I love family books and this one was sad and then turned happy.

A lot going on with The Birches. Olivia, a doctor, comes home to England, after being quarantined with hopefully not Haag. Andrew, a restaurant critic, who was always closer with Phoebe, his youngest, Emma, the mother, who I really disliked, but had her own secret as Andrew. Don't want to spoil Andrew's secret here, but it has to do with his time in Lebanon when he was a war correspondent in the 1980s. It's now 2016/17. Andrew's secret was kept from Emma for years.

The title refers obviously to the quarantine plus two more people obviously. A lot of discontent comes out and anger in this family. Sadness interrupts this family towards the end but some happy news too in a few ways. ( )

When Olivia, older daughter of Andrew and Emma, returns home to England for Christmas from battling an infectious disease outbreak in Africa, the whole family is forced into quarantine at their country home. During the enforced proximity, old resentments come alive, secrets are kept and then revealed, and all four family members learn more than they expected to about one another.

While this was a bit melodramatic and implausible in parts, I enjoyed the read (listen). Dysfunctional families often make for good entertainment, and this one certainly did. No one in the family is a bad person, but they are all rather self-centered in their own ways. Seeing them confront each other and their own pasts was both amusing and heartwarming.

A nice book if you want something seasonal without the romance of so many holiday reads. ( )

This quick paced novel about a mildly dysfunctional family quarantined together over Christmas has moments of warmth and wit. The plot revolves around the relationships of a food critic, his wife, and their two daughters, Phoebe and Olivia. Some of the circumstances this family finds itself confronting just seem to strain belief a bit, but if you can put that out of your mind, the storytelling is enjoyable. Phoebe is an especially fun character as she is quite shallow and most of the humor centers on her. Readers who enjoyed The Nest will probably eat this novel up. Personally, I wasn't one of those readers, but of the two novels, I believe this one is more interesting, more humorous and has better developed characters.
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Enjoyed this very much with variety of characters narrating. ( )

Not as Christmas-y as I was expecting but very engaging with all the dysfunctional family things I love! ( )