Review: Grown-Ups

Grown-Ups by Marian Keyes
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 24%.

The story is about the three Casey brothers, their wives and assorted children. The families spend a lot of time together (Easter etc) but there are tensions simmering under the surface, second marriages, truculent teenagers, step-siblings, fears of inadequacy, etc.

Johnnie and Jessie Casey own their own business but seem to be running into monetary difficulties which Jessie is resolutely ignoring while she pays for the entire family to spend the holidays together at a swanky hotel.

Cara is married to Johnnie's brother Ed. She's Jessie and Johnnie's accountant and desperately tried to rein in their spending. She's also crippled by her own lack of self-esteem and an unhealthy relationship with food.

The third brother is Liam, this is his second marriage and he won't allow his (younger) second wife Nell to interact with the children from his first marriage. Nell is unconventional and has drawn the attention of some of her teenager nephews.

Unfortunately I just couldn't seem to distinguish one family from the other or get their relationships straight - frankly writing this I am surprised there are only three couples because it felt like a lot more. I tried with this book I really did, I have loved Marian Keyes since I read the Walsh family series (before it was called the Walsh family) back in the late-1990s and I really enjoyed The Break when I received an ARC but I just couldn't get to grips with this at all.

So after my second or third attempt (and twenty-five chapters) I gave up.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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