Sunday, July 14, 2019

Ask Again, Yes; Mary Beth Keane



AUTHOR:  Mary Beth Keane
PUBLISHER:  Simon and Schuster Audio (12+ hours)
PUB. YEAR: 2019
SETTING: New York
FORMAT:  - eGalley/audio down load
RATING - 5/5

Set in the early 1970s, Ask Again, Yes, tells the story of two working class families over a period of about forty years. The men, Francis Gleason, an Irish immigrant and Brian Stanhope meet while attending NYC's police academy.  Francis quickly marries Anne, a nurse and Irish immigrant herself, and, although we don't learn until later, she's also mentally unstable.  Brian marries Lena,  Polish/Italian background, and soon after the two families become neighbors in a suburb outside of New York City.  Anne is standoffish and, when Peter, the couple's only child and Kate, the youngest of the 3 Stanhope daughters become very close, Anne doesn't want her son to spend time with Kate. In a fit of rage, Anne does something that shatters the lives of both families longterm.

If you enjoy domestic fiction, this is it at it's finest. Completely engrossing and character driven, it's a story that pulled me right in. At times I felt like I was observing some of what happened first hand.  The characters seemed like everyday people and their experiences, although tragic at times, made the entire story feel that much more realistic.  The audiobook is read by Molly Pope who did and excellent job. This is one of my favorite reads of 2019 this far.

12 comments:

  1. Great review! I'll be reading it soon!

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  2. Sounds great. I love family sagas like this that intertwine the stories of two families from one generation to the next. Thanks for the heads-up; I didn't know of this one.

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  3. I thought this book was fantastic, too, but it left me feeling kind of melancholy.

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  4. We've been enjoying a lot of the same books this year. This was one of my favorites so far!

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  5. Diane, this sounds like an absorbing novel. Terrific, concise review!

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  6. This is on my "I want" list. I've read such positive reviews--thanks for another one!

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  7. Oh yes. Domestic fiction is totally my thing and I do own a copy of this.

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  8. I have been seeing this one around the blogosphere. Good to know that you loved it too.

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  9. OK, you and JoAnn have me convinced. I'm getting it from Audible!

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  10. Everyone seems to be loving this novel so I hope to get to it. Glad you enjoyed it.

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