Release date: June 18, 2024
Publisher: Doubleday
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Synopsis:
Same As It Ever Was showcases the consummate style, signature wit, and profound emotional intelligence that made The Most Fun We Ever Hadone of the most beloved novels of the past decade. Featuring a memorably messy family and the multifaceted marriage at its heart, Lombardo’s debut was dubbed “the literary love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler” (The Guardian) and hailed as “ambitious and brilliantly written” (Washington Post). In this remarkable follow-up—another elegant and tumultuous story in the tradition of Elizabeth Strout, Ann Patchett, and Celeste Ng—Lombardo introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters, this time by way of her singularly complicated protagonist.
Julia Ames, after a youth marked by upheaval and emotional turbulence, has found herself on the placid plateau of mid-life. But Julia has never navigated the world with the equanimity of her current privileged class. Having nearly derailed herself several times, making desperate bids for the kind of connection that always felt inaccessible to her, she finally feels, at age fifty seven, that she has a firm handle on things.
She’s unprepared, though, for what comes next: a surprise announcement from her straight-arrow son, an impending separation from her spikey teenaged daughter, and a seductive resurgence of the past, all of which threaten to draw her back into the patterns that had previously kept her on a razor’s edge.
Same As It Ever Was traverses the rocky terrain of real life, —exploring new avenues of maternal ambivalence, intergenerational friendship, and the happenstantial cause-and-effect that governs us all. Delving even deeper into the nature of relationships—how they grow, change, and sometimes end—Lombardo proves herself a true and definitive cartographer of the human heart and asserts herself among the finest novelists of her generation.
Review:
I was in the minority with the authors last novel, I thought it was just ok but I wanted to try her again and I’m so glad I did! I really enjoyed this one much more and can see why she has so many fans. Her writing is so strong, it seems really simple at times and at others there was a sentence that was so beautiful and relatable it made me gasp a little. She has an uncanny and unmatched ability to really dive deep into familial relationships and the complexities that exist in a way that feels so authentic it hurts. Her characterization here was flawless, this a meaty novel, not only in length but also in just how far she delves into the characters psyches and it allows the reader to connect with them so deeply and so personally. There are universal themes and commonalities that I think many people will find relatable and relevant, especially if you are married or in have been in a long term relationship. There are also so many thoughts and ideas on parenthood at all its different stages and iterations that were profound and really made me think. The entire thing packs a powerful punch and is one of those books you need to take your time with, there is so much to unpack and ponder over, definitely not a quick or light read but one I really enjoyed.
Overall rating: 4/5
Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.
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