This is a wonderful story of adult siblings, dealing with the sudden death of their parents. The oldest, Lyle, is reaching a breaking point in his marriage and must decide whether a divorce would be best for him and his two children. Gloria’s big job on Wall Street has kept her single at forty, and growing ever more cynical. The twins, Caroline and Charlie, moved out long ago to start a fashion business that may now be faltering. Benjie, with special needs, is hit hard by the loss of his parents and needs his siblings’ help. And Annabelle, the youngest, drops out of college and starts to spin out of control.
How they survive a year together is a well written story with many of the characters growing and gaining acceptance of a bad situation. A winner from Danielle.

The Whittiers by Daniel Steel...
I liked the plot, but it fell short for me nearly every point. 6 siblings, all young adult to adult, lose their parents in a tragic accident. The family home is quite literally a mansion & it's too much for any one of the kids on their own. Eventually most all of them come home and live together as they each deal with other dramas in their personal lives. Strangely, those other dramas seemed to be a bigger issue than the death of their parents. Each sibling has their own mini story going on, and they all support one another beautifully. I love that aspect of the story! This book feels like it had a lot of ingredients that never really came together in a beautiful, finished dish. The recipe just didn't work. Not a bad story but definitely not up to what We've come to expect from DS.

You really can’t go wrong with a Daniel Steel book. It’s been a while since I’ve read one of her books and it didn’t disappoint. I enjoyed the characters and it was just a pleasant read. Highly recommend.

It’s December, which means…. Time for snowy, cozy #reads. This #bookcover gave me all the cozy vibes so I dove in - and it hit every note. A perfect holiday #familydrama #read that will have you rooting for the individual members of this New York family and realizing that no family is perfect - but they’re usually worth fighting for anyways. Especially during the holidays.

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Preston and Constance Whittier have raised six children in their well worn but palatial Fifth Avenue mansion - an ode to the last vestiges of their dwindling old money and a determination to make the house work.

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When a skiing accident leads to unthinkable tragedy, their children are forced to return to their childhood home and figure out what to do with the massive property, while they sort out their own personal and professional issues, ranging from divorce, unexpected pregnancy, loneliness, their brother’s severe autism, a fashion business in major need of some cash influx, and more.

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This one has all the feels!

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This is not the typical Danielle Steel book but this one will pull your emotions into so many different ways. One family must face a devastating tragedy which will force them to make decisions they have been avoiding for a long time. Each must put aside their personal grief and decide what will be best for their whole family. I enjoyed this book so much more than I have the last couple of her books. This is Danielle Steel at her finest.

Danielle Steele is one of the most prolific writers of the century. I am not sure how she consistently churns out good romance novels, but she does. "The Whittier", in my opinion, is one of her best in the last few years. It is the story of a family, a home, and very human things that happen to them. At the beginning of the story we are introduced to the Whittier's parents, their love for each other, and the very large old home they have maintained throughout the growing up years of their children. As the book continues that home becomes the touchstone for love, hardship, and growth of a family that reels in loss, love, and renewal. I love Danielle Steele and look forward to each of her novels. This one will not disappoint her fans. Thanks to #NetGalley#The Whittiers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to Netgalley & Danielle Steel for my copy of The Whittiers. I never pass up a chance to read Danielle Steels books. This story is about a family of six, whose parents die, while on their “winter moon”. Preston & Constance have traveled for 3 weeks, without the kids for years. While skiing, a terrible tragedy happens. The Whittier children, need to come together and face life without them. How can they do that? Their parents were amazing, helped them all. Lyle, the oldest sons world is falling apart. He has an excellent career, a wife and two kids. His wife though is a gold digger and only wants more money & things. Gloria the oldest daughter is married to her career and never socializes. The twins Caroline & Charlie, also are completely married to their fashion business. Neither has much of a life but to keep the business successful. Benjie and Annabelle are the two youngest and need the most guidance. Annabelle is partying and has dropped out of school & Benjie is on the autism spectrum and has always been cared for by his mom. He is high functioning but still needs so much attention. The four oldest need to come together to help their brother & sister. Careers are put on hold, the house, a mansion, in NY becomes home for all of them again. Can the family come together and make this new reality work? Can helping each other, help themselves? This is a heartwarming story of a family, and their struggles to move forward. This was a four star read for me. It is always a pleasure to read, my copy of the book, for an honest review.

Danielle Steel's books are always hit or miss for me. It seems for every one I enjoy, the previous or next just don't capture my interest. The Whittier's is one that I loved from start to finish. I immediately liked the the family and the situation they found themselves in.

After their parents were killed in a skiing accident in E;urope, the Whittier children (now all grown ) are divided on how to handle major family issues and whether or not to sell their beloved family home, Add in the youngest sib who is having a baby out of wedlock at just 21 and still in college, a brother with special needs who functions well on his own but needs the support of his family, and 4 other kids who seemingly have it made but have their own issues to deal with. Steel deftly weaves each story line together, and the novel resolves in her trademark, feel good way. Recommended for all public libraries.

Some days you just want a nice comfortable read that allows you to meet some characters and peek inside their world. Danielle Steel is perfect for those days and The Whittiers is a nice example. The central family is largely likable (albeit privileged as are all DS characters) and they largely love one another. The story centers on how the family traverses the tragic deaths of both parents in an avalanche and how they move through their lives. Of course there are love interests who you can see coming when new characters are introduced and yet despite all the predictability it's an enjoyable way to spend some reading time.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a Women's Fiction. This is not as hard hitting as other books I read by Danielle Steel. I read her books because they are so hard hitting, and they make me think about things. This one did not do that. I enjoyed the story, but I felt it was a little messy at times. It also had a lot of characters that we were following. This book was fast paced and it did keep me reading it. I really loved the adult character with Down Syndrome, and I think his character was done really well. I also loved how his family handled or helped him, and I really loved how they handled it when he started dating. I just wished his character was more of a main character of this book. I do not think this is a bad book, but this book was not everything I wanted it to be. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Delacorte Press) or author (Danielle Steel) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

Danielle Steel delivers another heartwarming story. The Whittiers tackles the complex relationship of siblings. Steel captures the emotions brilliantly and will have the reader tangled up in this family drama.

The Whittiers by Danielle Steel is another one of her wonderful standalone novels. The Whittiers is a fantastic family-oriented story line. We meet the entire family from the start, with the parents, Preston and Connie, as well as their children, Lyle (oldest at 42), Gloria (39), twins Charlie and Caro (33), Benjie (28- autism spectrum) and Annabelle (youngest at 21); as they all celebrate Christmas every year. They are a very close-knit family, with only Amanda, Lyle’s wife being an outcast, only caring about money. After the holidays, Preston and Connie always go away to Europe for an annual vacation, with this year going skiing to France.

But a tragedy happens while they were skiing, and hit by an avalanche; killing them both instantly. The family is shocked, and find themselves reuniting at the family mansion to make decisions and console each other. Their parents left a generous bequest to each of their six children, thinking that they can also share the bigger inheritance if they sell the mansion; worth between $50-100 Million. However, 5 of the six children do not want to sell at this time, with most ending up going back home to stay at the mansion together. It was so wonderful to see how they all moved in to help Benji, and Annabelle (who becomes pregnant), as well as Lyle, who was separated from his wife. I enjoyed the love between all family members, and how they were always there for each other. Each family member had their own life issues, as well as finding love for all.

Lyle, worried about his two children, bringing them to the mansion every other week, and doing everything he could to finalize his divorce. Gloria was a successful lawyer, who had no relationships with others. Caro and Charlie, were running a fashion business, which were long hours, and more funds were needed to help promote their work. Benjie was at times hard to handle, but the love of his family always helped him; he also had two cute dogs. Annabelle was the wild one, always staying out all hours, until she needed help from her family.

What follows is a wonderful heartwarming story, with the family determined to keeping everyone together, especially with the older siblings helping to support Benji and a pregnant Annabelle. The Whittiers was a fabulous storyline, with fantastic family that had to deal with grief, hostile divorce, expansion and wonderful romances along the way. The Whittiers was so very well written by Danielle Steel.

The Whittiers
by: Danielle Steel
Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine, Delacorte Press
General Fiction (Adult), Women's Fiction

In The Whittiers, six siblings face sudden, incomprehensible grief together in their family through memories and perseverance. Tragedy struck when their parents, Preston and Constance Whittier went on a romantic ski "winter moon" holiday, leaving their children to come together in sorrow. Steel's writing is strong and pleasing in this story centered around the Whittier's large, historic Manhattan mansion and the uncertain future of the six children raised there.

Brothers and sisters Lyle, Gloria, Benjie, Annabelle. and twins Caroline and Charlie, are all at different stages of life personally and professionally. I was captured by the way they faced their individual situations while dealing with moving forward as a united family in the midst of anguish. I appreciated this touching and emotional look at family dynamics, grief, and sibling bonds written in Steel's special style.

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine, Delacorte Press
for the advance reader's copy and opportunity to provide my unbiased review.

I was in the mood to read something light and this book was perfect for that. The characters are interesting and believable, the story interesting and compelling. This is a great book to read on a cold winter night while curled up in a comfy chair with a soft throw.

This story is about six siblings, all very different and the majority of them are living on their own and have their own lives. The two youngest, Benjie who has Asperger’s and Annabelle who has dropped out of college are still living in their enormous family home with their parents. When tragedy strikes the family pulls together and all but one return to the family home to grieve, heal and help their younger siblings. Danielle Steel writes another heart warming story showing how strong siblings bonds can be. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Another really beautiful family story from Danielle. All wonderful characters, storylines and settings. The epitome of the meaning of "family" was told throughout this story. Love, loss, gain, acceptance and togetherness. Thank you to Netgalley, Random House, Delacorte Press and the Author, Danielle Steel for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Danielle Steele does it again! It seems like the family couldn’t catch a break but they all learned to come together and cope and it was a beautiful story.

This Danielle Steel novel embodies family values that we all hold dear to our heart. Loving caring parents are reflected in the way their children carry out their lives. Through devastating tragedy this family ultimately comes together despite their individual problems and their love and commitment to each other stands out. I have loved Ms. Steel’s novels from the beginning and continue to be amazed at her wonderful talent!

A family saga done so well. Just as I've come to expect from Ms. Steel, she delivers a heartwarming story of five brothers and sisters who must come together after a tragedy that rocks them all. Besides the event that brings them together, the siblings are all dealing with some very difficult life decisions and situations. How they band together, made me wish I had a large quirky family like The Whittiers.

The Whittiers by Danielle Steel is a very readable third person account, mostly, of a group of six adult children whose parents have just been killed in a tragic accident. They have an estate to settle and a house to sell: a house that may be worth $100 million. Not selling the house causes one divorce, which had been a long time coming, and precipitated several of the siblings moving back home, as well as the children from the divorce every other week. The adult children ranged in age from 21-40, one was autistic, another was pregnant and not married, another came out as gay. In so many ways it was a typical family. They figured out they loved living together and it made their lives better, even as each of them discovered a significant other, who moved into the family seamlessly.

There was a plot, although it was thin. It was more of a slice-of-life novel; a year in the life. There were lots of themes: family, acceptance, love, hard work, and siblings, to name a few. It was an enjoyable, uplifting read, so pleasant when compared to many books popular right now which are full of misery and strife. I recommend it highly.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of The Whittiers by Ballantine, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #Ballantine #DanielleSteel #TheWhittiers