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The House We Grew Up In

August 4, 2014 by Jennifer Donovan

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

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5M4B disclosure

the house we grew up in

I love a good family drama. I’m not sure if it’s because I do see my family in them or because in comparison, my family looks nice and normal, but that kind of fiction does ring true for me and draws me in as I get to know the characters and as I cheer for a favorable resolution to whatever is bothering them.

Lisa Jewell has never disappointed me, and this book is certainly no different. Jewell portrays a family full of people with flaws, but they are still likable or at least understandable in their own ways.

The beginning of her latest novel The House We Grew Up In was a little tough for me, because it was skipping around in time, featuring the life of the Bird family in the past, plus what was happening in the present with some relatively present emails from Lorelei to Jim.

So, we know something has happened, but we aren’t quite sure what or why. Eldest daughter Megan is at the old house with her teen daughter Molly. Lorelei is gone. We don’t know much about the rest of the family, but the flashback scenes show twins Rhys and Rory growing up as the babies of the family, Beth staying in the shadows and older sister Megan pushing the boundaries, beginning to see her family in a new light, beginning to see their dysfunction, in particular Lorelei’s hoarding tendencies.

The flashbacks center around Easter Sunday, a holiday important to Lorelei, not for religious reasons,but for the festivities that she likes to create. One Easter something awful happens to Rhys, and it changes everyone in the family, pulling them further and further apart.

This is a complex novel of complicated characters, but it’s not quite as dark as it sounds. I was riveted and tried to squeeze as much reading time as I could to figure out what happened to Rhys, how and when Lorelei’s dysfunction grew so strong, how she and Colin split, what caused Beth and Megan to stop speaking, and more.

Enter to Win

I loved this book, and I’m so glad we get to give away a copy. Follow the instructions in the widget below.

Start off by leaving a comment telling me if you are already a Lisa Jewell fan, which is your favorite novel (I loved this one and also The Making of Us). If you have never read any, you’re in for a treat, so just leave a comment!

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About Jennifer Donovan

Jennifer Donovan has been a part of the 5 Minutes for Mom team since 2007. She writes product reviews, covers events, and manages the 5 Minutes for Books weekly column and website. She lives in Houston and blogs at Snapshot about life with her family.

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66 Comments

  1. Emma says

    August 28, 2014 at 5:04 am

    I’m 30% my way through this book and I’m loving it…I can’t wait to get on the tube for my next fix…I agree with Jennifer it can be quite hard as it jumps around lots, but once you get into the story it seems to all fall into place.

    Reply
  2. joyce mcdowell says

    August 16, 2014 at 8:31 pm

    i have not read her book

    Reply
  3. Buddy Garrett says

    August 16, 2014 at 8:01 pm

    I haven’t read Lisa Jewell.

    Reply
  4. Laurie Emerson says

    August 16, 2014 at 7:47 pm

    I have not read any of her books yet but after reading what this book is about, I am looking forward to finding her books and reading them.

    Reply
  5. Charlene Kuser says

    August 16, 2014 at 7:43 pm

    I am surprised that I haven’t read any of her books.This one sounds very enjoyable.

    Reply
  6. Diana Hatch says

    August 16, 2014 at 5:05 pm

    I have not read any of her books yet but this one sounds great!

    Reply
  7. Kimberly Schotz says

    August 16, 2014 at 4:24 pm

    I haven’t read any of her work but I look forward to it.

    Reply
  8. wen budro says

    August 16, 2014 at 4:12 pm

    I haven’t read anything by this author yet. The plot of this book sounds like my kind of read.

    Reply
  9. lacie spurlock says

    August 16, 2014 at 3:56 pm

    Never have read a book by her, but always hear good things!

    Reply
  10. Jenny Moses says

    August 16, 2014 at 2:42 pm

    I have not read her yet but I’m very excited to check it out.

    Reply
  11. Kelley Roach says

    August 16, 2014 at 2:37 pm

    I haven’t read anything of hers yet

    Reply
  12. Mihaela Day says

    August 16, 2014 at 11:10 am

    I have never read her books but am looking forward to

    Reply
  13. James Coyne says

    August 16, 2014 at 10:50 am

    I have never read any of her books

    Reply
  14. Lori A. says

    August 16, 2014 at 9:47 am

    I have not read one of her books but I’m checking her out now! 🙂

    Reply
  15. kathy dalton says

    August 16, 2014 at 8:15 am

    I haven’t read any of her books yet.

    Reply
  16. Sally Carroccia says

    August 16, 2014 at 7:11 am

    Just put this on my to read list after reading a great review on bookbrowse

    Reply
  17. LeAnn Knott says

    August 16, 2014 at 4:16 am

    I have never read anything by Lisa Jewell. Hope I get the chance!!

    Reply
  18. Sue J. says

    August 16, 2014 at 12:42 am

    No, I have not read any of her books yet!

    Reply
  19. Carla says

    August 15, 2014 at 11:44 pm

    No, I haven’t read any of her books.

    Reply
  20. Della Barker says

    August 15, 2014 at 9:37 pm

    No, I haven’t read any of her books, and would love to

    Reply
  21. denise a says

    August 15, 2014 at 8:55 pm

    No, I haven’t read any of her books yet.

    Reply
  22. Jenny Q. says

    August 15, 2014 at 6:34 pm

    I have not read any of this author’s books,but it looks like a good book! Recent book I read was Cinder, but I like to read quite a few different genres.

    Reply
  23. Lori Walker says

    August 15, 2014 at 6:24 pm

    I haven’t read her before but am looking forward to it!

    Reply
  24. Hesper Fry says

    August 15, 2014 at 4:56 pm

    I haven’t read any of Lisa Jewell’s books yet.

    Reply
  25. Ed says

    August 15, 2014 at 3:04 pm

    I have not yet read Lisa Jewell.

    Reply
  26. danielle hall says

    August 15, 2014 at 1:54 pm

    i have not read them but im looking forward to checking them out

    Reply
  27. carolyn d says

    August 15, 2014 at 10:26 am

    I have not, but I am always looking for good new books!
    Thanks!

    Reply
  28. Heather Giovannitti says

    August 15, 2014 at 9:09 am

    I have not read one of her novels, but I would love to!

    Reply
  29. Brenda Elsner says

    August 14, 2014 at 6:23 pm

    I have never read her books.

    Reply
  30. sue v says

    August 14, 2014 at 1:00 pm

    have not read any of her books

    Reply
  31. kathy says

    August 14, 2014 at 12:21 pm

    I have not read any of her books as of yet.

    Reply
  32. Jane Thomas says

    August 14, 2014 at 11:11 am

    No I havent read any of her books yet, but would like to.

    Reply
  33. Ru says

    August 14, 2014 at 10:35 am

    Haven’t read any of her books, but better late than never.

    Reply
  34. Lexi says

    August 14, 2014 at 10:12 am

    I have not read anything by her but it looks like something I would like. I love to read and I’ve made a goal to read one new book a month this year.

    Reply
  35. Anita says

    August 14, 2014 at 4:24 am

    I have yet to read a Lisa Jewell book I couldn’t put down! I don’t think for one minute that this one will be any different.

    Reply
  36. Helga says

    August 13, 2014 at 11:05 am

    I have not read her books yet.

    Reply
  37. Nannypanpan says

    August 12, 2014 at 8:04 pm

    I have not read her books

    Reply
  38. Shannon F says

    August 11, 2014 at 6:25 pm

    I have not read any of her work yet but it sounds great!

    Reply
  39. Daniel Darcy says

    August 10, 2014 at 8:06 pm

    I have not!

    Reply
  40. Valerie Taylor Mabrey says

    August 10, 2014 at 2:43 pm

    I have not read any of her work, yet.
    vmkids3 at msn dot com

    Reply
  41. Debbi Wellenstein says

    August 10, 2014 at 1:15 pm

    I have not read Lisa Jewell, but I am looking forward to!

    Reply
  42. Patricia T says

    August 10, 2014 at 10:10 am

    I have not read Lisa Jewell, before, but look forward to reading this one.

    Reply
  43. samantha wagner says

    August 10, 2014 at 1:04 am

    I haven’t read anything of hers yet.

    Reply
  44. carol gentry says

    August 9, 2014 at 9:41 pm

    I have not read any of her books.

    Reply
  45. danielle says

    August 9, 2014 at 9:14 pm

    I’ve never read any of her books

    Reply
  46. Nancy says

    August 9, 2014 at 8:32 pm

    I have not yet read her books.

    Reply
  47. amanda hardesty says

    August 9, 2014 at 5:18 pm

    I have not read her books before

    Reply
  48. Sunnymay says

    August 9, 2014 at 12:37 pm

    No, I’ve not read any Lisa Jewell’s books yet. However, now that I’ve read your review, her story is very moving and I want to get a copy soon.

    Reply
  49. Cindy Brooks says

    August 9, 2014 at 1:47 am

    No, I’ve not read any of her books. I love finding new authors!

    Reply
  50. Liz says

    August 6, 2014 at 3:32 pm

    I have not, but it sounds good!

    Reply
  51. Samantha Londer says

    August 6, 2014 at 3:01 am

    I haven’t read any of her other work yet but I am partway through this novel and it’s wonderful.

    Reply
  52. Linda Kish says

    August 6, 2014 at 12:50 am

    I haven’t read any of her books yet.

    Reply
  53. Daniel M says

    August 5, 2014 at 7:02 pm

    haven’t read anything by her yet

    Reply
  54. sara haaf says

    August 5, 2014 at 6:32 pm

    I have never read her books, but this sounds interesting! Thanks for the chance to win.

    Reply
  55. Amy M says

    August 5, 2014 at 3:47 pm

    I haven’t read her stuff, but I’ve seen her name around a lot. I’m most curious, and excited to get into a new writer!

    Reply
  56. Anita Yancey says

    August 5, 2014 at 10:37 am

    I have not read any of Lisa Jewell’s books. But I would love to read this one.

    Reply
  57. Jeanna says

    August 5, 2014 at 9:27 am

    I have not ready anything by Lisa Jewell, but your review makes me want to start!

    Reply
  58. amyc says

    August 5, 2014 at 7:31 am

    I have not read anything by this author. This is the first I have heard of her.

    Reply
  59. Beth Skaret says

    August 4, 2014 at 11:44 pm

    I’ve not had the privilege of reading any of Lisa Jewell’s work yet. The review is intriguing and I look forward to getting acquainted with her work.

    Reply
  60. Kristen says

    August 4, 2014 at 5:19 pm

    I haven’t read anything of hers yet.

    Reply
  61. DEBIJOT says

    August 4, 2014 at 3:05 pm

    I have not had the pleasure of reading any Lisa Jewell books.

    Reply
  62. Christine L. says

    August 4, 2014 at 2:26 pm

    I’ve not yet read any of Lisa Jewell’s work but enjoy a good family drama so would like to give one of her books a try.

    Reply
  63. anne says

    August 4, 2014 at 11:18 am

    I haven’t read this author’s novels but this book sounds captivating and wonderful. thanks.

    Reply
  64. Angel wells says

    August 4, 2014 at 9:55 am

    I have never read her books but am looking forward to adding her to my list. This book sounds awesome.

    Reply
  65. Rhonda says

    August 4, 2014 at 9:28 am

    This would be my first sounds like a perfect read forme,

    Reply
  66. amy tolley says

    August 4, 2014 at 8:39 am

    ive never read one of her books but this one sounds pretty interesting thanks for this chance

    Reply

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