May 17, 2019
How do you know when you’ve read a five star read?
Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane
Genre/Categories: Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction, Family Drama, Friendship
*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
My Summary:
Beautifully written, Ask Again, Yes introduces us to two families who live next door to each other. Behind closed doors, the families deal with complicated issues. Meanwhile, two of their children, born six months apart, grow up as each other’s constant and best playmate and develop a deep friendship as they hang out after school. Just as Kate and Peter grow old enough to discover they might be attracted to each other, a tragic event happens that changes everything for the two families. One family moves away and the children’s friendship is torn apart.
The remainder of the story involves the children, who are now grown, coming to terms with what happened and figuring out what this means for their relationship, their families, and their future.
My Thoughts:
Thanks to #NetGalley #Scribner @ScribnerBooks for a complimentary eARC of #AskAgainYes by Mary Beth Keane upon my request. All opinions are my own.
TBR Worthy: How do I find the words to tell you about one of my best reads of the year without revealing spoilers?! If you appreciate complicated family stories with poignant, relevant themes, I think you might want to add Ask Again, Yes to your TBR! It’s already secured a place on my best of year list!
Themes: I love realistic and complicated family stories! Thought-provoking themes include neighborly relationships, friendship, mental health, tragedy, addiction, forgiveness, and redemption. Among all these threads, there is a love story.
Structure: Yes Again, Yes is told from multiple points of view, and the characters are complex and well drawn. I love how the author causes me to care deeply for each one and how I still think about them. It reminds me of A Place For Us in that way.
Character Driven and Engaging: Even though Yes Again, Yes is heavily character driven, it is engaging and moves at a fast pace. I read it in two days. When I finished, I had that “wow” feeling that indicates how emotionally I had connected with the characters and their situations. I like that the story feels realistic, and I love the big themes of regret, forgiveness, reconciliation, healing, second chances, growth, and redemption.
Recommended: I’m highly recommending this heartfelt and engaging story for readers who appreciate complicated family drama, for fans of well-written, character-driven fiction, and for book clubs because of its rich discussion possibilities. Ask Again, Yes is among my best reads of the year!
***trigger warnings: mental health, fear that someone committed suicide or murder (through gun violence), alcohol addiction
My Rating: 5 Stars
Meet the Author, Mary Beth Keane
Mary Beth Keane is the author of The Walking People (2009) and Fever (2013), about the life of Typhoid Mary. She attended Barnard College and the University of Virginia, where she received an MFA in Fiction. In 2011, she was named one of the National Book Foundation’s 5 under 35. She is a 2015 Guggenheim Fellow and lives just outside New York City with her husband and their two sons.
Let’s Discuss!
QOTD: Do you enjoy stories involving family drama and complex family dynamics?
Have you read Ask Again, Yes or is it on your TBR?
Happy Reading Book Buddies!
“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke
“I love the world of words, where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes
“Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
“I read because books are a form of transportation, of teaching, and of connection! Books take us to places we’ve never been, they teach us about our world, and they help us to understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley, Top Shelf Text
Looking Ahead:
Next week look for reviews of Paper Hearts and The Scent Keeper.
Let’s Get Social:
Thank you for visiting and reading today! I’d be honored and thrilled if you choose to enjoy and follow along (see subscribe or follow option), promote, and/or share my blog. Every share helps us grow.
Find me at:
Twitter
Instagram
Goodreads
Pinterest
***Blogs posts may contain affiliate links. This means that at no extra cost to you, I can earn a small percentage of your purchase price.
Unless explicitly stated that they are free, all books that I review have been purchased by me or borrowed from the library.
Book Cover and author photo are credited to Amazon or an author’s (or publisher’s) website.
Wonderful review!
Thanks Nicki! 😘
Ok, I’m in! =) Sounds intriguing.
I hope it’s a good read for you! 👍
Great review!
Thanks! 👍😍
Wow this sounds really incredible. I will be adding to my list for sure!
I hope it’s a great read for you! Thanks for commenting!
[…] Over The Rainbow Book Blog – The Liberty Girls Books and Me! – The Wrong Envelope, Saving Francesca Maier & The Woman Who Wanted More Bookish Rita – The Satapur Moonstone Dee’s Rad Reads and Reviews – Sunset Beach Linda’s Book Bag – The House on the Edge of the Cliff, My Life & The Path to the Sea The Belgian Reviewer – I Know You & Degrees of Guilt Bibliobeth – Death and the Harlot Jennifer~Tar Heel Reader – Bright Burning Stars Bookidote – Middlegame Carla Loves To Read – The Printed Letter Bookshop & A Study in Scarlet Women Beereader Books – The Girl At The Window Novel Deelights – Dark Sacred Night FromBelgiumWithBookLove – The Closer I Get The book review cafe – Night by Night Me and My Books – The Queen of Wishful Thinking Keeper of Pages – Carrie Rather Too Fond of Books – Take Me To The Edge Silver Button Books – Dot Journaling: A Practical Guide Blue Mood Café – The Unhoneymooners It’s All About Books – Bright Burning Stars Reading Ladies – Ask Again, Yes […]
Thank you dear Nicki! 😘
Ahh what a lovely review, this sounds like such an interesting read! I love character-driven stories and complex family relationships just as well, so this sounds lovely 🙂
Thank you for sharing! 🙂
I hope you love it! Let me know! Thanks for commenting! 👍
Hi Carol,
that sounds like another interesting book you recommend. I found it, of course, on Carole’s Chatter though I do follow your blog in the meantime.
Anyway, I just went through your list of books and didn’t find many that we have in common. However, I do like most of those that we do and will have a look at more books from your list, looks like there will be quite a few good suggestions.
Thanks and have a nice weekend,
Marianne
Thank you so much for reading, commenting and following Marianne! 😍👍 I’m eager to see which books we both love! Happy reading! If you read The Scent Keeper me know what you think!
[…] ‘Ask Again, Yes’ by Carol at Reading Ladies […]
[…] Review here […]
[…] Find Carol’s full review here. […]
[…] A Place For Us, We Were the Lucky Ones, Little Fires Everywhere, Ask Again Yes, The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill […]
[…] Full review here. […]
[…] Ask Again Yes by Mary Beth Keane […]
[…] 4. Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane […]
[…] Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane (complicated family drama, mental health). My review of Ask Again here. […]
[…] redemption fall into the hopeful endings category for me. These are some of my favorite endings and Ask Again, Yes and All the Devils Are Here are two examples of endings I love because of reconciliation […]
[…] Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane#throwbackthursday […]
I have this one waiting for me. And I love the idea of #ThrowBackThursday
Thanks Deb! It’s like visiting old friends! Happy reading!
[…] Half Moon is the second book I’ve read by Mary Beth Keane (see my review of Ask Again, Yes here). As difficult as her content can be, Keane’s endings are satisfactory and infused with hope […]