Every Sunday we are taking a look at the world of books. I read a lot and always want to share my opinions on what I read, so I thought it would be fun to write reviews. Today we are looking at a book about betrayal and home towns…

Family & Other Calamities: A Novel (2025)

Leslie Gray Streeter

Synopsis

Entertainment journalist Dawn Roberts has a lot to work through: a widow’s grief, betrayals of family and friends, and scandals that almost tanked her reputation. Not that Dawn dwells on the past. Well, hardly. When she returns to Baltimore with her husband’s ashes, she can’t avoid it. In fact, she’s diving into decades of backstabbing and treachery for her first trip home in years.

She’s looking at you, Joe Perkins. Her former mentor, whose explosive exposé about big-city corruption is being turned into a slanderous movie, is also back in town. The villain of the piece? Dawn. The good news is that this could all be a chance to reset―heal family wounds, admit to her own mistakes, and maybe even reconnect with the one who got away. Oh, and get even with Joe any way she can.

With the surprising help of an up-and-coming journalist and a legendary R & B diva, Dawn will finally set the record straight. Returning home might just be the biggest story in Dawn’s life, a fresh start―and happy ending―she never expected.

– from Amazon

Positive Points

I found that once this book gets going it is a good read and has a sense of female empowerment to it. There are some really interesting parts to it and it is different to other books

Negative Points

It feels rushed at the end and could of done with a few more chapters, it goes from a slow pace to a really fast one and that is where it lets itself down and feels weird. It does take a few chapters to get used to the book and get into it.

Overall Review

This is a book that has a lot of good points but it does have a few things about it that make it a struggle at times to read – predominantly the fact it takes a while to get into and then when you are enjoying it the ending feels rushed. It is a book I would say read but prepared for the quick ending.

Rating : *** 3 Stars

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