Seven Days of Us

A week is a long time to spend confined to your house as a family, especially if each of you is hiding something from the others. Andrew and Emma Birch and their two grown daughters are spending Christmas together for the first time in years, and because eldest daughter Olivia, a doctor, has been working among patients of a deadly disease outbreak in Africa, they will spend it in strict quarantine. And due to the things that each member of the family is not telling the others, it's bound to be anything but a calm, quiet week at the country estate.

I enjoyed this a great deal. The author does an excellent job with characterization -- I found my self both liking and being annoyed by each character in turn (though, of course, some annoyed show more me more than others!). She also walks a fine line with the possibility that Olivia might develop symptoms of the disease, finding ways to keep up the dramatic tension, when it might have otherwise evaporated. And all of that is balanced with plenty of pleasantly humorous moments. If you enjoy family dramas, especially set during the Christmas season, you'll probably find this to be just the thing. show less

The Birch family will all be together for Christmas for the first time in years--and they'll be spending it at their country house in quarantine as eldest daughter Olivia has just returned from a months-long aid trip to Africa to treat patients at the center of an outbreak of a hemorrhagic fever. As they are all cooped up together until Olivia is officially declared symptom free, their enforced proximity intensifies the pressure of the holidays--a situation made even more volatile by the fact that every member of the family is keeping something to themselves that they really probably ought to tell everyone about.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel that works like a character study of a family. All the characters were interesting and I show more cared about each of them (even the ones I found annoying). The tone is just the right mix of light and heavy--think a slightly heavier, slightly less overtly humorousThe Family Stone set in the UK rather than New England, and you'll about have it. Recommended if this sounds your kind of thing. show less

Family togetherness can be both a blessing and a curse. Once children are grown, families tend to gather together less and less and often only around the holidays. If you've just been with family at the holidays, you know how hard it can be to be under one roof together for an extended period of time. Now just imagine of you weren't just together but that you were quarantined so there was definitely no way to escape your loved ones, no popping out to grocery shop, no walk down the street, no outside contact at all. This is the situation in Francesca Hornak's novel Seven Days of Us.

The Birch family is about to spend seven days together in quarantine over Christmas. Eldest daughter Olivia is a doctor just returning to Britain after show more spending time in Liberia treating victims of the deadly Haag virus. She has to stay locked up for the seven day viral incubation period in case she comes down with the terrifying disease. Despite not returning home for the past several years for Christmas, this year Olivia will have more than enough time with her parents and her younger sister at their country place, Weyfield Hall in Norfolk, beyond the reach of good cell service and reliable wi-fi. Mother Emma has just been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma but she's keeping her diagnosis a secret, worried that Olivia won't come home if she knows what a danger her presence could be. Instead she's invested in being the cheerful, nothing's wrong, martyr mum as she caters to her family, trying to keep all their traditions alive, even if no one else cares much about them anymore. Father Andrew is snarky and emotionally distant. He's a former war correspondent turned unhappy food critic who is more than uncommonly unkind in his reviews. He's also harboring a secret this holiday season, having gotten two emails from a young American man named Jesse who is the product of a one night stand Andrew had in Beirut before he and Emma married. This heretofore unknown son wants to meet Andrew but Andrew's best defense against Jesse is to ignore the emails and definitely not tell his wife and daughters about them. Youngest daughter Phoebe is used to being the center of attention. She's the golden child. She's also self-absorbed, frivolous, and shallow and she's just gotten engaged to her long time boyfriend, who is a complete and total wanker. She's more consumed with planning her wedding and whether or not George got her the right earrings for Christmas than anything else (except maybe lording her most favored child status over Olivia) but under all of this bratty self-centeredness, she has a lingering sense that her relationship is not all it could or should be. Olivia should be the heroic figure, the doctor who risks her life treating others, but she's so condescending and intolerant of her family's affluence and traditions that she comes across as judgmental and sanctimonious. Like the others, she too is hiding something this Christmas. She's fallen in love with a fellow doctor and the two of them broke the strict "No Touch" rule they lived under in Liberia, a fact that she is at great pains to hide, especially once Sean is diagnosed with Haag himself and is splashed all over the media.

Just the secrets and lack of communication between the Birches, never mind their divergent personalities, means that spending seven days together with no respite will not be easy. This enforced family togetherness will challenge them, exposing the cracks in their relationships with each other, highlighting how little they share anymore, and showing how much they still have the capacity to hurt each other. But it turns out that it won't just be the four of them together as two other people show up unexpectedly and are forced to join in the quarantine, complicating the dysfunctional family dynamic even further and stressing things to the breaking point.

The novel is told in sections detailing each day of the quarantine and then subdivided into short chapters focused on each of the major characters in turn. As the days pass, the reader can see the frustrations rise, the lack of communication grow, and each character become more purely and stubbornly him or herself. The narrative starts off with some pretty huge, rather unbelievable coincidences but Hornak actually makes them work far better and less predictably than might have been expected. These coincidences don't stop as the story goes on, but by then the reader is invested enough in the outcome that it no longer matters. The characters mostly all start off as not very likable and while they don't change out of all recognition, each of them learns and grows and becomes a little more sympathetic during the seven days they spend together. The end of the novel could very well descend into a treacly disaster of a Christmas story and it is greatly to Hornak's credit that it doesn't, instead striking just the right note for both satisfaction and believability. A generally enjoyable read, this will make you cringe and laugh as you contemplate your own family quirks and conflicts and you'll find yourself grateful that you aren't likely to be (figuratively) locked up with them again until next Christmas. show less

Ooo… this was just terrific! It reminded me so much of an Elin Hildebrand book in the best way even though we’re not at the beach. You’ve got this huge family with all these damning secrets. They’re all stuck together for the holidays, and everything is about to EXPLODE. I LOVED the characters. You’ve got a daughter planning a wedding, her sister who just returned from treating a terrible epidemic and who may be contagious??, a mother and father with awful secrets of their own, and other people who may be showing up at their door. It’s just all the juicy makings of a great holiday drama-fest, set on the backdrop of Christmas in the English countryside. Love love love! The family relationships were what made this shine, for show more good and for bad. show less

I had heard so much about this book I had to read it. Wasn’t sure it was for me at the very beginning, but after a few chapters, the family had me hooked. Thoroughly enjoyable read, was unable to put it down. A lot of family dynamics in this book, but easy to follow, and relatable. Author had a little twist towards the end that I didn’t expect. Gave me an ‘awww’ moment. Ms. Hornak wrote of a Haag virus and the horrors that the saintly workers go thru, even after they come home. Highly recommend.

I received an advance review copy of this book from the Great Thoughts Ninja Review Team. All opinions are my own.

Olivia Birch has just returned to the United States following a humanitarian trip to Africa to help treat an epidemic. She faces seven days of quarantine....with her family....at the holidays. Seven days with her parents and sister without being able to leave the house. Family secrets, jealousies and squabbles all come to the surface as the Birches face Christmas together.

I can completely identify with uncomfortable, yet joyous, holidays spent with family. Tensions, past slights, and different outlooks often clash after a couple days. I can't imagine being effectively trapped with family for seven days, unable to leave the house. Oh dear. lol. This book is witty, often funny, emotional and completely enjoyable. I found myself caught up show more in the Birch family drama. It seems they all have something to hide and different reasons for keeping their secrets. The truth pops up at inopportune moments. But, the Birch family is strong....stronger than they realize.

I don't usually read this sort of fiction. It's usually just too much emotional fluff for me. But, I have to say....this book was a pleasant surprise! There is drama and lots of emotion....but the story is engaging, purposeful and believable. I found myself identifying with the characters and wondering how this story would end. I didn't feel bogged down in melodrama, but enjoyed this tale of a family coming back together after years of growing apart. This is definitely a great book to read before the holidays.

Awesome book! Emotional and witty without being overdone. I will definitely be reading more by this author!

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Berkley Publishing via NetGalley. I also won a print ARC through Goodreads. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.** show less

This is a tale of a family forced to spend Christmas week (2016) in quarantine in their country house. Each family member has a problem. For Emma, the mother, it is a health problem she choses to keep secret until after the holidays. For Andrew, the father, it is the appearance of a grown son (Jesse) he didn't know he had. Phoebe, the younger daughter, is having second thoughts about her coming marriage. Olivia, the elder daughter, is coping with the news that her medical colleague (and lover) has tested positive for the very virus that has put her family under quarantine.

All of these family secrets are dealt with in an almost farcical romp of coincidences, minor spats and major quarrels, and increasing anxiety as the secrets are show more exposed at the most inopportune moments possible. The characters' flaws and strengths are revealed with warmth, empathy, and humor.

The novel is divided into major sections--one for each day. Each of these sections is further divided into short chapters giving the different points of view of each family member (including Jesse). This format worked well, resulting in a sort of ensemble piece giving equal voice to each individual. However, it did keep me reading well past my bedtime. I kept thinking "...just one more short chapter..." and then ..."another..." and then it was 2:30am and I had finished the book.

A very enjoyable read.

Advanced review copy from the publisher via Goodreads giveaway show less