IF WE'RE BEING HONEST

Gathered for a funeral in small-town Georgia, a close-knit family gets the surprise of their lives.

When Ellen Williams asks Fred Clark to give the eulogy at her husband Gerry's funeral, she has no doubt he's the man for the job: Fred was Gerry's best friend, a second father to the three now-middle-aged Williams children, and beloved by Ellen as well. Oops, bad call. After weaving his way to the pulpit, “white hair sticking up in odd places like a toddler just waking from a nap,” Fred delivers a drunken tribute that ends with a stunning assertion about who Gerry really was—and leaves the Williams family reeling. If the patriarch they adored was living a lie, what does that say about his marriage, his love for his family, and whether anyone is who they seem? Debut novelist Shook is juggling a lot of balls here, and in a tight space. The action takes place over one week in Eulalia, Georgia, between Gerry's funeral and a wedding the four grown grandkids are sticking around for, and in that time nine Williamses grapple with their shock while probing their own emotional lives. Will Delia get back with her ex? Will Alice, who has her own secret, follow her heart? Can Red reveal his true identity; will his parents mend their marriage; can Ellen ever forgive? It's hard to keep the characters straight at first, but by the time they've finished the neighbor-donated casseroles and talked it all out, you're engaged and rooting for them. Also occasionally irritated, but that's what relatives are for. "Families are crazy—I mean, look at mine," granddaughter Alice finally tells the man she loves. "But it's what I want."

An appealing, astutely observed debut about familial love and the secrets we keep.