‘Lost Lambs’ by Madeline Cash

I felt burned after my last read turned out to be a total snore, so I needed something that was actually going to keep my interest. I had seen a lot of discourse around Lost Lambs online. Some people loved it while others really did not. The premise of dysfunctional family dynamics mixed with comedy and sincerity sounded right up my street though.

The novel follows parents Bud and Catherine and their daughters Abigail, Harper and Louise, all navigating their own personal chaos. Bud and Catherine decide to open up their marriage in an attempt to revitalise it, Abigail is dating a former soldier tied to the town’s mysterious billionaire, Harper becomes increasingly suspicious of the town around her and Louise is being groomed online by a terrorist.

Madeline Cash’s writing is incredibly easy to read and she balances the tone well, keeping the story from becoming too heavy despite some dark subject matter. I did feel that the family members were not written with massively distinctive voices though. They often sounded quite similar despite leading very different lives. Louise’s nervous speech impediment was probably the clearest defining trait between them, although it was endearing.

The billionaire subplot was definitely outlandish and there were moments where I genuinely questioned what genre the book was trying to be. Once I settled into the idea that the novel is really about a dysfunctional family slowly breaking apart, the stranger elements worked better for me. At its core, this is a story about parents drifting apart, girls coming of age and people trying to understand themselves.

I did find the book funny, although not quite as laugh out loud hilarious as some reviews had suggested. My biggest criticism is probably that the ending felt rushed. Cash ties things together very quickly once the novel reaches its conclusion. Still, the final chapter was warm and satisfying and I enjoyed spending time with this family, flaws and all.