Call the Canaries Home, a debut novel by Laura Barrow, explores the relational complexities between siblings and their caregivers from a Southern perspective. Set in a small Louisiana town, three sisters return to their hometown to recover a time capsule they put together as children. The nonlinear timeline perfectly develops the storyline and carries the reader along through multiple points of view. As a native Texan, the story and characters were easy to connect with, and the read was fittingly relaxed, matching the book's setting.

I found the relational aspect of the sisters and MeeMaw interesting and familiar. There was a heavy sense of false responsibility and guilt that daughters often have to navigate in their maternal relationships. Also worth noting is how the author subtly depicts the coping mechanisms that the sisters acquired growing up to come through in their adult lives.

The story left me wanting in Georgia's disappearance, even though there was complete closure. Maybe that's how family members of missing cases feel, trying to understand the motive behind such a tragedy and never having satisfaction with simply being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

I would recommend this book to friends and family, especially those in Texas and Louisiana, as they'd find the read familiar and relatable.

Thank you, NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing, for an arc of this book for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

Content Rating
Profanity: Mild
Drug + Alcohol Use: Mild
Violence: Mild
Sex + Nudity: Mild

#CalltheCanariesHome #NetGalley

Thank you for my copy of this book to read and review.

A real charming story of family, love, loss and a bit of mystery too.

I really enjoyed the small Southern town setting of this book, and I always enjoy stories told from different points of view & split timelines.

I have already recommended this book to friends, and I look forward to hopefully more from this author in the future.

First of all, I want to thank Netgalley, Laura Barrow and the editor of this book, Lake Union Publishing, for giving me the opportunity to read 'Call the Canaries Home'!

Now my honest review:
I really liked this book! The plot is very original and with each page there is always something new.
I loved ALMOST every character (if you know you know), they felt so real.
Meemaw is ICONIC! one of my favourite character EVER 💃🏻💃🏻💃🏻
the prose is very easy to follow, which was definitely a plus for me as english is not my first language, and alsooo there aren't many swear words or teased about the Christian religion i think (another plus point hahahahah)
For anyone who wants to read this book, i recommend to read the tws. Even if there is no shortage of light and funny moments, we still talk about traumas...
This fantastic story didn't end the way I wanted but that's okay (screaming, crying😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😪😪😪😪)


🚨🚨🚨SPOILER ALLERT!!!! 🚨🚨🚨


Dear Laura Barrow, PLEASE write plus chaperts about the sisters!!! (especially about the evolution of the love story about Sue Ellen and Derrick! I have so many questionsss!!! For example did they get married?? As readers, we NEED to knowwwww 🤭
I love Derrick btw 🧍🏻‍♀️)

Thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read Call the Canaries Home by Laura Barrow, a wonderful small Southern town debut book. Written with a terrific sense of place, filled with memorable characters.

My problem with this book was more to do with me comparing it to ‘Where the crawdads sing’ than anything else because next to that it pales into insignificance. However it is a fairly decent family saga with a clever use of different pov’s

Thank you to NetGalley, Laura Barrow for this free Ebook version. This opinion and review is 100% my own.

This book was written with 4 different points of views and with 2 different time lines. And, even with all that, the story is told seemless and I never once felt lost or overwhelmed.

Meemaw was a probably my favorite character. Her eccentric personality was a bright light in the story. There was nothing she wouldn't do for her family. This book also made me feel so grateful to be blessed to grow up with a sister of my own.

This was sure a beautiful feel good book, even with all the loss and tragedies that happened along the way. It's a story of the power of a sisters bond and of love. It's also about how families dynamics can be messy. So much heart was written in these pages.

This book revolves around three estranged sisters-Rayanne, Sue Ellen and Savannnah-who return home to small town Louisiana to make good on a promise to dig up a time capsule they buried as kids. All are still dealing with the trauma of their four year old sister going missing when they were kids, the death of their mother, and being raised by their Meemaw who is quite the character. Call the Canaries home deals with their childhood trauma, their relationships with each other, discovering or facing truths about their individual circumstances and coming together to get closure on their sister Georgia's disappearance. The book moved a bit slow in the first half but picked up about half way through. I almost felt a bit overwhelmed by all that was going on with these three while reading but I thought it ended up pulling together well. I kept thinking the only person in these girl's lives who had their best interests was Meemaw and everyone else just brought heaps of trauma and drama.. I did quite like this book.

Set in Muscadine, Louisiana this book is a semi-saga that bounces between generations, characters and their POV, with one constant. That constant is a fierce woman known as Meemaw and she is the matriarch who will protect her brood against anything and anyone. Oh, by the way she is a hoarder but I am unsure how that helps or harms the story, just another thing thrown in.

The story waffles among the Guidry sisters, their past and present and sometimes in between. There is a whole lot of hostility among them and the reason they come together is just a little bit out of the realm of believable but a promise made twenty-five years ago is still a promise to be kept. Back to Meemaw - she is described as someone whose “heart had always been in the right place even if her execution had the grace of a cow on roller skates.” She is a mighty interesting character and is the glue on every page of this book. Unfortunately the sisters are a mess and their rivalries, resentments and ugly accusations are exhausting for them and the reader. The mystery that pulls them apart is less of a mystery than survivor’s hope thrown in when the story flags. Messy characters whose voices become entangled, messy story which rambles around “the sacrifice, the needing”.

Something about this book kept me reading but when I dissect the parts I am unsure as there were so many stereotypes and situations that should have been a turnoff but somehow seemed to work. The failures and anger seemed unlimited but again they also fit. Without the humor this would have been a very hard read. I am rounding up for effort and insight. Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for a copy.

This was a completely different book than I thought it would be both before I read it and while I was reading it. I thought something entirely different was going to happen all along lol - the overview of the book is definitely not the focus of the book

Thanks to Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review

I'm krinkling my forehead and scratching my head. I was definitely drawn into the advance read copy of Call the Canaries Home. Some really interesting family dynamics and a bit of a mystery regarding the disappearance of a young sister.

Before I comment further, I feel that I need to provide comments to the publisher.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review the advance read copy of Call the Canaries Home. Thank you to author Laura Barrow and to publisher Lake Union Publishing. Looks like the book has already been released.

What a fantastic surprise this turned out to be! This riveting, multi-generational family drama pulled me in right from the start and never let go. Laura Barrow has written the ultimate story about a complicated southern family of a grandmother (MeeMaw) and her three estranged granddaughters.

The sisters who are scattered away from home return due to a pact they made to dig up a time capsule they buried twenty-eight years ago. They each return with their own unresolved demons due to a tragedy that occurred when the youngest, Savannah’s twin sister Georgia was murdered when they were five years old.

Barrow skillfully leads the reader through the alternating points of view of the four of them, Meemaw, Savannah, Rayanne, and Sue Ellen. Meemaw is a hoarder, no doubt trying to make up for all the losses in her life, and cherishes her granddaughters to the point of suffocation. Each has old hurts from the past and as they come together will new memories and forgiveness heal their remaining family.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Lake Union Publishing, for the opportunity to read it in exchange for my honest opinion. Laura Barrow is a name to keep on your radar and I expect to see more good work coming from her.

Beautiful. Simply a stunning and captivating story of family … love .. loss. Loved everything about this book. A very talented author.

Finally a book that has grabbed my attention and held my interest the whole way through! Call the Canaries Home is the debut novel by Laura Barrow. It’s a story that takes place in Louisiana and it centers around 3 sisters and their grandmother. It’s a story about family, a family’s tragedy, loss and so much forgiveness. I loved all of the characters, even the grandmother who was a wise but yet tough old bird! Although all throughout reading the book I thought I knew how it was going to play out, I was wrong and in a way I wish it would have happened the way I had wanted it to. But it was a really good story and it left me crying at the end. It’s a book I will be recommending to all of my reading friends. I’d even like to purchase a physical copy to add to my own home library. It’s that good! I’d like to thank NetGalley for the arc to read and review. It was the kind of book that I really needed right now as I’ve been in a reading slump between having an eye issue and a total lack of desire. I’m giving it a much deserved 5 star rating and hope to read more by this author in the future.

Stunning… Loved the story and the pacing and just everything about it… A great story that I couldn't put down! I loved this book…

I adored Laura’s ability to portray the intricacies of family relationships, especially sibling bonds, through her writing. The novel was heartwarming and at many points so easy to identify with that I found myself completely immersed in the story that Laura created. An ICONIC reference to the 90s show Dinosaurs, Savannah’s frustration with wearing plastic pool floaties, and Sue Ellen’s love of Anne of Green Gables sent me immediately back to my childhood (in the best way possible).

In real life, I am 1 of 4 very close in age daughters, whose grandmother lived in my home and helped to raise us. I identified so much with the characters in this book. With their thoughts, feelings, and frustrations; Sue Ellen specifically made me feel like I was looking in a mirror.

The imagery of canaries (often used to represent treasured objects) was so beautifully woven throughout the novel; as a reader who loves imagery and symbolism, I adored this.

If you like dual timelines, multiple point of views, a whisper of a mystery, or stories of growth and acceptance - this one’s for you 💕

Imagine the setting of rural Louisiana, 3 sisters who are testy with each other, the mystery of a missing twin from 25 years ago, a time capsule, also from 25 years ago and a Meemaw! Oh, I almost forgot the pot-bellied pig who is a house pet. Perfect for a summertime read!

This book is a bit of an enigma. Often, the writing style and the narrative are quite breezy, quirky and a little off the wall - not in a bad way. But the undertone of the story is quite serious. The surviving twin cannot get rid of a feeling that her missing twin is still out there, the sisters are constantly at each other’s throats. Even though they are in their 20s, sibling rivalry is still strong. Meemaw has a terrible hoarding problem, which is commonly recognized as a symptom of a much deeper-seated issue. A lot of family conflict exists.

Having travelled quite extensively through the Deep South I am familiar with the atmosphere of small towns. I love the description of the small town in this book and the characters that we briefly meet. The town is Muscadine, it is fictional.

There are a few surprises that pop up throughout the book. I can't really call them a twist because it’s not a suspenseful story. But the surprises are interesting and fun to see where they lead.

The main themes of the book are forgiving, acceptance and the ability to move forward. This was all achieved.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an Advance Readers Copy.

This book was okay. I felt there was a buildup to finding the missing twin, and the end fizzled into nothing special. The half-sister being discovered was nice. I just was not thrilled with the quality of the writing in this novel.
Also, I find the name MeeMaw for a grandmother annoying, just personal opinion.

Set in small town in southern America, a story of family brought back together years after a family tragedy, and a reconnecting of memories. The narrative revolves mainly around uncovering the truth behind Georgia’s disappearance when she was just 4 years old, and how the events of that day impacted the lives and futures of the parents, sisters and grandmother. I did originally think this was going to be more of a suspense type book, uncovering what happened, but it is more of a coming together or family and acceptance of things. Whilst it’s not what I expected, it’s still a beautiful story and very enjoyable.

Written from multi narrator perspectives, we get lots of different views on life and situations, and have the odd flash back to the past. The characters are all a little flawed and impacted by their pasts, but you believe they all have good in them and are just trying to do their best in the circumstances.

The writing has a lovely easy flow to it which makes it a joy to read. This isn’t the type of book I would normally read but I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it was such a lovely story. Highly recommend!

FROM THE COVER📖

Three estranged sisters reconnect in their Louisiana hometown to face an unresolved past in a heartfelt novel about family, grief, secrets, and forgiveness.
Savannah was four years old when her twin sister, Georgia, went missing from their small Louisiana town, fracturing their family. Twenty-eight years later, Savannah convinces her estranged older sisters, Rayanne and Sue Ellen, to honor the pact they made as children and retrieve the time capsule they buried in their old backyard. But coming home means confronting old ghosts…and their stubborn grandmother, Meemaw.
Sifting through the artifacts, they come across a photograph taken on the day Georgia disappeared and spot a familiar woman lingering in the background. While Sue Ellen and Rayanne want to move on with their lives, Savannah is determined to find the woman—and perhaps a clue to the past.
When old tensions, rivalries, and memories resurface, the sisters must reconsider what they thought they knew about that fateful day, about each other, and about themselves. On their search to uncover what happened to Georgia, each of them will discover what Meemaw has known all along: family is everything.

REVIEW ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The synopsis of this book gave me big Where The Crawdads Sing vibes so was really excited to get reading.

While the book is similar it isn’t anywhere near as good, it lacks the depth and complexity in the plot and the beautiful imagery of Crawdads however the writing is strong and plot while not so much as a mystery as I hoped was good and held my interest. The characters were warm and well written in particular MeeMaw, they were all believable and represented how the loss of of loved ones can have such a brutal lasting impact in such different ways within members of a family unit. The author clearly has sisters as she capture that sometimes complex relationship very well.

The book is told over dual timelines with Meemaws story told in the 3rd pov in the past and all three sisters told in first person in the present day. With a few other bits such a letters thought out to move the plot along quicker. This structure works really well and moves the story giving you an insight to each member of the family as well as setting up the “mystery”. I found this book held my interest as a family safe rather than mystery there wasn’t much suspense or any cliff hangers but it flowed well and told a good story. The ending was a little too cookie cutter for me and I feel more realistic darker not so perfect ending would have been better suited.

This is a good read it kept me reading long after my night light should have been out but it’s not mystery and is quite different from how I thought it would read.



It had the southern vibe that gave off a mixture of Crawdads meet Steel Magnolias meets Fried Green Tomatoes would make a good book club choice. Fans of Crawdads, Paper Palace And Go As The River will enjoy this but be warned it’s not quite as deep as these reads but it doesn’t make any less of a book it will make laugh and probably cry but most of all it will make you value the women in your life all the more. Small town heartwarming bittersweet family fiction at its best.

It would have been four stars but the ending annoyed me so knocked it down to three.

Call the canaries home is a beautiful story of sisterhood, love, loss and forgiveness. I loved seeing all of the girls character arcs/development throughout the book and seeing how the family comes together through adversity. This is a raw emotional rollercoaster with amazing writing and beautiful messages and I highly recommend.