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How Not to Drown
From WILLA Literary Award-winning author Jaimee Wriston comes a novel for fans of Jami Attenberg and Elizabeth Strout about a former model whose undisciplined granddaughter turns her fastidious, controlled life upside down, forcing her to confront what she values.
Amelia MacQueen has lost her favorite son, Gavin, to a suspicious drowning, for which her daughter-in-law has been convicted. She’s been awarded temporary custody of Gavin and Cassie's twelve-year-old daughter, Heaven, a name that makes Amelia cringe. Reluctantly, she takes Heaven in, but asks the girl to call her Grandmelia instead of Grandma, a name that doesn't make Amelia feel quite so old.
The daughter of drug addicts, who has long been left to her own devices, Heaven does not appreciate her grandmother’s constant critical ministrations, and the pair quickly butt heads. She instead bonds with Uncle Daniel, Amelia's older, agoraphobic son, who never leaves his bedroom. Through the wall between their rooms, Daniel spins Celtic tales for Heaven from the Isle of Skye, where the family's ancestors lived, including fifteen-year-old Maggie, who mysteriously disappeared crossing the Atlantic many years ago.
Heaven decides that the best way to deal with bullying at school is to become a siren from one of Uncle Daniels's stories. She sings "drowning songs" in the swim team pool, luring mean girl Bethany Harrison under at the deep end. Then, Amelia comes home one day to find her granddaughter serving Oreos to the cops who picked her up for "snaking" junk food from the neighborhood.
As much as Amelia loved Gavin, Heaven is the last thing Amelia would have asked for, but when Heaven goes missing during a dangerous storm one night, Amelia is forced to reexamine her outlook on family. In vivid prose, Jaimee Wriston tells a wry multi-generational tale of redemption, exploring the bonds that make and break a family and the transformative power of storytelling.
Amelia MacQueen has lost her favorite son, Gavin, to a suspicious drowning, for which her daughter-in-law has been convicted. She’s been awarded temporary custody of Gavin and Cassie's twelve-year-old daughter, Heaven, a name that makes Amelia cringe. Reluctantly, she takes Heaven in, but asks the girl to call her Grandmelia instead of Grandma, a name that doesn't make Amelia feel quite so old.
The daughter of drug addicts, who has long been left to her own devices, Heaven does not appreciate her grandmother’s constant critical ministrations, and the pair quickly butt heads. She instead bonds with Uncle Daniel, Amelia's older, agoraphobic son, who never leaves his bedroom. Through the wall between their rooms, Daniel spins Celtic tales for Heaven from the Isle of Skye, where the family's ancestors lived, including fifteen-year-old Maggie, who mysteriously disappeared crossing the Atlantic many years ago.
Heaven decides that the best way to deal with bullying at school is to become a siren from one of Uncle Daniels's stories. She sings "drowning songs" in the swim team pool, luring mean girl Bethany Harrison under at the deep end. Then, Amelia comes home one day to find her granddaughter serving Oreos to the cops who picked her up for "snaking" junk food from the neighborhood.
As much as Amelia loved Gavin, Heaven is the last thing Amelia would have asked for, but when Heaven goes missing during a dangerous storm one night, Amelia is forced to reexamine her outlook on family. In vivid prose, Jaimee Wriston tells a wry multi-generational tale of redemption, exploring the bonds that make and break a family and the transformative power of storytelling.
- GenresFiction
336 pages, Hardcover
Published May 11, 2021
27 people are currently reading
155 people want to read
About the author
Jaimee Wriston
1 book1 followerJust want to mention at this point that I've written six other books under the name, Jaimee Wriston Colbert; they are all on goodreads. I can't seem to figure out how to officially combine those books with this one, my newest book, How Not to Drown, written under just Jaimee Wriston. If you like this latest novel, please check the others out too! Thanks!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
April 14, 2021
What a strange book and a strange group of main characters. Amelia has lost her favorite son to a suspicious drowning, for which his wife is serving time. She’s been awarded custody of Heaven, her granddaughter. Heaven’s parents were druggies and she’s never had a normal childhood. Not that Amelia knows what she’s doing. And then there’s Daniel, Amelia’s other son - an agoraphobic. His mother thinks he has Tourette’s, but he doesn’t. Heaven is being bullied - she’s overweight and doesn’t have any traits to endear her to the popular girls. “It’s not like Heaven has any talent or hotness or money, or anything at all going for her, like being good at computers or science so you can be part of the geek squad.”
The story is incredibly sad. No one knows how to help anyone else. Even when they want to, they seem to screw it up. My favorite quote involved Amelia’s explanation of the ability to love. “It’s like autism, dear, a spectrum disorder. The severely love disabled on up to the functional enough to get by.”
This is another book that I felt empathy for the characters, but I had trouble being drawn into their story. The story meanders. The chapters alternate between the different characters’ POV. I felt it might have worked better if we had fewer perspectives.
Interspersed with the story of the modern family, is the background on their ancestors, from the Isle of Skye. While I actually liked this storyline, I felt it drew me away from the primary story and didn’t help advance it.
My thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for an advance copy of this book.
The story is incredibly sad. No one knows how to help anyone else. Even when they want to, they seem to screw it up. My favorite quote involved Amelia’s explanation of the ability to love. “It’s like autism, dear, a spectrum disorder. The severely love disabled on up to the functional enough to get by.”
This is another book that I felt empathy for the characters, but I had trouble being drawn into their story. The story meanders. The chapters alternate between the different characters’ POV. I felt it might have worked better if we had fewer perspectives.
Interspersed with the story of the modern family, is the background on their ancestors, from the Isle of Skye. While I actually liked this storyline, I felt it drew me away from the primary story and didn’t help advance it.
My thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for an advance copy of this book.
April 24, 2021
Assigned- RTC!
dnf
May 17, 2021This is a Women's Fiction/General Fiction. I ending up DNFing this book at 30%. The writing style was not one for me. I personally could not make myself care about any of the characters. Overall, this book was just not for me. I receive an ARC of this book. This review is my own honest opinion about the book like all my reviews are. (*)
May 20, 2021
How Not To Drown is the fourth novel by American Professor of Creative writing and author, Jaimee Wriston. After her mother is sent to prison on a charge of voluntary manslaughter for the drowning death of her father, twelve-year-old Heaven French is sent to live with the grandmother she has never met. Amelia MacQueen isn’t quite sure how to handle this rather stocky, somewhat sullen, girl.
Having never raised a daughter and done an admittedly less-than-stellar job on raising two sons, (call me) Grandmelia’s ideas of raising an almost-teen are outdated: she tries to connect with Heaven via fashion and make-up, a former model’s field of expertise, not really hearing what is important to the girl. Bullied at school by “the meanest mean girl in mean girl history”, Heaven’s desire to compete with the mean girls is not indulged, but she does prove a talented swimmer.
Heaven finds greater rapport with her Uncle Daniel, a forty-two-year-old agoraphobic recluse who keeps to his bedroom, but observes the daytime world through its sounds and strategically-placed holes in his walls. From his window, he has an exclusively visual relationship with his thirty-seven-year-old neighbour, Mercy, relegated in her mother’s garage due to anger issues.
Daniel tells Heaven stories of faeries, selkies and sirens from the land of their heritage, the Isle of Skye. They discuss what might have saved eleven-year-old Daniel from drowning in Hawaii, and why his younger brother Gavin, Heaven’s father, was not similarly saved, thirty years later.
Amelia, meanwhile, takes every visit to Heaven’s mother, Cassiopeia in the prison as an opportunity to further her mission: to make Cassie confess to what she does not deny but claims not to remember, in fact, doesn’t want to remember, because it highlights her own loss of her beloved Gavin, something Amelia fails to acknowledge.
Amelia’s ex-husband, Leo French, one-time celebrated fashion photographer, is now a chronicler of decay and has a paranoia about drones, wiretapping, and computer hacking; he can’t remember where his car is or even where he lives sometimes, but he remembers everything about Amelia, for whom he still carries a flame. He receives requests from Cassie to visit the prison: Gavin’s widow wants assistance, financial, against Amelia’s campaign, and moral inspiration.
Mercy, a diner waitress with a physical deformity, shows Daniel her “Collection of Broken Things” which she wants Leo to document in photographs, to appreciate brokenness for what it is. Is a relationship between them ever possible if Daniel never leaves his room?
Interspersed with these narratives is that of Maggie MacQueen, whose family were victims of the clearances on Skye, and details her crossing to America on a trade vessel, back in the mid-nineteenth Century. Maggie was lost when the ship foundered on rocks near Prince Edwards Island. Or was she?
None of Wriston’s characters, as quirky as they are, is instantly appealing, but they do grow on the reader once their back stories are revealed, so patience is advised. The plot takes in a bit of magical realism and perhaps doesn’t go quite where the reader will expect. A very imaginative read
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Alcove Press.
Having never raised a daughter and done an admittedly less-than-stellar job on raising two sons, (call me) Grandmelia’s ideas of raising an almost-teen are outdated: she tries to connect with Heaven via fashion and make-up, a former model’s field of expertise, not really hearing what is important to the girl. Bullied at school by “the meanest mean girl in mean girl history”, Heaven’s desire to compete with the mean girls is not indulged, but she does prove a talented swimmer.
Heaven finds greater rapport with her Uncle Daniel, a forty-two-year-old agoraphobic recluse who keeps to his bedroom, but observes the daytime world through its sounds and strategically-placed holes in his walls. From his window, he has an exclusively visual relationship with his thirty-seven-year-old neighbour, Mercy, relegated in her mother’s garage due to anger issues.
Daniel tells Heaven stories of faeries, selkies and sirens from the land of their heritage, the Isle of Skye. They discuss what might have saved eleven-year-old Daniel from drowning in Hawaii, and why his younger brother Gavin, Heaven’s father, was not similarly saved, thirty years later.
Amelia, meanwhile, takes every visit to Heaven’s mother, Cassiopeia in the prison as an opportunity to further her mission: to make Cassie confess to what she does not deny but claims not to remember, in fact, doesn’t want to remember, because it highlights her own loss of her beloved Gavin, something Amelia fails to acknowledge.
Amelia’s ex-husband, Leo French, one-time celebrated fashion photographer, is now a chronicler of decay and has a paranoia about drones, wiretapping, and computer hacking; he can’t remember where his car is or even where he lives sometimes, but he remembers everything about Amelia, for whom he still carries a flame. He receives requests from Cassie to visit the prison: Gavin’s widow wants assistance, financial, against Amelia’s campaign, and moral inspiration.
Mercy, a diner waitress with a physical deformity, shows Daniel her “Collection of Broken Things” which she wants Leo to document in photographs, to appreciate brokenness for what it is. Is a relationship between them ever possible if Daniel never leaves his room?
Interspersed with these narratives is that of Maggie MacQueen, whose family were victims of the clearances on Skye, and details her crossing to America on a trade vessel, back in the mid-nineteenth Century. Maggie was lost when the ship foundered on rocks near Prince Edwards Island. Or was she?
None of Wriston’s characters, as quirky as they are, is instantly appealing, but they do grow on the reader once their back stories are revealed, so patience is advised. The plot takes in a bit of magical realism and perhaps doesn’t go quite where the reader will expect. A very imaginative read
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Alcove Press.
February 1, 2021
The Raw Purpose of Life
The characters and their names, the settings, the intrusion of Scottish history and the meticulous plot create an almost perfect novel.
Wriston populates the storyline with interesting names. One of the main characters is Amelia MacQueen, a grandmother, who prefers to be called Grandmelia to soften her age. Heaven MacQueen, the twelve-year-old daughter of her recently deceased father, Gavin, and Amelia’s son. , Cassie,, Gavin's widow, is serving fifteen years for manslaughter. but she cannot remember if she killed Gavin or not. The surviving son of Amelia (and divorced husband, Leo) is Daniel , a true agoraphobic, who cannot step out of his bedroom.
Near the beginning of the novel, we are placed in Scotland, the Isle of Skye, where their ancestors lived as one of many poor families who worked the land. When they could not pay the rent, they were tossed out and some found passage on boats to faraway places and were subject to possible drownings during storms. Drownings were depicted in detail. Some of the MacQueen’s survived, hence their heritage
.
Our main character is Heaven, her real name, who now lives with her legal guardian, Amelia. Amelia is smart, a former model, a tall thin woman who is quick with a retort and demands obedience to her rules. Heaven is an overweight adolescent who is bullied at school; she finds solace with Daniel who suffers, too. However, Heaven has a talent she loves; she is a swimmer and auditioned and won a place on her school’s swim team. The stark cruelty of the other girls is almost obscene, but realistic.
Despite her name, Heaven is no angel. She steals and her loneliness is unbearable. How is this family to survive and become a loving unit? Amelia is the key; despite her cringe-worthy comments, she aches for her dead son and wants his daughter to succeed.
The writing is brilliant; many of the scenes are stunning and despite the cynicism, Wriston’s story did not falter.
My gratitude to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for providing a pre-publication for an honest review
The characters and their names, the settings, the intrusion of Scottish history and the meticulous plot create an almost perfect novel.
Wriston populates the storyline with interesting names. One of the main characters is Amelia MacQueen, a grandmother, who prefers to be called Grandmelia to soften her age. Heaven MacQueen, the twelve-year-old daughter of her recently deceased father, Gavin, and Amelia’s son. , Cassie,, Gavin's widow, is serving fifteen years for manslaughter. but she cannot remember if she killed Gavin or not. The surviving son of Amelia (and divorced husband, Leo) is Daniel , a true agoraphobic, who cannot step out of his bedroom.
Near the beginning of the novel, we are placed in Scotland, the Isle of Skye, where their ancestors lived as one of many poor families who worked the land. When they could not pay the rent, they were tossed out and some found passage on boats to faraway places and were subject to possible drownings during storms. Drownings were depicted in detail. Some of the MacQueen’s survived, hence their heritage
.
Our main character is Heaven, her real name, who now lives with her legal guardian, Amelia. Amelia is smart, a former model, a tall thin woman who is quick with a retort and demands obedience to her rules. Heaven is an overweight adolescent who is bullied at school; she finds solace with Daniel who suffers, too. However, Heaven has a talent she loves; she is a swimmer and auditioned and won a place on her school’s swim team. The stark cruelty of the other girls is almost obscene, but realistic.
Despite her name, Heaven is no angel. She steals and her loneliness is unbearable. How is this family to survive and become a loving unit? Amelia is the key; despite her cringe-worthy comments, she aches for her dead son and wants his daughter to succeed.
The writing is brilliant; many of the scenes are stunning and despite the cynicism, Wriston’s story did not falter.
My gratitude to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for providing a pre-publication for an honest review
January 3, 2021
This novel deals with a family, reconstructed, after tge death of Gavin, husband, father and son. He has left a daughter, Heaven who is now totally alone since her mother is in prison for the murder of her father.
It is her grandmother, Amelia, who becomes her guardian. However, this family wins the dysfunctional award, since not only was one son a drug addict, but the other locked in his room with agoraphobia. Grandmelia, as she likes to be called, is totally self-involved and lacks empathy for Heaven’s fragile state.
Heaven is lonely and bullied at school. She has no friends and finds joy only in swimming. The novel comes to a life changing crescendo on the night of a giant storm when the family must totally reevaluate and reconstruct relationships.
I found this book wonderful in some parts and not in others. I do thank Netgalley for this opportunity.
It is her grandmother, Amelia, who becomes her guardian. However, this family wins the dysfunctional award, since not only was one son a drug addict, but the other locked in his room with agoraphobia. Grandmelia, as she likes to be called, is totally self-involved and lacks empathy for Heaven’s fragile state.
Heaven is lonely and bullied at school. She has no friends and finds joy only in swimming. The novel comes to a life changing crescendo on the night of a giant storm when the family must totally reevaluate and reconstruct relationships.
I found this book wonderful in some parts and not in others. I do thank Netgalley for this opportunity.
March 19, 2021
I was initially drawn into this because of the premise and cover. What I read was a mixed jumble of grief, family dynamics, letting go, growing up and a supernatural element. The supernatural element is where this book started to lose me and it became unrealistic. The story did not know what it wanted to be. Thriller/suspense? Fantasy? Life lessons? I found myself not caring and the ending did not fit, in my opinion. Left it open to perhaps another book. Idk.
Cannot recommend and did not like this, even though I did complete. I strongly wanted to DNF this but I pressed on hoping something in the story would improve or change. Just a no for me.
All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks to Netgalley, Jaimee Winston and Alcove Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Available: 5/11/21
Cannot recommend and did not like this, even though I did complete. I strongly wanted to DNF this but I pressed on hoping something in the story would improve or change. Just a no for me.
All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks to Netgalley, Jaimee Winston and Alcove Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Available: 5/11/21
May 7, 2021
Wow. I quickly raced through this book to finish it. But not because I loved it. Because I wanted it to end. “How Not to Drown” was jerky, slow paced and not my cup of tea. The characters were not likable and although Heaven was dealt a terrible hand, her story didn’t win me over.
Hillary Huber, the narrator, did her best, but even she couldn’t save me from wanting it to end.
Thank you to Dreamscape Media for an advanced copy of the audiobook via the NetGalley app. This is my honest review.
Hillary Huber, the narrator, did her best, but even she couldn’t save me from wanting it to end.
Thank you to Dreamscape Media for an advanced copy of the audiobook via the NetGalley app. This is my honest review.
May 10, 2021
Listening to the audiobook How Not To Drown by Jaimee Wriston I was pretty sure I did not like anyone in it. Slowly it changed for me. It wasn't that they changed as much as I started to understand the reasons for their personality defects and the brilliance of the author's writing.
Amelia is 70 years old. She is angry, tired and more hurt than she will even admit to herself. Her favorite son Gavin drowned and his wife Cassie is in prison for manslaughter. Cassie does not remember what happened that night. Amelia thinks she is lying and knowingly murdered Gavin.
Now Amelia has custody of her 12 year old granddaughter Heaven who she barely knows or understands. Heaven is so broken. Her dad is dead. Her mom is in jail. Her grandmother makes her call her grandmelia so she doesn't feel like an old lady, and she is viciously bullied at her new school. Her one joy is being on the swim team.
Then there is Amelia's oldest son Daniel who in his 40s never leaves his room diagnosed as an agoraphobic; most likely a result of almost drowning as a child. He tells Heaven tales of their ancestors from the Isle of Skye who came over to the U.S. by boat. Many of them drowned on the way. When their history takes on a somewhat mystical turn it took me out of the real world problems of this dysfunctional family.
The narrator Hillary Huber @hillaryoutloud does whiny and frustration almost too realistically because at times I wanted to just yell at Heaven or Amelia to stop complaining when they didn't get their way.
This novel may not be for everyone but the obvious theme of drowning from all we often have to endure from life is relatable to all. I could not stop thinking about this book and I think that is the highest compliment for a writer.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher via Netgalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own
Amelia is 70 years old. She is angry, tired and more hurt than she will even admit to herself. Her favorite son Gavin drowned and his wife Cassie is in prison for manslaughter. Cassie does not remember what happened that night. Amelia thinks she is lying and knowingly murdered Gavin.
Now Amelia has custody of her 12 year old granddaughter Heaven who she barely knows or understands. Heaven is so broken. Her dad is dead. Her mom is in jail. Her grandmother makes her call her grandmelia so she doesn't feel like an old lady, and she is viciously bullied at her new school. Her one joy is being on the swim team.
Then there is Amelia's oldest son Daniel who in his 40s never leaves his room diagnosed as an agoraphobic; most likely a result of almost drowning as a child. He tells Heaven tales of their ancestors from the Isle of Skye who came over to the U.S. by boat. Many of them drowned on the way. When their history takes on a somewhat mystical turn it took me out of the real world problems of this dysfunctional family.
The narrator Hillary Huber @hillaryoutloud does whiny and frustration almost too realistically because at times I wanted to just yell at Heaven or Amelia to stop complaining when they didn't get their way.
This novel may not be for everyone but the obvious theme of drowning from all we often have to endure from life is relatable to all. I could not stop thinking about this book and I think that is the highest compliment for a writer.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher via Netgalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own
February 4, 2021
This one was so great. I was left with chills at the finish. The combination of these excruciatingly flawed family characters, the perilous history of the family, the fables of the sea; all called to me. I thought this book positively stunning and achingly beautiful, as much as it was filled with great sadness. Ah! This one’s going to leave me with a book hangover.
September 27, 2021
The basic premise/story in this book was good: Family dynamics, addiction issues, child neglect (emotionally as well as in other ways), and mental health issues. What I didn't get was the whole Scottish clearance references and the selkie/seal tie in. (I noted the author's family history, but still, WHY?) The book would stand without it. The main characters either made you hate them or feel for them. Amelia, in particular, was a tough bird... just when I thought she was a harpy, she'd redeem herself in some (very) tiny way. The theme of LOSS is grand in this book. If you're up for it, it's a decent read. If you tend to feel morose after tragedy, skip this.
March 28, 2021
HOW NOT TO DROWN is the story of three main characters: 1) Amelia--former model, cranky old lady before her time, and woefully insufficient caregiver to 2) Heaven--her not-model-shaped granddaughter, who's just lost both her parents, her dad to drowning and her mother to prison for his murder; and 3) Daniel, Amelia's agoraphobic son who never comes out of his room and is obsessed with Scottish mythology.
Mixed into this is an occasional 19th-century flashback from a mysterious ancestor, whose scenes tie into Daniel's obsessions.
This is one of those books which depicts a slow-motion train wreck. Even if you wanted to, you can't look away. The adults made me smile and long to shake them by turns. For Heaven I felt only great, swelling empathy. Bullied at school, harangued by her grandmother, she was the heroine in this book--deeply imperfect, crying out for guidance no one was giving her. And yet in the end, Heaven, her grandmother and her uncle find their way. The ending is real--no neatly tied-up bows here; it's clear there will be a long road of healing ahead for all these people. But you can breathe, knowing they've at least found the right road.
Raw and frequently painful to read--you want to rush in and fix everything--this is a deeply gripping novel.
My thanks to Alcove and Netgalley for an advance copy for review purposes.
Mixed into this is an occasional 19th-century flashback from a mysterious ancestor, whose scenes tie into Daniel's obsessions.
This is one of those books which depicts a slow-motion train wreck. Even if you wanted to, you can't look away. The adults made me smile and long to shake them by turns. For Heaven I felt only great, swelling empathy. Bullied at school, harangued by her grandmother, she was the heroine in this book--deeply imperfect, crying out for guidance no one was giving her. And yet in the end, Heaven, her grandmother and her uncle find their way. The ending is real--no neatly tied-up bows here; it's clear there will be a long road of healing ahead for all these people. But you can breathe, knowing they've at least found the right road.
Raw and frequently painful to read--you want to rush in and fix everything--this is a deeply gripping novel.
My thanks to Alcove and Netgalley for an advance copy for review purposes.
January 13, 2021
How Not to Drown by Jaimee Wriston followed a family trying to recover from unspeakable tragedies. Multiple points of view gave us insight on how this imperfect family truly fit together. Heaven was sent to live with her grandmother, Amelia, after her mother was sent to prison for killing her father. Yes, quite a dramatic set of facts and the book did not really lose momentum from that auspicious start.
It only took a few pages to hook me, however the flashbacks lost me a bit. I assume they were supposed to give credence to some of the agoraphobic backstories of Heaven’s uncle, Daniel, but in my mind they fell flat.
The ideal reader of this book would appreciate the nuances of a complex family dynamic, and have empathy for the intense trials the family endures. You are in awe of the strength and resiliency of Heaven as she attempts to navigate this complex dynamic to find her her place in the world. Amelia is also a sympathetic character, and the other minor characters are well thought out and add to the plot. The characters definitely will not be easily forgotten, but I did struggle on deciding my opinions as the book seemed to try to tackle too many issues at once.
I was provided a free advance reader copy from Alcove Press in exchange for my honest review on Net Galley. The opinions shared in this review are my own.
It only took a few pages to hook me, however the flashbacks lost me a bit. I assume they were supposed to give credence to some of the agoraphobic backstories of Heaven’s uncle, Daniel, but in my mind they fell flat.
The ideal reader of this book would appreciate the nuances of a complex family dynamic, and have empathy for the intense trials the family endures. You are in awe of the strength and resiliency of Heaven as she attempts to navigate this complex dynamic to find her her place in the world. Amelia is also a sympathetic character, and the other minor characters are well thought out and add to the plot. The characters definitely will not be easily forgotten, but I did struggle on deciding my opinions as the book seemed to try to tackle too many issues at once.
I was provided a free advance reader copy from Alcove Press in exchange for my honest review on Net Galley. The opinions shared in this review are my own.
May 25, 2021
I listened to the audiobook version of this book. To start with that, there seemed to be an echo at times with the audio. I listen to a lot of audiobooks and have have never experienced this previously, so that was annoying at times. The narrator used different voices for the different characters. I found the voice of Amelia to be similar to Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek. So if you liked that show, it will crack you up. The character herself is uppity, like Moira, and the actresses's voice sounded like it, so it made me laugh several times.
How Not to Drown is filled with many different topics, but it didn't feel like too many. It felt like a dysfunctional family that has experienced a lot of trauma throughout life and one who does not know how to deal with that trauma. So instead, they retreat inside themselves instead of leaning on each other. You will find such topis as addiction, mental heath, body image, bullying, divorce, death, and incarceration. I think you can see the negative impact these topics have on the children in the book. When I say children, I mean the literal 12 year old and also Daniel, who is an adult child and never dealt with the trauma in his life. Heaven could eventually be like Danile if she does not face all of the difficulties in her life. There are some instances of bullying that seem farfetched, but I get the point of it.
I enjoyed the author's writing style and found this to be a book that is more on the literary side. So if you typically enjoy a light romantic romp, this is not for you.
Thank you to Net Galley and Alcove Press for the audiobook.
How Not to Drown is filled with many different topics, but it didn't feel like too many. It felt like a dysfunctional family that has experienced a lot of trauma throughout life and one who does not know how to deal with that trauma. So instead, they retreat inside themselves instead of leaning on each other. You will find such topis as addiction, mental heath, body image, bullying, divorce, death, and incarceration. I think you can see the negative impact these topics have on the children in the book. When I say children, I mean the literal 12 year old and also Daniel, who is an adult child and never dealt with the trauma in his life. Heaven could eventually be like Danile if she does not face all of the difficulties in her life. There are some instances of bullying that seem farfetched, but I get the point of it.
I enjoyed the author's writing style and found this to be a book that is more on the literary side. So if you typically enjoy a light romantic romp, this is not for you.
Thank you to Net Galley and Alcove Press for the audiobook.
May 25, 2021
Books like this are difficult for me to review. There is a solid atmosphere and good character development, but it doesn’t have a strong plot.
We meet Heaven, her grandmother, and uncle after she goes to live with her grandmother following her father’s suspicious death, which her mother is in prison for. At this point, I’m thinking so far so good because there is going to be a lot to unpack with these characters. I’m not wrong because there totally is, but there are these strange, I’m not even sure what to call them, mini plot points (?) that are just kind of in there & gone without really moving the story along. One of the plot points did give a better understanding of the characters, but because they don’t seem like full parts of the story, it felt disjointed.
Similarly, there was a strange additional perspective of someone from a different generation that never really came full circle. It felt like the very end of the book was referencing it, but because it was siloed throughout the rest, it was really hard to tell. Unfortunately, I think it only distracted from the main story.
I did, however, think that the author was able to develop the 2 main characters well, and their relationship and the tension definitely came through.
So, this was kind of a miss for me, but I think it would be great for fans of Elizabeth Strout.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Jaimee Wriston for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
We meet Heaven, her grandmother, and uncle after she goes to live with her grandmother following her father’s suspicious death, which her mother is in prison for. At this point, I’m thinking so far so good because there is going to be a lot to unpack with these characters. I’m not wrong because there totally is, but there are these strange, I’m not even sure what to call them, mini plot points (?) that are just kind of in there & gone without really moving the story along. One of the plot points did give a better understanding of the characters, but because they don’t seem like full parts of the story, it felt disjointed.
Similarly, there was a strange additional perspective of someone from a different generation that never really came full circle. It felt like the very end of the book was referencing it, but because it was siloed throughout the rest, it was really hard to tell. Unfortunately, I think it only distracted from the main story.
I did, however, think that the author was able to develop the 2 main characters well, and their relationship and the tension definitely came through.
So, this was kind of a miss for me, but I think it would be great for fans of Elizabeth Strout.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Jaimee Wriston for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
May 20, 2021
After her favorite son drowns and her daughter-in-law is convicted in her death, Amelia MacQueen is given temporary custody of her 12-year-old granddaughter, Heaven. Heaven, the daughter of drug addicts, is used to being left to her own devices, and she doesn't appreciate her grandmother's scrutiny. She bonds instead with her uncle Daniel, an agorophobe who never leaves his room in his mom's house. To deal with the bullying at school and missing her parents, Heaven “snakes” things she wants from people and stores and dreams of ways to get back at her bullies.
The blurb on this book calls it a tale of redemption, but as the book ended, the most I could say would be that the family was slightly less intolerable. I listened to the audiobook; perhaps the characters would have seemed more likable if I hadn't heard the narrator's snark in their words, but then again, maybe not. I felt sorry for Heaven with the cards she had been dealt, but I couldn't help but think that she might have been better in foster care. Most of the time, Heaven seemed more like she was 6 years old than 12. The premise sounded interesting, but unfortunately, this story just wasn't for me.
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.
The blurb on this book calls it a tale of redemption, but as the book ended, the most I could say would be that the family was slightly less intolerable. I listened to the audiobook; perhaps the characters would have seemed more likable if I hadn't heard the narrator's snark in their words, but then again, maybe not. I felt sorry for Heaven with the cards she had been dealt, but I couldn't help but think that she might have been better in foster care. Most of the time, Heaven seemed more like she was 6 years old than 12. The premise sounded interesting, but unfortunately, this story just wasn't for me.
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.
June 13, 2021
I really really enjoyed this book! I listened to the audiobook, and the narration was wonderful, although sometimes difficult to understand with Maggie’s chapters. Another thing with Maggie was, while I understand she is the family’s ancestor I didn’t feel like her story was very necessary and it took me out of the main story. I felt as though I was just waiting for her chapters to end so I could get back to the main story. I did love the characters dynamics with one another and how they grew together. Mercy was a wonderful character, as was Daniel. I do not know anyone who suffers from agoraphobia, but his representation felt accurate and inoffensive. Sometimes Heaven felt very whiny and annoying, and her and her schoolmates felt wildly inaccurately portrayed and very stereotypical, but I still felt for her. The dialogue felt unnatural at times and most of the conflicts felt like they wrapped up too quickly and easily. Overall though, this was definitely worth the read and the ending was quite beautiful.
October 11, 2022
Just completed "Jaimee Wriston Colbert's 'How Not to Drown.' This book is definitely a page turner. It starts off at the height of a tragic event and by time I was at the climax of the story I cared so much about what happened to the characters. The characters are complex and nuanced, each carrying their own personal histories and inner conflicts. Engaging dialogue, vivid imagery, and unique metaphors, add to the energy and world of the story. The plot is very well crafted and draws on multiple points of view to best tell the story.
The beauty of the book lies in the characters ability to change because of the realization of the love they have for each other. The essence of the book lies in the journey through grief and what it means to come out on the other side. I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes stories about families and the obstacles they overcome for the sake of one another.
The beauty of the book lies in the characters ability to change because of the realization of the love they have for each other. The essence of the book lies in the journey through grief and what it means to come out on the other side. I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes stories about families and the obstacles they overcome for the sake of one another.
February 22, 2021
“How Not to Drown” written by Jaimee Wriston is an affecting novel about MacQueen family facing moving forward in the aftermath of death of the family patriarch. Heaven has lost her dad while her grandmother (or Grandmelia) has lost her son. Meanwhile, Heaven’s mom, Cassie, is serving time for the death for her husband, but cannot remember if she is the actual killer.
Heaven is the typical awkward pre-teen, not just mourning her dad, but facing bullying at school. Overweight, she finds solace through her swimming. The way the teammates treat her is heart-breaking realistic. Unfortunately, Grandmelia does not understand, but Heaven is able to connect to her uncle Daniel who faces his own demons.
I found this to be a poignant story of a family that is not cookie-cutter.
Thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for my advanced copy.
Heaven is the typical awkward pre-teen, not just mourning her dad, but facing bullying at school. Overweight, she finds solace through her swimming. The way the teammates treat her is heart-breaking realistic. Unfortunately, Grandmelia does not understand, but Heaven is able to connect to her uncle Daniel who faces his own demons.
I found this to be a poignant story of a family that is not cookie-cutter.
Thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for my advanced copy.
May 21, 2021
I honestly don’t know how to really start with this book. This was truly a dysfunctional family. I grew up in one, but nothing like what Heaven has experienced. Her mother has been convicted of murdering her father. She is to live with a Grandmother who has her own personal issues. Then there is the Uncle who doesn’t come out of his room.
Heaven is bullied at school and then comes home to this kind of life. She then turns to some kind of supernatural drama that I totally did not really understand.
I never related with the characters and the storyline. The book started out slow and it never quite picked up and I related to Heaven with the bullying and the dysfunctional family to a point. However, I think the author went out on a limb with the other added issues.
I received a free advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.
Heaven is bullied at school and then comes home to this kind of life. She then turns to some kind of supernatural drama that I totally did not really understand.
I never related with the characters and the storyline. The book started out slow and it never quite picked up and I related to Heaven with the bullying and the dysfunctional family to a point. However, I think the author went out on a limb with the other added issues.
I received a free advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.
November 18, 2021
How Not to Drown is a story about a family trying to work through the tragic loss of the "favorite" son. I found this book boring, the characters terrible, and the lack of any redemption extremely frustrating.
Amelia is so self obsessed and her extremely toxic treatment of Heaven made me want to scream. Also, her granddaughter was living with 2 drug addicts and she never made any attempt to help this child before?!? Never thought to contact child protective services? She seemed to have zero relationship to Heaven before taking custody of her. The way the narrator played her was funny though, because she sounds EXACTLY like Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek
Amelia is so self obsessed and her extremely toxic treatment of Heaven made me want to scream. Also, her granddaughter was living with 2 drug addicts and she never made any attempt to help this child before?!? Never thought to contact child protective services? She seemed to have zero relationship to Heaven before taking custody of her. The way the narrator played her was funny though, because she sounds EXACTLY like Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek
June 25, 2024
how not to drown
I liked the main story: Grandmelia taking in Heaven, her granddaughter. Their foibles and struggles made for interesting reading.
However, the wider story of the love, lies, and neglect throughout the family was too much. Drowning was a multigenerational hazard and preoccupation in the family. No one was untouched. Yet they toyed with holding their breath, with diving into the sea while under the influence, with getting close to drowning - to see what it was like. It was an unhealthy obsession for the characters and as a reader I found it grueling and unending. I was glad to walk away from this book.
I liked the main story: Grandmelia taking in Heaven, her granddaughter. Their foibles and struggles made for interesting reading.
However, the wider story of the love, lies, and neglect throughout the family was too much. Drowning was a multigenerational hazard and preoccupation in the family. No one was untouched. Yet they toyed with holding their breath, with diving into the sea while under the influence, with getting close to drowning - to see what it was like. It was an unhealthy obsession for the characters and as a reader I found it grueling and unending. I was glad to walk away from this book.
April 29, 2021
This was an interesting look at how we all deal with grief differently. I enjoyed all the characters in this book, even though they weren't all "likable" characters. I think this book would have been a lot stronger either without the dual timeline or if the past timeline would have been more fleshed out. The current timeline held the main plot of the story and the past timeline just seemed out of place and underwritten. However, I still think this book had some interesting things to say and had a lot of important underlying themes. I would recommend this book.
September 1, 2021
This book was a hot mess. I don’t know what the author was aiming for in terms of genre or feel but for me, it missed the mark completely. I don’t know if there was supposed to be a touch of whimsy weaved into a story about a family going through some pretty bleak stuff but the random chapters from the 1800s and Daniel’s musings about selkies and faeries and the like just did not flow well. It was disruptive more than anything.
This was a frustrating book because it had potential but then went left and stayed there.
This was a frustrating book because it had potential but then went left and stayed there.
February 16, 2021
I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Heaven comes to live with her somewhat narcissistic grandmother after her drug addicted mother is sent to prison. Grandmelia, who wasn't completely cut out to be a mother, lacks empathy in the grandmother role as well. Together with Grandmelia's ex-husband and her agoraphobic uncle in the bedroom next door, the females learn how to create a family.
Heaven comes to live with her somewhat narcissistic grandmother after her drug addicted mother is sent to prison. Grandmelia, who wasn't completely cut out to be a mother, lacks empathy in the grandmother role as well. Together with Grandmelia's ex-husband and her agoraphobic uncle in the bedroom next door, the females learn how to create a family.
May 3, 2021
The story was interesting and the characters definitely grew on me. The only thing that grated on me was the very poor attempt at a Scottish accent. It was very distracting and took away from the story, but to be honest that character felt unnecessary and a little forced into the story. Otherwise it was enjoyable and I would recommend it to other.
*I received a free ARC from NetGalley and am leaving my honest feedback willingly.*
*I received a free ARC from NetGalley and am leaving my honest feedback willingly.*
August 8, 2021
Amelia is awarded custody of her strong willed granddaughter, Heaven, after the death of her son, Gavin. Gavin's wife is found guilty of his death and is imprisoned even though she can't remember the night due to her drugged state. Other family members add to the stressful dynamic - Amelia's ex-husband who seems to be dealing with dementia and her son, Daniel, who is an agoraphobic. When Heaven goes missing one dark, stormy night, the entire family enters into survival mode.
June 1, 2021
I couldn't bring myself to care about the characters, but I pushed through and begun to around about 100 pages left of the book. The interwoven story of Maggie in the past is a bit much to follow at times, but once to the point of and past that, I wanted to find out what happens to Amelia, Daniel, Heaven, and Leo. I'd give it 3.5 stars if I could give halves.
August 30, 2021
This is a story of a family, all of whom are significantly troubled or impaired in some way. It’s also a story of drowning, both in fact and metaphor. Very well written but a little choppy in pacing. I’m sure many readers will say they couldn’t like or sympathize with any of the characters and while that’s true, I still enjoyed the unraveling of the story.
September 21, 2021
This was a really unusual read, combining contemporary fiction with fantasy. I liked the detailed description and somewhat slow pace, and felt for the characters. The historical connection to family was intriguing and I liked the bit of fantasy but I didn't think this part of the book was well connected to the contemporary characters.
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