The Sullivan family are legendary in the Chicago restaurant scene. They have run their family restaurant for decades with few changes – the neighborhood has always known what to expect from the food, the people, and the ambiance. That was, until Bud, the patriarch, died. Now their kids are struggling to dictate the future of the restaurant and their grandkids just want to find their own way in the world. Will the Sullivans pull together like they used to at family dinner, or will Bud’s death be the thing that breaks their family apart.
Marrying the Ketchups is the latest release from best-selling author Jennifer Close, known for her novels Girls in White Dresses and The Hopefuls. A Chicago native, Close utilizes her local knowledge to build detailed scenes with characters readers will immediately connect with and will be sad to say goodbye to when they finish the book. This is a story about why family connections are so important, but also why settling for the purpose your family chooses for you doesn’t have to be your destiny.
I give Marrying the Ketchups 4 out of 5 stars. I loved the Sullivan family – how different yet how real each family member seemed. I also loved the setting of the family restaurant. Having grown up in a family business, the drama around who gets to make decisions and changes felt like memories! I also appreciate the inclusion of important topics like electronic bullying and politics. It was also interesting to see how the concept of marrying the ketchups ended up applying to each of the grandkids’ lives, too. I could see this book becoming a movie or TV series – the topics are so relevant and the drama relatable.
With topics of drug use, sexting, and underage drinking, I would direct this novel to more mature audiences over 16. If you love Maeve Binchy’s Quentins or Steven Rowley’s The Guncle, you will love this book. I’d also recommend this for general fiction book clubs – there is so much to discuss around each family member’s decisions!
I chose Marrying the Ketchups for the Read With Lindsey Reading Challenge prompt “set in a workplace”. This book would have also done well for previous prompts we’ve done like “about family drama” or “about siblings”. I really was sad to be done with these characters when the book was over – I felt like I needed more of the grandkids’ story, especially when they set out on their own. This was a fantastic book and I can’t wait to read more by this author!
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What I’m Reading
- Current print book: We Are All Guilty Here, Karen Slaughter
- Current audio book: Law of Attraction, Allison Leotta
- Book I’m most looking forward to: My Friends, Fredrik Backman
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