A loose follow-up, thirty years later, to Eisenstadt's family novel From Rockaway. The setting still shines but the character development left something to be desired.

This book didn't work for me. It didn't really seem to have a point to it, and I didn't connect to the characters.

It's rare for me to find a book as unlikable as I found this one. The characters were obnoxious, the plot nonexistent and forcing myself to finish it was a battle. I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and had it not been for that obligation I would not have bothered to finish it.

This tale begins with the story of Rose, an elderly Italian women in Rockaway Beach, Queens, who accidentally killed her only son, Gary back in 1993. Rose was a widow and an abused wife. Gary was trying to get her to leave the home so he could sell it. After the shooting, Rose slipped the gun into the hands of a dead
Chinese immigrant who was hiding in the home. Tim, a neighbor, saw what happened but did not turn Rose into the police.

Now it is 2012 and the neighborhood is still reeling from 9/11. Rose has been tricked into moving to an assisted living facility and a new family, the Glassmans, is living in the house. Dan and Sue Glassman are living in the waterfront home with his Dad, Sy.

Dan and Sue had lived in Manhattan before 9/11 but felt the need to move away after the tragedy. Now they live in the Rockaway Beach house with their 2 daughters, 16 year old June and her toddler sister, Sage. Rose has started visiting the house daily with her caretaker and is intruding into the Glassman family life. She wants to reclaim the house which has an emotional hold on her.

The story takes place over one summer weekend when Sue's conversion ceremony and secret party is planned.

This book has a group of unlikeable characters including the retired firefighter next door, Rose's flirty attendant, creepy neighbors as well as the Glassman family members. The author's attempts at humor are not always successful. The

I never knew what was going to happen next in this book - and I loved it!

I really enjoyed this funny, smart book. Eisenstadt creates characters that are deeply flawed and utterly endearing, characters that find themselves thrown together by happenstance and by family--and in both cases, they are at a loss as to how to endure the emotional strain.

Could not find myself connecting with these characters. The book seemed to drag on for such a long time and I was not completely satisfied with the ending.

This story has it all! I love this crazy family. The Glassman's in Swell will keep you entertained with the myriad of stories and dialogue. I didn't want this one to end. I wanted to invite the crazy bunch of them to dinner!

Oh, so many characters, and so many unlikely events. This was simply not a novel that held my interest. I was so excited about reading this, but felt nothing but disappointment as I plowed through the story.

I hate haunted houses. I hate stereotypes of the aged. I hate novels with too many characters that don't matter and aren't developed.

SWELL fits the above on many levels. I was offended by some of the characters and found the constant use of stereotyped absolutely offensive.

I will not post this review.

This book felt like it was trying really hard to be funny but just . . . wasn't. I didn't finish it.