I really enjoyed this somewhat maudlin tale of two sisters on island and their encounters with life and wildlife. I think the interactions and relationship between the sisters was well laid out -- it felt real. Some fairy tale elements were present, but to me they didn't detract from the heart of the human story.

I was really sad when I finished this, and I felt it in my gut. I don't often feel that way when I complete a book...

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

When I was a little girl, my grandmother had a book of fairy tales. She read from this book whenever we stayed with our grandparents. The first story was Snow White and Rose Red, so this was the one we heard most frequently. Naturally, when I read the summary of Bear, it brought me back to happy memories of my childhood. Luckily for me, I was the one who inherited her book. So, before I read Bear, I re-read Snow White and Rose Red. While I would probably not characterize this as a retelling of Snow White and Rose Red, it certainly had the important elements.
I thought this was an engaging story, taking place in an area where residents are close to the environment in which they live and work. It highlighted our strengths and failings as individuals, family members, coworkers, and residents of a community. It was easy to relate to the characters because they feel real. I am so glad I read this book, and I highly recommend it.

This book absolutely took my breath away. The Bear is a story about sisterhood, grief, nature, and so much more. Julia Phillips is such a talented writer--I can't wait to read Disappearing Earth (and whatever she writes next!). Ann Patchett put it best--Julia Phillips has my full attention.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC!

This book is well written. It is just not for me. I didn't like the POV and the way it was going. Maybe others will love it though. DNF

This novel is set on San Juan Island in Washington State, and the atmospheric details are great. It has lots of lovely descriptions of the island and the ferry going to it.

I am not finishing this book, because I dislike the genre, namely women’s fiction. It’s probably a very nice book for its genre. However, I just don’t want to invest time in works that aren’t “literary.” Too many great, thoughtful and artistic books to read, so little time.

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

Okay. So I was a little confused on this one. The first half I was expecting very much a Bear and the Nightingale situation where there’s a sense of magic, the Bear is not just a bear and there truly was some magical elements to it. This is what I get for coming in blind! I then spent the second half of the novel wondering if I missed a key element in the first half.

Spoiler: it’s not magical. Hah! All jokes aside, about 75% of the way through I wondered how it would end. I am so glad that Sam got the ending she deserved - as a Washington native and growing up in a town much like hers, it made me so happy that she could be someone other than her destiny. Elena, on the other hand. You know, everything was so ethereal with her, do you really expect me to believe there wasn’t any magic!?!?

Good story. CLEARLY not what I was expecting - and the ending was so abrupt I had to laugh!

On a small island in the PNW, sisters Sam and Elena are living their lives in limbo, as they work low-paying jobs and care for their mother who is dying of cancer. Sam in particular is desperate for a new life and has clung to the tales her sister told her of selling their family home and moving off the island for a better life. Convinced this will eventually come to pass, Sam refuses to get attached to co-worker Ben with whom she has been having an affair. When a bear arrives on the island - a grizzly, no less - and appears at their doorstep, Sam is terrified while Elena is intrigued. Thus begins the unraveling of the sisters' close friendship as Sam realizes how very different her sister is from her - a realization that Sam refuses at first because of what that could mean for their plans.

The characters of the sisters, of the men in their lives, of the authority figures they have to deal with, and of course, their beloved mother, feel so genuine and even though the idea of a bear coming between two siblings sounds farfetched, it makes total sense in this story. The novel is moving and sad, its events both tragic and hopeful.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc to review.

Another great novel by Phillips. I enjoyed this one even more than her first book. I love her writing. This one had a unique lovely story line.

Bear by Julia Phillips was an interesting book. I wanted to so badly enjoy the story. Phillips' descriptions of the setting painyted a beutiful picture. Where it fell flat for me was the depth of charectors. I felt like the story was lacking and I could not put my finger because... maybe it was me, but I kept waiting for it to get better and it did NOT.

Sam and Elena are twenty-something sisters who live on San Juan island in Washington state. One evening Sam and some of the passengers on the ferry where she works see a bear swimming alongside the ship. Excited, Sam can't wait to tell her older sister about the sighting. Elena's response is one of fear and concern, nothing like Sam's expectation. However, as the story unfolds, Sam becomes terrified of the bear while Elena embraces the magic, the gift, that the animal's presence represents.

A variant of the Snow White and Rose Red fairy tale, this novel is grim and tragic. It reveals the lives of two poor girls and their terminally ill mother who are eager to experience something, anything besides the painful bleakness that is life for them. Told in third-person, the reader is engaged with the world and people of San Juan in the child-like way that Sam perceives them. It is easy in the beginning to feel, anticipate, some sort of magic lurking in this mystical forest on an island, but sensation is not reality.

This tale is gritty and real. It is as unsettling as it is beautifully written.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

To say that ‘I couldn’t put this book down’, and that ‘I read it in two days’ doesn’t seem to do it justice. Though these things are true, they do not convey the emotional intensity of this story reflecting the relationship between two sisters who are sharing the responsibility of caring for their terminally ill mother. When the sisters come upon a bear near their home, the story takes on a fairy tale quality as one sister views the bear’s repeated visits to her as special and magical, the other is terrified for her and resentful of its coming between them. The novel has just the right amount of tension to keep readers turning the pages, culminating in an ending that is both haunting and jaw-dropping. Well done!
Thank you to NetGalley and Hogarth publishers for the early reading of this book.

Set against the backdrop of the picturesque yet isolated San Juan islands, the narrative follows the lives of sisters, Elena and Sam. The story takes a turn towards the mystical when a bear, an unusual sight in their coastal enclave, begins to make appearances. Despite Elena's initial fear, she develops an inexplicable bond with the creature, seeing in its wild, untamed nature a reflection of her own suppressed desires and the weight of responsibilities she bears. Sam does not see the bear in the same light, she sees the bear as a threat to their relationship and to their safety, she simply wants the bear to move on. The loss of their mom is a pivotal moment that shatters the illusion of control and unveils the stark reality that life's most significant events often stem from our most profound misunderstandings and fears. Julia Phillips beautifully explored the complexities of human relationships, the pain of loss and dangerous the allure of obsession.

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the eARC of Bear by @juliaphillipswrites in exchange for an honest review!

📖📖 Book Review 📖📖 Off the coast of Washington state lies the picturesque San Juan Islands, accessible by ferry boats. In those islands, reside two sisters, Sam and Elena, who are struggling to make ends meet post-pandemic, caring for an ailing mother. Julia Phillips portrays the realistic and dire struggles they face daily juxtaposed against the most stunning scenery imaginable with abundant wildlife, including a visiting black bear. Bear is a beautifully written novel, weaving elements of myths, fables, and fairy tales that create a story that absolutely envelops the reader in an immersive journey alongside the two sisters. In this book, animals are so vibrantly written, that one might even mistake it for magical realism yet the characters and truth of the story are so authentic and grounded. Bear is an enchanting read not to be missed!

Review is posted on Goodreads and will be on Instagram well ahead of the publication date!

I finished reading Bear a couple of weeks ago and I can still feel the weight of it. A taut and foreboding novel that made me feel the fear and obsession of the characters as well as the oppressive feeling of a small house and town on an island covered in woods. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book with such a strong sense of place.

A beautiful novel with staying power. It humanizes challenges far too many families are quite familiar with - medical debt, underpaid jobs with little room for advancement, and a wish for more from life. I'm grateful I had the chance to read it.

Sam and Elena dream of another life. They live on an island off the coast of Washington where their greatest struggle is financial survival. They barely have enough to manage their living expenses, particularly for the care of their seriously ill mother who lives with them is seriously ill. Their only income comes from Sam’s job as a server on a local ferry and Elena’s job as a bartender at the local golf club. When a bear is spotted swimming in the channel that surrounds their island, their lives suddenly change. Soon the bear is found wandering near their home and Sam is petrified and wants to leave the island immediately. Elena, on the other hand, wants to befriend the bear and puts their dream of leaving the island on hold.
A fantastic and beautifully written story about the bonding and love within a family and the mysteries surrounding the behavior of animals that we fear most.

'Bear', by Julia Phillips, is very, very different from her first novel, 'Disappearing Earth'. In no way does 'Bear' come up to the brilliance of Ms. Phillips' debut novel. The characterizations are weak and their inner lives are obscure and barely of interest. Some of the narrative is sensational and buried in myth but I wasn't able to feel a connection to either of the protagonists. The best part of this novel were the descriptions of the natural world on the island.

'Bear' is told from Sam's point of view. She is Elena's 28 year old sister, the younger of the two. They are the third generation to live on several acres of beautiful land on San Juan Island, off the coast of Washington. Sam hopes with all her heart that one day she and Elena will escape this island and live a fuller life somewhere else. After all, Sam estimates that the land their old and falling down house is built upon is worth around $500,000. She also thinks that Elena shares her dream of escaping the island. The only thing holding them back is their mother, who is very ill. While they lovingly care for her, they also dream of how her death will set them free from this house and this puny life.

Both sisters have jobs in the service industry. Sam works on the ferry, for a company that contracts with the Washington State Ferry system. Because she is employed by a contractor, she doesn't get any of the benefits that come with a state job. Elena is a waitress in a country club on their island.
They are constantly in debt, trying to make payments for their mother's medical bills and their own costs of living. They can never catch up. What made it even worse, is they had to struggle through the pandemic when both the ferry system and the country club barely functioned.

One day, off the side of the ferry, Sam sees a swimming bear that is headed towards her island. She is both enthralled and fearful. When they later see the bear in their yard, she is full of terror. Elena does not share Sam's fear. She becomes enamored of the bear and puts herself in dangerous circumstances just to be near the bear, her allegorical lover.

I started getting bored by the novel somewhere near the middle. Usually when this happens, I don't finish the book. However, I crawled through this one, page after page, until the end. I had the end figured out but it still threw me for a loop. Ms. Phillips has proven her enormous skill in 'Disappearing Earth' and I'm hoping she writes another novel of that caliber.

Elena and Sam navigate their life on San Juan, caring for their dying mother and getting by. The plan they hatched as children to manifest their own happy ending keeps them going. When a bear arrives on the island, subtle differences between the sisters' outlooks are revealed and tension develops between them. Suddenly, everything Sam thought she knew about the world, her sister, and herself is called into question. This beautifully written, evocative, gut-punch of a novel will appeal to fans of character-driven literary fiction and a strong sense of place.

Bear by Julia Phillips has a great setting on the San Juan Islands in Washington and a unique premise - a bear enters the life of two sisters. While there's this interesting exploration of sisterhood and the mystery surrounding the bear, overall, it left me feeling a bit deflated. It's slow-paced, and I found myself wanting more from it. I wish there was more from Elena's point of view.

It has its moments, but if you're after a non-depressing read, this might not be your best bet. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Ebook received for free through NetGalley

It wasn’t at all what I expected.. pictured more fairytale and fantasy. That said it was written well, gritty, real, sad, and beautiful. Glad I came across it though it doesn’t leave you with a happy feeling… but I guess that’s what an old school fairytale is.