the characters within the story are certainly not flawless but still are incredibly likeable. The plot flows well, and I could finish this within two sittings, with great anticipation.

If you are a fan of domestic dramas, this is a book for you! Highly recommended!

Every Happy Family is an enjoyable read about a family with its fair share of issues and the added pressure that times like Christmas can add to an already tense situation. Sarah Stovell does a great job of creating convincing characters who might not be perfect (and some are definitely more likeable than others!), but feel real!

We join Minnie and her husband Bert as Minnie's children join them for Christmas - Lizzie, Jess, and their brother Owen who hasn't lived in the UK for many years. His return marks a big moment for the family, though there is plenty of trepidation too about all being together in one room...

The plot jumps back in time to when Owen and Lizzie were children, to give us more details about what happened to the family leading up to Owen leaving, and back to the present day.

The way the characters interact as a family, and also with other people they're close to as well as their shared, fractured history, forms the basis of this novel and creates an absorbing read. There are emotional and humorous parts, and we see the characters grow together and go through tough times.

Every Happy Family is not an action-packed novel, but rather a fairly slow burner that builds in intensity as we learn more about their history.

I absolutely loved this story about dysfunctional families that are spending time together after many years apart. I just lived the tension and drama that this created. With a mixed bag of emotions throughout the book. It was a pleasure to read

When Owen returns from the other side of the world, to spend Christmas with his sisters and parents, he finds his first true love has also returned to their village. With chapters alternating between the past and present, and from different view points of all of the family, and secrets aplenty, this is an excellent family saga. A highly recommended read.

Its Christmas and Minnie and Bet are looking forward to their three children and families being together for the first time in ages.
Owen has arrived minus his wife, still at home in Australia. Lizzie is trying to stop drinking and Jess has just had a baby.
But someone turns up to throw a spanner in the works - Nora an ex girlfriend of Owens and Lizzies one time best friend.
What could go wrong?!

A deeply moving and haunting novel that explores the complexities of family, love, and trauma. The story follows the lives of three generations of women in a dysfunctional family, including a mother and daughter who are struggling to come to terms with their troubled pasts.

One of the strengths of this novel is the way it delves into the characters' inner lives, with richly drawn descriptions of their emotions, thoughts, and experiences. The author does an excellent job of capturing the nuances and complexities of their relationships, with their own unique dynamics and conflicts.

The writing style is evocative and atmospheric, with well-crafted descriptions that bring the characters and setting to life. The characters are multi-dimensional and relatable, with their own unique strengths and vulnerabilities, and the dialogue feels authentic and natural.

A properly dysfunctional family Christmas!
I liked the way the setting switched between past and present and felt it helped the story to flow. Some of the topics covered were tricky, but it mirrors the fact that life is messy and hard. A good read. Thank you

Every Happy Family by Sarah Stovell

A family gathers for Christmas - a couple, their grown up children and grandchildren - but will a secret from the past blow apart their celebrations...

What a fabulous novel, I couldn't put it down! So cleverly done and such brilliant writing - every character's voice, young and old, is so authentic. I absolutely loved it - I'll be telling everyone to read it and can we have a NetFlix adaptation please?! Very VERY highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Minnie and her second husband Bert live in the affluent area of Bourton, Wiltshire and they are excited that their three grown up children; Owen, Lizzie and Jess are joining them for Christmas with their families, the first time they will all have been together, under one roof, for many years since Owen, who left under a bit of a cloud, now lives in Australia and, of course, no Christmas is without its dramas which is certainly evident with this dysfunctional family, and then there's Nora...

This is told across a dual timeline, shifting between the present day and 1995, starting with preparations being made for a family Christmas and Minnie is desperate for it to be a good one, but when she hears that Nora is also back in the UK she knows that old wounds could be opened and certain members of the family are instantly taken back to the year when it all changed. This story takes us on a journey with a family that have suffered a fair few troubles in their past, the author tells us about some delicate subjects including alcoholism, domestic abuse, teenage pregnancy and mental health, all of which are written with compassion and integrity. She highlights how decisions made can have a profound impact on not just the people involved, but the wider family too and can affect them for many years after the event. I loved the relationship that bloomed between Owen and Nora, remembering that first flush of young love, and whilst I thought Minnie was sometimes a bit interfering it was clear that she thought she was always doing it with the best of intentions for her children. Every Happy Family is a poignant and emotional read, with a smattering of humour thrown in here and there. I loved her previous book, Other Parents and am pleased to say this one didn't disappoint either and let's face it, who'd want a perfect family anyway?

I'd like to thank HQ and Netgalley for the auto approval, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

This is my first read by Sarah Stovell and I really enjoyed it. There is nothing like a christmas get together to bring out the best in people! There was such a tight cast of family members and the story just flowed brilliantly. Great book!

A story about a multi generational family and how all families are disfunctional in their own way; full of secrets and half-truths. Told in two timeframes: Christmas present when the whole family are together for the first time and in 1996 when things started to unravel.

A hugely enjoyable story, full of drama with humour too.