Within Arm’s Reach has all the hallmarks of Ann Napolitano’s later novels. You have intense family dynamics with relationships between the women in the family at the center. There are some men in there, too, but especially in this book, they are weak and potentially expendable.

I enjoyed the relationship between sisters Lila and Gracie the best, although I sometimes lost track of who was who and who was dating whom. While I don’t have to have all storylines tied up in a bow in my books, I still like to have an idea of where things are headed, but this ending felt abrupt and left the book feeling unfinished to me.

I’m giving it three and a half stars, rounded up to four. Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

3.5 Stars
I was invited to read this by the publisher as I had previously enjoyed the author's prior works, "Dear Edward" and "Hello Beautiful". In the wake of her recent success, this is a re-issue of her very first book written 20 years ago.

The book depicts a large, Irish family with Catharine "Gram" McLaughlin as its matriarch, along with its trials and tribulations through the generations. Gram has endured the immeasurable grief of losing her eldest, three year-old daughter, as well as the stillborn birth of twins. You get a sense that they just don't make them like Catharine anymore- the kind of woman who can prioritize what's really important and get on with life- responsibly and one day at a time. There seems to be a lot more chaos and confusion in her children and grandchildren's lives and she feels like she's got to oversee their well-being before she dies. And she knows she's going to die soon because she's got "the sight" and has life-like visions of those who crossed over before her. The latest earth-shattering development is the out of wedlock pregnancy of her granddaughter Gracie. This pivotal moment is something that brings a lot of hope and expectation to Catharine as she determinedly hangs on to see her great-grandchild born. Some of the conflicts explored in this book are marriage infidelity, life's purpose (work/jobs), guilt about an employee's death on the job, and accepting people's differences.

I do enjoy reading about everyday people navigating everyday life, so enjoyed delving into the life challenges experienced by the various family members. I especially was intrigued by Catharine's granddaughter Lila, interning as a doctor at the local hospital. Despite her excellent marks and knowledge, she lacks empathy when dealing with people. I admired Gram the most for how strong she was living through the loss of three children and her common sense, no-frills take on life. It reminds me of myself when I was a teenager working in a five and dime and gravitating towards all the elderly employees for their wisdom. I sometimes found it difficult remembering who was narrating the chapter as the various family members volley telling this story. I also had trouble keeping track of all the family members in my mind. There is actually a graph at the beginning of the book outlining the family. The ending was a bit anti-climactic leaving me with unanswered questions. The writing style itself was free flowing, pleasant and easy. Even though there were many pearls of wisdom and a spectrum of life to be had from this book, I still found it to be just a "good" read. I was much more enamored of her most recent book "Hello Beautiful" which was the best book I read in 2023- and a lot of people agreed with me.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group / Dial Press for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

Within Arm’s Reach is an early novel by Ann Napolitano. It is a beautiful family saga. Ann’s voice that I know and love from her recent novels is still very strong in this book. You can feel her personal experience shining through giving a real authenticity to the book. It may lack some of the polish of her recent novels but its flaws are often its strengths. This book is often confusing & frustrating, but filled with beauty and raw emotion. I enjoyed reading each characters story and feeling the family ties between each of them. Glad this one is being republished.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts ‘ opinions are mine alone.

After thoroughly enjoying Hello Beautiful, I was excited to take on Within Arm’s Reach upon re-release. With the same alternating first person accounts of the main characters, I knew i could count on multiple perspectives of the story while enjoying once again Napolitano’s seemingly effortless character development. The result is a rich chronicling of the McLaughlin family through 4 generations.

As typical with Napolitano, the family dynamics are messy, relationships are at times strained, and there are hills to climb. However, just like Hello Beautiful, I found myself rooting for perseverance of the family because the characters are relatable and likeable. Napolitano’s gift is her ability to get you to look in the mirror and recognize a part of yourself and your own family within the story.

In retrospect, I felt the author's two books are a bit too similar, with each having major emphasis on the relationships among the sisters. Still, Within Arm’s Reach was an enjoyable read. The only criticism I have is that Napolitano’s character development of the males in this story takes a back seat and is void of the same intensity and emotion delivered in the character development of Gracie, Lila, Kelly, Catherine, and even Noreen.

Truly intriguing and fascinating is this story of a dysfunctional family in a time of intense trouble. The thoughts and actions of five family members and a caretaker tell a tale of unhappy and confused people experiencing upheaval and of their coping mechanisms. All come to play when an unplanned pregnancy throws everyone into personal chaos.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a re-release of Ann Napolitano’s 2004 debut novel. I loved Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful so I was excited to get an early copy through Net Galley. Let me just say that even in her twenties Ann knew how to tell a story. The characters are well developed and the story well written. There was not a rigid ending to the story. Instead, like real life, things were left open ended. She did give enough clues so that the reader, while drawing their own conclusions, could make pretty good guesses as to what might happen next. Now to find her second novel so I can say I’ve read all her books!

This is a lovely novel by Napolitano that I knew I had to read after Dear Edward. Catharine is the matriarch of a huge family and they all look up to her even as she's getting on in years and "ghosts" told her to stop after a car accident that puts her in the hospital. Now granddaughter Gracie is pregnant and the entire family must come together as they each have different attitudes about whether she should keep it or not as she had an abortion earlier in her life. It's a fascinating look at a family trying, sometimes failing to live up to the standards set by others; there are heartbreaks but all these families are linked by suffering and scandal...but mostly by love!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

I DNF this book, I just couldn’t get into the story. Too slow moving for me. I have tried to read it two different times. Therefore, I will let other reviewers who enjoy this book promote it, so I will not be posting on social media or reviews on retail sites. That way, this book gets much deserved attention from those reviewers who loved it!

I was disappointed as I have read enjoyed other books written by Ann Napolitano.

Ann Napolitano has done it again!! No one delves into complex family relationships better than the author. I literally fell in love with every McLaughlin family member except for Kellly. Ugh. I really liked her husband a lot. He carried so much guilt on his shoulders. I loved Catherine's relationship with Gracie. Because the ending was open-ended, I am wondering and hoping for a sequel. Everything from the gorgeous cover to the incredible writing and multidimensional characters was perfection.

There is an overwhelming amount of drama with this story of an Irish Catholic family. Ann Napolitano is known for bringing her characters to life and she gets the reader involved quickly.

Growing up in the 60s, I remember a lot of Catholic families to be large. It was no surprise that the mother, Catharine, in this book had nine pregnancies. Six children survived. Fortunately, Patrick McLaughlin, the father was a successful lawyer and gave his family the means for a good quality life.

After he passed, it was up to Catharine, the mother and grandmother, to hold her family together. She believed the key was to have gatherings during the year at holiday times. Multiple characters shared their secrets which kept me engaged with the story until the last part when it started to slow down. Let’s just say the sisters and adult grandchildren didn’t necessarily have text-book relationships. As I raced to discover how everything would be resolved, I found the ending to be not as expected.

My thanks to The Dial Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read a copy of this book with an expected release of April 30, 2024.

Another book by Ann Napolitano, one of my favorite authors. I expected it to be one full of really deep and powerful characters and indeed it is. This is an early work by this author and her talent is very much in view. I loved reading both “Dear Edward” and “Hello Beautiful” which are her later novels. This was a much slower read for me and I found I had to put it down often as it deals with very difficult family dynamics within several generations of a Catholic family. Perhaps it is just hard for me to read. I did enjoy the book but did not love it.

I wish to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishers – Dial Press for allowing me to read a copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions

I really enjoyed this messy family drama. The author writes such layered characters that draw you in. This is definitely an earlier piece of her work but still a worthy read.

In her afterword, Ann Napolitano talks about how Within Arm's Reach almost didn't get published at all. It's found a second life thanks to the success of her tremendous Hello Beautiful, which was one of my favorite books of 2023. It's hard to believe Napolitano's writing didn't find champions 20 years ago when WAR first hit shelves, but I'm grateful it has now. She writes families like few can. I especially liked how we can tell which narrators are more reliable than others. She is a masterful observer of familial dynamics.

This was the only novel I didn't read from Ann Napolitano; I loved the others, and I was happy to have the opportunity to read her debut book.
I loved it, like Hello Beautiful is a family story and the author is a good storyteller. I like how she described the development of the characters when faced with new emotions or their life changes.
I want to thank NetGalley and the editor for the opportunity to have an ARC of the novel.

I really enjoyed this story. I loved how it was told through perspectives of the three generations in the family. It was quite engaging and told a nice family story.

Families. Oh families. They leave so much room for laughter, tears, criticism and confusion. This multi-generational family is filled with reminders of why we walk a fine line with what we share, how we share and how we chose to share the most intimate details of our lives. This generational story of love and heartbreak will certainly keep your attention and have you eager to learn how everything works out .. or does it?

This is a multigenerational family saga reissued from about 20 years ago. I appreciated the strong dialogues, and for that matter the strong monologues when characters were talking to themselves! The ending is very satisfying, as Napolitano fans have come to expect with her more recent novels. I look forward to whatever comes next from her. I was privileged to receive an ARC from NetGalley.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dial Press for this ARC. After completing Hello Beautiful, which I loved, I had to read another work by Ann Napolitano. I was excited to read this story about a multi-generation Irish family, which was written years prior to Hello Beautiful Even though there are multiple main characters in the book I did not find it as confusing as other multi-generation novels can be. I don't think it's unfair to state it's about a dysfunctional family and how they interact with each other, In spite of the ongoing angst one can still develop a sense of caring about them. I enjoy books that are character driven and Within Arm's Reach certainly is. I found it a little slow to start but got increasingly interested as the characters evolved. I can't say I enjoyed this as much as Hello Beautiful but it's clear that Ann Napolitano is a skilled writer!

After reading Hello Beautiful and though I didn’t really enjoy it, I decided to give Within Arm’s Reach a chance. I found the book frustrating, too much family dysfunction going on. I enjoyed the parts told by Catherine, the matriarch of this Irish family, but even she was not a warm and fuzzy person. Her six surviving children all had their problems and it seems a lot of them stemmed from their father, now passed. Failed marriages, out-of-wedlock pregnancies, sibling rivalry and unwanted occupations fill this book with depressing storylines.
Perhaps my mood wasn’t conducive to reading this book and perhaps the storyline was too young for me….not sure. It may resonate with other readers and I’m sure they’ll give it good reviews. For me, not so much. Too much family drama for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for my eARC and the publisher for the read. Sorry I couldn’t be more positive about it.

Within Arm's Reach is Ann Napolitano's debut novel, being reissued following the successes of her two most recent novels. I was offered an opportunity to review this book by the publisher prior to the republication date, and I only hesitated for a few moments before agreeing to review it. I very much enjoyed Dear Edward and Hello Beautiful and was hopeful that I would enjoy Within Arm's Reach as well.
This book is a multi-generational domestic drama, primarily about how a family deals with the unplanned pregnancy of Gracie, the oldest grandchild in an Irish American family. As such, it deals with multiple narrators, including the family matriarch and Gracie's grandmother, Catherine, as well as Gracie's mother and father, and her sister, and a handful of other characters. Initially, this seemed like a book that I should enjoy. Ann's writing is lovely as always and I have no criticism in her execution of the concept, beyond that I felt like the overall plot was somewhat lacking. The time period was indeterminate and none of the characters are particularly sympathetic, except for maybe Lila. I just didn't really care about this family, with its unhealthy relationship and dynamics. Honestly maybe it was a bit triggering for me because I have a large family and often feel forced to participate in family events for similar reasons as some of the characters in this novel.
All that said, this was a decent debut from an author I know grows as a writer in her later works.
Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.