This was such a great book. I enjoyed all the characters, all the interactions and had a few very good laughs. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. Families can be just such a joy🙄

We need more writers like Amy Poeppel. Her previous novels, Admissions and Limelight, are whip-smart and hilarious; both involve well-developed characters stuck in odd but credible situations. Her new novel, Musical Chairs, shares these attributes, but it’s even funnier, and even more insightful. Lucky me, I read it free and early thanks to Atria Books and Net Galley. It’s available to the public August 1, 2020.

Our protagonists are Bridget and Will; they are family to one another in the modern sense, the sense that sometimes we adopt our most important friends and declare them to be kin. They’ve been together as performers in the Forsyth Trio since college. Bridget has never married; Will is divorced. They have seen one another through thick and thin, and well meaning outsiders think they must surely harbor romantic feelings for one another. Will has no children, but has served as a father figure to Bridget’s twins, both grown.

Summer is here, and Bridget is preparing to spend it in her summer house in Connecticut. Her boyfriend, Sterling, will be joining her; she thinks that he may be the one. But you know what they say about the best laid plans. Sterling dumps her on her ass without a moment’s hesitation, and both of her children descend on her unannounced. Her octogenarian father lands in the hospital. Nothing that happens is the way she had planned it.

At the same time, Will has been looking forward to some time on his own in the city, but Bridget is in distress and so he drops his other plans for her. Not one thing goes as planned.

I don’t usually enjoy books about rich people, and Bridget’s family is wealthy indeed. This one works for me because the disparity in wealth between Bridget and Will, who is an ordinary starving artist, is addressed in a natural, organic way throughout the narrative; but beyond that, I feel I know Bridget, and so she is not the rich woman, not the heiress, but instead she is Bridget, and she feels like a friend. We always forgive our dearest friends for things that are generally deal breakers with others. Finally, Poeppel has no tolerance for pretension, and more than anything, her honesty turns a good story into a terrific one.

The pacing here never slackens; one crisis is nearing resolution when another one pops loose. At one point I am convinced that Poeppel is driving home a message about the destructive nature of secrecy, but by the ending I can see she’s done no such thing. Sometimes secrets are great. Sometimes they work out well. And sometimes they are only secrets for a while as their owner waits for an appropriate time to reveal them.

The side characters here are brilliant as their perspective contrasts with that of the protagonists. The internal monologue involving Bridget and Will is personal, even intimate, and so we see everything as they do; but then Jackie, the ambitious young assistant that Edward has hired for the summer, looks these folks over and weighs in, and her observations make me laugh out loud. In fact, this book marks the first time since the pandemic began (at the beginning of March, here in Seattle) that anything I’ve read has made me laugh. It felt great! Then later, another side character’s pet parrot Ronaldo pipes up and it happens again. (My laughter woke my husband, and I was a little bit sorry, but also not.)

The dialogue between Edward and Will near the end makes me shake my head in awe.

At the outset, I am puzzling over the title. Musical Chairs turns out to be a website for job-searching musicians, but later I see a broader reason that this title was chosen. Throughout the chaos that unfolds for Bridget and Will this summer, the characters are constantly changing places, rotating, and assuming new positions, and it’s fine, because—and here’s our real message—change is not failure.

The references to the musical “My Fair Lady” are icing on the cake.

Highly recommended, and likely to be one of this year’s best books.

Amy Poeppel does it again with a smart, hilarious story. I loved every page, every character. She sets a complex dance in motion where I never knew quite what was going to happen and the end was SO satisfying. Highly recommended.

Bridget has been dreaming of a romantic holiday in her raggedy Connecticut home with her boyfriend Sterling. But her quiet summer plans change when Sterling dumps her via email, her adult twin children “need” to come back home, and her eighty-something composer of a father suddenly announces he’s getting married. Told from multiple perspectives, "Musical Chairs" is a lovely story about life and love between friends, lovers, and family – all to the symphony of classical music.

This was a fun and quick read – which sometimes your brain just needs! Amy Poeppel did an excellent job of keeping the reader engaged in the lives of this eccentric group of people.

I’m a huge fan of multiple perspective books however I found this one slightly more difficult to navigate. There were SO many different perspectives without a clear rotation. The points-of-view weren’t just limited to the “main” characters; which isn’t a bad thing, just made it a little more difficult to mind-prep before diving into the chapter.

Our main protagonist, Bridget, is a woman on the move in her fifties. Poeppel did a beautiful job of allowing the reader to become invested in Bridget’s life. Bridget was honestly so relatable that I found it difficult to picture her in her fifties; as I kept imagining her in her thirties like myself.

Poeppel created such wonderful imagery in her descriptions from Bridget’s well-worn Connecticut home to her relationship with her father and best friend, Will.

If you’re a lover of classical music and sweet chick-lit reads, I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you Amy Poeppel and Atria Books for this gifted copy.

PUB DATE: August 01, 2020

Such a fun read quick read. During a summer break from their group the Forsyth Trio, Bridget and Will take time to evaluate where they want to go in their life. Do they continue on as together as group or do they start forge separate paths.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #NetGalley #MusicalChairs #bookstagram #booknerd

I adore Amy Poeppel's writing. Time and time again, she flawlessly weaves together scenes that feels complex, compelling, and most importantly like real-life. At the book's conclusion, I felt like I knew this family and these people. I was rooting for them all and I finished MUSICAL CHAIRS with a very satisfied smile on my face. The only downside to finishing is I now must wait for another new book from Amy!

Thank. you for the advanced e-ARC win exchange for my honest review. I will post my review on Goodreads and Amazon.

I enjoyed this story, but it was a little hard to keep up with all the different characters stories and drama.

I loved Amy Poeppel’s Musical Chairs! This book is a fun and charming read. Bridget seeks solace at her country home up in Connecticut away from her troubled and busy life in New York City. Over the summer she unexpectedly gathers friends, family, and their animals around her and finds herself needing to fix not only her neglected home but also the many different relationships surrounding her. I loved spending time with these characters and so enjoyed this laugh out loud book! Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy!

Bridget Stratton heads to her summer home with visions of a romantic season with her boyfriend in mind, but within days, those dreams are shattered and her summer plays out in ways she never could have expected.

This story was a delight from start to finish. Bridget's life resembles a game of musical chairs as circumstances around her continually shift and change due to changes in the lives of nearly every member of her family. All the while, her summer home is showing what years of neglected repairs look like. The chaos that ensues as relationships are addressed is both endearing, and in some places, laugh out loud funny. I related to Bridget in many ways - being in the sandwich generation and having both a composer as well as many musicians in my family. What I appreciated most about this story was the love and concern each family member had for the others; their desires for the best outcomes for one another; and the space they made for one another to both deal with disappointments and look ahead to new beginnings. Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for the opportunity to read this "breath of fresh air" during these challenging days we are currently living through.

What a delightful book! I was drawn to this novel because of all the musical references, even though I’m not a big fan of light romance. I do like family stories, and the Stratton Family is made up of very interesting, characters who actually like and root for each other, unusual in the plethora of dysfunctional family stories. The male and female protagonists are not married or blood related, but are very best friends and colleagues, working together in a musical ensemble called the Forsyth Trio. The Trio is in danger of disbanding because their Violinist left. The family and their friends are coming together in a country estate in Connecticut to celebrate the wedding of their famous Nonagenarian Composer Patriarch, Sir Edward Stratton. His composition, “Synchronicity” (my favorite word in the English language) is being played by the trio as a surprise at his wedding, and is the theme of his address to the wedding guests. Although the book doesn’t end as I had predicted, it does end happily.
Many thanks to Net Galley and Atria publisher for the opportunity to read this advance copy.

Will and Bridget, two members of a decades-old musical trio, are longtime platonic friends. After a difficult breakup, Bridget spends the summer at her decaying country home near her famous father's mansion. Within days, it seems everyone in her life is in the midst of major transitions: her two adult children move in with her, her aging father announces his engagement, and Will falls in love with a local.

Although the story moves quickly and feels light and frothy, I struggled with the sheer number of characters in this book. There were about twice as many characters with too many side plotlines to keep track of. Even by the end, I struggled to remember who everyone was (not to mention the SIX pets' names!) As a result, the main characters felt shallow and underdeveloped. I would have liked to see about half the peripheral characters cut out so that the main ones could be fleshed out more. However, it would still make a fun beach or poolside read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

As much as I hate to say it, I was bored by this book. By the time I got to the end, I was skimming large portions of it just to get through. There just didn’t seem to be much of a plot. I kept wondering what story the author was trying to tell. None of the characters seemed well-developed, and, as a result, everything seemed contrived. This was such a disappointment as I’ve really enjoyed the author’s work in the past.

Bridget and Will have the kind of relationship that people envy: they’re loving, compatible, and completely devoted to each other. The fact that they’re strictly friends seems to get lost on nearly everyone; after all, they’re as good as married in (almost) every way. Bridget has been dreaming of spending the summer at her well-worn Connecticut country home with her boyfriend Sterling. But her plans are upended when Sterling, dutifully following his ex-wife’s advice, breaks up with her over email and her twin twenty-somethings arrive unannounced, filling her empty nest with their big dogs, dirty laundry, and respective crises.

I really enjoyed this novel. It was just I needed to read. It was a humorous dysfunctional family at is best with endearing characters, a lovely setting and music at the center. I giggled throughout the novel at all of the different situations the characters found themselves in. Each characters was unique yet relatable. And I found the hopeful, happy ending just what I needed right now. I will adding the author's back list to my TBR.

I love Amy Poeppel's writing style. She's a "must read" author for me. I was delighted to read this story of a musical trio whose best days seem to be behind them. The cat of characters is charming, and this is a fantastic summer read that focuses on themes of friendship, family, music, and love.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

While reading Musical Chairs, all I wanted to do is drive to Litchfield and spend the night with this cast of characters. From dogs and cats to musicians and dilapidated farmhouses, to siblings and lovers and a snarky parrot, Poeppel creates a big, loving family filled with her signature wit and a whole lot of heart. Highly recommend.

Musical Chairs is a charming book, full of charming characters. The plot centers around Bridget, an unmarried musician, and her family and friends. Over the course of one summer, they all converge on the family's country home, each one experiencing a personal crisis that needs to be resolved by the end of August. It is the perfect beach read - full of humor and with an interesting plot to keep the reader engaged. Also, it was refreshing to read about people who actual cared about one another. Perfect for fans of the "rich people's problems" genre.

This book was pure joy to read, just what I needed during this pandemic. Full of likable characters overcoming obstacles and finding happiness on the other side.

This is a very fun read, great to enjoy while sitting on the beach. Anyone who was a big fan of Will and Grace, the television show, will love Musical Chairs.

Bridgett and Will are very best friends and also coworkers: they both play for the Forsythe Trio. However, they are in need of a third, and are about to have to make some changes to deal with their new, younger talent. Bridgett is ready for a relaxing summer of fun with her new beau, only to find out her grown children are back and her elderly father is getting married, and somehow there are sheep in the yard.

Everyone in the novel has endings and beginnings, and big decisions to make. Changing points of view and a wonderful cast of characters makes this novel a fun and lively romp from beginning to end.

I did try to like this novel.
It is a well written and definitely an interesting story of family, gathering while the main character Bridget is totally expecting just peace and quiet this summer with her boyfriend who may step it up and pop the question in her old, dilapidated home.
Who knows when kids might come back to the nest and when your family, friends, and acquaintances may show up?
Truly a Musical Chairs situation as people were in and out constantly, including dogs and sheep.

This being said, I have to say I had a very difficult time knowing all the characters, who they were and how they fit in with the family or friends.
It took concentration to get to the finish line here, and let's face it folks; sometimes all you want is to NOT have to work so hard at reading and understanding a book. I am sure I lost some of the plot along the way.
I am sure some ill truly like this novel and I urge you to try. You might love it!