An unpredictable and entertaining tale of secrets, desires, and forgiveness spanning four generations of an American family. In WASPy Larkspur, New Jersey, social expectations and decorum rule, and Marjorie and Dunsfield Thornden are the envy of their neighbors. Their daughters Claire and Cat set the small town’s social calendar by throwing tastefully lavish family parties year round. Because … round. Because it’s 1977, underage debauchery is to be expected–and Cat and Claire’s children, Bizzy and Choo, are at its very center.
Underneath their well-maintained veneer, the Thorndens are quite dysfunctional, but have always had their entitlement to fall back on. And while some are finally ready to accept what they’re willing to give up for the life that they think they deserve, secrets that should’ve never been kept–especially not from each other–are bubbling unattractively to the surface.
So when a scandal threatens to unravel this tight-lipped family and their secrets, the Thorndens will have to decide how much they’ll let decorum rule social mores dictate their decisions and how far they’ll go to keep some secrets just that. Any choice they make could mean freedom from expectations but will change the course of their family’s legacy forever.
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This was an absolutely fabulous read which was just what I needed after the emotional roller coaster ride I was on after the last binge. This one was not only entertaining and outlandish but fun and captivating and fast-paced and witty. This dysfunctional family had me laughing my way through their lives. I definitely recommend this one and deem this the perfect beach read. Why didn’t I tell you more about it? There is a perfect blurb that tells you about this book and I’m tired and not going to repeat 🙂 READ THIS ONE! You will not regret it.
Twisted is undoubtedly the right description for this book, but I loved every minute of it. The author perfectly captured every era (from the 70s to the present), and it was interesting to watch the characters develop (or not, in the case of Claire) over the decades. The plot was intricately woven and sped right along; the reader followed Bizzy and Choo’s story, but also kept up with how the rest of the family fared over time – I enjoyed how some of the characters reappeared in unexpected places (I’m looking at you, Foster). Ultimately, it was a story of the secrets that families hide and the damage that comes from doing so. I loved the humor and emotion. This book had it all, and I highly recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for a complimentary pre-release digital ARC of this book.
Twisted Family Values by V.C. Chickering was a very interesting read for me. I don’t entirely dislike the novel, but overall….it just wasn’t a thoroughly enjoyable story for me. Actually, I felt quite uneasy and uncomfortable at times.
The story follows the dysfunctional lives of the Thorndens which to me seem absurdly crazy and whacky. It just felt too weird and too unsettling for me. I really had a difficult time with the narrative and I had to put it down a few times. The writing is good and the plot is well-developed, but I just wasn’t into it and honestly didn’t care about the characters enough to feel any emotions. In the end, I felt that the book as a whole isn’t enjoyable enough for me.
With humor, secrets, scandals, and unexpected surprises, Twisted Family Values is unique, unpredictable and quite interesting, but the story and characters just felt too twisted for me. It was an interesting read and I’m sure there are other readers who’ll enjoy this book, but I personally felt unmoved and indifferent. Unfortunately, this just wasn’t my cup of tea.
I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher, St. Martin’s Press via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
V.C. Chickering, Author of “Twisted Family Values” has written an entertaining, unique, sexy, witty, dysfunctional family novel. This has almost the feel of a satire and dark humor. The title says it all. In this novel are deep family secrets, scandals, and is quite unpredictable. The Genres for this novel are Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, and Women’s Fiction. The author describes her dysfunctional characters as quirky, complicated, complex and dramatic. This certainly would make a good soap opera or series. The timeline for this story is a period of about 50 years. Larkspur, New Jersey is where the story takes place.
The Thornden family in an affluent part of New Jersey have many social parties and have priorities and expectations about the proper way to act. The two daughters Cat and Claire are as different as night and day. One sister is all about what is the proper thing to do and only cares what others think. The other sister is kind and compassionate. The two younger cousins Bizzy and Choo are brought up to be close friends. BUT, not everything is as it seems to be. Is it? You have no idea!!!
I recommend this novel for those readers who enjoy reading an unusual, quirky story.
If you grew up in a “normal” family like mine, you will recognize so much that goes on in this book. It made me laugh and stirred old memories. Yes, it’s satire, but it’s also got a good dose of the realities of family life.
Anyone that needs a laugh, is a fan of books that revolve around typical families and / or someone just wanting a light read will love Twisted Family Values! Seriously just pick it up and read it already! It’s that good.
Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an ARC at my request. All thoughts in this review are my own and freely given.
The cover for Twisted Family Values is quite eye-catching, and the blurb with its hints at secrets to be revealed appealed to the mystery lover in me. Unfortunately, that was the best of it for me. As a child of the 70’s, I would’ve thought that I would be able to relate to some of the characters better, but the story goes a little too far over the top for me, and other than a few pop culture references, neither the people nor their actions rang true.There are secrets, this family is packed full of them, but without a connection to the characters, I couldn’t find much curiosity for the revelations of those secrets. I don’t read a lot of women’s fiction, but I think it’s safe to say that this wasn’t the book for me.
I wasn’t sure about what I was getting into when I started reading Twisted Family Values. I thought this book was going to be something like V.C. Andrews novels. I was wrong. Twisted Family Values was nothing like those books. Instead, this book was something different. I am still trying to figure out if it is a good different or a bad different.
Twisted Family Values plotlines were sometimes hard to follow. I had a hard time following the main plotline. The number of sub-plotlines in each “chapter” would overwhelm me. I had to reread specific chapters to make sure I understood what was going on.
I did like how the book was split up. Each “chapter” was a different time in Biz and Charlie’s life. There was childhood (up to 13), college age, mid 20’s, late 30’s, and late 40’s. It was interesting to see Biz, Charlie, and their family evolve and devolve through the years.
The book discloses early on that Charlie was not blood-related to Cat and her ex-husband. I didn’t understand why Cat kept that information secret for almost 50 years. Her withholding Charlie’s parentage caused so much harm. I wanted to throttle her at points during the book because of that.
I felt terrible for Biz and Charlie. Because Cat didn’t disclose that they weren’t related, they had to force to hide their feelings for each other. Which resulted in Biz becoming an alcoholic and Charlie being married to a woman he didn’t love. It was painful and disturbing to read.
I did like that the author chose to show that good could come out of being bad. The last chapter of Twisted Family Values highlights this perfectly.
I do want to add that I loved Ruby. Her reactions to catching Biz and Finn having sex was hilarious. Also hilarious, was her reaction to Charlie possibly being her father.
The end of the book was nice, but it was too happy. Twisted Family Values was not a happy book, per se. I was surprised to see HEA’s handed out left and right.
**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
Twisted Family Values is the second novel by author V.C. Chickering and the title really says it all about this book.
We follow four generations of a family through several decades, starting in the 60’s and moving through the decades from there. There is a bit of everything in this novel including exploring love, familial ties, taboo subjects and forgiveness.
I truly was not sure what to expect when I began this book. I have to say that when I first started it, I wasn’t sure if I would make it through the whole book. It started very slowly for me, but once I got into it, I did feel like I had to know what was going to happen. This book is not going to be for everyone. There are some family dynamics that some may not like and also some topics that could be triggers for some readers. I am glad I soldiered through this book as it was very well written and certainly made me think many times as I made my way through it.