It took a long time for me to get into this book. The beginning was very slow and I had a hard time with how much animal abuse was spoken about. There were also characters that loved animals and treated them well, but there were a few things that were a bit too much for me.

It was about 58% (really, I asked Alexa to do the math) of the way in that I actually began to enjoy the story. Even then, it wasn't like I was really into it and couldn't stop reading, I more so just wanted to be done.

The ending was a bit too unrealistic for me; I guess overall my feeling is "meh".

This book seemed right up my alley but this was one I just couldn’t get into. I thought it was slow and found the multiple perspectives confusing and hard to follow as the voices were similar. I wanted to love it but unfortunately this was a miss for me.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Crown Publishers for this digital ARC. Things Don’t Break on Their Own is an emotionally raw mystery surrounding the breaking of familial bonds and how the outwardly erode the bonds of all other relationships.

Engaging and immersive. A recommended purchase for collections where heavier WF and thrillers are popular.

I really enjoyed this book. I was drawn in by the characters and the suspense created by the author. Just enough was given to keep me guessing.

This is a slow-burn kind of story about a teenager who disappears and how it affects her sister, her sister’s once-girlfriend, and her mother and father. Bit by bit, the story unfolds from various perspectives, but it isn’t until 2/3 through the book that we learn of the teenager’s “fate” (which is pretty implausible) and how the sister discovers the truth (which is very implausible). Though I enjoyed the main characters’ development and dive into feelings, other characters felt cliché and convenient.

I received an ARC of this title through the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Two sisters, Willa & Laika, grow up in a home with an abusive father. Laika disappears early in the book and most of the story revolves around Willa and Robin who meet in school and form a lifelong bond and how Willa and her mother deal with the loss of Laika. I found the story of Robin and Willa somewhat tedious. There was a lot of detail about their early relationship that seemed unnecessary. I enjoyed learning what happened to Laika but I found the coincidence of Claudette (aka Laika) dating Robin's wife Cat's brother rather difficult to buy. That they along with Willa are all present at the same dinner was a little too precious for me. The story was well written but overly long and drawn out.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this digital ARC.

I loved this book. I related to this book. The author was able to weave an interesting story around themes of abuse, family secrets, trauma, and love. When Willa’s 13 year old sister, Laika, disappears, her life is forever changed. Laika’s body is never found and through the years, Willa thinks she sees Laika everywhere, to the point Willa is perceived as a little unhinged.

I appreciated the subtle ways (and some not so subtle ways) the author dealt with abuse, lgbt issues, and trauma. The story was interesting, and I was invested in Willa, Robyn, and Cat. I also adored Freida.

A well-written, engaging novel. I couldn’t wait to finish it, but I also didn’t want it to end.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Things Don't Break on Their Own.

When a book is called literary, I know what it means: great writing, but no suspense or drama. No offense.

I love mysteries and thrillers, it's pretty much the only genres I read, but this was neither a mystery or a thriller.

The premise does sound thrilling, but the narrative is nothing more than flashbacks about Willa and Robyn's relationship in boarding school, the domestic violence permeating Willa's family life, when Willa met Jamie, etc etc.

The narrative was mostly filler and Laika's disappearance/reappearance only takes up a quarter of the novel, at best.

The writing is good (like I said, literary) but the story tedious, plodding and the characters unlikable, not detestable, mostly one dimensional.

Let me put it this way, I wouldn't want to have dinner with most of them. Maybe Nate.

But the real kicker, the one that made me stop reading immediately was how Laika finds her way back to Willa and her family.

What are the odds she ends up with Nate?

I don't like when coincidences or deus ex machina or any corny/lame literary device are used to resolve a plot hole(s).

This was an interesting book. I don’t know why we had to have some of it from Robyn’s perspective because her “voice” was pretty similar to Willa’s and that was a little confusing early on. I didn’t feel like she added a lot of insight to the main plot since she didn’t know what the house Willa grew up in was a lot.

I felt like someone should have said something about the enormous coincidence of “Claudette” dating Robyn’s partner’s brother and thus reuniting with her sister. I also thought the part about Willa impulsively going to Thailand was out of character and didn’t serve the plot since everyone quickly believed “Claudette” when all was revealed.

I did think they hinted at the dad being involved in human trafficking and thought it was odd they didn’t explore that more.

Solid book but a little uneven and at time felt like it was written for young readers which made some of the scenes at boarding school jarring.