Therese Anne Fowler
Barrie Kreinik
Women’s Fiction

After a long struggle with cancer the Geller sisters’ mom passed and now they must deal with her things. Three women on different journeys have come together for the sole purpose of settling their mother’s affairs. As they travel this journey, it brings them closer together.

I stepped into the lives of my mom and her 2 sisters when reading this book and saw how things may play out when their last living parent passes away. Their bonds may be tested when they deal with a situation like this. Bringing them closer in some ways and pulling them apart in other ways. This was definitely a 5 star read for me.

I love a family drama but something was missing in this one for me. I didn't feel as connected to the characters as I would have liked to.

𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨!

I have three sisters so I knew I had to listen to this story and beleive me it was so worth it. A complicated and beautiful family drama, I loved Beck, Claire and Sophie and I still can’t decide which one is my favorite.

Thank you Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this ALC.

𝗜𝘁 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 by Therese Anne Fowler, Author released June 7, 2022.

https://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeemx/

Can i give this more than 5 stars asking for a friend.. lol. But my god this book was good and made me addicted to the story and made me want to listen again with hoe great the narrator is with the story

I received both an advance digital reading copy and advance listening copy of It All Comes Down To This by Therese Anne Fowler from @stmartinspress and @macmillianaudio. This book came out on June 7, 2022 - available now!

Beck, Claire and Sophie are left to deal with their mother Marti's estate after her passing. Marti has left instructions that will force her daughters back together in a way they haven't been in a long time.

To start off, I was immediately surprised with the huge amount of Jewish rep in this book. I haven't seen it talked about anywhere and had I known I definitely would have picked this book up sooner. All four women (plus other secondary characters) are Jewish, and there are constant references to pieces of Jewish customs. A lot of these are not specifically pointed out, but just occur naturally, which connected me to the book and the characters. (eg there is a time where a character us covering up the mirrors in a mourners home following a death).

Unfortunately, other than that I didn't love this one. There is minimal plot throughout the novel, we get to see lots about the characters lives and learn about them. But for someone like me who thrives on thrillers and mysteries, this one left me looking for more. It almost felt like the whole book was just the introduction to a book, a long introduction.

I listened to the audiobook version, and am glad I did. I think I would have has a bit of trouble getting through parts of it were I reading traditionally and highly recommend the audio book of this one if you're going to pick it up.

I recommend this book to people who thrive on character based books, and like peering into the regular events of characters lives in their stories.

2.5 rounded to 3.

I must say, I enjoyed reading this book. Marti is dying of cancer and has specific desires about how she wants to die. I, truly, believe that if we are given the chance, like Marti ,that we should be able to die on our own terms. I kind of wish we had more time with Marti in this book. One of her stipulations is that after her death the girls sell the family vacation home and split the proceeds.

The problem with that is that each of the Gellar women have different opinions and reasons to keep or sell the house. We learn that each of them have been keeping secrets, including good ole mom, Marti. Bec knows that there is something wrong with her marriage,but sure just what, Claire, a pediatric cardiologist, is deep in debt with student loans, and Claire, who dropped out of college and became an art influencer has maxed out all her credit cards and is homeless.

This book is all about family drama and how a family come together and cope with loss and betrayal.

There are many stories about dysfunctional families, but they usually come with unlikeable characters that set my teeth on edge. In IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS, we see the secrets and bad decisions but can empathize with the characters, despite their bad choices.

Older sisters Beck and Claire are successful but unhappy with marriages on the rocks. Baby sister Sophie, who is Instagram-famous with 3.2 million followers and sponsorships, has no home, maxed-out credit cards, and is out of options. When their mother dies, the estranged sisters come together to reveal their weaknesses and failures to help each other.

Though I disagreed with the characters’ decisions, the author showed us the series of small choices that put them in their predicaments. I empathized with and liked the characters because they (mostly) took ownership of their problems, not blaming them on others. Even Sophie, who had the potential to be annoying, admitted she’s not talented, just talent-adjacent.

IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS was more of a character-driven family drama than a plot-driven page-turner, but I enjoyed getting to know the characters and was engaged in their story.

It was a nice story/mystery. However, the story was extremely slow and hard to push through. Other than slow it was decent.

3.5 stars rounded up. It All Comes Down to This is a story of three sisters, who come together after the death of their mother. They have secrets, emotional baggage and family issues that all come to a head when they try to decide if they are going to sell the family’s summer cottage on Mount Desert Island, Maine as their mother directed in her will. All this happens while they deal with their grief at the loss of their mom. Beck, the oldest lives closest to the the cottage and her mother. She spent the most time with her and wants to buy the place from her sisters, but there are problems in her marriage that cause her to make some questionable decisions. Sophie, the youngest works at a gallery and is an influencer, who has money problems and wants the cottage sold. Claire is the middle sister, a doctor, a divorcee and single mother who lives in the midwest. They do talk often, but they have not been together at the cottage since Claire left for school. Will they be able to figure out what they really want out of life?

I am on the fence with this book. There were times that I was stopping everything to listen to the story as I was invested in what was happening, and other times where I found my mind wandering. The characters were likable, but they didn't pull at me, except for Ollie, the young boy staying with his grandma after his parents died. He was sweet and I wanted to bring him home to take care of him. CJ was on the island looking for a house to start over. He had recently been released from prison after three years and just wanted to get back to his art. He develops a relationship with Ollie that is special and I liked seeing the young boy's happiness. How he fits in with the sister's story is interesting having some history with them. Someone described this as a "Messy Family Drama" and I agree. The sisters were all so different from one another, you have to wonder if they were raised in the same family. A couple of the secrets were kept until the very end, and I was surprised at what they were when finally revealed. This is a story of family, loyalty, grief, self-discovery, love, moving forward and some romance. I found it realistic most of the time, and enjoyed how Therese Anne Fowler ended this one, with everyone moving forward with their lives in a better place than they were before. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Barrie Kreinik, a narrator that I very much enjoy. She does a great job with all the voices and I always identified who was speaking. I do recommend the audio and believe it added to my enjoyment of the story.

A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler was not for me. I DNFed it. So this book was my second attempt, since I always like to give authors a second chance - It worked very well with D.J. Palmer! I really liked his latest book.

If you like character-driven books, you'll really like this one.

This is one of those stories where the matriarch of the family is dying and the family will be reunited for this. I’ve seen this plot many times before. There’s a LOT of character development, character dramas, and, of course, secrets from the past.

I was entertained by the audiobook - very well read btw - but I would've DNFed this book if I had read the physical copy.

It All Comes Down to This by Therese Anne Fowler AUDIO is an enthralling story about a family and a slice of life of its members after the mother of three daughters died, although Marti's (mom) story is included. There are three sisters: Beck, Claire, and Sophie. Beck is married to Paul and has two children who only make cursory appearances; Marti is divorced from Chad with one son, who also only make cursory appearances; and Sophie, the youngest. The only other character of major importance is CJ Reynolds, who ends up buying their house (the camp) on Mount Desert Island, Maine. Their mother's will stipulated that it be sold, but they had varying emotions and opinions regarding the sale. As in all families, there is a collective story as well as individual ones. The goal was happiness and Marti had gotten them there, although it's anyone's guess whether it turned out as she thought it would. It is the story of a family, much like any other. The problems are similar, if not identical.
Beck had been hurt by a summer fling when she was a junior in high school and she let it color her life, leading her to choose the wrong husband and, pretty much, the wrong life. She is a well-written character, one many readers will recognize. Claire is the over-achiever, a pediatric heart surgeon, who again, made some poor choices, and has had to live with them. Sophie is the free spirit who chose a life for what it looked like, not what it felt like.
They were complete characters with depth and commitment. The story is told in vignettes about, sometimes by, the individual characters which morphs into a complete picture. And a story it is. There is not a plot so much as a timeline. That's OK. Things turn out OK, if it is a stretch to get them there. It is romance. It is coming of age. It is miscommunication. It was compelling. It is a happily-ever-after.

Barrie Kreinik narrates and does a credible job, never turning to nonsense to portray the multitude of characters and yet conveys the personalities of each of them as she read. She imbues each with the personality required to suit that particular character. She made it a great listen.

I was invited to listen to a free audio ARC of It All Comes Down to This by Macmillan Audio, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #netgalley #macmillanaudio #thereseannefowler #itallcomesdowntothis

I like this book. Getting to know about the sister's and they're lives was interesting. I listened to this book and at times it seemed long winded. This author is new to me, I may need to check out her other books.

✨ Review ✨ It All Comes Down to This by Therese Anne Fowler; Narrated by Barrie Kreinik

Wow - I love a messy, multiple POV family story with some love plotlines thrown in and this hit just the spot. It's definitely a read that takes some thought as you shift around between POVs but it's written just so beautifully.

Three sisters - Beck, Claire, and Sophie - return to NYC for their mother Marti's funeral. While the sisters see each other as so put together and successful, each of them is struggling with their identity and trajectory. Marti knew they were struggling and tries to set the scene for them to come back together by forcing them to confront some of their issues. Each of the sisters takes a journey throughout this book and it's often slow and messy and really complicated, and I loved it for that.

Maybe it's my own mid-30s lifepoint that's talking but this really resonated in the character's struggles and experiences as they hit (or miss) a variety of midlife milestones.

The audio was gorgeous - I switched between the ebook and the audio; although there are a lot of POVs to track -- the three sisters and, less frequently, the POVs of several other peripheral characters. It was doable but I could see where it would throw a more casual or distracted listener.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Literary fiction
Location: NYC and Mount Desert Island, Maine mostly
Reminds me of: One Italian Summer without the weird mother-daughter relationship; Half-Blown Rose maybe too?
Pub Date: Out now!

Read this if you like:
⭕️ Messy explorations of love and sisterhood
⭕️ Multiple POV stories
⭕️ Raw emotion

Thanks to St. Martins Press, MacMillan Audio and #netgalley for digital and audio copies of this book!

I liked this messy family drama just fine but I was never totally engrossed. I enjoyed enough to finish it so I could recommend it to the right reader.

It All Comes Down to This is very character driven novel. It is about the Gellers. The three Geller Sisters are not very tight. They all try to look better than their siblings. There is an invisible competition between them. Beck (44), Claire (40) and Sophie (36) are in very different places in life. Their mom Marti dies. She reveals a big secret to them in her deathbed. And also instructs them to sell the camp, their summer cottage in Maine. Beck is "happily" married to Paul. They are more like friends than partners after over 20years of marriage. She is content with not having any sex in her marriage, she thinks Paul is gay, and she is okay with it. She just wants to stay in the cottage and write the novel she'd been planning for years. Her sister's though could use the money that would come from the sale especially Sophie, who has a lavish lifestyle and is drowning in debt. There is also tension between Claire and Beck. Claire avoids her sister because she's been desperately in love with Beck's husband for a long time. This infatuation has cost Claire her marriage and Beck has no idea. There also another character back in Maine, CJ, their prospective house buyer.

Each character has a unique voice. Fowler's writing makes them come alive. The Geller's are not one of these fictional families you would kill to be part of. They are distant. Each sister is a little bit selfish.

The older sister-husband-younger sister love triangle is not as icky as it sounds. When I first read the synopsis I wasn't sure about whether it would bother me but it didn't. The youngest sister Sophie was my least favorite character because I found her very superficial.

I expected more of a The Paper Palace feel from the camp/cabin setting but I was disappointed in that aspect. The scene that the three sisters had the big talk and got every secret off their chest was intense but satisfying. The ending was a bit too neat but it worked.

I have a feeling an older audience would enjoy this novel more.

I liked the following quote though "You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, well, you just might find you get what you need.

**Audiobook Review**
Narrated concisely by Barrie Kreinik who makes following the storyline easy. That said, I'd like to have heard a bit more Southern Drawl from the character C.J. Reynolds as it is remarked upon a few times within the book.
It All Comes Down to This follows three adult sisters, not particularly close, coming together after their mother dies.It was hard to see the mother set up her passing without her daughters at hand. But she didn't want an audience for her decline. The women left behind scramble to fulfill funeral wishes and the orders of the Will but not without problems. Each of the sisters has come to a turning point in their lives for a variety of reasons and as they reminisce of the old summer house they are ordered to sell, the cracks in their lives begin to show.
A modern tale of want vs expectations is explored within the pages of this book. Lots to relate to here for most of us.
Thank you to Macmillan and Netgalley for my copy of this audiobook. All opinions are mine.

Revelation is risky; suppose it leads to a fall?"
"Ah, but suppose it leads to flight?"

Family secrets; there are so many in the emotional family drama It All Comes Down To This by contemporary author Therese Anne Fowler.

This story is about three adult sisters who all live away from another experiencing very different lives...that is until their mother passes away. It wasn't a surprise, she was in home hospice, but when it actually happens it is a shock that upturns all their lives.

Beck, a freelance journalist and the oldest, lives a quiet life but no one sees the self doubt that keeps her from following her dreams to write a book. There is also her marriage which has become more like best friends sharing a home.

Claire, though a pediatric oncologist, still feels like that awkward middle child, especially after her indiscretion leads to a divorce. But it's not the kind of indiscretion you think.

Sophie the youngest lives a perfect life on social media but what no one knows is she is broke and homeless.

When their Mom's will states they must sell the summer home and share the money the fighting begins and it only gets more intense when a stranger, an ex con, with a long ago connection to Beck, offers to buy it.

Oh, one more thing, their whole family history, at least from Mom's side is a complete lie!

Narrator Barrie Krenik is superb at distinguishing between the sisters from her tone to their varied emotional duress. What it all comes down to is secrets keep you in dark and the truth is the light to see your life.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from #macmillanaudio via #netgalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

The narrator was great. However, the book itself was slow moving and drawn out. The only story that really captivated me was Arlo and CJ.

When Marti passes away she is does what she feels is best to keep peace for her 3 daughters as they navigate their mourning her loss, dealing with the disposition of her worldly possessions, their relationships, their own lives and to share some deep longhand secrets. Its a interesting story with a lot of twists and turns. So much going on, but I didn’t find any of the main characters terribly likable and or connect with. Well narrated.

Unfortunately, this one did not work for me. I read until the halfway point and then decided to move on.

This had the potential to be a really great character driven story. The sisters are all unique and well developed by the author. The issue was that there didn't really seem to be a plot. Nothing had really happened in the first half of the book, the sisters had just come together for the first time at that point.

The writing was well done, it just didn't have enough plot to keep me reading.

As far as the audiobook. I am a fan of this narrator in previous narrations. She is clear and gives emotion to the story. There wasn't a ton of dialogue so she didn't do a lot of different voices.

It All Comes Down to This was a great read by Therese Anne Fowler. Beck, Claire, and Sophie are three strong-minded women. They are the Geller sisters that find out their mother Marti will be dying soon. Marti has ensured that the modest estate is easy for the family after she passes. The only provision included is that the families summer cottage be sold, and the proceeds split equally between the three girls. Beck is the oldest and he marriage doesn’t look like others. Her husband is hiding a troubling truth about their love lives. Beck feels that the cottage is essential for her secret wish to write a novel. Claire is a pediatric cardiologist that has always felt like the misfit in the family. Her unrequited love or the wrong man has destroyed her and her marriage. Sophie is the youngest daughter who seems to have the perfect life, at least on Instagram. C.J. Reynolds’s is an enigmatic southerner who wants the cottage but is also hiding his own past. I enjoyed reading this book and cant wait to read more by the author.