I was really looking forward to this book about Rich, a British man who gets diagnosed with a brain tumor and only has months to live. Told in alternating POVs from Rich, his wife, Ruth, their son Ollie, who is on the spectrum as well as their extended family members - this book covers a number of heavy issues as the characters deal with their grief over the loss of the man they all loved. As a brain tumor survivor myself, I really connected with Rich, especially with his love of cheese and his deep love of life and his family. What I didn't love so much about this book was how many different perspectives there were. I felt the author tried to do too much instead of focusing on just a few characters. Ruth grapples with a deep-seated depression after her husband's death (something that runs in her family), while still trying to be there for her son, who is struggling to find meaning in life after losing his dad. Rich's mother is not just trying to support her daughter in law and grandson but trying to do right by her husband who is suffering from worsening dementia and needing more care than she can give. In addition, Ruth's sister and mom are also working through their own issues and grief. It all gets to be a little much and in my opinion this book would have been stronger with a few fewer perspectives. Overall very well written and tackles hard topics but I wanted more (or rather less). Recommended for people who enjoy stories about families dealing with loss and grief in their own different ways.

This Shining Life by Harriet Kline is a highly recommended poignant family drama.

When Rich dies from brain cancer his family must learn to deal with grief and each other. The novel is written with short chapters that are from the different points-of-view of Rich's wife Ruth, son Ollie (almost eleven), sister-in-law Nessa, mother-in-law Angran, mother Marjorie, and father Gerald. Ollie is on the autism spectrum, and he misses his dad who provided stability for him and could help him understand the world. After his dad dies, he is determined to solve the puzzle he thinks his dad left for him that will explain what it means to be alive.

Ruth is grieving and struggling with depression. Rich brought joy to her life and she depended on him. Nessa, who was friends with Rich before introducing him to Ruth, is also grieving but must try to help Ruth and handle her indomitable mother Angran, who is not only a force to be reckoned with but also deals with depression and repressed anger. Marjorie wants to mourn her son and have a relationship with her grandson, but Gerald is sinking into dementia and makes life even more challenging and difficult. Angran doesn't help as she steadfastly steps in-between them. All of them are dealing with numerous emotions and reactions to Rich's death.

Although all the characters are given room for their voices, Ollie is the heart of the novel since his are the only chapter's written in the first person. He is greatly concerned with solving his father's puzzle, the answer to what it means to be alive, but no one seems to be listening or understanding what he is saying. They also seem to be forgetting that he also is grieving. The puzzle focuses on the special gifts his dad picked out and chose for everyone before he died. Ollie was given a pair of binoculars so he could focus on things. Now he is sure he needs to determine what connects all the gifts to solve the puzzle

A novel about a grieving family is naturally going to be sad, but Kline also shows how members were trying to help in their own ways. The result is a beautifully written novel about loss, endurance, sorrow, love, and acceptance as a family tries to navigate their journey in grieving and life. The short chapters and even pacing help propel the novel along. Ollie's obsession does become a bit tiresome and repetitive, but that is also indicative of being on the spectrum and how he deals with his emotions. All of the characters are portrayed as complex, unique individuals with unique voices. This character driven, poignant family drama is a fine debut novel.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Penguin Random House via Netgalley.
The review will be published on Barnes & Noble, Google Books, and submitted to Amazon.

I received a free electronic ARC of this novel from Netgalley, Harriet Kline, and Doubleday Random House - Dial Press. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read This Shining Life of my 0wn volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. This novel looks at life from all angles. I found it both alarming and soothing on a deeply emotional level.

Rich is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. He will spend his last days visiting with people who love him at the family home - his students from school, his 11-year-old autistic son Ollie, wife Ruth, Sister-in-law (Ruth's sister) Nessa, his folks Marjorie and Gerald, and his wacky mother-in-law Angela but known to friends and family as Angran, thus named by grandson Ollie in his babyhood and taken up by all. They all see Rich and death from very different perspectives, and we go there with them in their own voices.

This is one of those novels where you keep inserting yourself into the story. How would I react to this? If this were so-and-so dying what would I do, what would I say? A thought-provoking tale told very well.

Ollie’s father has died, much too young leaving a family in turmoil. Each struggling to come to grips with his death. Told in the many voices of his wife, his mother and father, his mother in law, his sister in law and his eleven year old autistic son, each tells the story of their own pain. While the rest of the family is struggling, Ollie is looking for the meaning of life. He loves puzzles and he’s sure his dad left one for him to figure out with the last gifts that he sent to everyone. Each character is flawed and so many times Ollie gets the short end of the stick. The scenes of Richard’s illness and death are so very real. We are left with hope and optimism as we reach the end as healing begins to take place, but a book that was quite heart wrenching and for me a difficult read.

3.5/5 - Are you looking for a book to make you go deep in your feelings and weep big tears down your cheeks? Look no more.

In many ways, this book is beautiful. It is also very sad and heavy emotionally. After Rich dies dies of a brain tumour, his family is left to pick up the pieces and deal with many instances of emotional and intergenerational trauma. This book looks at how grief is shared and experienced differently by individuals as well as how new bonds of love can be formed.

I liked that this books was told from multiple POVs and along different timelines. A few of the characters I found very frustrating and wanted to suggest that they all see a therapist. I found the book was slow to start and at times repetitive. I did pick it up and put it down a few times due to the subject matter.

I was enamoured by Ollie, the young son with autism. Throughout much of the book, I just wanted him to be hugged, but everyone else is struggling as well. Ollie reminded me a lot of the little boy from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.

If you chose to read this, please be emotionally prepared. I had to take many breaks with this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dial Press and Random House Publishing for the advance copy.

Pub day is June 22, 2021. Review will be posted on Instagram @tays_booknook on the same day.

4 stars / This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com today.


Prepare yourself for an emotional roller coaster. Ruth and Rich met through Ruth’s sister, Nessa. They’ve been married just about forever and have a son, Ollie, who seems to be autistic. Rich has just been diagnosed with a brain tumor. A brain tumor too large to treat. The only option is palliative care. Hence the emotional roller coaster.

How do you figure out a way to make someone’s last days on earth perfect? Ruth just wants Rich to enjoy every last day. Nessa wants to make sure that every item on Rich’s bucket list is accomplished. Ollie believes that his dad wants him to solve a puzzle. And then there are the parents, Ruth’s mother Angran who believes it is her job to make sure that Ruth isn’t traumatized further; and Marjorie and Gerald, Rich’s parents are just barely hanging on.

The story flip flops between several different time periods, but with the ability to easily determine when it is. Each chapter is told by a different person, so that we get to capture each person’s reactions and emotions surrounding a horrible diagnosis. As well as coping with the tragedy ahead of them, each character also makes some realizations about themselves.

Although there is a lot of pain and tragedy in the novel, there is also a lot of joy and celebration. It makes you think about life in a completely different aspect.

Ollie wants to know: "How will I ever know, then, that it means to be alive?" When Ollie's father Rich was dying due to a brain tumor, a list of gifts for friends and family was made. Each gift was chosen very carefully and thoughtfully. Binoculars for Ollie (to help him focus). A pink vase for Other Grandma (Rich's mother). A Bohemian necklace for Aunt Nessa (sister of Ollie's mother Ruth). And so on. After Rich's death, Ollie discovers the list and it becomes his mission to find out what these gifts were meant to teach him about life. Since Ollie is autistic, this challenge becomes an obsession. The surviving family members, caught up in their own grief and other dysfunctional dynamics, seem to disregard Ollie's project. Will they understand in time to help Ollie answer his question? Told in a range of perspectives and in diverging timelines, this is about the beauty of life and family. There is hope.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Dial Press/Random House for gifting me a digital ARC of this bittersweet book by Harriet Kline - 4 shining stars!

Ollie's dad died. Ollie is a different child and he's not always sure he fits into his family just as they aren't sure about him. But when Rich dies at a young age of a brain tumor, the entire family is thrown and unsure of how to navigate their grief. Mom, Ruth, sinks into depression; her mom, Angran, remains angry at life; Nessa, Ruth's sister, was Rich's friend as well and tries to get Ruth to move on. Rich's parents, dealing with their own issues, struggle with losing their son. Rich left a present for each family member and Ollie helped wrap them up. But things didn't turn out as planned and Ollie is desperate to set things right.

The story is told from all the different viewpoints of the family members, both before Rich's death and after. Ruth's childhood issues come into play in all her relationships and she has to come to terms with them. This is a wonderful story of grief - of loss, of coming together, of moving on. I loved all the different voices and how the author let us see different viewpoints at different times to tell the same story through another's eyes. Which is another important lesson from this book - what we think others may want or need may not be true.

While there were beautiful moments in this book, there was too much chaos for me. The only character I really liked was Ollie because at least he was trying to listen to the rest of the family. Everyone else seemed to focus on themselves and not care about Ollie floundering.

I really liked this book. A lot. The characters were believable, if not a bit frustrating at times. Life is a journey with no destination in sight. We may think think we know where we’re going, but there are so many side trips to be had. I loved the title. Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC.

"This Shining Life" by Harriet Kline really resonated with me. Like Ollie, I am neurodivergent and my dad passed away suddenly when I was still young. I had a mother and grandparents who didn't know how to cope with their own losses, much less help me deal with mine. Also like Ollie, I floundered around, searching for meaning that just wasn't there. I could identify with Ruth too-even though she suffered a tremendous loss, she still felt like she had to be supportive to everyone around her, putting aside her needs for theirs, which eventually led to depression.

However, as I also found to be the case, in the midst of death and mourning, there were flashes of light and happiness for those left behind. They learned to listen to each other, and to help each other grieve. They remembered Rich with funny stories and smiles. Most of all, they learned that living means having to accept and forgive others, and that love comes in many different forms. Ollie's dad died, my dad died, but their deaths in some strange way taught us to live.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and to the author for the opportunity to read an advanced digital copy of this beautiful and realistic book, in exchange for my honest review.

This book made me think about my Grandmother's funeral years ago, where two of my family members who'd had a huge falling out reconnected. I remember thinking that it was nice that something good came out of such a sad day.

𝙍𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙍𝙪𝙩𝙝, 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙊𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙚, 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙤𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧- 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 -𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙖𝙬.

All these characters are really flawed.
Obviously they care for each other but they're ignorant to each other's struggles in life and in grief.
The way they had no patience for Ollie, who's an 11 year old Autistic boy just trying to make sense of his father's death really made me mad. But that was the point of the book - to watch as they learn compassion and understanding of others.

I wavered between 3 and 4 stars through the whole book and I still can't decide so I'm going with the 'glass half full' attitude and giving 4⭐

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the gifted copy.
Released June 22

Ollie, is a young boy with autism who's dad has died. He wants worder and tries to keep everything together and in the correct place. His mom, Ruth, on the other hand is mess and very unorganized. It's a story of them trying to make it together after the death of a husband and dad. It's a life dealing with death, trama, uncertainty and loss. Sad and sweet. "I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own." Thank you #NetGalley#DoubleDay#ThisShingingLife

THE SHINING LIFE: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Bittersweet story that was for some reason hard for me to really get into. I don’t know if it was structure or story, but I was just not MOVED.

NOTE: I was provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

An unforgettable portrait of grief, love, loss, family and friends.
Many thanks to Random House Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This Shinning Life
Rating: 3 stars
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC given through NetGalley for review. All opinions are my own.

TW: Death of a parent due to cancer, strained relationship between mother and daughter

This Shinning Life tells the sad story of how a family is trying to cope with the loss of a husband/father/son to cancer. Each chapter is a member of the family and tells the reader what is happening to the family and how they are dealing with this great loss. In the middle of this we have Ollie, who's autistic, his father is who passed away and it he who breaks my heart and trying to understand what is happening around him and trying to solve a puzzle that his father left for him.
This story has mostly sad moments so be forewarned. There are very few happy moments that Rich had after his prognosis, but yet those when told by Ruth's point of view felt strained. I did like that Ruth stood up to her mother towards the end of the book.

Unfortunately, This Shining Life wasn’t the right fit for me. Ollie’s chapters are different from the others because he is a child, but I couldn’t get on board with that writing style. It was repetitive and made the first half of the book almost impossible for me to get through. If I hadn’t received this as an ARC from Random House, I probably wouldn’t have finished reading this.

Once we passed the 60% mark, the story starts to come together with less repetition and feeling less disjointed. Had the entire book read the same way, I think I would have enjoyed it more. It’s important to come into this book knowing we start with loss, that there is a lot of grief, and you need to be in the right mindset while reading this. The author discusses many real-world issues, including death, grief, healing, depression, trauma, dementia, and autism. While this wasn’t the right fit for me, I encourage other interested readers to give it a chance.

A beautiful exploration of one family’s grief. It’s obvious that Rich was the shining life in this group, so when he passes away how do his wife, son, parents and in laws move on? I liked how each chapter was from a different character’s perspective. I also thought the characterization of Ollie was well done as a child on the spectrum. I also thought the book did a good job addressing depression and the way it was exhibited in Ruth, Angran and Gerald. While it wasn’t a real page turner for me, I’m glad I read it.

I requested this from #NetGalley because the description reminded me a little of "The Curious Incident", but it was very different from what I expected. It deals with a lot of heavy issues - from terminal illness/death to autism, depression and mental health to childhood trauma, strained relationships and aging parents. Told in alternating voices, the characters are dealing with the grief of losing their husband/son/father/friend and the story of how they navigate this process is honest and raw. At times, it felt overwhelming. But I'm glad I stuck with it. We all need the reminder that life can be short so make the most of everyday.

Thanks to @atRandom and #NetGalley for the digital ARC of #ThisShiningLife. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

A family has been devastated by the death of Rich, who left a wife and ten year old autism spectrum son, Ollie. Dying from cancer, Rich selected gifts for each family member that would be a special surprise, and Ollie helped to pack and mail them. Somehow the gifts were mixed up and the book deals with the emotions of all those involved. This character driven story explores the personalities of the family.

Thanks to NetGalley for sending me this ARC. It will be published in June 2021.