Flight, by Lynn Steger Strong

 

I have mixed feelings about this novel about three siblings, their spouses and children, and a young mother and her daughter. I had a hard time keeping track of all the siblings at first. Henry and his wife Alice live in an old house in Vermont that Alice inherited from her grandmother. They're hosting Christmas dinner for Henry's sister Kate, her husband Josh, and their three children, as well as Henry's brother Martin, his wife Tess, and their two children. Alice is a social worker, one of whose clients is Quinn and her daughter Maddie. This is the first Christmas after Henry, Kate, and Martin's mother Helen died, so it's particularly fraught with grief and other emotions. All of the characters have what appear to be major flaws. Henry is an artist who is obsessed with the environment and makes no money. Alice was an artist but has had to stop creating art and works as a social worker to help make ends meet. Kate is a stay at home mom, which she loves but won't admit. Her husband Josh works in finance at a mid-level job; he has no ambition because he's always relied on his trust fund for support, but this has been depleted by his poor investment decisions. Tess is a highly stressed attorney who is anxious about everything, especially her children. Her husband Martin is a professor on leave due to some inappropriate behavior with his students. As they come together, they struggle with decisions regarding the disposition of Helen's estate, with Kate and Josh hoping to be allowed to live in the house and everyone else, at least initially, hoping to sell it and split up the proceeds. The story advances slowly and is interspersed with Quinn's narrative. She is a single mom who is a recovering addict; Alice is her social worker, but is obsessed with Maddie as she has been unable to conceive a child herself. As they prepare for Christmas dinner, they all rally to help find Maddie, who has gone missing while her mother was out drinking. I was put off by the unlikability of all of the characters. How likely is it that every single member of a family has such distressing issues? It's a non-stop stream of bickering and arguing and picking on the spouses behind their backs. None of the children are charming. I just didn't find this pleasant to read. Nothing much gets resolved, although the ending seems to have mellowed everyone out, including the kids. I also found the writing to be a little awkward.