Agatha Arch is Afraid of Everything by Kristin Bair was another enjoyable book that I read quickly! As I have mentioned many times, I love a story I haven’t read a million times before like this one. I want characters I haven’t seen and storylines that haven’t been done.

Check it out:

Agatha Arch’s life shatters when she discovers her husband in their backyard shed, in flagrante delicto, giving the local dog walker some heavy petting. Suddenly, Agatha finds herself face to face with everything that frightens her…and that’s a loooooong list.

Agatha keeps those she loves close. Everyone else, she keeps as far away as possible. So she’s a mystery to nearly everyone in her New England town. To her husband, she’s a saucy, no-B.S. writer. To her Facebook Moms group, she’s a provocateur. To her neighbor, she’s a standoffish pain in the butt. To her sons, she’s chocolate pudding with marshmallows. And to her shrink, she’s a bundle of nerves on the brink of a cataclysmic implosion.

Defying her abundant assortment of anxieties, Agatha dons her “spy pants”–a pair of khakis whose many pockets she crams with binoculars, fishing line, scissors, flashlight, a Leatherman Super Tool 300 EOD, candy, and other espionage essentials–and sets out to spy on her husband and the dog walker. Along the way, she finds another intriguing target to follow: a mysterious young woman who’s panhandling on the busiest street in town.

It’s all a bit much for timorous Agatha. But with the help of her Bear Grylls bobblehead, a trio of goats, and a dog named Balderdash, Agatha may just find the courage to build a better life.

Quirky characters always grab my attention, and Agatha, with all of her fears, was very quirky! Maybe not someone I’d be close friends with in real life, but in the context of this book, I liked her!

If you enjoy fiction in the vein of Where’d You Go Bernadette, The Rosie Project, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, you’ll want to read this book!

You can pre-order it here, the book comes out on November 10th.

Agatha Arch is Afraid of Everything by Kristin Bair
Source: NetGalley and Alcove Press
Rating: 4½/5 stars

Agatha Arch has everything she could have ever dreamed of and hoped for, she has a marriage she is happy with, two sons she adores, and a writing career that is both successful and fulfilling. What’s more, Agatha’s husband is patient and kind enough to accept her eccentricities and shield her from the things that frighten her. The list of what frightens Agatha is long and extensive, but her family accepts and loves her, nonetheless.

To think her world would ever come crashing down is as foreign to Agatha as getting over her prodigious list of fears. Yes, Agatha is comfortable in her existence and sees no reason for any part of it to change. And then, one day Agatha stumbles across her beloved husband banging the local dog walker in the shed. As if the infidelity weren’t enough, the dog walker’s last name is Bean and Agatha is terrified of beans. For the first time in her adult life, Agatha Arch finds herself completely alone and unsure of how to move forward with her life.

Because she is full of good ideas, Agatha decides on a course that is both self-destructive and borderline illegal. First, she destroys the shed in her backyard, then she increases her visits with her therapist (Shrinky Dink!), and then she begins to obsess over her husband’s new life. Obsessing over her husband’s new life means Agatha needs to do some research on stealth recon. In short order, Agatha buys a ton of spy equipment and learns how to use a camera-equipped drone from a kid in the local park. Spying on her ex-husband and his new squeeze isn’t the healthiest of plans, but it is all Agatha has. What she sees is a blissful new life that even her boys seem to be enjoying.

In Agatha’s spare time, she delights in pissing off people through her thoroughly blunt and brutally honest posts on the community Facebook page. All but one woman seems to steer clear of Agatha and that one woman is determined to befriend Agatha and help her change her ways. Agatha is completely confused by the woman’s motives and in typical Agatha fashion does all she can to push the do-gooder away. Fortunately for Agatha, there are people in the world just as stubborn as she is. Unfortunately for Agatha, her means and methods are attracting attention and it isn’t the good kind.

The Bottom Line: Yet again, I am totally befuddled by the Goodreads rating for a book. I found Agatha Arch to be a totally refreshing read and one that I had a hard time putting down. Agatha is such a broken individual and without the life-altering events brought on by her husband’s infidelity, she would have continued to live her life in the same way. Without the crutch of her husband and his enabling ways, Agatha is finally free to deal with her issues and forge a new path for herself. Though her means and methods are completely unorthodox, Agatha does as she always has done and that’s her way or no way. I found this book to be heartfelt, trying, hilarious, troubling, and wonderfully original. I can’t say I’ve felt that way about a lot of books given how many I read and have read so it is nice when I come across something like Agatha Arch that blows fresh air my way.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

5/5 Stars!

Agatha Arch is having a really bad day. She finds her husband in the shed with the dog walker (not THEIR dog walker, because he didn't want the family to have a dog), and they're naked, and apparently this isn't the first time they've been together. In a moment of rage, Agatha also finds a hatchet and the next few minutes are a blur. The shed is in shambles, there are cops everywhere, and her neighbors are just staring. To top it off, her husband has decided to take the kids and leave with the dog walker. If Agatha Arch wasn't afraid of everything, she might be tempted to do something really crazy.

Agatha Arch has always had a fear of everything, fear of beans, fear of others, a fear of being alone, and now it's time to face all of her fears. Using therapy, Bear Grylls, and her moms' Facebook group, Agatha Arch decides to take on this dog walker, the other moms in the neighborhood, her ex-husband, and some random interloper. Agatha finds out that there are ways to get through the world other than fear, like spy pants and drones and a 12 days of Christmas song about the moms.

Bair has crafted an extremely realistic world, set in the suburbs, and full of moms always in other people's business. The characters are all unique and funny, and Agatha Arch is the type of woman I strive to be. Strong, motivated, and honestly.... fearless.

This story was exactly what I needed right now: a light, humorous read.
I liked Agatha, and her quirky ways. My favorite parts where the conversations with her therapist and in the Mom‘s group.

I hope this book is seen by a lot of readers. I’m sure others can relate in that were all afraid of something, life had unexpected twists and turns, and we all get by with a little help from out friends.

Agatha has fears and when one of her biggest fears actually happens she reacts with a hatchet.As Agatha becomes consumed by her fears she loses herself. Channeling Bear Gryllis and with help from unexpected sources Agatha faces her fears. A story that makes you laugh, and say "oh, Agatha", and start to think about how you face your fears.

Agatha Arch is plagued with many neuroses, but the one thing she isn’t afraid of is the breakup of her family, When this actually happens, and her husband takes up with the neighborhood dog walker, Agatha is not well equipped to handle it, so she grabs a hatchet and sends the husband and his lover fleeing, naked, from the shed in her yard where she finds them having sex.

I’ll admit that this is a pretty interesting way to kick off a light piece of women’s literature within the FirstName LastName trend with cartoonish cover art.

Agatha chops the shed to bits with the hatchet and immediately becomes the main focus of the local Facebook moms’ group, plus a temporary Instagram sensation. Ag then takes up stalking the pair, first on foot, then with a GoPro and a drone, to the growing concern of her therapist.

Readers of this type of book will not be surprised to find that there are a few laughs as Agatha learns to overcome her mental health issues and adjust to her new reality. Readers of this type of book should also read something else, since this novel is pretty weak tea for the genre.

I received a digital readers copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley and was encouraged to submit a review.

I absolutely loved this book! Neurotic and snarky, the main character is authentic and hilarious. She says all the things we think and attempts to rationalize the crazy. I loved her. I will recommend this book to my friends, for sure! I giggled throughout...

⁣ 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐀 𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐇 𝐈𝐒 𝐀𝐅𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐃 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝗪⁣⁣
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: Kristin Bair⁣⁣
𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫: November, 2020⁣⁣
⁣⁣
𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬:⁣⁣
Agatha is a peculiar person… she’s a writer, married and has two kids, but she is afraid of everything! One day, she finds out her husband is cheating on her and her life goes downhill from there! Will she face her fears and rise above all that?⁣⁣
⁣⁣
𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰:⁣⁣
𝘗𝘭𝘰𝘵: it was quite original for me! Agatha is afraid of so many things but she tries to overcome her fears in a way that was funny and easy to follow. There were parts that were a bit problematic in my opinion though, such as white privilege and women attacking women and that’s one of the reasons I’m not giving it 4 stars. Also, the cheating/husband leaving part was dealt with in a childish way, rushed and not very mature.⁣⁣
𝘞𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨: I would have loved if the book was written in 1st person, as the mix of narration and Agatha’s thoughts felt a bit confusing and messy sometimes. Also, the story was a bit all over the place in the beginning, with many different things happening at the same time that didn’t really match each other. Towards the end of the book everything falls into place and it becomes enjoyable.⁣⁣
𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴: Agatha is a fun person! At the beginning I felt so annoyed by her and her crazy ideas of spying and fighting with everyone, but she developed very well and grew a lot! The secondary characters were a little bit too flat and basic for me - they didn’t have a lot of depth and I felt like it would be more justified if the book was written in 1st person.⁣⁣
𝘝𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘵: a good book for the weekend ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5⁣⁣
⁣⁣
𝐅𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐐𝐮𝐨𝐭𝐞: “But really, it is impossible to be a human and not be a little bit broken”.⁣⁣
𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤: Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) - Emily Browning⁣⁣
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐀𝐥𝐬𝐨: Eat, Pray and Love by Elizabeth Gilbert⁣⁣
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Thank you @netgalley and @alcovepress for a gifted eARC copy of this book in exchange of a honest review

This book was a wild ride. I found the book humorous at times and it is engaging. It will appeal to Chick Lit fans who will find familiar characters and themes. Agatha Arch is intelligent and sarcastic and the reader can certainly empathize with her current situation. Wronged by her husband and dealing with a younger "other woman", we have certainly read this tale before. However, Agatha is not like any other heroine I've encountered before. She is complex, smart, and edgy. She is not always like-able, but she is funny and makes the reader want to cheer for her.

This funny relatable book had me laughing out loud more than a few times. Agatha Arch is a successful writer but as her personal life collapses around her and she has to discover new ways to reach out to others in order to survive; even if it is against her better instincts. As she tries to find ways to survive the collapse of her marriage and all that makes her feel safe and happy, Agatha turns to Survivor Man Bear Grylls as a role model and fashion icon. This book is set in the deep suburbs and has a cast of characters you will think you know, but will surprise and delight you.

When I first started reading this book, it seemed like it was going to be a funny, irreverent story by a woman who just discovered her husband was cheating on her. Well it was, but then I began to feel as if it slowed up a bit and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to finish it. But I am so glad I did. It picked up again and I really got into the story and yes, it is a very funny and irreverent one. The main character, Agatha Arch, goes a bit crazy when her husband leaves her for another woman in the neighborhood. Her antics are way over the top, but that’s the point.
I loved the Moms Facebook group and I think anyone who belongs to a neighborhood FB group or a moms FB group will agree this one is not too far from the truth. All in all a really enjoyable read.
I received an advanced readers copy from netgalley in exchange for my review.

Agatha Arch is the title character and it's through her eyes that we experience the whole book. Agatha's husband Dax has cheated on her with a nearby dog walker and Agatha is pissed. Totally normal--I think anyone would be furious with that kind of betrayal. But as you get to learn more about Agatha, you realize that she probably had it coming.

Agatha spends a lot of the book lashing out at everyone. She hates the moms Facebook group she's in (despite her being a mom and just as annoying as they are). She hates a homeless girl who she is convinced will kill her. She hates her husband but kind of wants him back. The saving grace is that everyone around her is the voice of reason: her shrink, her best friend, her neighbors, etc. She's pretty awful and everyone is vocal about letting her know that.

What drew me in is that you knew that Agatha was going to put herself into these terrible situations but it would somehow turn out okay. Almost like one of the real housewives. Agatha is a train wreck but not quite interesting enough to make it worth reading.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.


I really liked the concept of the book, it's a light hearted contemporary novel. Agatha is quirky, funny, anxious and you can't help but to feel bad for her. There's mixture of Agatha’s thoughts and what she actually says, sometimes it feels like she's rambling.
I really liked this book in the beginning, Agatha is such an interesting, relatable person and there were various laugh-out-loud moments, but as the book went on, I find it a bit slow. I found the facebook mom's group a little bit annoying.
If you want a contemporary, funny, quick read, then go for it.

An off-beat quirky novel with an unusual protagonist. If you enjoyed Where Did You Go Bernadette? or Elinor Oliphant you'll love this one.

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

At the beginning of the book we meet Agatha Arch on the worst day of her life. She just caught her husband in the shed with the dog walker. From there her world is turned upside down. She falls into a despair so raw and fueled with emotion I think many people can relate on some level. What fallows is a very real and sometimes funny way that someone can deal with a crisis. Agatha lives to stir the hornets nest on her "moms' facebook group, has an obsession with Bear Grylls, and is afraid of well everything, and a peculiar skunk named Susan Sontag living under her porch.

I cannot even put into words how much I loved this book. Agatha was funny and witty, and for me relatable. I think I'm in that demographic that will get much joy out of this book. When Agatha was ranting about the desk lamp facebook post, I was cheering her on, as I am a witness of many of those posts myself. I think many women will enjoy this book. It is definitely one of the more enjoyable books that I have read this year. LOVED IT!

Thank you for ARC to read and review.

This was a light hearted, quirky contemporary novel. I really enjoyed the first half, but as it went on I found myself less interested in the story. I didn't like many of the characters either unfortunately.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this E-book to review via Netgalley.

I really liked this book in the beginning. Agatha is such an interesting, relatable person. But as the book went on, I liked it less. I didn't like a lot of the other characters in the book, which lessened the enjoyment of it for me.

Gorgeous book cover, a quirky and weird protagonist , I dived right in.


This book has been low key compared with Where' did you go Bernadette and I must say the premise and story does rub off in that way.
Agatha Arch is the unpopular New England mom who becomes the subject of mockery and ridicule of other moms. She is not ordinary in any way and has a fear of "Beans" because she had seen a movie where the serial killer would eat beans after killing his victims in a gruesome way.
The story starts with her witnessing a horrid scene of her husband waxing the dog walker's ass in her shed.
This scene is earth shattering and it makes her lose control and completely devastates her.
Grief when it comes, is nothing as we expect it to be." - JOAN DIDION

This book is Agatha's journey to finding her peace, love and overcoming her fears. She knows people don't really like her and thinks if she starts writing what people really like, they will like her too .( we all have been there where we are really looking for validation, love or even a friend)

What I liked :
- Agatha's personality> > funny, quirky, sweet mess , how she fights her fears and turns out to be stronger
- Her childlike name for her therapist "Shrinky Dink"
- Agatha's "Transitive Property of Love"
"People love thrillers. If I write thrillers, people will love me too."

The start was good but unfortunately towards the middle I couldn't really feel connected to the story and got distracted quite a bit.
3./5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Kristin Bair for this e ARC in exchange of an honest review.

I received the ARC of this book through NetGalley and Alcove Press and I would like to thank them for this charming book. Agatha Arch is about as quirky of a character as you can get. She is afraid of everything it seems, from beans to anthrax and over reacts to any encounter with the things she is afraid of. When she finds her husband having sex with the dog walker (they don’t even have a dog) in the shed in their backyard she completely loses control and destroys the shed with a hatchet. Then there is the skunk that lives under her doorstep and the FB page of Mums in her neighbourhood where everything gets posted. This book is laugh out loud funny and although it is a bit confusing to read in the beginning I think you will fall in love with Agatha. I found myself cheering her on. The author created such an amazing character with Agatha that I could overlook her ramblings - the book is written as a mixture of Agatha’s thoughts and what she actually says. You will feel bad for her but overall it is just a hilarious story of a flawed and mixed up woman who is lonely. She reminds me of Amelia Badelia from the kids books. If you want a light and fast read that will amuse you and make you appreciate life then this is the story for you.

I don’t think I am the target reader of this book. Agatha started off as cute quirky, someone you wouldn’t mind having in your book club because she’s well read and funny in an abrasive, tells it like it is way. But the cattiness of the other moms seemed over the top to me. And some of the dialogue as well. Honestly I found most of the characters to be little more than stereotypes and not very interesting ones at that. Some of it was just downright not believable. The Facebook comments, the dialogue between Agatha and her therapist, etc. Ultimately I think I’m about 15 years too old for this book and I’m actually kind of glad about it. I do of course wish the author great success. *Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review*