Molly Black has disappeared, and because of this, we meet the entire Black family in chapter two when a family meeting was called. This large cast of characters all at once was very confusing to me. As the chapters progressed, narrated by individual family members, more is discovered about the missing Molly. I realized I didn't care for this character at all. This book failed to hold my interest. I could not finish it, so I gave up halfway through it. Thanks to author Alice Ryan, publisher Head of Zeus, Apollo, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ebook for an honest review.

This book is based on a story of grief and loss, yet it is so brilliantly written that it doesn’t feel like a sad book. It explores an extended family, their unconditional love and how they’d drop everything to be there when a family member needs them. The only ‘negative’ about this book is that there’s a few too many narrators and it makes getting to know / keep track of the characters tricky.

A different novel to what I usually read. It was well written and Molly and the rest of the family's stores were sometimes funny but also emotional at times but there were a few too many characters for me so couldn't get invested in them. Think this book would appeal to a different audience and hopefully will be well received but it wasn't really for me

Molly is fleeing her grief- again, or is it still? only this time her family are determined not to lose her and set of on a mission to resuce her from herself.
Full of fantastic family relationships with characters that all draw on someone we all know and love, despite, or perhaps because of, their many and varied quirks.
The passion of the family to bring Molly back to the fold is both beautiful and slightly bonkers and in turn draws some truths from other family members and changes their dynamic for good.
A great read that has you rooting for Molly to find what she needs.

A truly delightful tale of a messed up extended family whose love for each other knows no bounds. There is a mixture of melancholy and hilarity and it was all so well written that I was keen to go along for the ride. Life lessons and deep sentiments are not at all out of place alongside the laugh out loud dialogue and antics of the quirky characters within this novel. A true gem which I will be forcing upon others to read.

Not quite five stars for me, as I felt there was no Beginning, Middle and End. It was as if it was all Middle. Or it continued on after the End.

Not a fan of the cover, but I'm not sure what would suitably convey the heart of the story.

With so many characters, a helpful addition would be a "cast" or family tree right at the start.

I received this arc from netgalley and Head of Zeus in exchange for my honest opinion.

There's Been a Little Incident by Alice Ryan

Molly Black has gone missing from her London life. In Dublin multiple generations of the Black family come together to try to find Molly and bring her home. But things don't turn out quite as expected.

Wow, what an amazing debut! I so enjoyed this book and miss the Black family now it's over. Lots of quirky family members and real humour along with important themes of grief and family and love. Absolutely loved it and very VERY highly recommend - I think this book will be a big hit and inevitable comparisons with Marian Keyes will be drawn!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Molly Black has disappeared. She's been flighty since her parents died, but this time – or so says her hastily written note – she's gone for good.

That's why the whole Black clan – from Granny perched on the printer to Killian on Zoom from Sydney – is huddled together in the Dublin suburbs, arguing over what to do.

Former model Lady V presumes Molly's just off taking drugs and sleeping with strangers – which is fine by her. Cousin Anne, tired of living in Molly's shadow, is keeping quiet, and cousin Bobby is distracted by his own issues.

But Molly's disappearance is eerily familiar to Uncle John. He is determined never to lose anyone again. Especially not his niece, who is more like her mum than she realises.

Molly Black comes from a big, Irish family. After travelling the world with her best friend B, they decide to settle in London. B becomes involved with Jeff, and Molly thinks she should give them some space, so decides to take herself off to a retreat, aided and abetted by Jeff. The family back home are worried, though they know that running away is a usual event in Molly’s life.

This really is a big cast, and the first couple of chapters are a struggle getting everyone straight in your head and what part they play in the family. I understand there’s to be a family tree in the actual book, it certainly needs it!

Each chapter gives the reader an insight to the individual character, some more likeable than others as in all families.

With strong Marian Keyes vibes, this book takes us through the vagaries of a family and all the little idiosyncrasies they have.

Not a patch on the Walshes, but even so very enjoyable once I got into it. It’s amazing that this is a debut novel, so well written. I look forward to more from Alice Ryan.

Thank you NetGalley.

Molly, approaching her thirties, lives in London. She has many acquaintances but only one close friend B with whom she flat shares. B is about to move in with his boyfriend, sending the fragile Molly into a tailspin. When she disappears, not for the first time, her extended family in Dublin mobilise to see what can be done to locate her.
There’s been a little Bit of an Incident, the debut novel from Alice Ryan is a warm, tender, intelligent book. It seems that the published version will contain a family tree of the Blacks. I felt the loss of one in this early version as it was difficult to get to grips with all the aunts and uncles and cousins.
One by one – with the exception of Even-Stephen- whom I couldn’t get fitted in anywhere- the back-story of these characters is unveiled as the plans for finding Molly are hatched. Impossibly, the additive effect of all their quirks and issues is enormous. Their blundering about provides a result for the job in hand as well as benefits for each of the individual family members.
At times the books veers in and out of different genres, at times a touch Rom-Com and at others a much more considered study of loss and love.
This is a lovely read which I enjoyed enormously.

This is one that you really have to stick with. It is a little bit slow and I found it really hard to get into. The first few chapters were a little bit of a slog for me, and I wasn't really the biggest fan of the characters in this book. But it was ok.

I really enjoyed this. It took me a little while to get in to as there was a massive cast of characters introduced early on but as it progressed and their stories were revealed it was worth it. Definitely recommended.

A complex story! Yes, there was a little incident, in fact there were quite a few. As the author introduces characters, most of which are as mad as a box of frogs, the reader is treated to an insider's view of a functioning dysfunctional family. Bound together by not just familial ties but also a history of grief and loss, each member tries to adjust to the little incident and the ripple effect on their lives. Both hilarious and heartbreaking, the road they travel crosses many lines and not just international borders. By the time the journey is over, there is a sense of relief from each member that they have realised that they are actually alright, even quite acceptable exactly as they are. Perhaps a little long-winded but very entertaining.

I’m sorry to say that I didn’t finish this book. I couldn't relate to the characters and was not drawn into the story in the first few chapters. I like to get hooked into the storyline quickly or I lose interest. I wasn’t sure where the story was going and nothing happened to hold my interest and make me feel I wanted to keep reading.

It is easy to get lost in Molly Black's world. She has a big loving family who mostly adores her. Molly still suffers the grief from the early loss of her dynamic mother and even earlier loss of her devoted father. Molly has a history of wandering off and an unorthodox lifestyle. However, her family and best friend are worried when she runs away this time. Each characters has a storyline that draws the reader in and keeps their attention. Beautifully written, this book embraces family, friendship and acceptance. I read this book on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

It took me a while to really get into this book as it was slow to start and there are a lot of family members to keep track of. There is supposed to be a family tree at the beginning of the actual published book so I think that will really help future readers. The Black family is a quirky bunch and they are simply wonderful in their own way and I loved that about them. I always enjoy a good family drama but this one had some humour mixed in and a lot of love. I appreciated how the author dealt with the theme of grief and forgiveness in a sensitive manner and she showed how a family should always stick together. We are told this tale from many points of view and I enjoyed getting to know each and every single character separately as this is very much a character-driven story. What I didn't like was the Sheena plotline, it felt very disjointed and completely unnecessary and the twist was a bust. All in all a pretty decent debut and I would read more of this author's work.

I was looking forward to reading this, but the format in which it was printed was so odd that I gave up. Sorry to say that it would have been difficult anyway I think, as there were just too many people, names, words, and too much information thrown at the reader to make sense of..
Thank you for the chance to try this book.

I found the beginning of this book rather off-putting as what felt like a jumble of characters were thrown at you! I was glad that I persevered as light was thrown on all the individual characters. There was humour and sometimes the storylines seemed rather far fetched.

Couldn’t get past the first chapter - sorry.
I read it and re-read it and didn’t understand what was happening. I think it is a generation thing as there was too much information introduced so quickly my brain couldn’t process it all at once. Put it down to my senior status

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the premise of the book. I felt that the plot had a lot of potential and the character outlines in the synopsis aligned well to their portrayals in the book. Anne and Lady V were standout characters for me, and I particularly enjoyed V's character development; I found myself looking forward to her chapters. The Black family are weird and wonderful, and many readers may find their own families reflected in them.

The underlying themes of grief and family healing were lovely. I thought they were approached very well, and I enjoyed seeing how other characters dealt with the deaths of their loved ones. Again, Lady V was a particular standout here.

I was very interested in the book and was really looking forward to reading it. However once I started, I found it took me a while to get into the story. The writing felt clunky at times, particularly with the additional Sheena Griffith storyline. I felt this wasn't needed as the book was very character driven and would have liked to have seen more perspectives of other family members. I felt that the Sheena story would have been better as a separate spin-off novel involving the characters mentioned here.

As well as this, none of the plot points felt particularly shocking. I did gasp when we found out who was involved in Sheena's death, but that was about it. The discovery of Molly came much earlier than expected in the book, and therefore I was expecting there to be another twist in the story, but alas, there was not.

All in all, an enjoyable book with well written themes and characters, but downfalls on the plot points and "shock factor".

(NetGalley unable to find book ISBN on GoodReads, will post separately)

3 stars

I really enjoyed this book, it was well written with a thrid person narrative, compelling and engaging storyline and well developed characters that I loved. A really easy and heartwarming read that was humourous too.