Call the Canaries Home: A Novel

Found I couldn’t put this down desperate to discover each piece of the puzzleWell written and an excellent ending for those who grieve

I liked the story and sometimes found it confusing which sister out of the three each of the paragraphs referred to and had to keep back tracking. Having said that, I did enjoy this book but it lacked the wow factor

A difficult to define book. It tells the story of a family that have endured trauma & how it has effected them all, both individually & as a group. I generally enjoy books like this, that explore dynamics of peoples relationships, & I did appreciate the character development as the story progressed. To be honest, I didn't love the ending - it was fine but it felt a bit rushed. My only other complaint is that with each chapter being told from one of four POVs & with flashbacks also, it was hard to remember which POV was which.

Really enjoyed the diversity of the characters. A good read that easily keeps you from your housework. I recommend it.

It took me a wee while to get into this story burden I did I couldn't out it down. I really liked the themes of family and sisters and loved the characters particularly Meemaw.

I loved all the characters in this wonderful book. It was hard to put it down but great to come back to. Thank you for a memorable story that will stay with me for a long time.

I grabbed a copy of this from Kindle Unlimited. To be honest I can't say that I had heard too much about it, but I was drawn to it by the synopsis.Telling the story of three estranged sisters living in a small town in Louisiana. When one of the twin sisters Georgia goes missing, the family is devastated and never the same again. Many years later a time capsule that they buried is retrieved and on opening it, so a can of worms is also opened as a photo taken on the day that Georgia went missing poses questions that Savannah wants to find answers too.What happened to Georgia the fourth sister and Savannah's twin? Can this photo help solve any answers or not?I enjoyed this story about a dysfunctional family of estranged sisters and their grandmother Meemaw. At times it was a little hard work trying to keep track of the characters and their stories, but on the whole it was an enjoyable read. I was desperate to find out what had happened to Georgia and the significance of the photo.

This is my favourite read this year, not my usual genre but I'm so glad I came across it and would definitely read more from this author. I've laughed ,cried and lived this book whilst reading and am sad to finish it. Well done Laura Barrow an excellent book with a beautiful ending.

This was an Amazon first reads pick for June and it did not disappoint! This is a story about sisters finding their way back to each other after tragedy uproots their lives when they were children.A sister who vanishes at the beach and is never seen again. A mother who is lost to grief and then illness. A father who is never there when they need them. A grandmother that will stop at nothing to protect them. This is the story of the Guidry sisters, Rayanne, Sue Ellen, Savannah and Georgia.This one had me from beginning to end. The mystery of Georgia’s disappearance kept me hooked but also the relationship between all the girls and their grandmother.If you like a story about complex family dynamics and a coming home take then this one's for you!

“Call The Canaries Home” is author Laura Barrow’s debut novel, and a free Prime Read for June 2023. Not the usual genre I go after (mystery suspense thrillers), but the summary intrigued me enough to give this family drama a try. I’m glad I did!As in all my reviews don’t be concerned about discovering any spoilers - there won’t be any. The story is focused around three sisters whose paths have distanced themselves from each other. They did, however, have a pact to get together later in life to retrieve a time capsule they buried as children. At the youngest sister Savannah’s urging, they find themselves coming together in their quaint home town in Louisiana, 28 years having passed, to dig up their buried family treasure. Reuniting, however, is challenging to the siblings as there are lots of demons still existing from their past that they need to negotiate and reconcile.The book does an excellent job portraying what growing up in near poverty in the Deep South is all about. Chapters alternating between past and present, author Barrow paints a vivid picture portraying the struggles and heartbreak endured by the family. The matriarch, the sisters’ grandmother “Meemaw”, proves to be the glue in the family, her heart in the right place but her actions at times bordering somewhere between outrageous and fanatical. Some of her escapades are legendary in the small town of Muscadine and her honest and unfiltered opinions about everything create a unique dynamic in the family.This is a coming of age tale that follows the fragile relationships of the sisters and their life journey to rediscover each other. The story is raw, gut wrenching at times, yet also humorous, inspirational and uplifting. The reader very easily invests in the characters, embracing their diverse personalities and Meemaw’s mantra, “family is family”. An addictive read, this book moves at a brisk pace as it arrives at its satisfying conclusion. Eliciting a gamut of emotions, this is a highly recommended journey I would suggest traveling through. It would also be a great book club read.

This book was refreshing in an unexpected way. The characters were well developed and I felt I knew them. So much heartache, half a life spent avoiding the past, or as in Savannahs case, stuck in the past. I loved how the story unfolded through each sister and Meemaws’ voice giving us different perspectives. I would definitely recommend this book.

It’s impossible not to love a story with a main character grandmother named Meemaw!A family mystery is at the center of the story and the plot moves forward with the scattering narrative of the past timeline throughout. It was a bit confusing to keep track of the various POV’s each chapter is being told from. The pace starts slow but picks and stays steady and consistent as it revealed important pieces of the family history, while tying into the present day storyline.This story is centered around sisterhood and this aspect was done extremely well. The family dynamics were messy, multilayered and full of heart. I found myself immersed within the sisters relationships and secrets, rooting for them to get the answers they were searching for.Much of the family’s story happened before the reader meets the characters and through these past timeline perspectives, the weight of those pieces of history shine through, adding depth to the story and creating an emotional connection to the characters.I thought I knew for sure where the mystery at the heart of the story was leading, but I was wrong, and, without adding spoilers, I’ll say that I’m still processing the direction it ended up taking, and the myriad emotions it conjured.The perfect read when I needed a break from my police/crime dramas.

Well deserved five star.Communication is key, breaking down that what holds us back from understanding what comes between us. Who parents us and how we evolve through the passages of time.