A Nearly Normal Family by M.T. Edvardsson, Rachel Willson-Broyles (Translation) | Published June 25th 2019 by Celadon Books | 400 Pages | Goodreads
✅ REVIEW
When the dead body of a man is found, a pastor’s 18 years-old daughter is suspected of his murder. The novel is part mystery, part family drama and takes place in Sweden.
What I enjoyed about the novel is that it is narrated in alternating points of view and we get the perspective of the different characters. What I struggled with was that it was not the gripping psychological thriller I was hoping for but more of a slow-moving crime mystery with family and courtroom drama.
The novel explores family duty and loyalty, what would you do to protect your family? Overall, I enjoyed it and recommend it to readers of thrillers/mysteries and contemporary fiction.
✅ PUBLISHER’S DESCRIPTION
“M.T. Edvardsson’s A Nearly Normal Family is a gripping legal thriller that forces the reader to consider: How far would you go to protect the ones you love? In this twisted narrative of love and murder, a horrific crime makes a seemingly normal family question everything they thought they knew about their life—and one another.
Eighteen-year-old Stella Sandell stands accused of the brutal murder of a man almost fifteen years her senior. She is an ordinary teenager from an upstanding local family. What reason could she have to know a shady businessman, let alone to kill him?
Stella’s father, a pastor, and mother, a criminal defense attorney, find their moral compasses tested as they defend their daughter, while struggling to understand why she is a suspect. Told in an unusual three-part structure, A Nearly Normal Family asks the questions: How well do you know your own children? How far would you go to protect them?”
✅ BOOK SOURCE AND FORMAT
Loan from Miami-Dade’s Library Overdrive, audiobook
I bought the ebook of this as it was only 99p and I’ve seen such rave reviews for it. I didn’t realise at first it was translated and set in Sweden, two of my fav things. Coincidentally, my current read is translated from the Swedish. Thanks for the balanced review!