“Humor and delightful irony abound in this lively first novel.” —New York Times Book Review
Every family has its problems. But the Plumb family stands out as spectacularly dysfunctional. Years of simmering tensions finally reach a breaking point when Melody, Beatrice, and Jack Plumb gather in New York City to confront their charismatic and reckless older brother, Leo, freshly released from rehab. Months earlier, an inebriated Leo got behind the wheel of a car with a nineteen-year-old waitress as his passenger. The ensuing accident has endangered the Plumbs’ joint trust fund, “The Nest,” which they are months away from finally receiving. The Plumb siblings have been counting on the money to solve a number of self-inflicted problems.
Melody, a wife and mother in an upscale suburb, has an unwieldy mortgage and looming college tuition for her twin teenage daughters. Jack, an antiques dealer, has secretly borrowed against the beach cottage he shares with his husband, Walker, to keep his store open. And Bea, a once-promising short-story writer, just can’t seem to finish her overdue novel. Can Leo rescue his siblings and, by extension, the people they love? Or will everyone need to reimagine the futures they’ve envisioned…?
“An addictive, poignant read…enticing.” —Los Angeles Times
Every family has its problems. But even among the most troubled, the Plumb family stands out as spectacularly dysfunctional. Years of tensions finally reach a breaking point when Melody, Beatrice, and Jack Plumb gather to confront their charismatic and reckless brother, Leo, freshly released from rehab. Months earlier, an inebriated Leo got behind the wheel of a car with a nineteen-year-old waitress as his passenger. The ensuing accident has endangered the Plumbs’ joint trust fund, “The Nest,” which they are but months away from finally receiving. Each sibling has been counting on the money to solve a number of self-inflicted problems.
Can Leo rescue his siblings and, by extension, the people they love? Or will everyone need to reimagine the futures they’ve envisioned? Now, they must all grapple with old resentments, present-day truths, and the emotional and financial toll of the accident, as well as finally acknowledge the choices they have made in their own lives.
In this tender, entertaining, and deftly written debut, Sweeney illuminates what money does to relationships, what happens to our ambitions over the course of time, and the fraught yet unbreakable ties we share with those we love.
"Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney's characters...come to life on the page. Fans of dark humor will get a kick out of this family drama."
