I really enjoyed this story, and it will make a favorite of book clubs. The dialogue was wonderful and the personalities believable. There is family drama with a surprising addition, romance and a sense of belonging.

the three Sweeney sisters - Liza, the capable, mothering one; Maggie, the flighty artistic one; and Tricia, the no-nonsense lawyer one - all return to their childhood home after the death of their father, an author whose works are considered new American classics. As they process through their grief, along with some personal issues, they also find out completely unexpectedly that there's actually a fourth Sweeney sister. Their childhood neighbor Serena Tucker recently did a DNA test on a whim, and got some surprising results... The rest of the family follows how each of the four women moves forward with this news, as they re-evaluate what they thought they knew about their father, and what they thought they knew about being part of a family. This is a fairly light, escapist, feel-good type of read - bit of light family drama and great sibling interactions, bit of romance, some humor, lots of emphasis on love of writing and literature. I loved that the sisters genuinely cared for each other and while there was a little family drama, underlying it was a sense that they all love and like each other, and that they have this enviable bond that is apparent to all. Also loved the idyllic East coast setting, with the old family home being kind of a character in itself. The east coast setting reminded me of books like Maine or The High Season or Evvie Drake Starts Over; also in terms of tone and feel, if you enjoyed books like Matchmaking for Beginners, The City Baker's Guide to Country Living Also while the tone was a bit different, the plot with adult siblings returning home for a funeral and falling into their old patterns/family dyamics reminded me of Jonathan Tropper's This Is Where I Leave You. 3.5/5 stars

I read an advance copy via netgalley. The character development is suburb. I enjoyed the relationships between the sisters and what it means to have that relationship threatened or changed and the difference between the two.

This story about sibling rivalry, family secrets and sisterly love will make a perfect summer read. Just enough romance to keep readers engaged and if you’re from Fairfield or Southport, CT you’ll love it even more for all the recognizable people and places.

The Sweeney Sisters is story about 3 adult sisters and how they come to cope with the death of their famous father. After he passes, they learn of a half sister who they’ve known all their life...their neighbor. While this could have been a story dripping in scandal, with dynamic, thought-provoking characters, it just wasn’t that for me. I found that the sisters lacked character development and were all rather flat. I didn’t find myself caring for any of them and didn’t care what happened to any of them one way or another. I finished this back in February and am just now getting around to posting my review, and I’m sitting here struggling to remember a lot of what happened because it truly was that forgettable. It does have a 4.07 star rating on Goodreads from other early reviewers, so there’s a good chance that this one just falls under the “not for me” category.

I loved this book! As someone that just reconnected with family from an absent father, this gave me hope. It showed the messiness of sisters that grew up together and the only-child half sister that was a product of an affair... hit very close to home. This story was told beautifully and was real. I could identify with their concerns and frustration, but really with Serena’s longing to belong. Loved this and look forward to more book by this author!

I am so grateful to netgalley for this arc. This was a book I was looking forward to for months. I’ve searched my library catalog multiple times a week waiting for it to be there for me to request. Unfortunately, the book fell flat for me. The authors beautiful descriptions of the settings wasn’t enough to make up for the one dimensional characters. The book felt like it dragged at many points and I found myself skimming way too often.

I really enjoyed this book. It offers everything one would find in lots of families divorces, death, romance, sibling rivalry and in today’s society DNA discoveries. It’s a great easy read!

This book was everything that it promised; sisterhood, family drama, romance, mystery and so much more, and doggies too!!!!

It all starts when an internationally famous author dies, he is the father of three redhead daughters, time and some circumstances some life came they drifted apart. When their father passes away, the sisters drop everything they are doing and return to their childhood home to say their last goodbye to their father and also their home.

But what they didn't expect was finding a strange blonde girl crashing their father's funeral and then later finding out that same stranger to be their sister. Now, their whole world is turned upside down again and the three of them must stick together and decide what to do with this fourth Sweeney sister and find out why she is here.

I was reading this book and it brought me back to the days I watched Desperate Housewives, who's with me? So much drama, so much mystery and at the same time I just wanted more, I needed to continue to read to find out how this fourth sister came to be and why she was around. And when don't think the other sisters' lives are dull because the dram continues on their lives too lol.

Loved every minute of it and totally recommend it. 5 out of 5 stars!

I got and advance eARC from Netgalley.

I was pulled into the story immediately. The siblings learn of the iconic father's death. Each of the sisters has their own backstory, now they learn of an addition to the family group. How The Sweeney Sisters react and respond to life changes kept me enthralled.

I loved this family drama with relatable characters and flawed relationships! It pulls you right in! 4.5☆

After their famous father dies, three sisters discover a possible fourth. I really enjoyed this story--I thought the dialogue was realistic and funny. A great book that I would highly recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Lian Dolan's The Sweeney Sisters is a nice summer read with a pretty cover and a nice hook. After their famous literary father dies, three Connecticut sisters navigate the world without his larger-than-life persona. But another shock comes when a well-known journalist shows up with DNA evidence linking her as the fourth Sweeney sister. And after finding their father's final memoir, plenty of other scandalous secrets will be let out of the bag.

I liked this book enough, but I'm on the fence whether I'll seek out other titles by the author. I've read other books featuring wealthy people, but for some reason (maybe it's the reliance on backstory? Telling? Character monologues?), this cast felt overly self absorbed (I hated Maggie) and I struggled to find any emotional connection to them. Likewise, it seems as though the book is trying to paint Bill Sweeney as some sort of Hemingway second coming literary genius, but all I got was that he was a horrible human being and I can't imagine anyone in this book world wanting to read him at all.

There were moments that I loved--parts of Liza's narrative were heart wrenching and I really felt for her and I liked how Tricia's story evolved. But mostly it fell flat. I'm disappointed I felt that way because I was really looking forward to this one. But if you're in the mood for a family drama that looks at sisters dealing with their grief and navigating new family, this could be for you.

A special thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for giving me the opportunity to review this ARC.

The Sweeney Sisters by Liam Dolan is an engaging and fun read about three sisters who are mourning the loss of their father. Their mom had died years earlier. Their father was a famous author who had written one last novel that was to be published after his death. The daughters, Liza, Maggie, and Tricia are shocked to discover that their father had an affair and there was a fourth daughter. This daughter lived near them when growing up! What a shock! As the story progresses the family learns how to live with this shocking fact. The story of love, loss , romance and betrayal all occur and cause the characters to experience sadness and joy. This novel’s descriptions were excellent. It is as if the reader could actually see the characters and the house and town in which the characters reside. This is a light read and is very enjoyable . While reading it I thought about my own family and the dynamics within all families. I was able to read this novel for free from the publisher, Harper Collins, and netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review .

The Sweeney Sisters was a delight to read. It is the story of three sisters who, upon the death of their father, discover another half-sister. While that is the main source of conflict in this story, it is really a story about what constitutes family. The sisters, Liza, Maggie and Tricia have grown apart following the death of their mother years before. They come together for their father's funeral and to settle his estate. William Sweeney was a famous author with his own demons, including alcohol abuse and womanizing. The newly discovered daughter, Serena Tucker, grew up in the neighborhood with the girls and only recently found out the identity of her real father through DNA.

This was a great story with some twists and revelations. I really enjoy the ride.


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Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

With Summer around the corner this would be a great read. Lian Dolan's The Sweeney Sisters is a story about family relationships, a death of a family member, and secrets, Each sister has to come to terms with the passing of their literary giant father and the secrets he kept from them.

Lian Dolan has created a fantastic character study in The Sweeney Sisters. The three daughters of William and Maeve Sweeney all have their strengths and their flaws, as does their father William. Things begin to get messy and unravel in unexpected ways when William Sweeney dies, and a previously unknown sister, Serena is revealed. Liza, Maggie and Tricia are all dramatically different people, coping with the life adjustments in their own ways, and at some points that can make them downright unlikable to the reader. I especially struggled with Maggie, since she's about as far removed personality wise from me as someone could get. I wish there'd been more about Serena - who copes with everything with more grace than her half sisters. I wish the ending hadn't felt as rushed to wrap everything in a box and call it wonderful. I wish that the story hadn't switched points of view occasionally from sentence to sentence. But all in all I thought it was a wonderful story that makes you question how well you know the people you think you know.

What I Didn’t Like:
-Out of touch. I don’t say this about a lot of books, but this one felt markedly out of touch with what I consider to be the real world. The things these girls worry about felt so privileged, if that makes sense. Part of that comes from the fact that these are upper-class white women from Connecticut, I suppose. I don’t know. As I said, I don’t normally say that about a book. But in this one I felt like it was just slapping me in the face.
-Multiple viewpoints. Normally I like this in a book. In this one, I think my problem was that the shifts happen mid-chapter without a lot of visual warning. The four sisters all take over the telling (although it remains in third person for all of them) and there’s no real pattern to who is telling the story and when. It was a bit jarring more than once.
-Pacing issues. The book definitely has its slow points where you feel like you’re waiting for something to happen.

What I Did Like:
-The sisters themselves. The individual sisters are well written and have concrete personalities. The beauty of this book is in the way the 3 (ahem-4) of them come together to make sort of a realistic picture of sisters. There were times when I could picture how my sister and I interact, which was cool. The relationship part of this book was well done.
-This is, I think, the first time I’ve done this. I do it a lot with things I didn’t like, but it’s a first for like. I’m going to mention something I actually didn’t enjoy that a lot of you might. I didn’t like the ending. I’m not one for the endings that tie everything up and make everything seem rosy. Basically, if you like happily-ever-after style endings, you’ll love this one.
-Language. This author has a beautiful language, actually. I found myself enjoying the sentences she crafted on more than one occasion. There were, full disclosure, a few grammatical errors. But remember I’m working from an Advanced Reader Copy so we can hope those will get worked out before it’s available in April. I really think you’ll appreciate this one if you like well-crafted sentences and descriptions.

Who Should Read This One:
-If you are the kind of reader who likes emotional stories about women connecting with their families, you’ll love this one.
-If you like a romance style feel to a contemporary story, you’ll like this one.
-I consider this to be similar in style to Beachcombers by Nancy Thayer. If you liked that one you’ll like this one.

My Rating: 3 Stars. This is a good book that explores the relationship between these sisters.

Imaginative storyteller, Lian Dolan, thrills with her latest and most intriguing novel yet. The Sweeney Sisters is a heartfelt, fun story of sisters going through ups and downs of life in every way one can imagine. Each sister has an interesting, well developed background and personality. The tale is woven expertly to keep the reader wanting more and loving each of the characters for her individual traits. The Sweeney Sisters and the cast of characters draw the reader in to the story, keeps the reader wanting to know more, and the end is more than satisfying. This is a must read. Put it on your list.

The Sweeney Sisters by Lian Dolan was a good story. The story starts with the death of William Sweeney, the great American writer. Left behind are his three daughters, Liza, Maggie and Tricia, who discover there is a fourth daughter: their neighbor Serena, the oldest Sweeney sister. That should have provided a basis for a really good, character-driven, relationship novel. But, for me, this story just lacked something. The characters were never really developed enough, remaining very two dimensional to me. The conflicts weren’t there. There wasn’t enough past history as a basis for present emotional response. I feel like this is a good draft, a skeleton of a story that’s not fleshed out fully. And what’s there, I feel like I’ve read before.

Thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for the advanced e-copy in exchange for an honest review. #netgalley #thesweeneysisters