Wreck

A Novel

By: Catherine Newman

Narrated by: Helen Laser

A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK · INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “Wreck is a delight. What an absolute joy to be reunited with Rocky and her family, the characters we all fell in love with in Sandwich. Newman's prose is laugh-out-loud funny. It's also profound. I couldn't stop reading, even though I didn't want it to end.”—J. Courtney Sullivan, New York Times bestselling author of The Cliffs

“Wreck is the kind of book that pulls up a chair, pours the wine, and dives deep—equal parts hilarious, sharp, and achingly sincere. I didn’t just read it—I felt known by it. A luminous, laugh-out-loud triumph.”—Alison Espach, New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding People

The acclaimed bestselling author of Sandwich is back with a wonderful novel, full of laughter and heart, about marriage, family, and what happens when life doesn’t go as planned.

If you loved Rocky and her family on vacation on Cape Cod, wait until you join them at home two years later. (And if this is your first meeting with this crew, get ready to laugh and cry—and relate.)

Rocky, still anxious, nostalgic, and funny, is living in Western Massachusetts with her husband Nick and their daughter Willa, who's back home after college. Their son, Jamie, has taken a new job in New York, and Mort, Rocky’s widowed father, has moved in.

It all couldn’t be more ridiculously normal . . . until Rocky finds herself obsessed with a local accident that only tangentially affects them—and with a medical condition that, she hopes, won’t affect them at all.

With her signature wit and wisdom, Catherine Newman explores the hidden rules of family, the heavy weight of uncertainty, and the gnarly fact that people—no matter how much you love them—are not always exactly who you want them to be.

These characters feel like family

4.5 stars rounded up to 5 for Wreck - the sequel I didn't know I needed from Catherine Newman. This book and the first are literally the Gold Star of character driven fiction. It's just this little glimpse into one brief moment in time of this family and it is SO well done. I adored this book. Read Sandwich first, please, even though you don't have to. It's the same characters. Gah! Catherine Newman is so good! This is just an easy read with characters who feel like family. Loved it!

Great for woman of a certain age

Rocky is a very relatable character for middle aged women and I always enjoy this author’s books.

A story of family

Great narration of another chapter in the life of Rocky and family, with all its faults and love.

What's the Point?

I loved the way the characters interacted and the story of their lives, but I felt like the point of the book isn't clear, there was no conclusion. And the ending was trite. Meh

So much better than Sandwich

Wow! Catherine Newman has seriously grown as a writer and this new book is a testament to that. I didn’t really like my first encounter with Rocky and family but here they are beyond relatable and richly developed characters. Bravo! I hope we get to continue along their journey (and Newman’s)