This book is thought provoking, comes at you any different angles and points of view, and I totally could not put it down, read in one sitting, took me 3 hours. Wonderful to read a book that makes you think and realize how much changes in one's life when the chips are down, how others look at us in our daily life, or how we look at each other... Suspend your belief in the way laws and justice work, because this book does NOT have to follow any set of rules, because, itnis, after all, a BOOK, and a work of FICTION, so to the reviewer who gave a lot less stars than this book deserves due to the law in the book not following the real world model is just awful. A book of fiction can say the judge had wings and flew around if that is how the author wants to write it, no one should give bad reviews because real life procedures were not being followed in a book. This is not, nor did it say it was, a law book, it is about how a family and town around them are torn apart and changed because of rape alegatiom, not what law process was or wasn't followed, geesh... Totally loved this book. Focus on the plot, not the side stuff. You got the book for the plot, not the procedures...

George Woodbury is the greatest guy. In affluent, co-op food-store-supporting, Starbucks-gulping, small-town Connecticut, he’s voted Teacher of the Year, every year, at the elite prep school. He’s even a local hero, having once taken down a school shooter and saving students’ lives. Everyone loves George, and his self-sacrificing nurse wife Joan, and his grown son living in the big city, and his sweet daughter who attends the school.

Until four students of George come forward and claim he sexually assaulted them.

One of the most insightful things about this book is what it isn’t about. It isn’t about these four girls who claim to have been assaulted. It isn’t about the assault. It isn’t about whether George is guilty or innocent. It isn’t even about George.

This book is the tale of George’s wife, the shattering of her perfect marriage, the dissolution of the future she envisioned cushioned with trust fund money and easy retirement. It’s the story of George’s son, a once-closeted gay man who has to return to the hometown full of homophobes who bullied him into psychosis. This is the story of Sadie, George’s daughter, who once considered him her hero, and now wonders if she was deluded. Now the only certainties in her life are her passion for marijuana and a much older man.

The ramifications of these allegations don’t simply vanish after the trial. George’s guilt or innocence isn’t the issue at all. This book explores the lesser-known effects of the other victims of assault: the family members who are blind-sided with doubts about what they once held as truths.

Some reviewers complained that the ending left nothing resolved, but I disagree. The ending is true to life. Life goes on, people live through this, and have to live with this, for the rest of their lives. If George is guilty or if George is innocent, the ramifications of this ordeal remain. The doubts never go away.

I appreciated this exploration on the consequences of sexual assault allegations that extend beyond the accused and their victims. The writing is fast-paced enough to keep the readers’ interest. Occasionally, the cliches surfaced (wealthy prep school, small snobby town, organic food markets), and some editing might have reduced the repetitiveness of some of the characters' anger and anxiety, but overall it was a good story, and worth recommending.

This review is also published on Goodreads, Amazon, and flyleafunfurled.com.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing, Netgalley, and the author for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion of this book

When a beloved teacher, husband and father is charged with sex crimes against young girls, the entire community goes into shock. And his family unravels. Whittall's writing is superb, each character well developed and super interesting. My heart rose and broke for all of them. While I can't say I was surprised, I wasn't expecting the outcome. Which is always a good thing. Very well done, I highly recommend this one!

Interesting topic, and a unique view of a scandal, focusing on the people around the accused. The beginning and middle of the book were very strong and kept me turning the pages rapidly, but the ending was a bit underwhelming. However, I would definitely recommend the book and think it will make for very interesting book club conversations.

A celebrated teacher accused of inappropriate behavior with some female students. The family of this man is left with the fall out from this awful accusation. Was he guilty or was this a set up. Heartbreaking to watch his family waffle between believing his innocence and not believing in him. Can you imagine going through this with your husband, father or even someone you know???

I'm very torn on the rating for The Best Kind of People. I really think I'd rate it 2.5 stars and settled on 2 because I just couldn't get it close enough, in my mind, to a 3. At first glance, this book seems very timely, in that rape culture is such a huge topic right now, as is school violence. It also delves into the life of a young, gay man, but that is where the irritation with this book set in. It was almost like the author set out to "profit" from today's rape culture, school violence incidents and double standards, which didn't really sit right with me once I started reading.

We never really hear much from George, the accused, nor from his accusers, so the reader is left trying to sort through the gossip, rumors and innuendo as well as some information from police and of course, reporters. I'd assume this is exactly how a family going through something like this would feel and especially in a small town, a community. Above all else though, we're repeatedly told George is a hero. He saved the school after all. Well, even heroes can have their faults.

I felt that the fact that a young, gay man in this small community had a long-term sexual affair with a gay teacher was equally as wrong as what George was accused of. The author obviously didn't see it that way and kept rationalizing the affair with comments that boiled down to 'it's a small town, there were almost no gay men, where were they to go for sex?' Yes, there was an age difference between the victims, but a 16 year old, gay, male student is just a much as a victim as a tween or early teen, heterosexual, female student.

I didn't care for the ending, feeling it was rushed. It felt like one day the author decided the book had gone on long enough and she had to end it, but didn't know how. I don't get the hype about this book and quite honestly, this book made me unlikely to search out anything else by this author.

Thanks for the ARC go to NetGalley, the author and publishers. I'm just sorry I couldn't leave a better review, but I just can't.

The Best Kind of People was one of those books that I found myself reading every spare minute I had. If I was stopped at a light, in line at the bank, stirring something on the stove, I was reading because I had to find out what happened. Sadie and her family are hit with devastating news about their father, a very upstanding teacher in the community. As the story plays out, we see how each member of the family reacts and deals with their new family situation.

This was such a strange book and not in a good way. When I finished reading it, I thought "that's it?" From the beginning it seemed disgenuine. The family's feelings for this up-to-now loving big-hearted father turned on him so quickly. Only the fringe nut-jobs of a community that held him in such high regard for taking out a potential school shooter believe in his innocence. He himself as a character is so shallow. I kept waiting for the real story to start and then it was over.

I did not really care for this book. The author really didn't give any information about why Mr. Woodbury was arrested or what happened. It mostly centered on the mother and her daughter and their lives. I did not find the characters to be likable, and the ending was such a let down. All that build up, and then it was over on just a couple of pages The author didn't really seem to give enough clues for the reader to be pulled into the story of Mr. Woodbury. A bit disappointing to me.

Power, social status, and justice are a potent stew that, when stirred, test a family’s ties to one another and to their community in this aptly-named book. Who are all the best people? Zoe Whittall peels a suburban onion and finds that just about everybody has a bit of a stench. Men hold power over women, teachers over students, high school bullies over their gay classmates, the wealthy over the less affluent. But, once the characters face the reality that their money buys privilege, will they choose idealism or comfort? Will they choose justice over power? Read on. You'll be intrigued. I didn't really like the ending, but it was a necessary, logical, and appropriately ambiguous one, given the situation Whittle developed.

Long, needlessly long. I kept with it wanting to find out how this family would resolve this situation. I was very disappointed after slugging through all of the needless dialogue to read the lackluster finale. Not recommended.

The Best Kind of People is the latest book by Zoe Whittall. The Best Kind of People is a story about a family in turmoil. Ms Whittall manages to merge the reader with the family in a way that makes the reader feel they are personally involved with them. I was given an early copy to review.

Thank you Net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.

This is a story about a family in crisis. The husband/father, a revered man and citizen, has been accused of sexual misconduct. How well do you know your loved ones? How unconditional is your love and support?

I thought this was an interesting premise, and the author did a good job exploring how each character felt and dealt with the situation. It was slow moving in parts, but overall engaging enough to keep me reading.

A family in turmoil. Really not that original or interesting. The characters were not very developed and the tiresome plot really did nothing to hold my interest.

When a popular teacher is accused of sexual misconduct, his family and community are devastated. When he is arrested and put in jail, everyone offers their support. That is everyone who believe in his innocence.
This story deals with a subject that has unfortunately become prevalent in our schools. It also deals with how each family member tries to deal with this situation. Do they support their husband, father, friend teacher. Do they give him the benefit of the doubt, or consider him guilty?
One thing not covered, is the feelings of the girls accusing the teacher.
I enjoyed reading The book. The characters were believable. You felt their pain, embarrassment, and anger.
I would recommend this book. 5 Stars

The Best Kind of People was worth reading. It is a story of the Woodbury family and all they go through after George, the beloved school teacher, husband and father, is arrested for sexual misconduct. While George sits in jail awaiting his trial date, his family is left to deal with the judgement from friends, family, coworkers and strangers. I liked his wife, Joan. Her character is believable and is a big reason as to why I liked the book. While the trial draws near, Joan learns things about George that makes her unsure of whether she can fully believe in her husband’s innocents. George and Joan have two children; Sadie, a popular teenager in her senior year, and Adam, a gay lawyer who lives with his partner in New York City. Sadie reminded me of her father. She thinks of herself, her wants and even though others are there for her, she does little to return the favor. Adam is there for his family as much as possible all while trying to deal with the things that happened to him as a teenager in his hometown. There were times the story did get a bit monotonous due to Sadie’s me attitude and Adam’s moodiness, but the reality is that the family is doing the best they can in the situation they find themselves in.

You know I very rarely have a hard time deciding how to rate a book. Sometimes I have to sit and think about the book and then decide. I finished this book and still do not know how to rate this book. I have been torn between a 3 and a 3.5 so I am going to leave it at a 3.

Just how well do you know your husband? Your Father? Your co-worker? Your employee? What secrets do people keep? How are they able to keep them? Just how good a liar or they? Or do people become good at ignoring the truth? What is someone you knew was accused of an atrocious crime? What if you have doubts? What if you believe them? How will you feel when secrets are revealed?

George Woodbury is a husband, father and teacher. A couple of years ago he saved a life when an armed gunman entered his school. He has been the local hero. He is seen as an all round good guy, a family man and respected member of society. His family and his town are shocked to the core when he is arrested and charged with a horrible crime. He has taken students on a school trip and three girls have accused him of sexual assault. He strongly claims that he is innocent and that his family should not be worried, that his name will be cleared.

As he is incarcerated and the police investigation continues, Georges's family experiences many emotions and stressful situations. His daughter, Sadie, goes from being a popular high school student to the town pariah. She has a boyfriend but becomes confused about her feelings and her relationship as revelations come to life. She also is getting attention from a local Author who has decided to write a book and has become friendly with Sadie. She becomes confused about his intentions and her feelings for him. Her mixed up feelings and emotions cause her to make some bad choices and get in uncomfortable situations. George's adult son, Andrew, helps with the investigation while grappling with his past and trying to make a future with his supportive partner who Andrew keeps at arms bay. George's wife Joan has mixed emotions concerning his crime. She fluctuates between being in denial to believing the worst of her husband. Their community is turning against their family as George's secrets begin to be revealed.

There is a lot going on in this book and the Author slowly unravels multiple layers at the right pace. There are some touchy issues in this book - teenage sex, consensual sex between a teacher and student, rape, adults in authority taking advantage of students, secrets, family secrets, bullying, etc. There are definitely some creepy aspects to this book which may also be difficult for some readers.

I will be honest, I was disappointed with the ending but I do realize that life does not always give happy endings and the Author kept things real in that aspect. There are parts of the story that I enjoyed and parts that I did not. This book proved to be a fast read for me and kept my attention. I wanted to know - was he guilty? Will he be found guilty? I did enjoy watching the family experience various natural emotions ranging from doubt, disbelief, fear, confusion, anger, rage, disappointment, hope, etc.

I received a copy of this book from Random House Publishing - Ballantine and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book started off strong for me but after a bit it fell flat. I couldn’t connect with any one character deeply enough to feel empathy, which shocked me because as a wife and a mother going into this kind of story I was expecting to feel so much that I would be overwhelmed if not as a wife than as a mother. However, it fell short. I felt no compassion to any of the characters and at times even found myself judging a confused character that usually I would have never thought to judge because of age.

The ending raised a million more questions for me and not in a way that I care for the answer to anymore. There were lots of other controversial issues in this story as well, not just the accused teacher and it felt like they were just thrown in there for more of a drama effect than for its reader to understand the characters on a deeper level in this story – at least for me anyway. I went in with high hopes for this story and I am sad to say that I was disappointed.

This novel about a revered high school teacher and family man who is accused of rape by several of his female students started out promising enough for me, but then I felt the story went all over the place and I just wanted to finish reading it so I could get on to something else.

I thought it strange that we never really heard from the accused, George, and that even though no one ever would have suspected him of doing what he was accused of, his family almost immediately thought that he was probably guilty.

We never heard much from the accusers either, so there was never a clear picture if George was guilty or not.

I found George's daughter Sadie's story a bit tedious with her patsy boyfriend, his liberal mother, Sadie's naive mother....

All in all, this novel just didn't work for me.

The Best Kind of People is an excellent novel that keeps you guessing. Even through to the end, the truth was never 100% revealed, thus requiring the reader to use their skills of detecting to come to their own truth. The story, is primarily a family who appear to have it all -- they are seen as pillars of the community, kids attend private school, both parents have good jobs, and they have plenty of money in the bank. At least they did. Sadie, the daughter of the aforementioned parents, Joan and George, was almost the victim of a school shooting, before her Father, the beloved science teacher swoops in to save her and the school from a horrible fate. Sadly, this does not save him when he is arrested for crimes against a number of teenagers from the school where he teaches. Is George the man that the town used to believe he was or is he a monster who can commit heinous crimes? How does being accused of such a crime effect an entire family and the small group of individuals willing to stand by them when the chips are down. You will absolutely want to find out in this page turner! Make sure to start it on a weekend where you do not have too much to get done. You won't want to put it down!