A beautiful, touching novel

⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑  Ask Again, Yes gives us a view into the lives of two families intertwined with each other through tragic events. The story starts in the 70s with Francis and Brian, rookie beat cops in New York, and their budding private lives leading them to marriage and home ownership. It seems idyllic and what every young adult strives for but as their stories develop life is not as simple as it appears. Children are born, or not born, and time moves on to reveal deeper, more troubling fissures in their relationships and lives. One day things go horribly wrong and all illusions of peace are shattered. Each family works to pick up the pieces as best they can and the reader witnesses the aftermath and how it brings them to current day.

What I loved about Ask Again, Yes was the time spent, and the specific focus on, each character during the novel. We see what occurs through the eyes of each character at points of time that matter most to each. Their thoughts, feelings and observations give an added dimension to the troubles they face. I loved Kate and Peter, the children of Francis and Brian. Their Romeo and Juliet story fills in the gaps in a satisfactory way that seems as if it will lead to a jolly happily-ever-after finale but that is not the case. Their adult lives find them in new, uncharted waters that bring them to the breaking point.

It sounds so simplistic but it isn't. The ending lingers in the mind and I have been thinking about it ever since. The characters and their situations feel real as they experience a number of heavy issues that might make anyone crumble. The warmth of the strong Gleeson family dynamic resonates and nurtures all these characters even whilst being tested. A truly lovely story that will stay with me for some time. I cannot rate it high enough. Thank you.