Day: May 10, 2022

I have read a lot of Ali Mercer books (see list of past reviews at the end of this one). Her family drama stories are heartfelt and show the complicated nature of relationships. The Family I Lost has all of that in spades.

The setup is not unusual. After a prologue that sets the scene for later events, the action jumps right into Lisa finding some interesting items while cleaning out her mom’s house after her mom passes away.

The ensuing action is told in five parts. Part one alternates between Lisa and Amy in the present, and part two is largely Lisa’s. Part three then moves to Julie (Lisa’s mom) in the far past before part four focuses on Amy at two different time periods.

Finally, part five alternates between the stories of all three women from the entire time between the earliest of Julie’s story up to the present.

This sounds confusing, but it isn’t as long the reader pays attention to the headings for the timeframe and whose point of view is being told. It is actually deft handling of some complicated storylines.

I don’t want to give away more than the blurb does but suffice to say that “complex family issues” is an understatement. This is the type of fiction that the author does so well.

There are revelations that surprise both Amy and Lisa. Everything they thought they knew about their family is questionable.

I found this one a little difficult to get into. There seemed to be a longer setup than in some of the author’s other books. However, the baseline of Lisa and Amy is vital to understanding the importance of Julie’s story.

I promise it all makes sense in the course of the plot. The action does pick up around part three and continues to the end.

In spite of the slow start, this may be my favorite of all of the Ali Mercer books. It is difficult to find more complicated family drama than her stories.

Other family drama/fiction books from Ali Mercer: The Marriage Lie; My Mother’s Choice

Author Bio:

Author Bio:

Ali decided she wanted to be a writer early on and wrote her first novel when she was at primary school. She has two children, a daughter and a son who is autistic. Ali is fascinated by families, their myths and secrets, and the forces that hold them together, split them up, and (sometimes) bring them back together again.