BOOK REVIEW: Grown Ups by Marian Keyes

They're a glamorous family, the Caseys.

Johnny Casey, his two brothers Ed and Liam, their beautiful, talented wives and all their kids spend a lot of time together - birthday parties, anniversary celebrations, weekends away. And they're a happy family. Johnny's wife, Jessie - who has the most money - insists on it.

Under the surface, though, conditions are murkier. While some people clash, other people like each other far too much . . .

Everything stays under control until Ed's wife Cara, gets concussion and can't keep her thoughts to herself. One careless remark at Johnny's birthday party, with the entire family present, starts Cara spilling out all their secrets.

In the subsequent unravelling, every one of the adults finds themselves wondering if it's time - finally - to grow up?

Publisher: Michael Joseph

February 6th 2020

I am a huge fan of Marian Keyes and have read every single one of her fabulous books. I always let out an excited shriek when I learn that she has a new one coming out. Grown Ups has many of Marian Keyes’ trademarks which I was glad of but it almost felt like the most honest and tender book she has written. 

The story revolves around the Casey family, Johnny, Ed and Liam are brothers and are very different as are their wives, Jessie, Cara and Nell. Jessie is the one with the successful business and a lot of money so she is the one to arrange the lavish family events that brings them all together. As with all families, not everybody gets on all the time and there is a lot of drama. However, this is magnified when Ed’s wife Cara attends a family meal after hitting her head. Her concussion leads her to deliver some home truths to some members of the family, it provides a wake up call that will shake the Casey’s up, they probably won’t be the same again.

Grown Ups is so, so well done. There are a lot of characters involved but once I had it in my head who was who and how they were all connected then I became completely engrossed in their individual stories. I don’t want to give too much away but Keyes packs a huge amount into this book, we have addiction, love, family, friendships, anxiety, ambition and much more. Using a family unit to explore all of these different issues is an excellent idea as it really strips the characters bare, you can rarely hide things from your own family and when you have a large extended family then issues almost become magnified.

My favourite characters were Nell and Ferdia and the bond that they form, it was handled so well and I loved their parts of the book. Nell is a great character, she has married into the family and her husband Liam is not shaping up to be who she thought he was. But what do you do if you like your husband’s family more than your husband?

Marian Keyes has written openly about her experience of mental health and I felt as though she used her own knowledge and perspective of addiction to offer an excellent insight. One of the characters has an addiction within the book and Keyes presents it warts and all. I liked how she did not tip-toe around the problem but instead showed the impact and consequences it has plus the ways in which it affects the wider family and friends.

Grown Ups is an excellent book and showcases Marian Keyes’ immense talent, I cannot recommend it enough.  Many thanks to Michael Joseph for allowing me to review this book via Netgalley, it is out in February!