This novel started off slowly for me, but then picked up and held my attention captive until all the threads were sorted out and the truth was revealed.

Lisa has recently lost her mother, an alcoholic who fell and subsequently died in the hospital. Despite her mother’s shortcomings in the nurturing department, Lisa acutely feels the loss of her only family. Her father had been imprisoned when she was three and her mother was estranged from the extended family composed of a sister and parents. As Lisa sorts through her mother’s effects, she discovers the name of a cousin in an old address book and, with some trepidation, sends off a letter.

Amy is the long-lost cousin who initially ignores Lisa’s overture, but eventually the two connect. When Amy realizes she is overwhelmed by her responsibilities for her 7 year old daughter and infant son, she asks Lisa to help her by moving into her home for the summer. Lisa is eager to discover more information about her “lost” family, while Amy is reluctant to share any details. As the summer progresses, Lisa is more and more puzzled by the things she uncovers – vague memories related to the house and garden as well as clues to the strained relationships within the family. Ultimately, a whole raft of secrets – both past and present - are revealed as well as a family history shrouded in deceit.

The two main characters are a mixed bag. Lisa is certainly a sympathetic protagonist as she tries to understand the convoluted relationships within the family and a rather bizarre annual tradition. Amy, on the other hand, is rather unlikeable – self-centered and manipulative. However, once her childhood back story is revealed, it shows her behavior reflects her attempts to cope with the emotional wounding wrought by this dysfunctional family.

Overall, the twists and turns of the storyline kept me guessing and made this a compelling read once the two women meet and begin to forge a tenuous bond.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

Family secrets and heartache course through this novel. It was a great read and flowed really well. I read it in less than 24 hours.

A story full of secrets that got distorted, Amy and Lisa are long lost cousins that eventually meet for the first time and the story takes off from there. Amy isn’t the most pleasant of people and keeps Lisa at a distance despite needing her help with the kids. It’s not until Amy’s life begins to unravel that she faces the realities of her actions and finally discovers part of her childhood has been a huge lie. I enjoyed reading this and would like to thank the publishers and Netgalley for letting me have the book to read.

This is one of those compelling books that keeps you reading because you need to know the truth! Right away you know there’s something wrong or someone not being honest, but even though you get 3 points of view, the author keeps you in the dark until the ending.

First, there’s a young woman whose father has been imprisoned; she doesn’t know him and she doesn’t know why he’s been imprisoned. Furthermore, when she asks about him, she doesn’t get answers, just more questions. Her mother has recently passed away.

Then, there’s a cousin who isn’t very welcoming until she needs something.

These two girls need each other, they just don’t know WHY yet.

I loved this compelling read. It isn’t until the end that the secrets get revealed and the seemingly knotted and insignificant threads get untangled. I loved having the three perspectives, Julie, Lisa and Amy and eagerly soaked up their tale, desperately wanting answers. Mercer explores the sense of connection that puts us back in touch with our past. In examining two cousins who don’t know each other, Mercer shows how their bond develops, a reliance is made and they end up changing each other’s lives. I do believe in serendipity and I do think that the girls’ connection was a beautiful coincidence. I also believe that if you go digging to get answers, you’d better be prepared to accept what you find. There’s plenty of secrets in this family tree - ripe for the picking!

I was gifted this advance copy by Ali Mercer, Bookouture and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

A book all about family secrets….This author hooks her readers and keeps them dangling till the very last page….I stayed up until midnight devouring the action.

Light read about a family with secrets. This book was not for me, but others may find it compelling.

Lisa has had a tough life, she has only lived alone with her mom growing up. Her dad was sent to prison and she doesn't know why. Lisa has very little memory of her father. Her mom, Julie, has now passed away and Lisa has no family at all, that is until she comes across an old address book in the house and discovers she has a cousin named Amy. She reaches out to Amy for answers about her past and why her mom was so secretive about her father. Amy is married and has a 7 year old daughter, Tilly, and she is expecting a new son to be born any day now. She is not very nice to Lisa until Amy’s husband, Joe, is away for work and she needs help with her children, especially her daughter Tilly. While Lisa is so nice to help Amy, she learns the truth about her broken family and the secrets of the past she was never told.

THE FAMILY LOST was a powerful, gripping story. I could not stop reading until the secrets were fully exposed. Ali Mercer captivated me with this family drama. I loved the past and present timelines and the overall flow of the story. The ending was nice and I was glad to see things tie together. If your are looking for a quick and easy book to get lost in, this is the one for you!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This review will be posted to my Instagram Blog (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.

Thank you for this advanced copy. I didn't find this book that interesting. Yeah it was nice to hear the different view points but i felt it was just too drug out. The ending was good, but I did a lot of skipping around to see what happened.

I loved this book it was well written with a well developed cast of characters. Told through the eyes of sisters it was unpredictable and twisty as well as being emotive and heartfelt. I couldn't put it down. A really good read.

Family… Isn’t that a beautiful word? The love they feel for each other, the time they spend together… Oh happy days.

Live is not one big party though. Devastating things happen and strong families will stick together during the hard times. Some will not see eye to eye and cracks will appear. They grow bigger and bigger until finally the link is broken and families are ripped apart.

You feel like you are better off without them than with them if they cannot stand by you. The pain you feel in your heart is so strong and you hope with all you have in you that your child will not remember anything about what went on. You are most determined to not ever talk about it as long as you live.

Coincidences do not exist? I think they do and sometimes it’s a good thing. They can take you where you want to go: on the road to discover some secrets.

The story is told through the eyes of Lisa, Amy and Julie. Join them on their journey and believe me it’s a very emotional and heart breaking one.

The liar says they were lied to too. At present I cannot shake the feeling they were still not being honest or am I too suspicious?

I loved it. 5 stars

Thank you