Duffy's third book, my third read and all three are five stars. WHAAAAAAAAAAT?! And people, you know I like to watch TV while I read and I TURNED OFF THE TV. That's right, you read that right! Before you continue reading this review, stop what you're doing and put this on your TBR. Done? Ok, good! ;)

I could gush and gush about this book for days but I'll keep this short and simple. Duffy creates such characters and gives us such DEPTH that you're not just reading the story, you're LIVING it. I find myself getting completely lost in her reads that I'm emotionally invested and feel a sense of loss when I'm done with the story.

Ichabod became a true place for me in my mind. I absolutely fell in love with each character - especially Sky and Leo... and even Agnes and her grumpy self found her way into my heart. Ok ok.. maybe there's one character I didn't like but I'm ok with not getting to know him better because boooo… haha, but just like in real life, you can't like everyone right? And I quite liked the balance of the reality of it all.

What I love about this is that while there is a bit of a mystery that is laden within the pages, being within the lives of these characters is enough. I could continue to read about them for days to come. But alas, the book has to end at some point I suppose. Le sigh.

And a big thank you to the author for once again including me among other stellar readers in the acknowledgments. It's an honor and pleasure to be a part of this entire journey.

Lisa Duffy, author of "My Kind of People" has written an intriguing, captivating, memorable, emotional, and thought-provoking book. The genres for this book are fiction and women's fiction. The story takes place in the author's present and goes back to the past when it pertains to the characters or events. The author describes her characters as complex and complicated. There are secrets that affect people in this story.  Some of the characters are very helpful and kind. The story takes place on Ichabod Island, off Massachusetts.

I love the way that Lisa Duffy describes the personalities of her characters and the vivid descriptions of the scenery. The Islanders who live on Ichabod Island are a small diverse community, where everyone seems to know everyone. There are some disagreements and manipulative and nosey people.

 A tragedy that cost the lives of a couple leave an orphaned little girl. The will stipulates that Sky, the little girl will only go to Leon as her legal guardian. Leon and his husband are finding difficulties with this arrangement. Most of the small community or neighborhood helps out as much as they can.

The author discusses the importance of a cohesive community, neighborhood, friendships, family, emotional support, and love. I would highly recommend this novel for readers who enjoy a thought-provoking novel.

My Kind Of People is my kind of book! The residents of Ichabod start as neighbors, become friends, then become family as years old secrets unfold after the death of Sky’s adoptive parents. This story is full of who is who, did they do that, and no ways! that it kept me reading in nearly one sitting. Really loved the characters and how well defined their personalities are. Great book!

I included this title in a recent feature article and will provide the details to the publisher in the next round of this review process

Sadly, this book just didn't do it for me. It was very slow in the beginning. I actually thought about adding it to my DNF list a few times but then it finally started to pick up. Once it did, I was intrigued and wanted to know more. There was a bit of a mystery to solve and that part was fun but even then things sort of fell flat. I figured things out before the characters, which is fine but their responses were dull.

There were a few "big" parts of the story that could have truly made it special, but they again were lacking. There was not a lot of emotion, things were just sort of stuck in there. I was disappointed that there was not more emotion and a much stronger response between the characters. It just wasn't there. I could not connect.

The topics included were very relevant and had the potential to be hard hitting and thought provoking (adoption, fire, death, alcohol/drug abuse, homosexuality, mental health concerns, sexual harassment, #metoo, woman leaving an unhappy marriage etc.) but I truly feel that things were just glazed over and made easy. Instead of trying to cram so much into one story, perhaps there could have been 2 really good books instead of 1 mediocre one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

I truly needed a Lisa Duffy book in my life right now. Her books are like a big warm hug for my soul. Characters so fully developed and likeable I couldn't help thinking they were my kind of people. This was a great reminder that it does take a village and help often comes from family picked by us not just blood related.

I have loved all of Lisa Duffy's books, but My Kind of People is my favorite so far. It is reminiscent of Liane Moriarty or Celest Ng in tone and subject matter, but the thing Duffy does so well is character development. There are multiple stories in this novel, but the central characters are a little girl named Sky, who has just lost her adoptive parents in a car accident, and Leo, her parents' best friend, who has been given custody of her. Leo has to navigate sudden parenthood along with his new husband, who has no interest in being a parent. Then there is Maggie, a middle-aged woman whose marriage is falling apart, and Joe, whose life has fallen apart after the deaths of his wife and then his son.

This is a story about community and how people can change even when they least expect it.

Lisa Duffy is a master at crafting family stories that pull the reader into the lives of her characters as if they were members of the reader's own neighborhood. In My Kind of People, 10-yr-old Sky has been orphaned for the second time when her adoptive parents die in a car crash and her guardian, a man named Leo, is someone she barely knows. As Leo and Sky begin to build what has become their new life together they face challenges that can only be solved as they work with other residents of their island who care for them both. Beautifully written and heartwarming.

Want a read that makes your heart ache, then stop, then rejoice? Then preorder yourself a copy of Lisa Duffy’s My Kind of People! Thank you Atria books and NetGalley for the free review copy.

We all have our people; people who will be with you through thick and thin, who will be your champion, who will be a shoulder to cry on, who will celebrate with you, and even people who are seemingly against you, but are just suffering a reality only known to them. In My Kind People, as secrets and realities come to light, the truth reframes perspectives and proves to be immensely freeing. Things are not always as they seem on the surface and everyone has a story. There are a couple of characters that I disliked in the beginning, only to find myself saying, “oh, no wonder, now I can relate”. This novel reveals stories, secrets, and realities through the bonds of friendships and family. Relationships are formed, broken, and redefined in this beautiful story.

This was an enthralling read about a small community and secrets. I loved the characters and the dialogue is so convincing that reading it is similar to eavesdropping.
Many thanks to Atria Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Sky has been orphaned and the most recent type was very tragic and she has been left in the custody of one of her mother's best friends. He has moved from Boston to this island to take are of Sky, but his husband isn't quite sure this is the life he wants. Also on the island who play a part in the story are Maggie and her husband, Pete, who is the police chief of this small town and their neighbor Joe, who had an accident which has kept him from doing his job and his passion of construction. A few other neighbors and folks make appearances, but these are the main players in this book.

Sky is the main character and she is going through a major life transition in this book. It is her coming of age story, but the book gets to be more than that with these other characters around her going through their own adult dramas. I loved having a younger character going through a major life change while surrounded by adults who in different ways don't have their shit together either! It was refreshing to see those play side by side. Nothing more frustrating than perfect adults by a young adult who is having a hard time.

Maggie for me was the other character that I loved following the most. She was going through some major mid life crisis without her child around and trying to figure out how she wants the back half of her life to look like. I loved that she was able to step in and be a female lead for Sky and that she had both love and friend drama at the same time in the same book.

Beware that I may have shed a few tears at the end of this one and I am not typically a book cryer. I won't hit at why the tears happened, but I was so surprised when they did!

I have read one of Lisa Duffy's backlist, still have one I need to read - The Salt House. After enjoying this book so much, I am pushed to get "caught" up with her books and read that one and then anticipate what comes next!

My Kind of People is the second Lisa Duffy book that I've read and she has officially became a must read author for me.

About the book: On Ichobod Island just off the coast of Massachusetts, ten year old Sky becomes an orphan for the second time after her adoptive parents die in a tragic accident. Their friend, Leo, becomes Sky's guardian and has to move his life from the city back to the small island he grew up on. Unfortunately, his new husband is not thrilled about the change in their lives. Neighbors band together to help Leo learn how to be a parent to Sky and we get to learn more about their lives and personal challenges along the way plus a little twist at the end that I did not see coming.

As you can see it is a very character driven novel and I loved it. It took me a bit to get all the characters straight, but once I did I was hooked. The characters were very likeable to me even though they all had their own flaws and issues. Well, maybe one or two drove me a little nuts, but hey, that makes it all the more realistic. Highly recommend. 5/5

I devoured My Kind of People in one sitting. Following the stories of multiple people on the Northeastern beach town of Ichabod Island, Duffy takes you along a journey full of tragedy, resilience, love, and ultimately, the importance of family—blood or otherwise. While the many storylines were a little tough to follow in the beginning, Duffy has the ability to interweave them seamlessly throughout, keeping you on your toes to find out what happens next. There's a great mix of characters to love and dislike, with a beautifully done narrative from page one.

This newest Lisa Duffy dramatic, fictional tale left me in awe; totally captivated by Ichabod Island and it's inhabitants from beginning to end. I feel honored to have been granted the opportunity to read this stunning book. Duffy intricately weaves this powerful story of friendship, love, grief, and hope through the musings and overturned lives of the fascinating people who find themselves lost and in need of finding themselves on Winding Way.

As I type I smile fondly at the the normal people in this book who find themselves in the most ordinary of real-life circumstances. Events that happen to real people that really are ordinary but to the people for which they're happening these circumstances are life altering in ways one can't ever anticipate until they are thrust upon them. It's a heartbreaking yet uplifting book on how we move forward in life and how we deal with a new normal.

I especially love the story crafting and meticulous plotting of Lisa Duffy. Her writing never becomes tediously invested in mundane details or labors over situations. Her words flow so effortlessly from page to page always taking you forward. This is my second book by this gifted author and the structure always builds upon an air of mystery with her characters. It takes questions of "what if" or "what happened" for the protagonists that propel the story while always letting the unknown linger until the ultimate conflict and resolution. Duffy doesn't write thrillers or complete mysteries just ordinary people in character driven, drama type stories allowing readers to become fully invested. It grants us intimate access to follow a path of discovery and exponential growth right along with her engaging, eccentric, and sometimes even a little enigmatic characters, both primary and secondary.

My Kind of People is infused with emotion. It's simply about a group of people and their stories within the confines of their present upturned lives with a beautiful, curious setting that affords readers the chance to get lost within the boundaries of the binding thanks to the thoughtful and gorgeous writing. For lovers of contemporary fiction, this is a book I highly recommend as it's now one of my 2020 and ultimate favorite stories.

3.5⭐️ An small group of vacation island residents come together following the deaths of a 10 year old girl’s adopted parents. As the months follow, it is not just the young girl that deals with loss, healing and new beginnings. A good read, and I especially liked the last quarter of the book, but the author’s first book The Salt House is still my favorite.

Last year I really enjoyed Lisa Duffy’s second novel, This is Home, so I jumped at the opportunity to read her new book, My Kind of People. This one revolves around Sky, who in her 10 short years has already lost 2 sets of parents, and her guardian Leo. Leo is black and gay (Sky is white), which to my delight, was not at the center of the story. What is at the center are the relationships amongst neighbors and amongst family members and how out of these relationships come pain, loss of love, resilience, strengthening of bonds, acceptance and joy.

There are a number of characters here to like. Not only Sky and Leo, but also their neighbors Maggie and Joe. Maggie is a school teacher, a very kind woman who deserves more than she has. Joe is a jack-of-all-trades who is always willing to help whoever needs it. I even liked Lillian, a woman with a bad reputation, almost from the get-go. Sky, Leo, and Maggie all struggle with the issues of who they are and where do they belong. Their journeys make for some fine reading.

Of note, the setting is Ichabod Island, a fictional island off the coast of Massachusetts. The author does a nice job conveying the atmosphere and feel of the location.

I had to deduct a star as I pretty much guessed the crux of the revelations at the end of the book early on. Nonetheless, the story captivated me enough mark Ms. Duffy’s first book, The Salt House, the only one I haven’t read yet.

I highly recommend My Kind of People for all readers of contemporary fiction looking for a satisfying character-driven novel.

My thanks go to Net Galley, Atria Books, and Ms. Lisa Duffy for an advanced copy. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.

I thoroughly enjoyed this compulsively readable family drama. The characters were well-developed and the plot took several turns I never would have seen coming. It’s not a typical family, and that’s what makes this novel pleasantly different than other family dramas.

On the island of Ichabod off the coast of Massachusetts, ten-year-old Sky becomes an orphan for the second time in her life when her parents die in a car accident. Leo, her parents’ best friend, is given legal guardianship of Sky and he leaves his home in Boston to come live in the island and moves in to the house where Sky has spent her childhood. Leo’s husband, Xavier, has no interest in leaving their home in Boston. He currently comes to visit Ichabod island on the weekends, but since neither of the men has had a desire to have children, this puts a strain on their relationship.
The neighbors all play important roles in the lives of Leo and Sky. Agnes is the town historian and busybody. Her ancestors were some of the first on the island and she’s very proud of that. Her best friend, Maggie, is a teacher and knows all of the children in town. Her marriage is falling apart after finding out her husband cheated on her. She was dear friend of Sky’s parents and Sky knows and trusts Miss Maggie. Joe hears and knows a lot about the neighborhood because he loves gardening and is usually found in his yard. Frankie, Sky’s best friend, is a budding artist and the two of them are generally joined at the hip. Each of these characters are fixed in my mind and I was so sad to see this book end and put them aside.
This books has everything: family drama, mystery, friendship, mental illness, addiction, love. The characters were well developed and believable, and the author tied the storylines of all of them together so effortlessly. The community coming together to take care of this child made for a lovely read.

This is my second book by Lisa Duffy and the second of her books that I have given 5 stars to. Duffy has a unique ability to create characters that feel so real, it's as if you actually know them, so 3D that they jump off the page and you feel as if they are your friends.

In My Kind of People, Duffy brings us to the world of Ichabod island where the community has banded together around orphan Sky after losing her parents in a sudden car accident. While Sky is left in the custody of her mother's best friend Leo, Leo's husband Xavier has other plans - forcing Leo to lean on local friends and neighbors. Duffy's books always have a sense of creating a family from those around you and this is powerful in MKOP.

As always, I was sad to say goodbye to lovely characters I spent time with between these pages.

3.5 stars rounded up.
Life isn’t perfect. Things happen that cause grief and loss. Sometimes people lose themselves to alcohol or drugs or mental illness or lose their way in relationships, marriages and friendships. All of these things happen in this novel and it’s the characters with their imperfections and the mistakes they make along the way, the assumptions they have about each other, the assumptions that we as readers have about them, that make them so relatable. No one is perfect, but people can sometimes find their way when they are surrounded by people who love them.

There’s a lot packed into this story which takes place on a small New England Island with the feel of a small town and all of the dynamics that come from the proximity of people and houses and a shared history. At its heart, the novel is about a little girl named Sky, suffering grief and a terrible loss. It’s also about those around her - friends and family who try the best to care for her while dealing with their own personal burdens.

I found this to be predictable and had guessed some of the things that weren’t apparent to the characters until the end and there were a couple of things that felt a little dramatic. Having said that, it’s a lovely story reflecting on what brings people together or back together, sometimes back to the people they were and what home really means. I have to round up to 4 stars because these characters were “my kind of people “ - sometimes a little lost, but filled with love for family and friends. I’ve read all three of Lisa Duffy’s books and found all of them to be solid, moving stories reflecting on the bonds of home and family and love, things we can all relate to.

An advanced copy was provided by Atria Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.