I was more productive than I've ever been when I was reading this book. Why? I was listening to the audiobook and could. not. stop. So, I kept doing more and more chores so I could keep listening to this book which was part drama, part mystery and 100% addictive.

The book follows the Piper family: James, the father, Materia, a Lebanese woman who was still a child when they married, and their four children: Kathleen, Frances, Mercedes, and Lily, through an intergenerational story of what makes, and breaks, a family.

Through the twists and turns of the 20th century, the family faces obstacles, both wrought by external forces, but also borne from the actions of the family themselves and the secrets that are kept from each other and the broader public. What seemed to start as your perennial Canadian novel of facing tough times in a tough part of the country, quickly turned to drama and mystery as MacDonald expertly weaves together the stories so that while the reader knows more than each of the characters, still so much is left in the dark until the very last moment.

There is so much dark in this novel, but it just makes the moments of joy, happiness, and beauty so much brighter. I felt as a witness to their stories, and as I learned to love each character, felt I could not put the book down until I saw it to the end.

CW: physical and sexual abuse of adults and children