Mainly a tale about secrets, this book isn't what I expected from the description and for that reason it was a bit disappointing. This is not a like-able family by any means. The story is somewhat drawn out, but the writing itself is very well done. I received an ARC. This is my honest review.

Harry Tabor is 70 and going to be honored as Man of the Decade. His family is full of drama and secrets.

The writing in this book is wonderfully lush and full of description but the book/story itself is kind of boring. I found myself waiting for a big reveal or an explosive secret. This is just a book about a man and his family.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

4 thoughtful and introspective stars to The Family Tabor!

Last summer, The Resurrection of Joan Ashby was on all the must-read lists. I bought it, but unfortunately, I have not read it yet, so I went in to The Family Tabor with no knowledge of Cherise Wolas’ writing style, and I was blown away.

At seventy years old, Harry Tabor is to be named Man of the Decade, a capstone achievement. His family comes together to attend the celebration, including his wife, Roma, a child psychologist, and his three brilliant and high-achieving children; two are lawyers, the other a social anthropologist. I was intrigued with the various occupations of the characters as they were layered into the story.

As one might expect, things are not always as perfect as they appear on the surface, and not only are each of the adult children harboring secrets and camouflaging blemishes, so is Harry.

The Family Tabor reminded me of the game, Jenga, where layer by layer, we add a piece, building the family’s foundation, and as we play, or live life, we slowly remove a piece, digging at the center, or the truth, and as the structure loses stability and integrity, it might crumble to the ground. This family is on shaky ground, and piece-by-piece as the truth comes out, the family as a whole, and what they each thought was true is in jeopardy, which threatens their identities at the core.

I have been using this phrase frequently with my summer reads, but it fits this book as well: The Family Tabor required my patience as a reader. It was not a book I could breeze through, and it is chock full of intricate details of a family, some going back generations. It serves as a reminder that we are not always as independent as we think we are. Our forebears’ paths affect our own without our awareness. The Family Tabor is a rich, deep character study, on family, really, and while it all takes place in the course of a weekend, much takes place within the hearts of these characters.

On the eve of Harry Tabor being named the Man of the Decade, he struggles with an indiscretion that happened years ago that may have had serious unintended consequences for someone else. At the same time, his wife and his three grown children are all dealing with their own private crossroads. This is a book that shows that you never really known what is going on other people's lives even if those people are in your own family. It is about the things that tear families apart and the the thinks that bring them together. This book is very supenseful, and you will want to keep reading to find out what is going to happen. Although in some ways the end of the book does not seem to provide complete closure, it is still a mostly satisfying read.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately I found it to not be attention grabbing at all and I was not able to finish this book. I think the writing in itself was extremely well done.

This is a book that the present is overpowered by the backstory, making it difficult to figure out what the writer’s main objective was. The story was tedious and the characters were boring. It was difficult to get into and there was no real connection to any of the characters. Unfortunately, not a favorite.

This book was one that I held great promise for. I was not that impressed. The storyline is about a family that seems to have had it all, but along the way, they all face uncertaintes and questions about where they are in life. There are secrets in this family for various reasons, which I was anxious to find out what they were. This book was drawn out and it just fell flat in some areas. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the ARC of this book. Although I received the book in this manner, it did not impact my opinion of this book nor my review.

Excellent intergenerational family drama. Harry's story was fascinating in the way it was slowly revealed not only to readers but to him as well, and each of his family members and the struggles they brought were interesting as well, showing the complications and secrets that can lurk between the relationships between even close, happy families. The author used religion in a really fascinating way as well between both father and son. I have yet to read the author's debut from last year, but am excited to go back to that after reading a remarkably solid sophomore book!

I'm always a fan of books that have alternating viewpoints and family drama...so this was right up my alley! Add in secrets, lies, mistrusts but also love and some typical family dynamics that we can all relate to-it's a must read for me. I was a bit turned off by the religious tone throughout a lot of it (that's a personal thing), but otherwise I was caught up and wanted to dig through the layers to see the family and their story, for what they are. This book is a slow burn and one I would recommend.

Harry Tabor is about to be honored as Man of the Decade for his charitable works. His family are on their way to his home to join him and his wife, Roma, who is a child psychologist. His son, Simon, is a lawyer and will be bringing with him his wife and two young daughters. His daughter, Camille, is a social anthropologist and his daughter, Phoebe, is a lawyer. They’re all so proud of Harry and each of them have their own reasons for wanting this occasion to be a family-bonding one.

But Harry’s mind seems to have been playing tricks with him and hiding some vital memories. Those memories start to resurface, helped along by a voice in Harry’s mind and even a vision or two. As the memories increase, Harry’s jubilation at his upcoming honor starts to crumble. Is he the honorable man he thought he was? His children, whose lives seemed all so perfect, are also struggling with their own demons. Simon can’t sleep at nights and has discovered a desire for Judaism, Camille is having career setbacks and has taken a job at a hospice and Phoebe has an imaginary boyfriend as she can’t face her family with her loveless life. None of them are being truthful with each other or their parents. Poor Roma knows her husband and children are having problems but can’t get them to confide in her.

I was completely blown away by this author’s debut book, “The Resurrection of Joan Ashby”. While I can’t say the same about her newest effort, I did enjoy it. It took me awhile to become invested with the characters and the writing was sometimes a bit too ponderous for me. But I grew to care for this family very much. I think Simon’s story touched me the most. He was a good father and husband and his new-found desire to explore his Jewish roots should never have had the outcome it did. I felt so crushed for him. Roma took on the troubles of each of her loved ones and was such a true-to-life character. As for the Man of the Decade, Harry, his journey in this book is definitely a compelling one.

I think the book may not be to everyone’s taste and that’s a shame because there are such wonderful literary tidbits throughout. There’s no fast paced plot here and the writing can be a bit heavy at times. But to those who like a book that you can dig into and explore like an archaeological excavation, I do recommend this one.

Hard to know what to say about this one. Told from the alternating perspectives of each of the 5 members of the Tabor family, it reveals the old secrets and lies they tell each other and themselves. The basic premise, though, that Harry only remembers why they moved (or thinks about) on the eve of his big award is flawed- most of us would constantly have it in the back of our minds. His wife, Roma, is interesting but the kids less so. An unhappy family tale. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

It is pretty easy at the beginning of this book to think "Who are these modern Tabors? They seem to have a good life by many measures. Why the pervasive not-quite-happiness?" I'm glad I stuck with Wolas's book to see where the story was going. It is a slow burn, but a powerful one.

2.5 stars, rounded down
The Family Tabor is Cherise Wolas’ sophomore effort. I had enjoyed her first book, but this one failed to grab me. Harry Tabor is 70 and about to be honored as Man of the Decade by Palm Springs. His family is gathering to help celebrate the honor. We hear from each family member on a chapter by chapter basis. Unfortunately, none of them really interested me. Each of them have their secrets, their own individual dramas. But overall, the group is boring. I kept waiting for something big to happen. And when it does, are we really supposed to believe Harry has forgotten his past? And then as additional parts of his backstory become known, they don’t make sense. Because in my opinion, things would never have played out that way in real life.

Quite a few of the chapters involve religion and the choices that have been made concerning each person’s faith. It’s also about atonement and forgiveness, including forgiveness of self.

As with Wolas’ first book, the writing is lush and descriptive. But it’s not enough. The story needed pruning to provide better momentum. It just takes way too long down a convoluted path for some of the points of the book to be made.

My thanks to netgalley and Flatiron Books forman advance copy of this novel.

I tried to like this book but it just didn't grab me. Maybe it was the mood I was in because I usually like family sagas or maybe it was just too slow moving. Sorry, but I didn't finish, but thank you netgalkey for the opportunity to read.

I loved The Resurrection of Joan Ashby but this book I just could not get through. I didn't like the characters, they were all pretty unsympathetic and I really didn't care for the story. Maybe this book is a sophomore stumble I sure hope so.

Cherise Wolas takes a close look at family relationships with this novel, focusing on how secrets weigh heavy on even the closest families. Harry Tabor, soon to be named Man of the Decade, is carrying the biggest secret, one that he's mentally avoided until the weight becomes too heavy. His wife and three adult children aren't burden-free, though. Each is suffering in his or her own way, fighting demons that only they can see. When Harry disappears during the big celebration, the family is left to face personal truths. Throughout the novel, the author weaves stories about Harry's past, both recently and through past generations. It's an interesting blend of perspective, a balance between strength and weakness as well as independence and reliance. Kudos to the author for an engaging piece of fiction.

This is a haunting book about a family in which all the members are at odds with themselves at the same time. The adult children, Simon, Phoebe, and Camille are joining their parents in Palm Springs to celebrate their father’s achievement. Harry Tabor has been named Palm Springs’ Man of the Decade for his work to bring immigrant Jewish families to America and get them settled. Out of the blue, he begins to suffer from a pang of conscience about something he did in the past, a wrong he suddenly and desperately needs to right. Simon is struggling with an unknown void in his life that has driven sleep from his nights and is causing him to fill the void with running. Phoebe has a lucrative lawyer practice and longs for the elusive husband and family. Camille is so deep into a depression that she does not know where her life is headed. Trying to pull things together is Roma, wife and mother, a child psychologist faced with the troubling problems of her own children.
When Harry disappears, the cracks in the family open and each member must find a way to fill them and move ahead with life be it through truth or faith.

Such a well written, thought provoking family sage that brings to mind questions of integrity, family, heritage, and what should truly be celebrated. Had such depth and well developed characters. This was a novel that truly stayed with me.

Atonement

Dig beneath the surface of the seemingly perfect Tabor family and you will see a major chink in its armor, one that is only known by the two heads of the family, one unconsciously and the other intuitively. The patriarch’s failure to ask forgiveness for a long ago sin has reverberating consequences and no amount of pseudo-atonement will make up for what he has refused to do. Therein lies perhaps one of the most fundamental tenets of living. Harry Tabor fails to realize that his sin is not only about him and when a crisis of conscious shows up in physical form, Harry’s crossroads shows him the way.

On the day of celebrating a decade long achievement award, Harry’s long buried past forces its way into consciousness and there is only one thing he can do about it. The thing he does may seem extreme however nothing will stop him from his mission.

His wife Roma, their three children, and two grandchildren are all present this night to share his accomplishments and celebrate the great man that Harry is believed to be. Roma can sense something is wrong with her husband and being a well-trained psychologist, has all the tools needed to flesh out the problem however due to the festive chaos that encircles this grand event, she fails to push for an opportunity when one doesn’t easily present itself.

Meanwhile, each of the Tabor children are hiding secrets of their own which Roma accurately intuits though she is overwhelmed with who and where to start. Roma is guided by a historical intuition however life is throwing her curves left and right. Roma suffers from conflicting emotions and her own cognitive dissonances.

Initially, I was leaning toward disappointment that this was yet another book centered on one family’s who cares dynamics and the integration of all of the separate personalities. It wasn’t until I was halfway through that the story began to pick up and show promise. In the end, this story does a good job of stating that a family dynamic is an living entity of its own and the effects of one man’s decisions can show up in ways unforeseen, affecting each and every member without conscious awareness.

Deeply prophetic with strong religious yet ultimately spiritual underpinnings. Life’s journey from place to place is reflected in this lovely tale of intention, reconciliation redemption, and coming home.

BRB Rating: Read It.

Harry Tabor is an emperor in his world. He has everything he could have ever imagined. The novel begins the day before Harry Tabor's recognition dinner as Man of the Year. In earlier times Harry would have been "running for his life" from pogroms, as did his grandparents, instead of living in Palm Springs with a lovely family gathering to see him honored. He thinks, "I have been a very lucky man," but as the authorial voice warns, "luck is a rescindable gift."

Harry hears a voice that resurrects memories buried so deep that he had lost sight of them completely. At seventy years old, Harry realizes he is unworthy of high honors and must face the truth and atone for his sins.

Harry's children also each struggle with secrets they can't reveal, a search for love or meaningful work, a need for spiritual or emotional rebirth, the need for mystery or the magic of ritual.

There came a time when I could not put this novel aside and found myself furiously reading and watching the battery life on my iPad counting down...20%...11%... I finished it just before the battery gave out.

The happy family gathering is revealed to be a gathering of troubled souls, and by the grace of God, are bound together, each healed and made stronger. The novel's focus on the spiritual life of the characters may not appeal to some readers, but I loved it.

I loved Cherise Wolas's first novel The Resurrection of Joan Ashby, although I felt the ending dragged. For me, The Family Tabor began slow and gathered strength about halfway.

I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.