We Are the Brennans
by Tracey Lange
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Pub Date 3 Feb 2022 | Archive Date 3 Feb 2022
Pan Macmillan | Macmillan
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Description
'beautifully observed portrait of dysfunctional family life.' Hannah Beckerman, The Observer
'An astonishingly accomplished debut - the Brennans leap fully formed onto the page in this brilliantly judged novel of the intricacies of family life . . . Wholly engrossing.' - Cathy Kelly
Some secrets you keep from your family. And some secrets you keep for your family.
When twenty-nine-year-old Sunday Brennan wakes up in a Los Angeles hospital, bruised and battered after a drunk-driving accident she caused, she swallows her pride and goes home to her family in New York. But it’s not easy. She deserted them all – and her high school sweetheart – five years before, with little explanation, and they’ve got questions.
Sunday is determined to rebuild her life back on the East Coast, even if it does mean tiptoeing around resentful brothers and an ex-fiancé. The longer she stays, however, the more she realizes they need her just as much as she needs them. When a dangerous man from her past brings her family’s pub business to the brink of financial ruin, Sunday realizes that the only way to protect her family is to reveal deeply buried secrets that will threaten everything they know about their lives. In the aftermath, the Brennan family is forced to confront painful mistakes - and find a way forward, together.
In the vein of Maggie O’Farrell and John Boyne, Tracey Lange’s critically acclaimed New York Times bestseller We Are the Brennans explores the staying power of shame-and the redemptive power of love, in an Irish Catholic family torn apart by secrets.
Advance Praise
‘Confident, polished debut novel . . . a book about secrets’ - New York Times
‘The Brennans are a great complex fictional family’ - Entertainment Weekly
‘Lange’s engaging family drama is fuelled by secrets and full of heart’ - People
‘Lange’s sizzling debut novel, which is an instant New York Times bestseller, explores the staying power of shame – and the redemptive power of love – in an Irish-Catholic family torn apart by secrets’ - Good Morning America
‘Tracey Lange expertly captures the way one harrowing night can forever change a family. I devoured every page of this confident, accomplished debut’ - Amy Meyerson, internationally bestselling author of The Bookshop of Yesterdays and The Imperfects
‘Reading this novel is like getting a view through a lighted window on a family sitting around a table after dark. All families have their own story and the ways they tell it to themselves, and untangling the many strands of this one was deep and richly satisfying’ - Sarah Blake, New York Times bestselling author of The Guest Book
‘Lange’s richly layered debut . . . deftly examines the long shadow of family history and the bonds that cannot be broken’ - Booklist
‘In Lange’s accomplished debut . . . she keeps all of the Brennans sizzling with humanity while they grapple with familial loyalty. Fans of intense family dramas are in for a treat’ - Publishers Weekly
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781529094442 |
| PRICE | £16.99 (GBP) |
| PAGES | 288 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Paromjit H, Reviewer
Tracey Lange's debut is a terrific character driven Irish Catholic family drama set in West Manor, New York, it's a real treat, I couldn't help but get drawn into this large flawed family dynamics right from the beginning. 5 years ago something happened that made 29 year old Sunday Brennan flee with no explanation across the country to Los Angeles, California, including leaving behind the man she had been in a long term relationship with, Kale Collins, practically a member of her family. Now in the present, Sunday is in hospital after sustaining injuries whilst driving her car drunk, LAPD contact her older brother Denny and he arrives at her bedside. He persuades her to return home to New York and recover from her injuries there. It is written from the perspectives of the various family members, including Kale, who is married to Vivienne, a woman as different from Sunday as could be, and has a young son, Luke.
Sunday isn't the only one keeping secrets, everyone has issues and skeletons in their closet that have repercussions, artist Jackie is her twin brother, younger brother, Shaun has learning development challenges, Maura, the mother is now deceased, Mickey, the father has health issues, Denny is in business with Kale, and is facing serious financial problems with the pub business, not to mention his very own family troubles. His poor decisions and inability to open up about what is happening threatens the very survival of the family business and their home. Sunday's help is sorely needed by her family, and, perhaps unsurprisingly, Sunday and Kale are drawn once again to each other. However, the past and its consequences will not be suppressed, as slowly the secrets begin to tumble out. Will the Brennan family be able to survive the fallout?
Lange writes a heartwarming novel, of the dysfunctional Brennan family, who despite the challenges they face, the heartbreak, the shame, secrets and guilt, are made of strong stuff, blood is thicker than water with the strength of the family ties that bind. This is an absorbing and engaging read, exploring the complex nature of family dynamics and sibling relationships, I particularly loved the skill with which the characters were portrayed, they come across as so real and human. Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC
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