4.25/5 stars

I really enjoyed reading this book! It’s relatable, clever, and laugh-out-loud funny. It has one of the best depictions of sibling relationships I’ve ever read. As someone with 4 siblings, I don’t often find a book that accurately depicts the nuances that come in a sibling relationship. Greta & Valdin’s relationship was hands down my favorite part of this book. If you like slow-moving character studies, this book is definitely for you! I will definitely be picking up more from Rebecca K Reilly in the future!

Thank you to Avid Reader Press and NetGalley for a copy of this arc to review!

A fun, witty coming-of-age tale about two queer siblings in New Zealand. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, but there's a handy list in the beginning that made it much easier to get my bearings. Ultimately, the large family adds to the character's growth and development so it's worth the large cast.

Greta & Valdin (the characters) are both flawed but lovable, finding their way through love, work, friends, and family.

Sometimes the story could feel slightly disjointed, as from one chapter to the next there was no indication of how much time had passed. It would seem as though we were picking up where the last chapter left off, just with a new narrator, but it could be a month into the future.

I recommend anyone in the reviews that is saying this book is too queer to remember Ruth Bader Ginsberg's famous retort when someone asked her how many women would be enough on the Supreme Court. She said 9 - which is all of them. The interviewer scoffed and Ruth astutely pointed out that for decades it had been all male and no one thought that was weird.

I found it refreshing that the majority of the characters in this novel were queer or questioning instead of their queerness being the oddity or the minority. They were not the "token" diversity characters. The book is told by the titular queer siblings Greta and Valdin who are part Maori and part Russian. I had no idea that New Zealand had such a connection to Russia and Slovakia, so I enjoyed learning more about that part of New Zealand's history. I also appreciated the frank conversations about the Maori culture as well.

The description indicates that this is for fans of Schitts Creek and Sally Rooney's Normal People and I think that is spot on. Not a whole lot happens in this character-driven story and yet I found myself compelled by these characters to root for them and keep reading. They are flawed and diverse and complicated and their lives and family are messy and I was here for all of it. I laughed out loud several times (especially during the siblings' tangents) and cried and highlighted the crap out passages. It was hopeful in a way I found endearing.

This is a 4.5 star book rounded up to 5 for Goodreads who STILL hasn't jumped on the half star bandwagon like the rest of the book world. The only reason it isn't a true 4 star read is that the ending felt a bit rushed to me. Reilly brings in several other POVs that we hadn't seen earlier in the novel to reveal brand new information and quickly tie up some loose ends. She also brushes over some pretty big final points that the rest of the book was hinting at the entire time. I even went back to see if I missed something. It was a bit confusing at times. This family is also intricately and weirdly connected, so if she didn't have the character list and how they were interconnected, I would have felt a little bit lost at times. I referenced it often.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I can understand why it won so many awards in New Zealand. I hope it gets the praise and recognition it deserves here in the US as well.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to review an advanced copy of the ebook. I look forward to adding this to my shelves.

4.25⭐️. I’d first like to thank Rebecca K Reilly and the publisher for the arc I received of this book! Greta and Valdin is a hilariously dry and quick witted novel that outlines the lives of two millennial siblings living in New Zealand. The humour is very comparable to that of Schitt’s Creek and Fleabag. I loved all of the characters and found it so lovely that nearly everyone was gay or queer. I also really loved the Māori representation and enjoyed learning some about the culture and traditions. I found some of the story a bit disjointed, almost as if each chapter was a short story in a way. Overall though I really enjoyed this one!! It had me smiling so big and laughing out loud the whole time. 🥰

In Rebecca K. Reilly's refreshing novel, a New Zealand comedic gem, we follow queer Russian-Māori siblings Valdin and Greta through a romantic comedy-drama through Auckland and beyond. Kindhearted Valdin, a former physics student turned TV professional, grapples with unrequited love for his ex who has fled the country, while Greta, a Russian and English Literature master's student and the comic center of the story, is caught up in her own romantic dilemma, pining over a charismatic but unscrupulous female tutor while attempting disastrous dates with straight men whose Tinder profile pictures feature cats.

In addition to Greta and Valdin, we meet the rest of the sprawling Vladisavljevic family: their eccentric Russian dad, their unflappable Māori mom, their Catalan and German in-laws, a cousin who might be lost in Paris or Indonesia, a teen nephew and a young niece. Everyone has a few dark secrets and some tangled relationships that get increasingly knotty during the course of the novel. In an ironic gesture toward big Russian classic novels, there’s a character list rivaling Anna Karenina with such helpful commentary as “their uncle's husband's brother and that's it” and “the closest they have to a cousin.”

This novel embraces its queer, mixed-race and ethnically-mixed characters in a way that feels unique and fresh: it doesn’t shy away from their problems and crises, but it also revels in hilarious escapades and sharp off-hand commentary on a frustrating, ridiculous world where young people just want to find love, affordable rent, a decent job and functioning public transportation.

The plot gets a little bogged down by convoluted family drama and the writing is heavy on witty one-liners (which doesn’t bother me, but can be a turnoff for some readers), but Reilly’s offbeat and warm portrayal of family, friendships, joy and love in all its forms won my heart. GRETA & VALDIN is a charmingly playful and satisfying read that felt like a warm hug in book form. A delight from start to finish!

4-4.5/5 ⭐️

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avid Reader Press for the eARC.

I came for the cover and stayed for literally every other part of this novel. Greta & Valdin is utterly charming. I fell completely in love with these characters.

Greta and Valdin are Māori siblings finding their way through life in New Zealand. The story is told through alternating chapters between the two, covering their individual lives and that of their family. They are roommates and both at stalemates in their lives. Valdin’s story begins when he receives a note that he’s missed a package. Greta’s begins as she ponders her place in her master's program and her future prospects.

It’s a very interior novel but has a full cast of friends and family. There’s quirk, there’s wit, there are endlessly quotable lines. Fans of Waike Wang and Emily R Austin are going to love Rebecca K Reilly.

There’s a list of characters in the beginning of the book I tried to skim past but it became a great resource as the story progressed. Don’t be dissuaded by it.

I underlined a lot of passages and messaged to recommend this to many friends. This book originally debuted in New Zealand in 2021 and is being released in the US and UK today. So run to your library or bookstore and read it so we can talk! I have to imagine the audio version of this would be the absolute best.

Thank you, @avidreaderpress and @netgalley, for the advance digital copy!

While I am a fan of the sally rooney style of story telling, this lacked the “story” part for me. The writing style itself was the only thing I actually enjoyed. I didn’t care about a single character in this book and the lack of plot made it almost painful to complete

There was a lot to love about this book: the diversity of the characters, the level of queerness, the fact that even the side characters were well-developed and had distinctive personalities... My favorite aspect is by far the relationship between Greta and Valdin. Their sibling relationship is beautiful and imperfect in a way that many authors don't get right.
The style of Greta & Valdin wasn't for me, unfortunately. There wasn't much structure to the plot, which I tend not to enjoy in books. It was a bit all over the place and hard to follow, especially because there were a lot of characters and their relationships to one another were lost on me. There is a character list at the beginning of the book to help with this issue, but because I read this as an e-ARC, flipping back and forth wasn't practical. Most of the humor also didn't land for me.
I did appreciate how central the setting (New Zealand) was to the book. That did mean I was lost in some of the cultural references, but I always like when the setting acts almost as a plot device or another character in a book, which was definitely the case here.

I wanted to like GRETA & VALDIN, but just couldn't get into this one. The characters didn't connect with me. Thought the writing was solid and humorous at times, it couldn't save this one for me.

Thank you so much to @avidreaderpress for the gifted advance review copy, this is out February 6th!

We meet 20-something siblings Greta and Valdin, part Russian and part Maaori New Zelanaders, and their very messy and VERY gay family. Part family drama, part coming of age, and part rom com, this was smart, big hearted and very funny! Greta and Valdin take turns narrating the chapters, and while I preferred Greta’s sense of humor, I thought the combination of both of their perspectives worked well. Everything felt decidedly modern and wonderfully young adult – I loved how their nephew didn’t bat an eye at declaring he was in love with a guy, but was embarrassed to reveal that he thought he might be a monogamist!

This was such an enjoyable debut, I look forward to reading more quirky and queer work like this. Just what I was looking for. Keep an eye on this author!

*I’ll update with a link to my post prior to publication.*

I’m not sure why this didn’t work for me but it just didn’t. Maybe I should have been put off by the Tolstoyesque intro pages full of character descriptions (characters with the same or similar names no less), but I love Tolstoy so why not go on? I just couldn’t find myself interested in any of the story or characters.

This book was immensely readable, and had interesting settings, a look amount of dialogue and was generally a good experience. However the titular characters are rather insufferable. I couldn’t bring myself to care about their relationships (or lack there of) and they just seemed whiny and immature. There is a charcater growth arc but it’s doesn’t redeem them, which was disappointing.

This is a book about siblings and families and relationships of all kinds. It's funny and (sometimes a little bit) sad and feels quite real. Set in New Zealand and featuring a complicated family (where everyone is gay - everyone) it feels very contemporary and a little bit knowing. It's a coming of age book (even though the main characters are heading for their late 20s). The conversations feel real and are also sometimes laugh out loud funny.
The structure of the book is alternate chapters told in first person from Greta and Valdin's points of view. I disliked the choice to suddenly introduce two other first person narrators in the final chapters of the book. The ending was satisfying and yet a little rushed.
I enjoyed this book, it was interesting and effortless to read, and will be interested if Rebecca Reilly publishes another book to see where she goes as an interesting voice in fiction.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Overall a very cute but raw book! Folllowing both Greta and Valdin lends itself to watching two people at different points in their lives figure themselves out and grow.

Greta learning her worth and becoming comfortable with her sexuality is so refreshing as she is older than the usual book main character.

Valdin presents readers with people accepting and understanding themselves in a new stage of relationships and considerations when becoming a parent.


Watching the siblings, and the people around them, go through these realistic stages is so amazing!

I really enjoyed this witty, quirky, queer read. The characters are dynamic and interesting in a way that really keeps you hooked!

Big thanks to Simon & Schuster and Avid Reader Press for the ARC.

I don't think I can explain how much I loved this book! It is one of those books that just makes you feel good. I laughed and may have shed a tear or two. It is worth the read and you will not be able to put it down!

This was such an interesting and funny book, and I had a hard time putting it down.

I loved this huge family and cast of characters. There’s a character list at the beginning of the book (you’re gonna need it), so trying to remember who everyone was wasn’t too hard. There were so many different personalities between everyone, and the dynamics between certain characters was fun to follow; it gets a little chaotic at times, but mostly in a good way. There’s a lot of dry humor throughout that had me laughing out loud, but balanced in with some more tender moments. The focus on queer and multiracial identities was done really well, and I liked the way it was blended in with the other plot lines. The pace slowed down a bit much in some places, but the curiosity of what could possibly happen next kept me going.

This is one of those books that’s a little weird (in a good way) with characters that feel real and relatable, and a story that draws you in.

I really enjoyed this book. It was full of such humor and wit and I loved Greta and Valdin’s relationship as brother and sister but also roommates. They had development throughout the novel that seemed realistic and not static and I enjoyed seeing their growth. All “Schitts Creek” comments are warranted, felt like a hug.

My new favorite fictional family! Greta and Valdin are half Maori/half Russian siblings coming of age in New Zealand, and Rebecca Reilly brought them to life with one of the most precise, hilarious voices I've ever read. This book has such a strong sense of place -- it couldn't happen anywhere besides Auckland -- and the family's combination of cultures plays a huge part in the story, which I loved. Will absolutely be one of my favorites of the year!!

A sharply funny, and at some moments touching story about an eccentric family in New Zealand. Told (mostly) from two siblings’ perspectives, Greta & Valdin, who are both queer, we see their lives through witty musings on life and their relationships. The heart of this novel is the interconnected relationships between our main characters and their family and friends. The plot of this book is very simple and acts more of a backdrop to their musings and past events that made them who they are now. We follow them traverse heartbreak, adult life, and discovering themselves through their relationships. As they navigate complex emotions, they do so with ease and wit that will leave you in stitches at points because you are laughing so much.

While some moments had me laughing and others even made me a little emotional, I did feel that the story lost its way towards the end. With very little plot up until about the 65% mark, suddenly, things moved very quickly as plot points were jammed in to move the characters forward. I was left feeling a little out of breath trying to keep up because the pacing had shifted, had become urgent even. I always try to find pieces of a story or characters to connect to while reading and it was hard to find something to grab onto here because during the last third or so of the book, I was trying to keep up with the speeding plot and therefore I lost my connection to Greta and Valdin.

An overall witty and at points emotional read, I just wish what the first half of the book delivered on, the second half lived up to and it unfortunately did not. If you enjoy dry wit and millennial musings on life and relationships, though, this is a perfect book for you.

I gave it 3.25 out of 5 stars.

Thank you Netgalley and Avid Reader Press for the Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Taylor Swift songs I associate with this book: Labyrinth, this is me trying, You’re On Your Own Kid, peace