Pubblicato in Italia con il titolo Tanti Piccoli Fuochi. Due famiglie, i Richardson, con madre, padre, e quattro figli, e i Warren, madre single con una figlia. Entrambe le famiglie vivono nel quartiere di Shaker Heights in Cleveland e non potrebbero essere più diversi. Nonostante questo, fanno parte gli uni della vita degli altri, e presto segreti e gelosie porteranno problemi nella vita di questo tranquillo quartiere.
Shaker Heights is a tranquil and utopian suburb in Cleveland, Ohio, where the Richardson family lives. The father, Bill is a successful lawyer, while his wife Elena is a journalist. They have four children: the oldest Lexie, the popular girl in high school; Trip is a year younger and his life rotates around sport and girls; Moody is the smart one with not many friends and introvert; Izzy is the black sheep of the family causing trouble and no one seems to understand her.
Their quiet and normal life is disrupted by the arrival of a mother-daughter duo, Mia and Pearl Warren. The Warren girls have rented a flat from the Richardsons and, after Moody befriends Pearl and Elena hires Mia as a cleaner, they soon become part of their family. But tension, jealousy, and secrets soon cause trouble in this quiet suburb.
Set during the Clinton’s presidency in the 1990s, the suburb of Shaker Heights reminded me of Desperate Housewives. Perfect on the outside, troubled on the inside. Everyone has secrets, some more than others, and the fear of being discovered, misunderstandings, desire to do right and to protect those they love, cause a chain of events with a few dramatic effects.
With their everyday and teenage problems and with their romantic and friendship issues, the characters are engaging, realistic, and very well-developed. They are flawed and far from perfect and I loved and hated them at the same time.
A compelling novel about friendship, love, and family I loved especially how the author explored the often difficult relationship between mothers and daughters with Mia and Pearl, Elena and Izzy, Elena and Lexie (although this relationship not so much), May-Ling (a friend of Mia) and her fight in getting back the daughter she abandoned.
This is an emotional, compelling, and dramatic novel with no happy endings or favorite characters. Nevertheless, you will still love it.
