George Woodbury, a schoolteacher, is arrested. The arrest leaves his family wrestling with the possibility of his guilt and this reader wondering how she managed to finish this one. It wasn’t what I expected at all.
The Woodburys cherish life in Connecticut until the night George is charged with sexual misconduct with students from his school. His wife, Joan, vaults between denial and rage. Their daughter, Sadie, finds refuge in an unexpected place. Their son, Andrew, returns home to support the family, only to confront unhappy memories from his past.
I grabbed this book from NetGalley with the expectation that the story would focus mainly on one thing – the accusations against George – and I spent the whole book waiting for that story. What did happen? I wanted to hear from the girls. I wanted their story. However, The Best Kind of People wasn’t about the accusations themselves but how those accusations effected the family. The entire book felt long and drawn out. Then when what I was waiting for came, it came like no more than a passing thought.
I was disappointed in this one. Mainly because it wasn’t the story I was expecting, but also because the writing wasn’t compelling. If you enjoy books that focus more on the reactions to events rather than an event itself, this is for you. If you’re like me and want the details of an event, all the down and dirty details, save yourself the time and skip this one.
Advanced copy of this book provided by NetGalley.
Rating: 2 stars
Reviewer: Jennifer
Title: The Best Kind of People
Author: Zoe Whittall
Release Date: September 19, 2017
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