Published by Dial Press Trade Paperback Genres: Family, Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction
Format: ARC, eBook
Within Arm’s Reach is the debut novel by Ann Napolitano. I began reading this book with some trepidation, as I was an outlier and did not care for her book Hello Beautiful. However, I enjoyed this book about three generations of women of an Irish American family and those in their lives. There are a lot of characters in this book, and they all have a part to play.
Family can be messy, and this book shows the messiness of this family in all its glory. It also shows the complexities of the individual characters. Within Arm’s Reach explores family dynamics, guilt, love, expectations, traditions, mental health, secrets, communication issues, and infidelity to name a few. I typically do not enjoy books which are on the slower side, but I enjoyed how this book meandered through the characters and their lives.
One thing that I appreciated about the book was the questions of what will bring the family together when the Matriarch of the family passes away. What will become of a family when the glue that holds them together is gone?
Many reviewers are mentioning the ending, and I must agree with them. When I read the last page, I thought “that’s it?” and “this is how it ends?”. The book ends leaving readers with bated breath. Was this on purpose to have readers wondering what was to come in the way that many of the characters were wondering what was to come next?
For me this was an enjoyable book. I enjoyed it, didn’t love it, but found it a worthwhile read despite wanting more closure.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group – Random House | Dial Press Trade Paperback and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.