The Nest

Sweeney, Cynthia D'Aprix

ISBN 10: 0062659391 ISBN 13: 9780062659392

Publisher: Harperaudio, 2017

Synopsis

Instant New York Times Bestseller

“Hilarious and big-hearted, The Nest is a stellar debut.” — People, Book of the Week

“Her writing is like really good dark chocolate: sharper and more bittersweet than the cheap stuff, but also too delicious not to finish in one sitting.”— Entertainment Weekly

“Humor and delightful irony abound in this lively first novel.”— New York Times Book Review

A warm, funny and acutely perceptive debut novel about four adult siblings and the fate of the shared inheritance that has shaped their choices and their lives.

Every family has its problems. But even among the most troubled, the Plumb family stands out as spectacularly dysfunctional. Years of simmering tensions finally reach a breaking point on an unseasonably cold afternoon in New York City as Melody, Beatrice, and Jack Plumb gather to confront their charismatic and reckless older brother, Leo, freshly released from rehab. Months earlier, an inebriated Leo got behind the wheel of a car with a nineteen-year-old waitress as his passenger. The ensuing accident has endangered the Plumbs' joint trust fund, “The Nest,” which they are months away from finally receiving. Meant by their deceased father to be a modest mid-life supplement, the Plumb siblings have watched The Nest’s value soar along with the stock market and have been counting on the money to solve a number of self-inflicted problems.

Melody, a wife and mother in an upscale suburb, has an unwieldy mortgage and looming college tuition for her twin teenage daughters. Jack, an antiques dealer, has secretly borrowed against the beach cottage he shares with his husband, Walker, to keep his store open. And Bea, a once-promising short-story writer, just can’t seem to finish her overdue novel. Can Leo rescue his siblings and, by extension, the people they love? Or will everyone need to reimagine the futures they’ve envisioned? Brought together as never before, Leo, Melody, Jack, and Beatrice must grapple with old resentments, present-day truths, and the significant emotional and financial toll of the accident, as well as finally acknowledge the choices they have made in their own lives.

This is a story about the power of family, the possibilities of friendship, the ways we depend upon one another and the ways we let one another down. In this tender, entertaining, and deftly written debut, Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney brings a remarkable cast of characters to life to illuminate what money does to relationships, what happens to our ambitions over the course of time, and the fraught yet unbreakable ties we share with those we love.

About this title

Review

‘In her intoxicating first novel, Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney has written an epic family story that unfolds in a deeply personal way. The Nest is a fast moving train and Sweeney's writing dares us to keep up. I couldn't stop reading or caring about the juicy and dysfunctional Plumb family’ AMY POEHLER

‘The Nest is a masterfully constructed, darkly comic, and immensely captivating tale. The desperate and entitled people who populate this novel are messy as hell (they lie, they cheat, they steal, and by God do they ever connive) but somehow I found it impossible not to care about each and every one―and even, over time, to love them. The trick here lies in the storytelling, which is not only clever, but emotionally astute. Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney is a real talent, and I am incredibly impressed by this book’ ELIZABETH GILBERT

‘The Nest ambles along so beautifully, what a pleasure to read! It's a wise, funny, compassionate family drama, full of irresistible surprises, witty conversations, and necessary emotional truths’ JAMI ATTENBERG, author of The Middlesteins

From the Back Cover

An Instant New York Times bestseller and one of People's Best Books of the Year.

Every family has its problems. But even among the most troubled, the Plumb family stands out as spectacularly dysfunctional. Years of simmering tensions finally reach a breaking point on an unseasonably cold afternoon in New York City as Melody, Beatrice, and Jack Plumb gather to confront their charismatic and reckless older brother, Leo, freshly released from rehab. He has single-handedly endangered the Plumbs' joint trust fund, "The Nest," which they are months away from finally receiving. The Plumb siblings have watched The Nest's value soar along with the stock market and have been counting on the money to solve a number of self-inflicted problems.

From Melody's looming college tuition for her twin teenage daughters to Jack's secret mortgage that threatens his antique store to Bea's overdue novel, all three siblings need Leo to make them whole.

Can Leo rescue his family and, by extension, the people they love? Or will everyone need to reimagine the futures they've envisioned? Brought together as never before, Leo, Melody, Jack, and Beatrice must grapple with old resentments, present-day truths, and the significant emotional and financial toll of the accident, as well as finally acknowledge the choices they have made in their own lives.

The Nest is a story about the power of family, the possibilities of friendship, the ways we depend upon one another, and the ways we let one another down. In this tender, entertaining, and deftly written debut, Sweeney brings a remarkable cast of characters to life to illuminate what money does to relationships, what happens to our ambitions over the course of time, and the fraught yet unbreakable ties we share with those we love.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harperaudio
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 0062659391
• ISBN 13: 9780062659392
• Binding: Audio CD