Thanks to NetGalley & MacMillan Audio for providing a free audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Like many, I watch "The Undoing" with Nicole "Death Mask" Kidman, without being impressed, so I was a *mite* trepidatious about this book. I assumed that a lot had been changed to make it more "mainstream" (read: not Jewish) for American audiences, and after having read The Latecomer, I might have to go back and read "You Should Have Known."

I wasn't expecting to like this book, with its swirl of unlikeable characters, but it grew on me. The characters grew, and changed, and learned. I feel like you don't often get that in a book these days; it was a welcome surprise. The writing is good, poetic, even, in spots. And it certainly (to my untrained eye) evokes New York in a certain era, in a certain cultural moment.

It seems like Korelitz's specialty is wealthy NY cultural Jewish families and she excels in this area. The characters feel real, if perhaps preternaturally intelligent and more than a little spoiled.

Sally, Harrison, and Lewyn are triplets who feel little to no connection with one another, despite their fretting mother's wishes to the contrary. She tries her best to make an ideal family, but their petulant, solitary natures and their father's deep sadness and lack of connection to the family unit make it an uphill battle. As the years pass, their relationship deteriorates, culminating in an explosive dramatic evening from which they might not ever recover.

Julia Whelan does an exemplary job with the characters, injecting them with pathos and authentic accents, but never caricature.

Honestly, this just wasn’t for me. I see it’s value and why it’s so talked about, but this isn’t for me. Neutrally rated.

This book was a DNF for me. I just couldn't get past the first chapter or two because it's a slow-paced book with a lot of telling, not showing.

The Latecomer by Jean Hanff Korelitz

After tragedy had struck Salo Oppenheimer’s life, he meets and marries Johanna. Some years later and after struggling with fertility issues, Johanna is able to become pregnant with triplets.

From the moment they are born, Sally, Lewyn and Harrison are completely uninterested in each other and even seem to despise one another despite their mother’s efforts to bring them close together. That’s why, as soon as they graduate from high school, they try to distance themselves as much as possible from one other. After everyone leaves, Johanna feels lonely and manages to convince her husband to have a fourth child. Some events happen that divide even more the family, but life’s twists and turns can bring even the most dysfunctional families together.

The story alternates between different perspectives: from Johanna and Salo to the triplets and their new sister. It explores topics such as education, religion, privilege, friendship and family. The plot is very dense, full of details and secondary characters and the build up is very slow. But all of the storylines intertwine brilliantly and the author managed to wrap everything up perfectly at the end.

I really enjoyed this slow-burn character driven family saga, especially the sarcastic remarks and funny moments that made me laugh out loud.

The audio version is narrated by Julia Whelan who, as always, did a fantastic job. Thank you @macmillan.audio and @netgalley for the advanced audio copy of The Latecomer.

I had to reset expectations early on for The Latecomer, but that was a me issue. After reading and loving The Plot last year, I went into this kind of blindly expecting a fast-paced thriller. It's definitely not that. However, once I recalibrated and settled into the story of the Oppenheimer family, I couldn't turn away.

This dysfunctional family drama takes us on a journey from parents Salo and Johanna's roots--first intersecting during a tragedy in their college days, and through their reconnection and eventual marriage years later. The couple uses IVF in its early days for the birth of their triplets, Harrison, Lewyn, and Sally. Johanna futilely tries to bring her offspring together, but none of them are remotely interested in their familial bonds.

As the triplets head off into the world after high school, Johanna uses a fourth embryo created at the time of the triplets to have a fourth child. This "latecomer" ends up playing the most pivotal role in eventually pulling the family in the same direction.

It's a slow-paced book with excellent character development. Even if you dislike most characters, you'll be compelled to see where their paths lead. It's a story that examines the role of trauma and grief and how it weaves its way through generations. We learn more about privilege--the Oppenheimers are ridiculously wealthy-- with surprises built in along the way. It's a book that lends itself to wonderful discussions, and would be a great book club pick!

Narrator Julia Whelan knocked the audiobook out of the park, per usual. She captured Harrison's arrogance, Sally's indifference, and Lewyn's casual optimism brilliantly, leaving plenty of room for the wit, pretentiousness, and razor-sharp writing oozing from each page. It's a long one at nearly 16 hours, but the payoff is worth it! Thanks to Celadon Books and Macmillan Audio for an ALC via NetGalley Shelf.

I'm having a hard time reviewing this one, honestly. If this sounds intriguing to you, I would recommend picking it up, but I'd say you need to adjust your expectations and not expect much of a mystery and very much not a thriller. I went into this thinking it was a mystery, at least, and I think I may not have been in the mood for such a descriptive and lingual story/writing style.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC of The Latecomer in exchange for my honest opinion! This is the third audiobook narrated by Julia Whelan that I’ve listened to in the last week, and this is definitely the best narration of the three, although I would listen to her read just about anything :)
The Latecomer is a long book (16 hours for the audiobook!), but I loved listening to it in a few big chunks. By the author of The Plot (among other books), this story tells of triplets born via in-vitro-fertilization to the Oppenheimer family of Brooklyn and Martha’s Vineyard. When the triplets are about to start college, the mom decides to use the last frozen fertilized egg to add one more sibling, born via surrogate, known as the latecomer. In this way, it could be argued that the “younger” sibling is really the same age as her triplet “older” siblings. The book covers some of the drama that happens at the end of high school and start of college for the triplets, and then it skips forward to the same time frame for the latecomer.
This book is a slow burn, with character descriptions and development building slowly over the novel. Many of the early details pertain to the plot, but the reader has to keep them in mind until much later in the story. I think listening to it in large chunks in a day and a half helped me make connections which would have been less clear if I’d read or listened to it over the course of a week or more. I can’t praise the narration enough - it was such a great listen! I recommend this to fans of character based family sagas like Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty and One Two Three by Laurie Frankel. It's available today if you're interested!

Triplets - Harrison, Lewyn, and Sally are born via IVF to their wealthy New York parents, Salo and Johanna. The three are not typical as they feel no natural bond towards each other; in fact, they kind of don't like each other. Harrison is an arrogant snob, Lewyn is subdued and closed off, and Sally is repressing her true self.

When Johanna learns of a heartbreaking secret that tears her family further apart, she decides to have a fourth child. Using the fourth embryo frozen from the IVF seventeen years later, Johanna hopes for a connection.

There are a lot of layers to peel back here: grief, privilege, infidelity, race, religion, trauma, etc. The triplets alone would make great character studies - and the triplets' 19th birthday party is quite a scene! But, I enjoyed it when Phoebe, the latecomer, entered the fold.

At 448 pages, there is a lot to unpack in this family drama. Some parts did drag a bit, but the siblings stole the show, nasty as some of them were. With sharp and perceptive writing, I found 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫 a complex, intriguing novel about a messy, dysfunctional family.

Thank you to @celadonbooks for this gifted copy.
And thank you @macmillan.audio for the gifted audiobook, which was narrated by one of my favorite narrators Julia Whelan.

I can never resist a audiobook narrated by Julia Whelan. She is hands down the best! So even though I thought the rating low for this novel, I dove in expectantly. I’ll be honest here and tell you that I thought about stopping this several times. I thought it was moving to slow for me. But I just couldn’t give up. And at 30ish percent I was in. What was the Latecomers was about?? Wellllll…. Ummm. Was it about paintings and family, the triplets? Yes and yes. I know that it was a “party of one” as the author says for All. Of. Them.
This is my second book by this author and I liked it a lot. Even better than the other one. This was detailed, complex in its development. I can’t give this justice because I can’t find the words to describe the path of writing that lead to the conclusion. I can see how some people maybe didn’t enjoy it as well as me. But I got it. I’ve lived complicated. Estrangement and difficult.
So yes, this is why I liked it very much. And I think this author can write. I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a complex story (journey).
Thanks Macmillan Audio via NetGalley.

This review doesn't mean it wasn't a good or even a great book, it just wasn't my cup of tea, and that's ok. I was drawn to this book because I had The Plot was amazing, but this one just fell short in comparison. This book was a hard one for me to review because I found every character generally unlikable. Harrison was by far the worst but they were equally horrible, but I felt for the title to be Latecomer, there was very little of the actual book about Phoebe. She didn't become a main character until near the end of the book. There were many stories that I felt were not necessary to include in the book. Honestly it felt very drawn out, and sometimes I would forget where I was in the story because I couldn't piece where it went in the story or why it was important to mention. The description of the book is not how I would have described what I read.

The Latecomer follows the story of the wealthy, New York City-based Oppenheimer family, from the first meeting of parents Salo and Johanna, under tragic circumstances, to their triplets born during the early days of IVF. As children, the three siblings – Harrison, Lewyn, and Sally – feel no strong familial bond and cannot wait to go their separate ways, even as their father becomes more distanced and their mother more desperate. When the triplets leave for college, Johanna, faced with being truly alone, makes the decision to have a fourth child. What role will the “latecomer” play in this fractured family?

"...they were eighteen and...desperate to begin three permanently separate adult lives, which is exactly what would have happened if the Oppenheimer family hadn't taken a turn for the strange and quite possibly unprecedented. But it did--we did--and that has made all the difference."

Finishing this book (and audiobook) I sat in silence knowing I had just experienced a brilliant meticulously crafted work of literary fiction about the dissection of a family and all it's drama.

Gifted author Jean Hanff Korelitz has created a masterpiece in her latest novel, The Latecomer, not just about the damage of secrets, self loathing, and fear of appearances within a privileged family but an understated yet quite glaring landscape of how real current events has seeped into the machinations of all our lives.

Beginning with parents Johanna, who wants the "perfect" family, and Salo, who is lost in grief over a deadly accident that will come back to haunt him all through his life, this story immediately goes sideways as triplets are born at the beginning of the early days of IVF. Three eggs are implanted and a fourth is put on ice...until 17 years later.

I have no words for the beautifully subtle performance of Golden Voice narrator Julia Whelan. She brought a calmness to the calamity of this family that allowed me to be less judgemental of Harrison's narcissistic attitude, more sympathetic to Sally's cruel treatment of her brother and accepting of Lewyn's floundering through life.

The last third of this story belongs to Phoebe, The Latecomer. I was shocked by the life changing moments but then reality always has a way of surprising us; this writer just wrote it out perfectly for her readers.

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

Although I wasn’t expecting to, I really enjoyed The Plot, so I was looking forward to her latest, The Latecomer. The story revolves around the Oppenheimer family of New York City, parents of triplets who don’t have much of a bond among themselves or with their parents. The triplets are about to go off to college, then their mother decides to have a FOURTH child (the “latecomer”).
The story evolves with lots of family drama, privilege and race, guilt and grief. There’s a bit of witty repartee sprinkled throughout, and since I am a sucker for multi-generational family dramas, this one was just right for me. Five stars.

This one was hard for me to review. I'm a mood reader, and perhaps I just wasn't quite in the mood for this one.

THE LATECOMER is a literary novel about family and belonging. It was beautiful and observed, but I just didn't connect with the characters, which is important for a novel that relies highly on character study. There was nothing to dislike about THE LATECOMER, I just personally did not connect with this story.

I read Korelitz' book The Plot last year, and really enjoyed it. I knew from the publisher's notes that this would be a different type of read, and it definitely is. There is a common theme, that of the dysfunctional family, but other than that they're quite different. But both are very well-written and thought-provoking.
Chance and choice - so much of our lives are determined by those two factors. How do we make the choices provided when chance affects our lives? And how do we handle the changes when chance upends the thoughtful (or sometimes random) choices we've made in life? This book is the story of the Oppenheimer family, and how they navigate through these issues. Salo and Johanna Oppenheimer and their children, "triplets" Harrison, Lewyn, and Sally (who were conceived via in vitro fertilization, so never have that "connection" that most twins/triplets/etc have) and Phoebe, the "latecomer", are all affected by a freak (chance) auto accident when Salo is in college - one that has devastating consequences far beyond the deaths of two of the other students who were in the car that Salo was driving. They're further affected by Salo's unexpected death when the triplets are 19 and Phoebe is still a toddler.
It's also about perspective and regret. For most of us, our view of our parents changes from childhood to our teens, then again as adults (whether we're parents ourselves or not). And often that new perspective can generate both understanding and regret.
This isn't a particularly fun or happy book to read, and it won't be for everyone, but I found it interesting and engaging. And Julia Whelan's narration was excellent as usual, and shows why she's a favorite narrator of so many listeners.
Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

The Latecomer is a long audio, at 16 hours and 19 minutes long, but, when narrated by Julia Whelan, who is by far my favorite narrator, it flies by. She is an absolutely perfect choice!

This is tough for me to say, but I didn't love this one! It was too long by about 50 pages and I found that I didn't care about the characters. The only one that redeemed it somewhat was the titular Latecomer, and I do appreciate what the author was trying to do. I loved the cultural commentary she included. I'm starting to wonder if dysfunctional family drama is not for me!

My goodness, this book was a commitment. I adore literary fiction, especially deep family stories, and I choose character over plot any day. That said, this book was dense and hard to get through and the characters were hard to form a bond with.

In this book we meet the Oppenheimer family, a wealthy Jewish American family living in New York City. We see the parents’ relationship as well as their lives outside their relationship, and we follow their children through childhood into adulthood. There’s not a strong familial bond in any direction for majority of the book and it’s essentially a collection of individual experiences.

The development is intentionally slow and if I am looking neutrally at the writing, it’s effective. My challenge as a reader was that each character in the first 80% of the book was going out of their way to be unlikeable. They’re cruel at times and it’s clear they know there will be no serious consequences. By the end, as more characters are given the floor and the initial characters evolve, I was too lost on everyone to feel a redemption arc.

The last 15-20% of the book was offbeat. The pace accelerated, attempts at personal growth were too packaged, the “twists” were sad and out of place, and it was disarming compared to the extremely slow pace in the beginning.

The topics that the book tried to tackle were all big – grief, infidelity, infertility, generational trauma, racism, privilege, religion, LGBTQ+ identity. I love and intentionally seek out books that illuminate these experiences, but ultimately it was not great to see them through the lives of the Oppenheimers.

For me, this wasn’t it. I didn’t have an issue with the slow pace or book length, and it wasn’t just that the characters were unlikeable and unapologetic. The Paper Palace had both of those elements and I really enjoyed that book. Ultimately, it was the combination of topics this book addresses being told through these characters.

Content warnings: Infertility, Death of parent, LGBTQ+ Outing, Racism, Religious bigotry

If you like family dramas this one was a really great one at that! A dad that has a past he needs to repent, a mom that only ever wanted the perfect family, IVF triplets that couldn't be more different than each other all drifting apart and a latecomer baby from a frozen embryo that is basically born just as everything is falling apart!

While it was long, I ended up really enjoying it. The narration by Julia Whelan was excellent, it really flew by! Most of the characters weren't easy to like and it's by no means a fast-paced book. The character studies were still interesting. And some of the questions it raised were great thinking points, perhaps because IVF is a topic so near to my heart.

Thank you netgalley and macmillan audio for the advanced listening copy of this one!

The Latecomer - oh what can I say. This book was just okay for me. It wasn't awful but it didn't "grab" me and I struggled to be invested.

It's the story of Salo and Joanna Oppenheimer and their famiyl. They meet under somewhat tragic circumstances, struggle to conceive, IVF, and much other sitautions that are both filled with drama and the boring. They attempt to create a wonderful family life for triplets Sally, Harrison and Lewyn. These triplets basically can't stand each other and can't wait to head to college. Joanna uncovers her husband's dirty little secret and in a desperate attempt to save her marriage, decides to use her last frozen embryo to have another child, aka “ The Latecomer”.

This was a very character driven book and it often left me wanting more as the Oppenheims navigate through issues of religion, racism, sexuality, infidelity, family drama, and more. I think I would have enjoyed a somewhat condensed version of this story more. It tended to drag on and I think could have been more enjoyable if not so verbose.

I enjoyed the lives of the triblets and The Latecomer far more than that of the parents.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillon Audio and Celadon Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

"This was the flaw in making a bargain with yourself, there is no one else there too agree to the terms."

The Latecomer was a rollercoaster for me in many ways. It starts out strong and inviting. Leaving an air of secrecy floating about. I have to admit that I was expecting something thrillery or almost sinister when I first dove in. Then I realized that this really isn't that type of novel. It's something more and something deeper. It's taking a family with an aptitude to be estranged, and dragging them back together.

Three "test tube" babies born from a mother's desperate desire to fill a house with love. However, her attempts to create a family fall on an emotionally checked out husband who I ended up loathing. The first part follows the couples attempt to basically be husband and wife and her efforts to move the marriage along and get pregnant. I found myself completely absorbed with this part.

The middle was so-so for me. Its a look into the college excursions of the three kids. While I get the concept, I noticed that it didn't help create any character bonds for me. If anything I ended up not really liking them much. They had the checked out persona of the father when it came to family ties. Drove me nuts truthfully.

The last bit is focused more on the fourth child who comes in at a pivotal point. She is the latecomer to the family but so much more. She made me appreciate the other siblings in a way I didn't expect. Inwas dissapointed with the mother though. Didn't expect her growth to go the way it did.

There is a rawness and reality-like aspect to the narrative I was not expecting. I went in thinking one thing but enjoying a vastly different twist. Julia Whelan was phenomenal and the biggest reason I made it through the middle character portions. Her voice as not only soothing but it pulls you in deeply. I'll need to remember to keep my eye out for others novels read by her.

Thank you Macmillan Audio and Celadon Books for the gifted audio and digital copies. All thoughts are my own. True rating 3.5/5.