The People We Keep

*4.5 stars - I enjoyed The People We Keep. Coming-of-age is a personal favorite, as well as ark stories, and this novel had those aspects in spades. Larkin channels a little Daisy Jones and the Six vibe, with the music and the transient lifestyle of our protagonist, but April is her own character and is dominated by her essential goodness, despite being dealt a bad hand. I was intrigued by the triggering aspects and how readers would react, but I found that the sweetness and the authenticity of the characters and their engagements overcame any possible cries of intentional sensationalism and I was disappointed when the story ended because I just wanted to spend a little more time in Ithaca.