And Then There Was Us by Kern Carter is a story filled with complicated family dynamics and coming of age confronting the past.

Coi has been living with her father since the age of 14 when her mother kicked her out of the house. Her mother was abusive, verbally and physically, so their relationship is basically non-existent and then her mother dies suddenly and Coi is left to confront a myriad of feelings as well as navigate some very complicated family dynamics while navigating her first year of college, work and discovering herself.

This book is beautifully heartbreaking. It evoked strong feelings of anger and disappointment but also resilience and strength. Coi’s story is complicated. Her mother is someone she expected to have nothing to do with ever again but when faced with her death, there are a ton of unresolved feelings that need to be addressed. I loved how Kern Carter helped Coi navigate those feelings through dream sequences where she addresses the spectre of her mother and spills all of the anger and resentment that have built up over time. Big feelings are so hard to address in real life and when a person unexpectedly leaves our lives, they inevitably leave a trail in their wake. I appreciated that the story had a satisfying conclusion as the family begins to experience life after loss.

There are intense family dynamics in this book and as much as I hated the character of Lady, I also really loved her no nonsense, no sugar coating approach to her grandchild. She was a powerful force, at times so nasty and unforgiving but in the end, full of fierce love for her family.

And Then There Was Us is a book that is quite far removed from my own experience of family and growing up and that is what I loved the most about it. It’s important to me to read books like this because it’s important to understand the various ways that we all exist in the world and the different kinds of baggage we all carry. For me, books like this foster understanding and empathy. For others, this book will help a reader feel seen and understood. They will see reflections of their own families and feel comforted by feelings of understanding.