This book wasn't at all what I expected it to be. I was expecting it to be a novel that touches on tough issues but features comical points to help break up the weight. That's not what you'll find here. This story is tragic and though there are heartwarming moments, I didn't see any humor in its pages. I wish I'd been more mentally prepared for that.

The story follows Matilda and her sister Nora, daughters of the famous Norwegian painter, Ingrid Olssen. Two years after Ingrid passes away from cancer, Nora attempts to end her life and the two are forced to face the reality of what their life had been and what their relationship has become. In her mentally weakened state, Nora agrees to allow her aunt to take her share of Ingrid's art for a retrospective of her work; something Ingrid was deadset against. As Nora regains her footing after moving in with Matilda and her 17 year old daughter, she realizes the error of her decision and the trio fly from London to the states to scatter their mother's ashes and attempt to disrupt the installment before it's available to the public.

The timeline is in the present with a lot of past reflection on the neglect the siblings faced thanks to their mentally ill mother and absent father. as well as interviews with family members a journalist is putting together for a biography on Ingrid and her life. Though there are bright spots, a lot of focus is on the trauma the siblings faced; the abandonment, food scarcity, and overall lack of care by any adults in their life. Matilda feeling the weight of caring for her sister as a mother should, and Nora feeling equally abandoned by Matilda who became pregnant at 17 and moved away from her young sister to start her own life.

During their road trip they were able to find some common ground and eventually found forgiveness - for their mother and each other. The characters are written in such a way that you can feel the weight of their pain, the struggle to move forward from the past, and the effort to find common ground despite the brokenness between them. This isn't a book that has a very happy ending, but one that feels very real. I appreciate that about the writing - a lot of it feels more accurate to how this story would unfold had it been based on a true story. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Abrams for an ARC of this novel.

Daughters by Kirsty Capes is such a powerful, heartfelt read that really stuck with me. The book dives into the lives of young women growing up, facing all the messiness of friendship, identity, and foster care. Capes' writing is raw and honest, and she perfectly captures what it feels like to search for where you belong. The characters felt so real, and their struggles hit hard, but there are moments of hope and resilience that make it all worth it. It’s the kind of book that makes you feel deeply and reminds you of how strong people can be, even when life throws everything at them.

If you enjoyed Daisy Jones and the Six then this book is for you. It’s moving and also has its funny moments. There are many different topics from suicide to dysfunctional mother daughter relationships. I like a story where it just reads smooth and you feel like you are truly there. Thank you NetGalley, this is a book I will highly recommend.

I seem to be literally the only person who did not enjoy this book, but I could not connect with it at all. It felt disjointed and random and I had no emotional response to what I was reading even though I was clearly intended to, but the author's writing style just did not engage me at all. I'm not really sure why - I liked the concept and the cover is fabulous, but the book felt all over the place to me and not in a good way. I kept waiting for the heartfelt hilarity that everybody else described but never found it. I gave up and called it a miss - this one just wasn't for me...

Thank you NetGalley and Shakespeare and Company for an early copy of this beautiful and entertain story. This book is for the fans of Sorrow and Bliss and Daisy Jone and the Six it’s hilarious as tender and moving I really enjoy this book. Topic of suicide, grief, dysfunctional relationship between and mother and daughter and a standoff relationship between two sister. It’s a storyteller story and I love those type of narrative how each of the daughters/ sisters see their children hood and have to relive the terrible story of the past.

I highly recommend this book

This was a really good book, and I really enjoyed reading it! It was a mixture of grief and sadness of these sisters dealing with the passing of their mother, but also had a ton of funny bits throughout the book which helped make it feel lighthearted. I think it was a great premise and was entertaining for sure!!
Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

A gem of a story. Daughters is an interesting look at the lives of sisters after their mom passes. What happens between them as they continue on without her? It's a great glimpse into complex relationships and I think Capes did a good job making this an authentic book. It reads easily and I didn't want to put it down! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

DAUGHTERS reminded me why I love reading. This book is a brilliantly and beautifully written novel full of heartbreak, tragedy, and suffering but as of result of that also comes strength, resilience, forgiveness, love and healing. This book effortlessly touched deep inside me and I felt and cared for every character, even the ones who causing turmoil as deep down they are also struggling. This story is a real, raw and honest portrayal of the complexity of dysfunctional upbringing, trauma and mental illness.

It's been two years since Matilda has spoken to her younger sister Nora, which was when their mother passed. What brings them back into each other's live is Nora's mental breakdown and suicide attempt which happens to be her seventh time very close to death. Even though they had a complicated history with their disturbed mother Ingrid Olssen, who was known as one of the greatest modern artists in Europe, they decide to honor their mother's last wish: to protect her art from being sold or displayed. Matilda and Nora (and Matilda's daughter Beanie) are on a quest to crash the gallery opening that their own aunt is organizing. Most of the adventure includes roadtripping from Grand Canyon to up along the shore on the West Coast.

They both were abandoned and unwanted by both of their parents very young, Their absent mother was either off painting, having a manic episode or on a fender for days even months (and the slim chance she was home, mentally she wasn't present), while their father was across the world, not concerned about his kids' wellbeing. Matilda and Nora have issues of their own. Matilda is afraid of the intensity of love, and the power it can have over someone which is what kept her from fully taking the leap with Beanie's father, Gus. Convinced she ruined it with Gus by breaking his heart (which also broke hers), she believes Gus deserves so much more and the best (for that's how much she loves him). Nora, also an artist, is consumed by dark thoughts and fearful of becoming like her mother.

So many tender and heartfelt moments throughout out the book...literally every page is filled with several. And one of my favorites was the lines "I should have been there for you" and "you shouldn't have needed to." I admired and appreciated the reminder that only we can fully save ourselves. And that as much as we can hate the bad things that happen to us, those along with the good and everything between is what molds us into the people we are living as now. And that love is expansive, forever growing, forever evolving. I have so much love and admiration for Matilda and Nora for what they went through and how they persevered and was so moved by how Matilda and Nora help set each other free in their own way. *MAY BE CONSIDERED A SPOILER ALERT* I also took away that even though Matilda having Beanie is what separated her from her sister when Nora was kid - Beanie, is also the bridge to helped bring them back to each other, stronger than ever.

Readers are taken on this family's journey from the present to back in the past to recorded interviews in their late mother's newly written biography that will have them crying, smiling, and just feeling so, so much. I feel so thankful and privileged to have been able to experience this story and writing.

Much gratitude to Abrams/The Overlook Press and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.