This book is riveting, detailed at all capacities. There is so many sides of this story, I loved diving into the different perspectives. The mystery is good and unique, you want to know, you need to investigate right next to the main character to find the truth of her history. Where did she really come from and who is her true family? This is a lovely story, the author did a memorizing job delivering this tale.

Lauren E. Rico's introduction in many ways explains the flaws of this book. it felt like very american in spite of its setting.

Familia by Lauren E. Rico is a tale set in New York and Puerto Rico. There is a dual timeline that involves Gabby DiMarco, working as a fact-checker at a prominent Manhattan magazine. Her boss has all employees take a genealogy test for a potential story. She hopes to find a cousin as she is an only child and wants to find community. A parallel narrative involves 30ish Isabella Ruíz whose younger sister, Marianna, was kidnapped as an infant. She feels guilty because her mother died in childbirth, and had wished her sister would disappear. That guilt drives her to spend the rest of her days looking for Marianna. When the ancestry site connects them, well then that is when the story gets wild and surprising as they embark on the journey of finding out what happened that fateful day, and what happens now that they have found each other. I really enjoyed this book, makes me want to visit Puerto Rico. Thank you @netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

This was one of my favorite reads of 2023. I completely enjoyed the novel. Even though you know that the likelyhood of the two girls being sisters is high, I like the way the author kept the answer from us while we got to know the two girls.

I love the way the question of what happened was slowly revealed and that the author made the protagonist have a few fun language mistakes on the way. As a native Spanish speaker I found this beyond hilarious.

I sincerely hope this author will write more novels of this caliber. Fantastic!

Gabby DiMarco is working as a fact checker at a New York magazine but dreams of being a writer. As part of an assignment, she participates in DNA testing and is contacted by someone claiming to be her sister. This event sends her to Puerto Rico searching for herself and her history.
This is a fun mystery, and I was invested in Gabby and Isabella’s story and anxious for the outcome. I enjoyed the book and I would recommend it. The multiple narrators are a bit confusing and the surprisingly tidy conclusion were a little bit of a letdown but not enough to ruin the read.
Overall, this was an engaging, moving story that focused on the connections of families lost, found and made. A good choice for reader’s of women’s fiction.
4 stars.
Thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for an advance readers copy of this book.

What a weird book. There was SO much telling rather than showing throughout the book, it made the story a bit stale and hard to be interested in. The constant cuts each chapter, right when information was going to be revealed was so annoying. And the people “protecting” Isabelle?? Gaslighting her and lying straight to her face when they knew what happened her whole life feels so evil.

Also in what world would a Spanish speaker be impressed by someone who doesn’t speak Spanish saying “mucho gusto.”

I was immediately captivated by this unique story about long lost sisters. The story follows Isabella and Gabby, who are reunited by a geneology DNA test. Isabella lives a humble life in Puerto Rico with her husband. Her life was forever altered by the death of her mother while she gave birth to her younger sister and the disappearance of that baby. Gabby is a fact checker at a prestigious publication looking to become a writer. Their lives collide when the DNA results point to them being full sisters.

Gabby travels to Puerto Rico to investigate. She's convinced the test is wrong while Isabella is convinced it's right. I really enjoyed their burgeoning relationship and the mystery about what happened to the missing baby. Puerto Rico also plays a prominent part of the story as they visit its wonderful diverse landscapes. This was such a touching and fascinating story.

I listened to the audiobook which was well-narrated by Frankie Corzo, Victoria Villarreal, and Robb Moreira.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for providing this ebook and audiobook ARC. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

I really enjoyed this book! It was engaging, and mysterious, and the banter between all the characters was perfection. I loved all the twists and turns and really thought I figured out what happened to Baby Marianna. I was right in some of the parts, but not all. I loved the author’s use of more POVs than just the 2 FMC as well. I would definitely read another book of hers in the future.

I understand there is some discussion regarding the author’s description of La Perla in the book. I have only visited Puerto Rico once myself, with my mother, to visit my grandparents who were born and raised there. She pointed out the neighborhood to me and pretty much described it in the same way as the author, based on how my grandfather described it to her. He told her that you couldn’t enter the neighborhood unless you were invited or knew someone that lived there. She said that as a boy he would go there to visit his friends. I don’t know what the neighborhood is like today, so I will leave the rest of that discussion to people who are from there and have been there to provide more accurate testaments.

Gabriella is a fact-checker for a well-known publication, but she wants to be a writer. As research for an upcoming article, she agrees to participate in a DNA test--only to receive a message from a woman in Puerto Rico claiming Gabby is her long-lost sister. An only child with both parents dead, Gabby might seem eager to find some relatives, but she doubts the accuracy of the test and resents the implication that her much-loved parents might have lied to her.

Nonethless, she agrees to travel to San Juan to meet Isabella, her motivation increased after her editor, Maxwell, refuses to allow her to write the story. The differences between Gabby and Isabella seem vast, as Gabby stays in an expensive resort and Isabella grew up in poverty. Nonetheless, the two quickly form a friendship, alternating with enmity, as Gabby conducts her own investigation into what happened to Isabella's sister more than twenty years ago.

A fascinating glimpse into contemporary Puerto Rico with a realistic dose of family drama and the bonds and travails of sisterhood. #Familia #NetGalley

This book was a family drama, a mystery regarding genetic matches, a trip to Old San Juan and LaPerla, and a 25 year old cold case.
The main characters were Gabby DiMarco- a fact checker for a NY magazine. When the magazine staff submit DNA tests in preparation for an article, Gabby's results come back with a sister match. Being an only child of Italian parents, she is sure that the lab made a mistake. However, she gets a message from a woman in Puerto Rico - Isabella (the other MC)- who claims to be that sister and says that her sister Marianna was kidnapped.
I loved the way the story was set up with both women providing POV to their story as they try to unravel the truth.
At the same time as the women try to determine their relationship, we get the story of what happened the day that Marianna was kidnapped. This story's chapters alternated with the main characters stories, and brought into play the drugs, gangs and a violent murder that occurred about that time.
I thought that the situations and characters were authentic, The author brought into the story the contrasting upbringings of the tow MC and how they contributed to the women today. The ending was charming and I was happy that it was a hopeful ending.
I received an electronic ARC from NetGalley and a complimentary paperback copy from Kensington Press. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own. I rate the book 4.5 stars. It is well worth reading.

3 stars, "I liked it." However, I wanted to LOVE this book. I'm Puerto Rican-American, so this should have been a 4- or 5-star book, but I never found Gabby, one of the two main characters, particularly believable, or even that likable. The other MC, Isabella, worked better for me, but the story, overall, just wasn't the strongest for me. All that said, many of my friends will like this book, including many fellow Boricuas/Latinos, and I would recommend it to them.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. (I also happened to receive a physical ARC from the publisher, many thanks for that as well.)

Really good story. Two woman have genealogy done for different reasons.
Is it possible to be sisters. Results say yes but they are not convinced as not truly convinced. So they chose to do DNA test. Isabella had a sister but she was list at 6months old. Could Gabby be Marianna? Gabby was a fact checker so crossing all the t's and dotting all the i"s! Very good story.

I loved this book. There is so much going on. The characters are well-rounded, even those you only see a little of. There are twists, there is heartbreak, there is drama, there is crime and it kept me wanting to read more.

This book got more ridiculous as I continued reading. It was a good story, but the writing wasn’t what I was expecting. This book was the first one that had a repetitive expression that really irked me. “He raised his hands in surrender.” No one surrenders that much, and everyone in this book was surrendering constantly.

This was one of my best read of 2023, and I will for sure post a review soon on my channels.

I found the story gripping, and it reminded me Clap when you land by Acevedo, but with a more "mature" narrative (naturally, as the characters are adults and not teenagers).

Also 100% love the cover.

PS I am sorry I was not able to give a feedback on my social profiles before the archiving date, but I will for sure soon.

Familia took me by surprise! It is a book about family but also a page-turning thriller primarily set in Puerto Rico. Gabby is working as a fact-checker at a magazine while trying to work her way into writing when her work asks everyone to take a genealogy test. Now, her results say she has a sister in Puerto Rico. Isabella's sister was lost when she was seven months old, but has never stopped looking for her.

The first chapter starts with the disappearance of baby Marianna, then each chapter interchanges between Gabby and Isabella in the present, trying to figure out what happened to Marianna with every few chapters a flash back and piece of evidence. The pacing was perfection and the back and forth was exquisite. It all kept me at the edge of my seat, turning the page to see what would happen next.

On top of the excellent thriller aspects, the book delves into the themes of family, abandonment, and identity. Both Gabby and Isabella are confronted not just with the past but also with the lives they have built. Neither is truly happy, but getting what they want might not bring the happiness they are searching for.

This is an interesting story that focuses on family, sisterhood, genetics and what it really means to be family.
Gabby is a fact checker at a NY magazine, it’s not glamorous but she feels she’s good at her job. As part of her work, she takes a DNA test that surprisingly identifies a possible- unknown sister.
At the same time, in Puerto Rico, Isabella has been searching for her missing sister for decades. Gabby, trained to nail down the truth flies to Puerto Rico to uncover the truth. The two come together with a plot that twists and turns as each character addresses what they come to believe is the truth.

I thought this was well written with an intriguing plot/storyline.
Thanks Net Galley for the ARC.

As part of a research project for a potential magazine article, Gabby DiMarco submits to a DNA test just to see if there could be the remote possibility of discovering a distant cousin. But Gabby already knew that the existence of any relative would be next to impossible. But miracles sometimes happen. And to Gabby’s surprise, a 50% familial match is revealed — a potential sibling.

Dumbfounded by the discovery of a potential sister and receiving a message from a Isabella Ruiz claiming to be her sister, Gabby becomes determined to clear up any misunderstanding or mixup on the gene pool data.

However, once realizing that she may have a potential magazine headliner, Gabby rushes off to Puerto Rico to meet with Isabella to uncover the truth behind Isabella’s claims. But what both Gabby and Isabella discover is a history that goes deeper than any of them could imagine.

I wasn’t impressed with the cover of the novel. But Familia turned out to be one of the best women’s fiction/multicultural interest novels that I’ve read in 2023.

The story unfolds through multiple points of view and dual timelines. I loved how the layers of the story got revealed with mini cliffhangers in between chapters. Familia combines snarky humor, mystery, and heartfelt emotion into a complete package. Familia is a novel that had me racing through the chapters to find out what happens next.

The characters in the novel are well developed. So much so that they felt like family. I especially loved the two main characters of Gabby and Isabella. Their snarky sense of humor and sister-like banter really brought the story to life. The other players in the story added depth and dimension to an already enjoyable plot. And the insertion of Spanish phrases throughout just added to the narrative and realism of the characters.

Overall, I loved everything about Familia. The humor, the mystery, the emotions and family. Five over the top stars.

I received a DRC from Kensington Books through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the eARC.

I really enjoyed this one. I love a good mutli POV and this was of course no exception. What really kept me engaged in this is how it could happen in real life. What a journey.

A novel that sometimes feels like memoir. A tracing of ancestry after taking a DNA test unfolds here. I have to admit, I am VERY creeped out by these DNA tests, so feel uncomfortable with this story a bit. Didn't finish this one, just not for me,