This is a beautifully written novel that immerses you in the lives of ordinary people with extraordinary stories. The author masterfully explores themes of family, love, and new beginnings, balancing heavier moments with humor. The character depth and authentic dialogues truly stand out, making the relationships feel real. However, some plot twists felt predictable, which kept me from giving it a full five stars.
Overall, this is a delightful read that warms the heart and highlights the value of small moments of happiness.

*"A Good Life" by Virginie Grimaldi is a tender and uplifting novel that beautifully captures the intricacies of family, friendship, and personal growth. Grimaldi's narrative follows a family navigating life's unexpected turns with humor, heart, and resilience. The characters are deeply relatable, and their emotional journeys are written with warmth and empathy, touching on themes of love, loss, and the pursuit of happiness. Grimaldi's storytelling is both charming and insightful, making this book a comforting and inspiring read. *A Good Life* reminds us of the simple joys and meaningful connections that shape our lives.*

A good life is a heartwarming story about Emma, the older sister, and Agathe, the little sister. It takes you through snippets of their lives, written in diary like entries, from when they were babies to adults. Within each chapter you learn a bit more about each character, you learn of their pain, their worries and fears, their love lives, but mostly about their relationship which one another.

This isn't my usual style of book, so I was intrigued when I first started reading. I usually like short chapters, but in this case, I feel like I needed just a bit more from them. Whilst I did fall in love with Emma and Agathe, I still felt a bit distant from them towards the end.

I resonated a lot with a few chapters and got a bit emotional at times. When the girls run to their Mima's house after a bad turn with their mother, that hit close to home for me, I felt what they felt in that situation and it was nice to hear a story about something that isn't really spoken about so much!

From someone who has 4 sisters, I loved the rollercoaster of emotions that explain sisterhood. One minute you're laughing and joking with one another, the next you're fighting about the most stupid thing. But you'll have forgotten within the next hour when you decide to go shopping together.

I rate this 3 stars, I think it was well written and very easy to follow. The characters are loveable, and there is a lot of realistic emotion throughout this that is easily resonated with.

**Huge thanks to NetGalley and Europa Editions for the ARC in return for an honest review.

A Good Life
By Virginie Grimaldi

You can't walk along a French beach or peruse a French free little library or bookshop without spotting a Virginie Grimaldi novel or three with their colourful, summery Erin Hilderbrandesque covers. The best selling French novelist has now published her first English translation and curiosity got the better of me so I was delighted to get my hands on a copy.

Told from two perspectives in both present day, and linear past timelines, this engaging and endearing novel tells the story of sisters Emma and Agathe, who come together after a falling out and a five year break, for a week's vacation in their deceased grandmother's house in the Basque country before it is sold.

They immediately fall into familiar patterns of communication and behaviour with each other, the bonds of sisterhood, evident in their muscle memory, but there's a tension that prompts us to wonder what happened between them, and the answer is slowly, heartbreakingly, shockingly revealed.

I really love the banter between the sisters throughout. Their personalities are so different but Grimaldi beautifully captures the sororal dynamics of love/despise/respect/resent/share/envy and the way we perceive events differently based on our experience, and often our place within the family order. There are some truly dark themes in this seemingly light and breezy novel; bereavement, infidelity, domestic abuse, divorce, parental abuse, eating disorder, suicide, mental health, fertility and miscarriage.

Despite all this, it's not a difficult read. Agathe's witty humour lifts the mood throughout. Emma's uptightness is a source of much of the comedy and their self depreciating style grounds everything in acceptance of their circumstances.

Translated by Hildegarde Serle, her fingerprints are all over this. Lovers of Valerie Perrin's English translations will recognise her style. Hopefully this is only the first of many to come. Highly recommend.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #EuropaEditions for the ARC

A Good Life, by Virginie Grimaldi, is a story of estranged sisters who return to their recently deceased grandmother's home to clear it of its contents and find themselves reminiscing over items she'd had. The memories are powerful, but will they be powerful enough to mend their relationship and bring them together?
Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

This book was very sweet! Although it's hard for me to speak on it given that I don't have a sister, I feel like Grimaldi really captured the essence of what it means to be siblings and grow as siblings. The plot was easy to follow, even with the flashbacks I was never confused or overwhelmed - in fact I'd say I was anticipating the flashbacks hoping they would give me a hint or two about what was going on in the 'present', why the sisters were acting the way they did, what the big reveal was going to be (boy, I was honestly not expecting that, even though I really should have)... I also really liked the setting; take me away from Paris and Barcelona, give me Basque country!!
My only issues were with the translation. As a French speaker myself, I feel like the at some points the English language translations used were inconsistent and were not getting across exactly what the author had intended in the original text. But I know translating is an infinitely difficult task, so really it didn't take away too much from the story.

A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi
Release Date: 6 June 2024
Rating: 4/5

Emma and Agathe shared the same childhood home, but their personalities couldn't be more distinct. Agathe, the younger of the two, was a whirlwind of chaos and passion, effortlessly dominating space both physical and emotional, leaving little room for anyone else, even her sister Emma.

After an inexplicable silence lasting five years, Emma finally reaches out to Agathe, proposing a meeting at the family's holiday retreat. The passing of their beloved grandmother prompts the need to confront memories and clear out the house.

With a week ahead of them in the picturesque summer setting of the Basque Country, Emma hopes to bridge the gap that has grown between them.

"A Good Life" is a moving story that transports readers to France, where two estranged sisters, Emma and Agathe, reunite to clean out their grandmother's home. Through this journey, they learn to accept the past, repair relationships, and embrace every moment. Grimaldi's writing is effortless, the characters are authentic and complex. The narrative unfolds through a series of flashbacks, weaving through the sisters' formative years to the present day.

Themes of family discord, mental health struggles, and the weight of grief permeate the novel. Yet, at its core, lies the resilient bond between the two sisters, who come to appreciate the depth of their connection despite the misunderstandings that have strained their relationship.

Overall, it's a touching tale of hope, healing, and the power of connection that resonates deeply with readers.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Europa Editions, and the author, Virginie Grimaldi, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I love books about summer and sisterly binds and this book has both! I cannot wait to share my full thoughts and review on this one. I apologize I’m a bit behind on reviews due to some unexpected serious health issues but I’m slowly getting there and this book is the perfect medicine for the long summer days ahead to get lost in!