Thank you to Netgalley and Celadon Books for an advanced kindle copy in exchange for my honest review!
I absolutely loved We are the Brennans - 4.5 stars!! Wow, I'm suffering from a major book hangover after this one! I did not want it to end!! We are the Brennans has quickly made it's way onto my best reads of the year list.
My favorite quote! "Family didn't mean hiding the hard stuff from each other, it meant facing it together. And it meant forgiving each other."
We are the Brennans is the story of the Brennan family, an Irish Catholic family comprised of parents Mickey and Maura and their 4 adult children, Denny, Sunday, Jackie and Shane. Sunday left New York and moved to L.A. 5 years ago with little explanation but winds up in the hospital after getting into a car accident while driving drunk. Denny convinces Sunday to come back home to New York to recover and she agrees despite the daunting thought of facing her family and fiance that she abandoned. When long buried family secrets are revealed, the Brennans must find a way to stick together.
We are the Brennans was so well written. I was completely immersed in this story right from Page 1 and could picture each and every scene in my mind. Please make a tv series or movie out of this one!!
Thank you Tracey Lange for making me fall in love with the Brennans! They are far from a perfect family, but what family is perfect? Thanks for the reminder that every family has its drama and its ups and downs, but it's how you handle the drama that matters!
Read this if:
* You vibe with books with Irish characters/families
* You like getting all mixed up in someone else's family drama
* You like stories told from the viewpoints on different characters
Pick up a copy of We are the Brennans ASAP and get ready to fall in love with this family!

Coming from a family with deep Irish roots I loved the story of the Brennan family. The Brennan’s live in the suburbs of New York, they are a close knit family that will do anything for each other. Their mom passed away and their father is losing his memory. Denny, Sunday, Jackie and Shane are the Brennan siblings. The story focuses a lot on Sunday Brennan, but the story is told from multiple perspectives. The story was heartwarming, funny, tense, and had just enough family drama that is typical of an Irish family. The author told the story well with great character development. I could definitely see this as a movie or TV series. The characters were relatable and believable, I connected to the themes of family, loyalty, and trust. Really enjoyed this book! As always thank you to Netgalley and Celadon Books for the digital galley in exchange for an honest review!

5 stars!

One of the best family dramas I’ve read. Bravo to the author for this fantastic debut. It's been a while since I've read a book where from the very first page I was completely captivated and that feeling never ceased. I didn't want this story to ever end. The characters were extremely well developed, the chapters were labeled so you knew which character's perspective you were reading from and the transitions between characters was done in a way that was clever and helped tied everything together.

I don't know about you, but one of the tricky parts about family sagas (my favorite subgenre of fiction) is that with the many characters and different storylines (particularly in the beginning) it can take a bit to make your way through the story and figure out how everyone connects together and keep one character straight from another. The way this was written, that didn't really occur here so it was that much easier to fall into this family.

I also applaud the author for the length of the story. I find that with even some family sagas that I really enjoy they are far too long. You find yourself getting antsy for things to wrap up, even though you love the characters. With this book, I don't know how she did it, but she cut the length by almost half and still made a story that was enthralling, emotional and well written.

It will be a while before I get past this story. It has stayed with me even into the next book (sorry next book), and I am secretly hoping the author decides to continue the story of the Brennan family into another book.

Thank you to Celadon Books and Tracey Lange for the gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Review Date: 08/04/2021
Publication Date: 08/03/2021

I can’t believe We Are the Brennans is a debut novel. I was hooked from the very beginning and enjoyed every page to the very end. It’s the story of the Brennans (of course) and the dynamics of their family.

There’s Sunday who returns home after being away for five years. The reason for her departure is most interesting and makes up a large part of the book. Her brothers, Denny, Jackie, and Shane fill out the family along with her dad, Mickey. The sexual tension between Sunday and Kale, her ex, is built up expertly.

All about this book is enjoyable. The writing is skillful, the storyline is compelling, and the ending is satisfying.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review We Are the Brennans. It was most entertaining. Well done, Ms. Lange. Well done.

The Brennan family felt like my own as I read this amazing book! Loved every single moment of this novel. I cried I laughed and I did not want it to end. The characters were amazing and I loved the different points of view. This is definitely in my top five for this year. 5/5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

After reading this description, I thought i would like this book. I was wrong because I LOVED it! We Are the Brennans is a contemporary family drama that tells the stories of a large Irish family living in the suburbs of New York City. It mostly follows the Brennan children in the present-day (as adults) but tells we get their backstories through flashback-type memories.

When a story is told with multiple POVs, I often find myself more attracted to one character more than another. However, this was not the case with this book. I loved how the transitions from chapter to chapter (and from character POV to character POV) was the last statement of the previous chapter. This style made for a very smooth transition between POVs, and it does not force the reader to remember what was going on multiple chapters ago whenever a new POV is introduced. The Brennans are a large family, so there are many POVs to switch between, but I was never confused about whose POV I was reading.

Read if you:
- find that “family drama” is like bookish catnip for you
- prefer short books (it’s under 300 pages!)
- like hopeful endings that aren’t too cutesy
- loved Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

My rating: 4 stars

Thank you to Celadon Books for the free eARC!

LOOVED this book. Such a great family saga. So much dysfunction but I still loved them all & wanted to join this family! What a great story. Would highly recommend.

I am dreaming of the day the Book of the Month program becomes available in Canada. In the meantime each month I religiously follow their featured book selections because I always find at least one book to get excited about. In July that book was We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange. Except this time as luck would have it, I ended up getting an advanced readers copy of the book from netgalley (really grateful to netgalley and Celadon books for this literary treat).

We are the Brennans absolutely lived up to its BOTM hype. I quickly got immersed in the story of this perfectly imperfect Irish Catholic family. After a 5 year long absence and a car accident the only Brennan daughter, Sunday, is forced to return to family home where memories and secrets of various family members create a perfect storm of suspense, drama, sadness but also joy and love.

I loved many things about this book but most of all I loved the fact that each one of the characters came alive from the pages of the story. Reading it made me feel like I was allowed a secret glimpse behind a curtain in order to get to know the members of this family in all their complexity. Also funnily enough though it was supposed to be a departure from my usual psychological thriller genre, the way the layers of all the secrets were revealed reminded me a lot of suspense novels. I also loved how each new chapter started with the last thing said by a character at the end of the previous chapter. (I might've made it sound more confusing than it is but had to mention it as I really enjoyed it).

This one is perfect for all those readers who really enjoyed Where the Crawdads Sings & We Begin At The End (both books I also loved). I also have a feeling I'll be seeing quite a bit of this book on my Instagram feed (got to love #bookstagram).

Tracey Lange’s debut is a cleverly written, taut suspense. Her characters are complex and she employs an ingenious technique of ending one chapter with one character’s point-of-view and continuing the same scene in the next chapter from another character’s perspective. I loved this aspect of her writing and found it to be both unique and insightful. I predict that this will be a big draw for book clubs. It is a quick, interesting read and there is a lot to discuss.

While I liked this book, I was hoping for more. More angst, more emotion. It just fell flat for me, and at times even dragged.

This book was a profoundly deep and emotional look into one family and their past mistakes and secrets that all come to a head when the daughter moves back home after an accident.

My favorite part about this book was how the last sentence of speech from one character and perspective would then be the first sentence of the next chapter from a different perspective. That alone was a genius writing tactic!

The characters are all deeply flawed, and I had to keep reading to figure out how everything came together in the end. I can’t wait to see more from this author!

Thank you so much Celdan Books for sending me this awesome free ARC of We Are The Brennans. I've heard nothing but great things about this book. I am so excited to be reading and enjoying this book.

Congratulations to author @tracey_lange on her debut novel!

Synopsis- Four siblings in an Irish American family are reunited when their sister, Sunday, returns home after a drunk driving accident. It's been more than four years since Sunday left New York for L.A. and the question remains, Why? Why did she leave in the first place? And will she stay, now that she's home?

Filled with the lies we keep and the ties that bind, this story was one I could hardly put down.
It's a story of family, of love lost, of the decisions we make in response to the things that happen to us and to those we love.

I give it ☘️☘️☘️☘️/5

I loved the relationships the Brennan siblings have with each other and how it seems as if they picked up right where they left off when Sunday moved four years prior.
The bonds of family (and those invited in to become family) are stronger than anything life throws at them.

The only aspect I didn't love is how the ending felt both cookie cutter "perfect" and dangling all at the same time.
I'd love a sequel to know how life pans out for the family!

Thank you NetGalley, Celadon Books and Tracey Lange for the arc in exchange for my honest review.
Reviews posted to Amazon and Barnes and Noble (awaiting approval). Review posted to Goodreads as well.

It's not easy to run away from your family and the boy you've loved for almost your entire life, but when Sunday Brennan left for California all those years ago, she broke the hearts of everyone she loved, including her own. Five years later, bruised and battered after a drunk driving incident, she is coming home. Secrets long thought buried are beginning to unravel, and everything is coming undone again, as the family is forced to rally and face the mistakes of the past to secure any chance for their futures.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ARC of this book for my honest review. I received it 2 days ago and found myself reading literally every single spare second of the past 2 days to finish it for Pub Day!! The story is so well written, and flows beautifully from one point of view to the next. I wanted to root for Sunday and Kale against all odds, for Denny and Theresa, for all of the Brennans to come together and save the pub, to save each other, and to finally be able to lay it all out in the open, bruises and flaws all laid bare.

Do yourself a favor and RUN to grab a copy of this book. Such a wonderful read for a debut novel, and I can't wait to see more from this author. 5/5 stars

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: August 3, 2021

An engrossing read about an Irish family, love, and the secrets people will keep for those they love. This moved through different points of view seamlessly. I couldn’t put this one down and it was quick read—a great summer beach read!

This is a Literary Fiction book that follows a Ireland American Family during a time a lot of secrets are coming out. This book starts out with a lot of drama, and it keeps the drama going through out this book. I think the little seeds of drama through out the book keeps you wanting to not put down the book. There are so bigger twists and turns in this book to. I have to say I normally do not read a lot of Literary Fiction books, but I really enjoyed this book. It was written very well, and if you like family drama book you should enjoy this book. I love that it shows it only takes one or two big events in a family to change the family. The characters in this book felt like real people, and the drama felt like something that could have really happen. Note: This was my July Book of the Month pick, and then I got approved for the audiobook from Netgalley. I listen to the audiobook while reading the book. The narrator of the audiobook was really good. I was kindly provided an e-audiobook of this book by the publisher (Celadon Books) or author (Tracey Lange) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

When "black sheep-of-the-family" Sunday Brennan drinks a bit too much and injures herself in a car crash, she returns to the family homestead to recover. Sunday's arrival reignites interest in long-held secrets and opens old wounds. Throw in a shady financing deal for the Brennan family bar, a mysterious crime and a marriage on the rocks, and you've got some major family drama. I like how the book captures the strong ties and frayed knots that hold this tight-knit Irish Catholic clan together. Yes, it's somewhat soapy ... and some parts are a wee bit predicable ... but all in all, this is an engaging and enjoyable read.

I really enjoyed We are the Brennans by Tracy Lange. It is about a large Irish Catholic family. Sunday left abruptly 5 years ago leaving her family and her high school sweetheart. Five years later she is in a car accident in L. A. Her brother goes out to help and brings her back home.

This is about secrets kept and hidden. It seems almost everyone has a secret. The story and writing are very good, and I read the book in two settings. We get to know the family members hearing their thoughts and interactions. Each chapter runs into the next switching between them.

I highly recommend this book! Thank you, Net Galley, for an advanced copy for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book about a close-knit Irish family who find themselves struggling under the weight of all the secrets they’ve been keeping from each other. I also found the transitions between chapters unique. If you enjoy reading about flawed families with well-developed characters you can't help but root for, I'd recommend this one!

Happy Pub day!

I really enjoyed this book.

Sunday left her family and fiancé five years ago and fled to California without a second thought.

Fast forward five years later, her brother gets a call in the middle of the night that Sunday was in an accident from drinking and driving.

Sunday returns home to Long Island to face her father, brothers and ex-fiancé, Kale. Kale who is now married.

Sunday is coming home to her brothers business going under, family secrets and finally after all these years, facing her fiancé that was blindsided by her leaving.

If you’re a fan of family drama, heartbreak and big secrets, then this is the book for you.