Life turns upside down for two sisters in Wall Street Journal bestselling author Jamie Beck’s emotional novel about how secrets and differences can break—or bind—a family.
Sisters Amanda Foster and Erin Turner have little in common except the childhood bedroom they once shared and the certainty each feels that her way of life is best. Amanda follows the rules—at the school where she works; in … school where she works; in her community; and as a picture-perfect daughter, wife, and mother-to-be. Erin follows her heart—in love and otherwise—living a bohemian lifestyle on a shoestring budget and honoring her late father’s memory with a passion for music and her fledgling bath-products business.
The sisters are content leading separate but happy lives in their hometown of Potomac Point until everything is upended by lies that force them to confront unsettling truths about their family, themselves, and each other. For sisters as different as these two, building trust doesn’t come easily—especially with one secret still between them—but it may be the only way to save their family.
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Pregnant, in love with her handsome husband and owner of her dream home, Amanda Foster believes she has the world by the tail- that is until he disappears on a so-called business trip, taking her mother’s life savings with him. And then she learns of his affair.
Erin Foster puts out a confident, take-no-crap attitude, but in reality she deeply mourns the loss of her father and the emotional distance between herself and the rest of her family. A messy breakup convinces her it’s time to make some changes in her life.
When Erin and Amanda’s mother has a series of accidents caused by stress, the sisters pull together to watch over her, get back the stolen money, and see that justice is served.
This is a well written story on family dynamics. Sometimes, life knocks us down, as Amanda learned, and the family we take for granted are the only ones we can truly count on to have our backs.
The characters are multi-dimensional and though the plotline went a little over the top, it was believable because of their reactions.
An enjoyable read!
“I voluntarily read an ARC of this book which was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.”
Quarantine has taken a toll on my attention span, so imagine my delight when I read the first page of Jamie Beck’s new novel … and kept going until I was nearly halfway through. (I read the rest the following day.) If You Must Know is a heartwarming story of two very different sisters who are lucky to have each other … even if it takes them a few unexpected challenges to realize that. The novel tackles serious topics like betrayal, grief, and family secrets in a way that’s moving without ever being heavy handed; though it’s lighter on romance than some of Beck’s other stories, it has the same warmth and an ending that hints at happily ever after.
Beck deftly captures the complicated relationship between sisters, giving each character a realistic blend of flaws and strengths. The dialogue was fresh and engaging, and the plot contained enough twists and turns to keep the reader engaged. A wonderful, well-crafted story.
Audible listen for me. Great story.
Loved the characters and great narration.
A must read for all of the sisters out there. I could identify so much with the characters. Two sisters that are so different in their ways but will find away to connect when life throws you a few curve balls. A mother that loves her children but each in a different way, and might even have her favorite.
This is Ms Beck’s first women’s fiction and I loved it. I must admit I did shed a few tears throughout the story. I could identify with each of the complicated characters, as a mom and a sister. Great character depth. Loved the element of the missing husband too. I highly recommend this book!!
IF YOU MUST KNOW (Potomac Point Book #1) by Jamie Beck is her latest contemporary Women’s fiction and the start of a new series. Ms. Beck has written an emotional and realistic story with dysfunctional family members in upheaval that I found difficult to put down.
Amanda and Erin Turner are sisters that have gone about life differently and have never felt close. They lead separate lives as adults. Amanda was the middle child and always wanted to please by being perfect and was closest with her mother. Amanda followed her plan and went to college, got married and is now expecting her first child. While Erin was the baby of the family and always felt different and was closest to her father. Erin has always led a bohemian life and while she teaches yoga and makes her own soaps and scrubs has never really worried beyond the current day.
Suddenly everything changes.
Amanda finds out her marriage is not as perfect as she believed. Amanda’s mother loaned her husband the majority of her dad’s death benefits for a business deal and he has taken off. As these secrets are being kept, Erin moves home to help with her mother’s inability to take care of herself. Erin does not know if it is because of her mother’s continued grief over losing her husband a year ago or the stress of the missing money. Suddenly all three women are together again and must deal with unsettling truths about themselves and their family.
I loved the different and difficult family relationships. The characters and emotions were to me believable because having grown up in a large family I could relate to all their character traits. Ms. Beck has written a complex and fully fleshed sister-to-sister relationship that had to evolve from childhood hurts and misunderstandings to grow and help each other in the present. Amanda and Erin’s mother’s past also played a large role in the present family dynamics.
I enjoyed this first book in the series and I will be looking forward to more.
LOVED!!! Oh my, how I loved this book! This is a story of two completely different sisters and their mother dealing with life. this is not what I was expecting, but it was so much more! FIVE STARS!
IF YOU MUST KNOW by Jamie Beck is a well-written and touching story of sisters, family relationships and second chances. Grown sisters Amanda Foster and Erin Turner no longer have much in common. Amanda has what seems like the perfect life. Doted on by her mother, her husband and soon to be a mother herself, she has always been one to follow the rules. Erin is her opposite in nearly every way. Always sharing more with her late father, she now lives a bohemian lifestyle with little regard to what others think. Both sisters harbor hurt feelings and mistrust that keep them separated. A series of dramatic events occur that force the three women to come together. Soon they must confront the past and their long-buried secrets and differences in order to support one another. The story follows their path of self-discovery and the building of stronger relationships. The characters were wonderfully-portrayed and so relatable. I was invested in knowing how they would all end up and rooting for them all the way. I enjoyed this emotional and uplifting story and look forward to whatever is next from Jamie Beck.
This was such a heartfelt book. This story about two very different sisters was extremely relatable to me in many aspects. I could see myself in both sisters at different times and I felt for them both. Amanda is that one who has to have everything perfect and the ultimate people pleaser. You have Erin who is the black sheep and does what she wants and doesn’t conform to what her sister does and what her mother wants. I definitely saw myself in both characters.
This book made me cry as much as it made me smile. You have family intrigue, a marriage on the rocks, new friendships, and new sisterly / motherly relationships going on in If You Must Know. You will get the title of the book once you finish this book as well.
This was an all around good feel book once it’s all said and done. You will want to hug your family members closer once you finish the last page of this beautiful book.
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I love stories about sisters and/or friends, and this one fit the bill. I’m always interested in the things we keep hidden and the way we react to how others communicate with us and the things they keep hidden. I loved the dynamic between Amanda and Erin, their initial distrust for each other, and the way their relationship changed some through out the book. I guess I’m more of an Amanda type, so I found Erin a very interesting character.
Looking forward to the next in the series!
Family dynamics are difficult to say the least and relationships can be very tricky, especially once we all become adults and the glue that held the family together dies.
Erin and Andrea are complete opposites. When Andrea’s husband deserts her for another woman when Andrea is seven months pregnant, he takes the life insurance money he borrowed from her mother. The three women must now work together to get the money back.
The author really digs into the feelings of both the sisters and, to a lesser extent, the mother. How as adults we carry the pains and joy of our childhoods and our place in the family.
An excellent comparison is how the sisters react to the romantic break-ups at the same time and judge how the other is dealing with it. Of course, she considers that Andrea is seven months pregnant and Erin was not as invested in the relationship with her live-in boyfriend of two years.
Even though the subject matter of this book is heavy, the author has written a book that is enjoyable to read. I had trouble turning off the audio at times to do other things.
I listened to to the recorded version of this novel and I enjoyed it very much.
Great job by the author and the narrator.
Two sisters, entirely different personalities, are forced into working together due to the actions of Amanda’s husband. Amanda thought she had a perfect marriage, a loving husband, a fun part-time job, and a baby girl on the way. Erin is a free spirit, teaching yoga part time and starting her own business selling handmade soaps on Etsy. Then Amanda’s husband decides to leave for another woman, and her life dissolves very quickly. Lots of intrigue — the FBI gets involved even! Both girls, and their mother, who is still mourning the loss of her husband a year ago, have to learn what’s important: family, and not what the rest of society thinks of you.
They all do a lot of growing up. It’s slow at first, but once the story gets going it’s hard to put down.
If You Must Know — Jamie Beck– The Turners are having a rough year. The patriarch of the family dies from a heart attack, the oldest daughter is pregnant and her husband steals the insurance money to run away with another woman on a yacht in the Carribean, the youngest daughter kicks out her sponge of a boyfriend and he steals her father’s record collection, and the mom is showing some worrying erratic behavior. Amanda has to decide if she wants to send the father of her child to jail for fraud. Erin has to decide if the guy who bought her stolen records is worth the risk when he is still nursing a broken heart. And all three kids are worried as their mother shows signs of dementia like her older brother. While Kevin juggles his own family and law practice, he is working to call in favors to help bring Amanda’s ex to justice to return the money to his mother and secure his niece’s custody. But the lesson everyone really needs to learn, is that the secrets in this family need to come to light before any real healing can happen. Happy Reading!
The story is set in small- town Potomac Point, and is centered on two sisters who couldn’t be more different from each other.
Amanda who is pregnant, a teacher, a perfect daughter and wife whose life is suddenly shattered when her husband leaves her for another woman. Erin is a free spirit who lives a Bohemian lifestyle and follows her heart in matters of the love and family.
This is a character driven story about strong women, complex family dynamics and sibling rivalry. Overall, I enjoyed a great family drama that is heartwarming, emotional and poignant that is easy to read with great characters I loved reading about.
Well done Jamie Beck on this amazing story you told so well. Looking forward to this great start of the series.
I read this in a day–couldn’t put it down!
If You Must Know is a story about sisters and families and about starting over when things don’t go/aren’t going in the way you expected. There’s a touch of romance (a very light touch, but it’s sweet) and a slight mystery that puts one of the sisters in a bit of danger (also pretty low key) but really it’s the story of how sisters Erin and Amanda had a pretty crappy weekend separately that ended up in the end bringing them closer together than they had ever been before.
Both sisters were sympathetic characters–with the alternating chapters, you got to see things first from Amanda’s point of view and then from Erin’s; each time even if you’d been a little exasperated with one of the sisters, once you saw things from her perspective things made more sense (even if you personally still wouldn’t have made the same choices they did). The secondary characters are fleshed out nicely as well–Erin and Amanda’s mom, their brother Kevin, Eli, Hannah and her bakery, and Mo (OMG, Mo!) all had something to add to the story.
I put the book down with a smile on my face–even not knowing who the next book(s) will be about (this one is billed as the first book in a new series) I am *more* than ready to go back to Potomac Point–especially if it includes a trip to Sugar Momma 😉
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
June 30, 2020
It’s a whopper!
One crushing blow after another and she has to keep moving. How she does and the behaviors of those around her is what made this one so good!
I always love whatever Jamie Beck writes I know she focuses on strong female main characters that have depth and also learn along the way throughout the story. This one is no different in the first of a new series. Sisters Amanda & Erin are different as night and day, having grown apart as adults. Yet, they find that they need each other when life takes unexpected turns in which they can only depend on their sister. Great story of drama and women, during this quarantine life of crazy we have now.
Loved this first true women’s fiction by Beck. It’s engrossing and makes you examine your own relationships. I found the women in this story authentic and compelling. I read this one pretty quickly. Probably the first story during COVID that kept me truly engaged. Totally recommend.
I am a fan of Jamie Beck and have read all of her books – my favorite to this point is probably the Cabot Series, so I was looking forward to the new world she would create in Potomac Point. I was not disappointed in the detail of the town and its characters. I love Hannah and her bakery and hope to see more of her in future books. This was the author’s first book that was not a romance, but there are romantic elements.
As the oldest of one sister, three half-brothers and two half-sisters, I felt that the author wonderfully captured the pain of perceived rejection by a parent. The alternating chapters from each sister’s point of view told the story more deeply than if we had only heard from one of them. The other characters are also detailed enough that they are “real” – you feel the pain of Eli’s loss and his fear of the future.
And while the medium was not intended as a humorous character, I was immediately reminded of “Check the toast” in Kristan Higgins’s The Next Best Thing.
I do not normally write detailed reviews because I am afraid that I will drop a spoiler, so I will stop here and just say that this was a great story of family relationships and healing from the pain of the past. If you’ve enjoyed Jamie Beck’s previous work, you will be delighted at this new direction in her work.