Little Cruelties

By Liz Nugent

Hailed by #1 New York Times bestselling author A.J. Finn as “a dark jewel of a novel,” Liz Nugent’s new work of fiction follows three Irish brothers, and delves into the many ways families can wreak emotional havoc across generations.

All three of the Drumm brothers were at the funeral.
Only one of us was in the coffin.

William, Brian, and Luke: three boys bound by blood but split by fate, trained from birth by their wily mother to compete for her attention. They play games, as brothers do...yet even after the Drumms escape into the world beyond their windows, those games—those little cruelties—grow more sinister, more merciless, more dangerous. And with their lives entwined like the strands of a noose, only two of the brothers will survive.

Crisply written and quickly paced, perfect for readers of both sophisticated literary fiction and breathtaking suspense, Little Cruelties gazes unflinchingly into the darkness: the darkness collecting in the corners of childhood homes, hiding beneath marriage beds, clasped in the palms of two brothers shaking hands. And it confirms Liz Nugent, whose novels have been celebrated as “captivating” (People) and “highly entertaining” (The Washington Post), as one of the most exciting, perceptive voices in contemporary fiction.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Release date: Nov 24, 2020
• ISBN: 9781501191329

Liz Nugent

Liz Nugent has worked in Irish film, theater, and television for most of her adult life. She is an award-winning writer of radio and television drama and has written critically acclaimed short stories both for children and adults, as well as the bestselling novels Unraveling Oliver, Lying in Wait, and Little Cruelties. She lives in Dublin and has won four Irish Book Awards, as well as the James Joyce Medal for Literature. Visit her at LizNugent.com or follow her on Twitter at @LizzieNugent.

Reviews for Little Cruelties

[grumpydan · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The opening line sets the pace of this family drama. “All three of the Drumm brothers were at the funeral. But one of them was in the coffin.” This is the story of the Drumm family which is a dysfunctional family and told from the perspective of each of the three bothers during various times of their lives and how certain events affected them. Bouncing back and forth through time and brother, it was easy to follow. I did want to know which brother was in that coffin and we learn by the end of the story, but this is a family dram and not a mystery thriller. I still enjoyed it though.

[fredamans · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Since she wrote my favorite book of 2017, I jumped at the chance to read this newest story of Liz Nugent's.These two stories couldn't be any more different though, so whatever you thought about Unraveling Oliver let it go. Read this with a clear mind.With that said, this was a family drama with a sick twist at the very, and I mean very, end.It was brilliant. It was engaging. You were sucked right into the lives of these brothers. More hoping for something to happen, and Liz Nigent didn't disappoint. She smacks the reader with such a punch that you don't even see it coming!Gawd, I love this womans' writing! Having read both books, she is now a favorite author of mine.

[kulmona · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Thank you, Edelweiss, for my complimentary e-ARC.Sibling rivalry gone horribly wrong. William, Brian, and Luke never had a warm and fuzzy brotherly relationship, always competing for everything, including their narcissistic mother's love and attention. Betrayal was constant.  Schadenfreude was abundant. Until... one died. But, who died? Why? How? The funeral in the opening scene leaves questions unanswered.Told in flashback. Written in parts from each brother's perspective and, further divided into chapters titled by year(the timeline was somewhat hard to follow because it was not chronological), Nugent delves deeply into each character's psyche and backstory. I enjoyed Unraveling Oliver so I was excited to get the opportunity to review Nugent's newest book.  Although the start was promising and the end conclusive, ultimately it was about highly dysfunctional family dynamics. It was just ok,  sometimes slow and repetitive. I guess I was expecting something more dark and sinister.