The Two Family House
Publisher St. Martin, March 8, 2016
In the midst of a blizzard, in a two-family brownstone, two babies are born, minutes apart. The mothers are sisters by marriage: dutiful, quiet Rose, who wants nothing more than to please her demanding husband; and warm, generous Helen, the exhausted mother of four rambunctious boys who seem to need her less and less each day. Having raised their children side by side, Rose and Helen share an impenetrable bond forged before and during that dramatic winter night.
When the storm passes, everyone seems to have gotten what they wanted, but the truth is not the simple. As the years progress, small cracks start to appear and the once deep friendship between the two women begins to unravel. No one knows why, and no one can stop it, but everyone’s lives have been shaped by that evening. One misguided choice; one moment of tragedy. Heartbreak wars with happiness and almost, but not quite, wins. Moving and evocative, The Two-Family House is a heart-wrenching, gripping multigenerational story, woven around the deepest of secrets.
“In The Two-Family House, young sisters-in-law are thrown together in a single home, where their children live as near siblings in what on the surface seems an ideal life. Lynda Cohen Loigman plumbs the hidden world beneath the happy faces turned to the world with insight, honesty, and compassion, and in doing so explores universal truths about family, and love, and loss. I will certainly be giving a copy of this utterly charming novel to my own dearest sister-in-law.”
— Meg Waite Clayton author of The Wednesday Sisters and The Race for Paris
“Two families, both living in one house, drive an exquisitely written novel of love, alliances, the messiness of life and long buried secrets. Loigman’s debut is just shatteringly wonderful and I can’t wait to see what she does next.”
— Caroline Leavitt, author, New York Times Bestselling of Is This Tomorrow and Pictures of You
“THE TWO-FAMILY HOUSE is a poignant yet fast-paced family saga. With insight and honesty, Lynda Cohen Loigman’s debut novel taps into our greatest joys and deepest fears. Loigman skillfully reveals the underbelly of a dark family secret as well as the shocking consequences that span decades and ripple through many lives. I was swept away by the family dynamics, emotion, and mystery, and couldn’t put down this book.”
— Amy Sue Nathan, author of The Glass Wives
“I read the short, gripping prologue, then immediately reread it to bask again in the delicious sense of mystery. The Two-Family House explores the impact of a split-second decision on the lives of two related families. I was fascinated by the intriguing blend of personalities as the characters experienced both tragedy and joy, inextricably bound together by blood and deception. With great skill and compassion, Lynda Cohen Loigman turns a story about complex family dynamics into a novel you won’t be able to put down.”
— Diane Chamberlain, author of Silent Sister and Necessary Lies
