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Family Friends
- Author
- Chloë Ashby
- Narrator
- Sally Scott
- Publisher
- Penguin Books Ltd
- Publish Date
- 9 July 2026
- Run Time
- 9 hours 58 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
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What to expect
The literary must-read of the summer: a deeply atmospheric novel about friendship, marriage, and long-suppressed secrets. Perfect for readers of Miranda Cowley Heller's The Paper Palace, A Family Matter by Claire Lynch, and Tessa Hadley.
Since they first met at university twenty years ago, Maggie and Will have spent the last two weeks of every summer in France with their close friends, Lydia and Roland. Both families have been looking forward to this cherished annual ritual. But this year things are different.
Will has been hiding something from his wife, and is struggling to keep his deceit from seeping into the cracks in their marriage.
Maggie is worried about their withdrawn teenage son.
Roland is grappling with grief over the death of his first wife.
Lydia is trying to ignore past chemistry with an old friend while learning to play second fiddle to a ghost.
And then, into this conflicted fray steps Issy, Roland’s beguiling, irrepressible daughter from his first marriage.
As the August heat beats down, and the children find new ways to entertain themselves, it starts to feel as if the fault lines in these relationships might widen; that it might be harder to hide secrets here, under the bright sun.
Deeply atmospheric, sophisticated and compelling, Family Friends is about what happens when the ties of love and loyalty are stretched to breaking point, how relationships change (and don’t change) over time, and how we navigate the challenges thrown at us in every season of life.
'Riveting ... I was gripped from the start' Claire Powell, author of All In
'A perfect literary holiday read ... You won’t want to put it down' Roxy Dunn, author of Wants and Needs
© Chloë Ashby 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026
Critics Review
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A beautifully poised and riveting novel about the intricacies and entanglements of a group of friends holidaying in the south of France. I was gripped from the start
Claire Powell, author of All In
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An intelligent, evocative, elegant novel simmering with tension and drama. Family Friends is a forensic examination of friendship and desire, and the perils of mixing the two
Lisa Owens, author of Natural Disaster
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Delicious! So good on the way that time ties knots in relationships that trip us up further down the line. Chloë is so patient with her characters, even when they’re making terrible mistakes, whilst also keeping us hooked on her tangled plot
Lizzy Stewart, author of Alison
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Sultry and very evocative ... Contains the sort of characters you'd die to have as neighbours: chaotic, and always on the verge of their next mistake — perfect, in other words, to gossip with friends over
Jo Hamya, author of The Hypocrite
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With Family Friends Ashby has created a piercing portrait of marriage, friendship and parenthood. It is a propulsive story with intrigue, secrecy and drama – I had a wonderful time reading it
Jenny Mustard, author of What a Time to Be Alive
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Ashby writes with an eye for detail … The deft plotting makes this a novel that preoccupies you even when you’re not reading it
The Irish Times
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One of the smartest offerings in fiction this summer ... Poised and gripping, it uses a sweltering Mediterranean setting to amp up tensions to dramatic effect
Guardian
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Grief and temptation gather under the August heat in Ashby's psychologically acute novel about loyalty
The i paper, The best new books out in July
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An involving and psychologically acute portrait of marriage, friendship and loyalty tested to the limit. A sophisticated summer page-turner for Tessa Hadley fans
The Bookseller, Editor's Choice
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Ashby's background in art comes to full force in her physical descriptions ... Family Friends is at its best when it evokes the singular sensory pleasures of a summer holiday
The Sunday Times
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Chloë Ashby
- Narrator
- Sally Scott
- Duration
- 9 hours 58 minutes
- Release Date
- 9 July 2026
- ISBN
- 9781405987448
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Penguin Books Ltd
- Genre
- Modern and contemporary fiction: literary and general, Family life fiction / Stories about family, Narrative theme: love / relationships
Synopsis
The literary must-read of the summer: a deeply atmospheric novel about friendship, marriage, and long-suppressed secrets. Perfect for readers of Miranda Cowley Heller's The Paper Palace, A Family Matter by Claire Lynch, and Tessa Hadley.Since they first met at university twenty years ago, Maggie and Will have spent the last two weeks of every summer in France with their close friends, Lydia and Roland. Both families have been looking forward to this cherished annual ritual. But this year things are different.Will has been hiding something from his wife, and is struggling to keep his deceit from seeping into the cracks in their marriage.Maggie is worried about their withdrawn teenage son.Roland is grappling with grief over the death of his first wife.Lydia is trying to ignore past chemistry with an old friend while learning to play second fiddle to a ghost.And then, into this conflicted fray steps Issy, Roland’s beguiling, irrepressible daughter from his first marriage.As the August heat beats down, and the children find new ways to entertain themselves, it starts to feel as if the fault lines in these relationships might widen; that it might be harder to hide secrets here, under the bright sun.Deeply atmospheric, sophisticated and compelling, Family Friends is about what happens when the ties of love and loyalty are stretched to breaking point, how relationships change (and don’t change) over time, and how we navigate the challenges thrown at us in every season of life.'Riveting ... I was gripped from the start' Claire Powell, author of All In'A perfect literary holiday read ... You won’t want to put it down' Roxy Dunn, author of Wants and Needs© Chloë Ashby 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026
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