CW: Drug addiction, overdose

Rule of Threes is a middle grade book about major family changes, with considerable focus on drug addiction.

Rule of Threes focuses on the life of Maggie, a girl who has just started 6th grade with her two 'BFFs'. One day, she gets a big surprise when her half brother shows up in their lives, when his mother is dealing with addiction recovery. A lot of secrets begin to get unraveled, both regarding her brother and the declining well being of her grandmother. Meanwhile, Maggie is dealing with confusing behavior of one of her long time friends as well.

I felt like this book was really respectful, but serious, about drug addiction. The character struggling with addiction is referred to as being 'sick', which is the proper way to handle the topic, IMO. I really think the way the author addressed addiction was one of the best parts of this book, even though it's also a heavy subject. The book also tackles infidelity and Alzheimer's as well.

The big problem I had with this book, and the reason I gave it three stars, is because I thought Maggie was a pretty awful main character, particularly at the beginning of the book. She comes across as very petty and judgemental. There's a whole scene about her mentally judging one of her 'best friends' homes, and talking about their lack of money. She has a lot of rather snide thoughts about decor in general. I understand her character has a love of decorating, but I feel like her thoughts about redecorating could have been written in a way that felt less judgey and more 'inspired'. It really just rubbed me the wrong way, and disliking the character takes away from the emotional payoff at the end of the book.

I received this e-book free from NetGalley to read and review with my honest thoughts.

A truly cute middle grade story. Our main character, Maggie, has 2 close friends, Olive and Rachel. All is well until Maggie's half brother enters the picture. Triggers include drug addiction, Alzheimer's, trauma. Plot is realistic, easy to follow. Issues surrounding family life and problems, and friendships are prevalent. I liked this one. Thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC. 3.5 Stars

Maggie has just started middle school and things are already a little weird when she not only finds out she has a half brother but that he’ll live with her family for a while. This kicks off a period of great change in her life, but over time she leans to embrace the changes as well as truly forming a bond with her new brother.

This was a really accessible read and I loved the characters relationships, especially Maggie and her new brother Tony. The issues and feelings discussed in this book were very relatable for me and perfect for the age the characters are supposed to be. The heavy focus on design was really cool and unique, offering a fun element to the book. While this is a rather simplistic story, it does feel appropriate for a middle grade book. A thoughtful and engaging read especially for kids 10-13!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for review.

This is an interesting story. We don't often see topics like divorce and Alzheimer's being discussed in Middle Grade books. I really enjoyed seeing some things that a lot of people can relate to. I like the way emotions are handled as well. Children don't always know how they feel and it is okay to change your mind! I like that this book shows that families can be broken yet find happiness within it. It is one of my favorite things to see in books.

As much as I'd like to say I liked the main characters I just didn't. Maggie Flip Flopped through her emotions and so did the other characters so if you got on board with how they were feeling on page 50 by page 75 they'd be completely different. Also the synopsis reveals way too much. I couldn't believe the brother was revealed around page 40 and by page 80 the grandmother's illness was still not discussed yet.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.
This book deals with pretty heavy topics like drug addiction, divorce, and Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, many children have to face this in real life. I loved how the author has woven complex topics into this book.
The protagonist, Maggie, is a strong and round character with both bad and good sides; she is self-centered; at the same time, she is good at heart.
I am not very comfortable with my children reading such difficult topics yet. So I didn’t let my ten-year-old son read this. I read this book.
Warning for content: This book has drug addiction as a major part of the plot. If that is something you don’t want your children to read, you can skip this book. That doesn’t make this book any bad, though. I loved it. Overall it’s a riveting middle-grade fiction.

This is a really sweet realistic middle grade novel! The main character, Maggie, is very happy with the life she's always had as an only child with two best friends and a loving grandmother, but as she is transitioning to sixth grade, one by one each of these things begins changing.

I would especially recommend this for girls in fifth and sixth grade, as they will most be able to relate to Maggie's struggles and triumphs in this stage of life.

Note warning for content - drug addition, if this is at all sensitive for your family. Nothing is explicit, but it is a major part of the plot.

I enjoyed reading “Rule of Threes” as it covered many topics for a middle-grade novel.

Although targeted for middle grade, the plot is heavy with some topics like substance abuse, separation, Alzheimer’s, and divorce. Moreover, the characters are realistic and dynamic. The author nicely portrays how emotional and dysfunctional a family can get when uncertainty enters their lives.

Maggie is excellent in the lead as she tries to adjust to the new situation. She goes through a LOT in the story, and it was interesting to see how she copes with each of them. On one side, I loved the conflicting emotions Maggie has for her father. On the other hand, she also deals with her grandmother’s issues of Alzheimer’s. Also, there is her conflicting friendship with Rakell/Rachel and adjusting to Tony. I thought she was a strong character for handling all the challenges. On a side note, I also loved Maggie’s passion for interior design and how she aspires for things to be a certain way.

Similarly, I also enjoyed Tony in the role. One of my favorite scenes in the story is when Tony takes Maggie to meet his mother at McDonald’s and the awkward moments that transpire. Tony and Maggie share a lovely bond that felt gradual and realistic.

However, there were a few minor parts where I wished I had more details. For instance, I would have liked more information about Rachel and Tony as they also go through quite a lot. It would have also been interesting to see the mother’s emotions as she also goes through changes. But, in retrospect, that might have stretched the story.

Apart from that, I enjoyed the book. Overall, “Rule of Threes” is a riveting, realistic, middle-grade novel worth checking out.

This is a great book, it would be really good for a middle school class to read. It is a book about an only child who suddenly learns she has a half brother and her life flips upside down. The book goes through the new family dynamics and expresses the tough issues that go on in the family members lives to make their new normal.

There are a lot of heavy topics covered in this novel, but it is done in a simple and well explained way. These are, unfortunately, real topics that some kids are having to deal with in their personal lives.

The relationships between siblings and friends were written very realistically. They talked back to each other, argued, etc, but they always worked it out. The kids acted like real kids do. The siblings acted the way real siblings act with each other. I found Maggie to be a self-centered brat, but she had plenty of good qualities also, and in the end, she was becoming aware of her faults and working on them.

I enjoyed that Maggie was into interior design. This is a unique hobby, especially for this genre. It added some fun to the story and I actually leaned a little something.

Rule of Threes showed the difficulties life can bring, the difficulty of facing change, and how all things are possible to get though with the love of family and friends.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#NetGalley #RuleofThrees

Enjoyed this book about Maggie and her two best friends who call themselves the BFF- best foot forward. They love to design things, and there is a contest at school they are entering. Things begin to go wrong when Rachel pulls away and becomes distant. Then to add to the confusion and anger she feels, Maggie’s grandmother has Alzheimer’s and her dad has a son from a previous relationship. Can Maggie handle all this change? She finds that if you listen hard enough you can hear a person’s sadness, and that memories don’t last forever.

It surprises me how well authors these days, reach to openly speak about serious topics yet do so in a way that there remains room for hope, for the young people reading the book.
This is an excellent example how a story can pack difficult topics such as: inter-family relations, drug addiction and Alzheimer's disease all into one plot, but also showing that happy moments do occur and there is hope, always.

The complexity of life (and sometimes, it all just comes raining down on us in one big shower) is well-shown & I am thankful for the possibility I have received to pre-read this book.

I received a copy of the book from Netgalley to review. Thank you for the opportunity.
I really enjoyed the MG book as it wove together more complex themes with the youthfulneds of being a MG. The MC was a little dorky but true to herself which I felt gives a good message for young readers. It had very good writing in that it had a good flow and was aceessible also. The book brings up multiple complex themes such as half siblings, familial relationships, alzehimers and drug addiction. I liked that these topics were brought up in a sensitive and age appropriate way and I feel like this book could be used to discuss these themes in a more educational context also.
On the other hand, the MC is very focused on her own interests and goals which makes for a lot of reading on interiors. I think it's more personal preference as to whether you enjoy reading about this but I didn't really which drew the engagement away from the book for me.
On the whole, an enjoyable read.

Something I love about middle grade literature is that it’s not afraid to tackle the tough topics, but it still keeps that ray of hope that YA and adult books don’t seem to achieve.

RULE OF THREES, for example, deals with things like parental marital issues, affairs, drug addiction, Alzheimer’s, etc. and handles these issues carefully and effectively, but doesn’t feel weighed down by them. There’s moments of happiness and hope which are so, so important when dealing with an angst heavy story.

I have not read Marcy Campbell’s other work, but I may just have to try it out, after loving this one.

Perfect for fans of Beth Vrabel or NBC’s “THIS IS US”.

This is such a cute book. And I mean that in the best possible way. It's everything I love about MG fiction. When I say it's cute, I don't mean it's full of fluffy themes, because it isn't. It's actually really complex, and I love it all the more for that.

Maggie has just started middle school. One of her best friends is slowly pulling away from her, and sometimes she calls her grandma and finds that her grandma doesn't remember her. But it's ok, because she has the perfect family. It's just her, her mum and dad. That is until a half-brother she didn't know existed shows up on her doorstep, and her life turns upside-down.

Yes, there's a lot going on in this book. But it never felt like too much. The truth is, life is complicated. And it's complicated whether you're twelve or twenty or forty. It's unreasonable to expect middle grade fiction not to reflect the complexity of life. Kids need to see themselves in books, and I'm sure a lot of them will identify at least in some way with Maggie's story.

I love Maggie as a narrator. She's kind of dorky. She goes to Harry Potter summer camp and she loves interior design. She's not the most popular person in the world, but she has friends who she spends time with at school. She can also be a little selfish and concerned with her own problems, though ultimately, she has a good heart. Even though she's dealing with a lot, and is unhappy about it, she still manages to be a fun narrator and I found myself laughing out loud when reading.

At first, she struggles to come to terms with the fact that she has a brother and she isn't always kind to Tony. But it was really nice getting to see her figure out how to build a relationship with him and welcome him as part of her family.

I really love the amount of character growth Maggie experiences. Yes, she's still the same slightly dorky, design loving girl she always was. But she is forced to see that her ideas aren't always right, and that she can compromise and accept that perfection isn't always the goal.