Member Reviews
I adore this author’s previous works, but this one was y quite a hit for me. There were a few components of the story that were less than believable (Lainey’s unbotheredness by her ex’s… activities) and it really kept me from buying into the story. I’ll certainly pick up whatever she writes next, though!
Everything Must Go is classic Camille Pagan: heartfelt, entertaining, bringing wit and intelligence to real life issues encountered by characters you can't help but love.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy.
I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. A cute cover. A good women's fiction drama novel.
Finished Everything Must Go by Camille Pagán.
⭐️⭐️⭐️3/5
This one wasn't for me. I'm not sure why exactly but the romance part seemed rushed and just very strange. The overall plot was fine. The main character annoyed me, and as a dog lover her obsession with her dog was even a bit much for me. Her motivations were weird and the whole thing just had me feeling like I was missing something.
I do think it was an easy book to read. I was curious how things were going to go but I didn't find myself caring too much about it.
Thank you to @netgalley for a copy of this one in exchange for my honest review.
A story about family, secrets and following your heart. Laine is a professional organizer. Her marriage is on the rocks. Laine wants to have a baby, her husband doesn't. As if dealing with marriage woes isn't enough, her sisters want her to come home to Brooklyn because their mother is having memory issues. Laine returns home where secrets come to light and she connect with her once best friend Ben. This was a warm and deeply felt story. Most people have had to deal with an aging parent and family dynamics. I really enjoyed this. I love stories with mothers and daughters. This was so relatable. Such a good read.
Camille Pagan is a favourite author of mine and for a good reason, all her books pull at your heartstrings and make you think about life and what’s important, and this was no different.
Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for my copy!
Everything Must Go was a wonderful story, I was able to really relate to the main character Laine having gone through a similar experience.
There were moments throughout this book that really tugged at my heart.
I will definitely be seeking out Camille Pagán other work as I feel she is an author who’s work I am going to really enjoy.
No one writes 'real life issues' quite like Camille Pagan. I always find a character that is someone I can relate to or feel empathy for. In this case; it was a draw between our main character, Laine, and her sweet mom, Sally. Both seemed to be at crossroads in their lives; one due to plans that didn't go according to plan and the other facing the ravages of age that appear in different forms.
As Laine's life unravels, she's summoned by her sisters to help with their ailing mom who seems to be more forgetful than normal. (Oh, I can sooo relate to that!)
Family dynamics are where this author truly shines. With so many personalities in family units; it would be easy to have the issues being faced get lost in exploration of traits, etc. Camille Pagan seems to have a laser focus that keeps what's important front and center.
I wrote in a review a couple years back that this author is one of my very favorites and never disappoints. As hearts broke, hope healed and secrets came to light; Pagan settled comfortably upon that pedestal exactly where a queen of contemporary fiction should reside. Obviously I highly recommend this one!
I received an advance review copy of this book. All opinions are my own. @camillepagan @lakeunionpublishing
Thank you Netgalley for the advance copy.
Camille Pagan is his or miss for me. I'm fine and neither are you has been my favorite. While I have found the others to be slightly lacking, I enjoyed this one so much.
When I had to put the book down, I found myself thinking about it. Universal sign of a good novel.
I am NOT a professional organizer but I did find myself connecting to Laine deeply. I would absolutely recommend to anyone who wants a witty feel good story this is it.
A beautiful story of love, friendship, family, and second chances. I loved the characters, especially Laine, and I enjoyed the relationship she had with her mom. This was a very touching mother/daughter story.
I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.
A heartwarming and life-affirming tale of letting go, being in the driver's set of your life and choosing the life you want to build - I loved this wholeheartedly!
This is a lovely little book about second chances, and how they can come around at any stage of life. It's also about secrets and the damage they can do. There was a lot to like in this book - and for me, a lot to relate to. The main character, Laine, is a professional organizer and I need a professional organizer. But more seriously, I'm somewhere between Laine and her mother - I understand taking care of aging parents and trying to help them make the best decision for their life situations because I've lived it. And I'm quickly approaching being that aging parent - at that age where every time we struggle to find a word or name, my husband and I wonder how much of this is just our brains getting full - while in the back of our minds we hope that it isn't a sign of something more serious. Watching Laine and her sisters navigate those waters with their mother, Sally, certainly triggered some deja vu moments for me. And there's a lovely second-chance friendship/romance story here as well - as Laine's marriage is ending she's reunited with her childhood best friend. They'd parted on bad terms (that's where the secrets come in) and we see them cautiously re-establish their relationship. I very much enjoyed this one, and look forward to reading more from Camille Pagán.
Thanks to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing a copy for an unbiased review.
This is my first by Camille Pagan and it certainly is not my last!!!!!!!!! Halfway through this book I was already getting her previous books to read in the future. I fell in love with these characters and her style of writing from the first chapter. Camille Pagan has a unique style of writing all her own & I can't begin to describe it but to say it is amazing and draws you in from the first page. I highly recommend this book and this author
Characters are authentic, realistic, imperfect, and relatable
“Everything Must Go” is the story of one family’s experience with dementia and caregiving. (It starts in a risky way for a book; the dog dies.) The story is conversation driven, filled with what people say, what they hear, and what wish they had not seen or heard. Laine Francis relates incidents as an introduction, as if a new neighbor moving in next door, or catching up with a past acquaintance, or perhaps in a therapy session. The narrative goes back and forth in time so readers learn how characters grew into the people they are in the present. Ultimately that past complicates everything; it holds things that were never supposed to be revealed. Sometimes the truth is terrible for people, and so people decide to keep that to themselves.
Laine returns to Brooklyn to care for her mother who needs “help” with the activities of her daily life; to “put things in order.” But that is no easy task; more is needed than just “cleaning out” the assortment of superfluous clothing and unused kitchen appliances. Things are complicated by a past relationship and by the chaos that surrounds the lives of her two sisters, not to mention that of her mother. There is no easy answer for this. However, this might be the chapter in her life when she could shed her identity as the person who gave up her dreams to make other people’s come true. Perhaps the goal is not always to make things simple and painless. Sometimes one must embrace the pain and the mess that it took to get to where you really want to be.
I received a review copy of “Everything Must Go” from Camille Pagán and Lake Union Publishing. “Everything Must Go” is not just a little casual, amusing book even though the title and the cover might suggest that. It is thoughtful, reflective, and sympathetic. The characters are authentic, realistic, imperfect, and relatable.
“Everything Must Go” is now available in print, as an e-book, and on audio from independent bookstores, online booksellers, retail stores, public libraries and anywhere you get your books.
I love the way this author writes relationships and family dynamics. I feel like I'm part of the story and going through the growth and experiences of the characters and that was especially true with this book. It was so relatable in the difficult challenges and the poignant moments as well. This is one that will stay with me for a while and makes me think about my own family and relationships and the strength I've drawn from them.
Thanks to Netgalley and Amazon publishing for the early copy of this one.
I've enjoyed other Camile Pagan books so I was looking forward to this one. It was so good!
I loved the characters that felt so real and were not perfect. The storylines were so relatable with the mother getting dementia and the family coming together for it. Another great one!
Laine's marriage begins to fail and she heads home for some respite.
She stays with her mother, who happens to be a hoarder.
Which is not good for someone who is a personal organizer.
She runs in to her former best friend Ben, who is eager to repair their relationship
The sisters realize that their mom isn't as well as she portrays, she has dementia. They are now trying to navigate that.
Laine is jumping from Josh to Ben.
The book touched on all the delicate topics and gave all the feels, I just felt it was at a slow pace.
These views are my own and thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this title.
I just reviewed Everything Must Go by Camille Pagán. #EverythingMustGo #NetGalley
An extra star for this emotional book, with its delicate handling of a mother’s dementia. Laine is re-evaluating her marriage to Josh, as she desperately wants kids. When Laine has to return to New York from Ann Arbor at the urging of her sisters, Hadley and Piper, difficult decisions become front and center, including whether to divorce Josh, and how to cope with their mother’s increasing inability to live alone. Pagan is always on target with the messiness of life, and her books are treats to read. Recommended, and thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
I love a mother/daughter story, and I appreciated the way Laine approached her mom’s memory loss. As someone with aging parents, these are relevant issues I face regularly. It’s a story of family and those constantly shifting dynamics between loved ones. Laine grows as a character becoming more in charge of her own life’s direction. Overall, an entertaining, enjoyable, and dramatic story of family.
"Everything Must Go" is a warm and beautiful novel about family, love, happiness and sacrifices. Told from two different perspectives, Laine and Sally, this is a book that is equally funny and heart-breaking. The author Camille Pagán has an amazing writing style. It is very easy to get get into and flows smoothly. The pacing is perfect. The book managed to keep me hooked from the very beginning to the end. I loved the main plotline. The story discusses various important topics like how many a woman has to make sacrifices in her entire life for her family. A woman endures a lot to keep her family happy, even if their happiness comes at the cost of her own. We all acknowledge the truth but how many of us do anything about it. How many of our old mothers are wandering in the dark lanes of the city with tears in the eyes? "Everything Must Go" raises such very realistic yet complex questions that many of us usually try to avoid. Can you really define every action with good and bad? Can everything be regarded as either white or black? Or are there some grey areas too? The book teaches what a great mistake one can make by judging others without knowing the whole truth. How can you blame anyone for what they do when you aren't in their shoes?
Laine is a professional organizer. With her marriage on the rocks and her mother's memory slowly slipping away she rushes to be by her side and help her mom get things back together so she can head home to Michigan and sort out her own life.
While back in her home town she runs into Ben, her estranged best friend, and finally realizes it's time to mend their relationship but in the process, she discovers her mom has been hiding a big secret.
This was a really great mother/daughter story, and I liked the way her mom’s memory loss was tackled. It’s a story of family and the shifting dynamics between them.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend.,