Will, Brian and Luke grow up competing for their mother's unequal love. As men, this competition continues - for status, money, fame, women... Until one of them dies - but which one? And which brother is the murderer?

Sounds intriguing, doesn't it? I absolutely agree! I could not wait to get started with this book!

In this story, you are going to meet the most dysfunctional, unlikable family EVER! So prepare yourself to get angry and disgusted while reading! Nugent creates highly unlikable characters that get more and more entangled in their web of lies, secrets and betrayals - and as the reader knows from the beginning one of them will get killed and another one will be the murderer, it is simply impossible to put this book down for too long!

I would put this more into the category of family drama (with suspense elements) rather than thriller, and the story itself did not speak to me personally, but there is no denying that Liz Nugent is a fantastic writer and I am sure a lot of readers will have a fantastic time with this book!

WOW, Another hit book from Liz Nugent, an author that just never lets you down. A great psychological thriller that will keep you guessing.

The story begins with the funeral of one of the brothers from the Drumm family. But you don’t know who it is until the final reveal at the end. The story weaves around the upbringing of these three brothers, told in four parts, three of them as the brothers each go over their childhood and growing up, jumping back and forth in time. The final part is the brothers leading up-to the incident that caused the death.

Melissa Craig is the mother of three boys William the eldest and favourite son, Brian and Luke. William is a film producer, a misogynist and overall not a nice person, Brian is not much better, he is a mean, grasping and cruel brother to Luke the youngest and most fragile of the three, he is a pop star, struggling with mental health issues. I think Luke is the only brother that elicits some sympathy.

The mother is a selfish and narcissistic show business woman. William and Brian seem to sail through life, with no morals or scruples, they are selfish, arrogant and entitled as well as very annoying, I wanted to slap them numerous times. Luke is much more vulnerable. This is a story filled with cruelty, murder, addiction, adultery, mental health issues, rivalry, along with some #MeToo. An engrossing read.

I would like to thank #netgalley and #PenguinIreland for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.

A beautifully crafted narrative about some very twisted people. A great psychological thriller that has you guessing until the end

Having enjoyed this author’s previous book, Skin Deep, I was delighted to get a chance to read this book.

The story starts at the funeral of one of the three Drumm brothers, but which of them has died. I adore this author’s style of writing which draws you in from the start, her character descriptions are so clear that you feel like you know these people. Although quite an intense read, the humour comes through to lighten things.

Highly recommend this book.

I enjoyed Skin Deep, Liz Nugent’s previous novel so was excited to receive a review copy of her new book. Our Little Cruelties is more of a story about family relationships than a crime mystery which was unexpected but made it interesting and compelling. This author is really good at characterisations which is reflected in this book and her last. However her characters do not seem to be very pleasant!
At the beginning of the novel two brothers are attending a funeral of their sibling but it is not clear who the two surviving brothers are nor how their brother died.
The rest of the books jumps backwards and forwards covering the life of all three, relating events that happened during the course of their lives but from each of their viewpoints.
At the heart of the plot is the question which brother has died.
This Dublin family is indeed dysfunctional and really none of the siblings are particularly likeable. Luke, the youngest, is the most sympathetic, suffering from mental health issues which manifest themselves in childhood but are exasperated by his subsequent success in the music industry which comes at a young age.
Brian and Will are not close and although they help each other out at different times in their lives as well as trying to sort out Luke’s issues, they usually do so for some sort of financial or personal gain. Will does not respect anyone and treats women incredibly badly. Brian has few relationships but is close to his niece, Daisy.
Luke is an addict, an alcoholic and suffers mental health issues from a young age.; however he is the most pleasant of the three siblings.
I reflected at the end of the book how much one’s upbringing can affect one’s later life. Petty jealousies and rivalries remain with these siblings and even when they are in their 40s they have not gotten over events that happened in their childhood.
I liked the Dublin setting which was atmospheric and certainly added another dimension to the novel.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my arc in exchange for an honest review.

Three brothers are at the funeral but one lies in the coffin. They betray each other, over and over, until one of them is murdered but which one? From that blurb, I was expecting a psychological thriller with lots of twists and trying to work out who had killed who. However, that's not really what this turned out to be.

It started that way with the funeral, but then it turned into more of a dark family drama following the lives of each brother as they inflicted multiple cruelties on one another through childhood and into adulthood and the present day. The biggest cruelty of all was obviously one of their death's but during the telling the mystery of the murder sadly became almost forgotten - disappointingly there were no clues, suggestions or twists and turns to untangle along the way.

The book is essentially in four parts; Will's story, Brian's story and Luke's story followed by present day events. However, the stories are not only not chronological but also don't follow any kind of pattern with chapters switching to a different random year in logical order. It's all credit to the skill and talent of author that this actually even works although it is definitely a little confusing initially until you get to grips with it and the story and characters.

Liz Nugent also has a real gift for character development, creating three extremely complex personalities full of both light and dark. Unfortunately, however, I didn't actually like any of them and therefore even care who got murdered. At first I thought it was the all-male cast but in reality it was the fact that between them the brothers possess pretty much every negative character trait possible from sexism, abusiveness, manipulativeness, meanness, selfishness, and obessiveness. Perhaps it's karma but these truly horrible characters experience a plethora of hard-hitting life situations including rape, addiction and mental ill health which altogether makes for rather depressing, dark and shocking reading.

So, despite me wanting to read this award-winning author for ages, disappointingly this just really wasn't for me. It really is best enjoyed as a dark humour and not a psychological thriller - which is what I was expecting/hoping for.

My absolute favourite type of story is a coming of age tale featuring a dysfunctional family, and this ticks all of the boxes. Liz Nugent is a brilliant storyteller and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

The Drumm family in this novel would have to be one of the most dysfunctional and toxic fictional families ever!

Mother Melissa Craig, a self obsessed musical show biz celebrity was mostly to blame, as her family always came second to her career. Any maternal love she had was reserved for William, the eldest of her three sons who could do no wrong in her eyes, resulting in jealousy from her middle son Brian while her youngest, most sensitive son Luke couldn't understand why his mother doesn't love him. Melissa also openly flirted and had affairs with other men, while her quiet and loyal husband cooked and kept house for the boys when she was on stage. Not surprisingly all the boys grew up with a range of issues, including misogyny and difficulty forming relationships.

The novel opens with two of the brothers attending the funeral of the third. How he died and which brother was involved isn't revealed until the end of the book. Each brother gets a turn to relate their experiences during their childhood and later adulthood. The time line jumps around but as each brother relates the same experience from a different perspective it all fits together into some distorted jigsaw. All the little (and the big) cruelties that the brothers (mostly Brian and William) inflict on each other as children and adults come to light and shape their lives and relationships with each other.

None of the characters are likeable, in fact they are often totally despicable, but they are brilliantly depicted and fascinating in a train-crash waiting to happen way. Luke was the only character I felt any sympathy for. Basically a kind and good hearted kid with a musical talent, he became a famous rock star but struggled with drug and alcohol addiction and his life and happiness was badly affected by his both his brothers. The writing is sharp and clever and there is a touch of dark humour that makes this book so engrossing to read.

A tale of a very dysfunctional family, which opens strongly and concludes with a shock, with plenty of dark humour and suspense along the way. The characters are well drawn and the pace is enjoyable. It's interesting to compare the various characters' individual takes on the same events. This is a fun and engaging read.

Liz Nugent you have done it again. This was such a fantastic read. Liz does characterisation so well. And her way with words is so Irish, I love it. I can picture the family at dinner, at mass, cringing at the panto. William, Brian & Luke beating the heads off each other and switching sides when it suited. Liz Nugent has such a way of putting into words, what we all know so well. Her turns of phrase can be so funny sometimes too although this most certainly wasn’t a comedy. The quest to view tits, hilarious! William reminds me of Delia in Skin Deep, and Brian is not much better. And poor Luke. He never really stood a chance overshadowed by his two myopic, self centred brothers. This book was so wonderful. I couldn’t wait to get stuck in each night. I’d highly recommend it to all!!

FEBRUARY 25, 2020 BY VERONIKA JORDAN
Our Little Cruelties by Liz Nugent
Will, Brian and Luke grow up competing for their mother’s unequal love. As men, the competition continues – for status, money, fame, women …
They each betray each other, over and over, until one of them is dead.
But which brother killed him?

Our little Cruelties

The book is divided into four distinct parts plus an intro. It starts with the funeral of one of the brothers but you don’t know which one. Then each of the three brothers tells his version of the events leading up to the death. Finally you have the coming together of the whole story. My God these are three ghastly people! Probably even ghastlier than their ghastly mother – a self-centred singer and actress. First it’s the turn of William, an ass-grabbing misogynist who thinks it’s OK to sleep with women and offer to further their careers in exchange. Even after he is married to long-suffering Susan. Remind you of anyone? He is so awful I wasn’t sure if I wanted to carry on reading. Then it’s Luke. A fading pop star with a drink and drug habit who is (I think) a paranoid schizophrenic who rarely takes his meds. As a child he was obsessed with religion and even turned up at a Halloween party dressed as Jesus with real self-inflicted stigmata. I tried to sympathise with his mental health but the drink and drugs tipped me over. Then finally it’s middle brother Brian. Probably the least worst of the three apart from being mean with money, ripping of his brother Luke and some dodgy social media stuff for money which comes later. I can’t say I enjoyed it until the final part when it all starts to become clear. Why does Luke’s mother dislike him so much? How does it all affect Daisy?

Anyway stick with it. It is brilliantly written but distasteful to the point of ditching it many times. Many thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I did not finish this book as I found the characters very hard to like which made it difficult to engage with and enjoy the story.

Thanks for letting me review this book

William, Brian and Luke Drumm are all brothers but not particulalry close. And now one of them is dead, and his death may not have been an accident.

This book is not a fast-paced action thriller - it's very similar to all of Liz Nugent's other books in that it's very much a character study of the three Drumm brothers and all the nice and horrible parts of their personalities, the complexities of their relationship with each other and their mother, and what could have led to two brothers killing the third.

I really enjoyed examining the three brothers as we heard each of their stories and trying to figure out who could have done what, and honestly which out of the three I'd be tempted to do in myself as they're all so irritating and selfish. The story is not told in a linear way - it jumps back and forth over the years but with each brother we end up getting a really well-rounded version of their life. For example, in William's part we learn about their cousin Paul who died from leukaemia, in Luke's part we learn about the day Paul died and in Brian's we hear how close he was to Paul and the day of Paul's funeral.

There is possibly trigger warnings for extreme mental illness in this book. We learn early on that Luke suffers from depression as well as psychotic episodes which could be linked to some form of schizophrenia. The reader learns from Luke what he's seeing/hearing and struggling with pretty much all the time and how that affects him.

I just love Liz Nugent's style of writing and story-telling. Our Little Cruelties is full of characters so horrible, we can't look away from their ugliness to see how it will all play out. Nugent is a master at wickedly-evil people who are actually very ordinary.

We know from the start that one of three brothers is dead but no idea who or how.
The story is told in flashbacks by them each putting a different perspective on their actions and their relationships. All appear flawed, each behaving badly towards each other. Luke, the youngest, believes he is unloved and suffers fragile mental health. Brian takes advantage of Luke and anyone who can further his interests. Will, the eldest, treats women appallingly. Their lives remain entwined throughout until the tragic end.
Set in Ireland, this closely examines thoroughly flawed family dynamics and the selfishness of all involved.
An excellent read - thanks netgalley for the opportunity of reading this early.

This was an engaging book. I struggled a little at times with the style, but think that’s more to do with meno brain than the author. I wanted to keep reading and I wanted to know what was going to be revealed.

4 Stars from me

Another book full of characters that you'll love to hate! I seem to have stumbled across a few of these lately.

The family at the heart of Our Little Cruelties is dysfunctional to the max - all seemingly stemming from the mother's infatuation with herself.

There are some great descriptive elements of the years as the story moves from the past into the present day, including the typical impact that poverty could have upon a family - the Christmas day from the 1970s in particular.

More of a family drama than a psychological thriller, however the story will keep you turning the pages and wanting to discover more.

The book immediately informs us that out of three brothers, one is dead. We then hear the tale of the three brothers who envy and betray each other time and time again throughout their lives. We hear the story from the different points of view and get to know the personality of each brother. A compelling story and interesting ending, though I would say it is more of a family drama rather than a thriller as such. I can't say I found the characters to be very likeable, but worth a read all the same.

Three brothers who if they had let themselves be happy they could of been.

Three threads that run parallel telling the same story from each point of view from the past to present.
The past they describe is so vivid and real I thought this book was almost like a memoir. I’m a child of the 70’s and it was so different back then The authors description was really spot on of how people behaved and what they got away with. .
Lie upon lie kept coverIng over each other and makes this awful pearl of deceit. I shouted at this book as some of it was just so unfair!

The brothers do cross over to reach a final devastating conclusion. I thought about the ending which although ties up the threads quite a lot I wished the author would add another book

When I wasn’t reading this book I found myself thinking about this book. I do read a lot and this book has made me want to read the authors back catalogue.
It’s unusual for me to read a book where I’m not rooting for a particular character Each of these characters are flawed though in some way and even though I wanted one to succeed it just didn’t happen for them. I really don’t want to give anything away but if you read one book this year make it this one. I think that the kindle price is too low. This is not a bargain bin book and I would of gladly paid full price for this book.

Everything Liz Nugent writes is sparklingly brilliant. I look forward to each new book with real excitement, and our little cruelties didn't disappoint, I loved it.

5 stars

Dysfunctional family + Betrayal + Murder = Our Little Cruelties

It is with the deepest regret that I inform you that this book makes you lose track of time, makes you want to shirk all your quotidian responsibilities, and keeps you guessing right up to the 99% mark.

Let me paint you a picture. A young woman, annoyed that work kept her late, stays up till 3 am so that she can spend enough time with her book. She wakes up at 8 am, and instead of rushing to get ready for the office day, lays in bed and reads ferociously — damn it, she’ll finish this book before she goes to work again — she needs to know who dies. At 10:20 am, after frantic calls from her mum to check if she’s overslept (bc this is a regular occurrence), and after finishing the entire book, she gets ready in 10 mins and runs to catch the 10:30 am bus to work.

Spoiler alert: that young woman is me. The book in question is Our Little Cruelties by Liz Nugent.

"All three of the Drumm brothers were at the funeral, although one of us was in a coffin."

These are the chilling, yet intriguing words that Our Little Cruelties starts with.

This is my second Nugent book, and I was very generously invited by Penguin Random House to read and review this book — a blessing and a treat for me, because Nugent is one of my most favourite authors. Her writing in Our Little Cruelties was as compelling as her writing in Skin Deep, and I was immediately drawn into the Drumm family drama.

The premise is this — the Drumm brothers, Will, Brian and Luke, grow up envying each other, always competing and comparing. For them, familial love means selling each other out, as long as the one doing the betraying profits in some way.

Success only means something if they’re ahead of the other two.

The story starts with two of the brothers attending the third one’s funeral. We don’t know which brother is dead (murdered), and which ones are alive.

Divided into four major parts, and narrated in disjointed, non-sequential chapters, Our Little Cruelties tells the story of the Drumm brothers, right from their childhood to the funeral. The first three parts are allocated for each brother, while in the final part, chapters are narrated by all three. Occasionally, there are anonymous flash forwards describing the funeral from one of the two surviving Drumm brothers’ POV, and that only serves to keep the reader on their toes.

Set in Ireland, as Nugent’s stories are wont to do, despite the non-linearity of the narration, a vivid timeline is painted in the reader’s mind — so intricately clear is Nugent’s writing. As one progresses through the book, it’s easy to see how the same event affected each brother differently, how their mother’s partiality affected each one’s approach to life.

Les characters:

—> Will is a Harvey Weinstein type asshole, who thinks women are objects meant for his pleasure and nothing more. He’s a film producer, and his wealth gets to his head.

—> Luke is a has-been pop star, in and out of rehab, unstable thanks to his mental health issues. He’s a good guy, but his mental health issues make it difficult for the people around him.

—> Brian is a skinflint, jealous of his brothers’ wealth/fame, eager to manipulate them and make money off them. He secretly charges Luke a large amount of his royalties in order to look after him when he has his episodes — something that most families would do out of love rather than for monetary reasons.

The Drumm family, in short, is a very messed up, dysfunctional family unit, with the primary reason for all their issues being their mum. She’s very open in her hatred of Luke, and openly displays that she loves only Will. While their dad is a good parent, it’s not enough to undo the damage she inflicts on each one’s psyche over the years.

In my eyes, the mum is cruel, as are Will and Brian. Luke, I felt strongly empathetic towards — he was never cruel to anyone; he was just selfish and hedonistic about alcohol and cocaine. He never put down or abused women, or sold out his family for money. I was angry at times, horrified at others, and sometimes sympathetic even.

The emotions I felt and the fast pace of this book made it a very intense read for me. It was an impending avalanche whose beauty and destruction I couldn't look away from.

As Daisy, Will’s daughter notes, the only “normal” brother is the one who’s heavily into drugs. Says something about the Drumm family, no?

Liz Nugent, once more, has created characters whose lives it’s easy to lose yourself in. You’re so invested in the story, you don’t realise it’s no longer night; it’s early morning and the birds are chirping outside your window. It’s captivating and fascinating, and spits you out at the end, like you’ve been on the highest of roller-coasters.

Nugent is fantastic, this book is fantastic, and with this book, she’s permanently cemented herself as one of my favourite authors.

Stop reading this review, and go pre-order this book. It comes out in March 2020. You won’t be disappointed if thrillers and Shakespearean dramas are your thing.

The cruelties of the Drumm family are going to stay with me for a long time, and I’d like to thank Penguin Random House and Netgalley for the digital ARC. It was bloody terrific, and I loved every moment of it.

TW: Parental negligence, emotional abuse, manipulation, drugs/overdose, alcoholism, abuse of women, suicide attempts, murder.