The Adults

By Caroline Hulse

Book Overview

"If Love, Actually and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation are your two favorite holiday movies, you're going to love The Adults."--Bustle

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY REAL SIMPLE - "Sometimes a nasty family comedy is just what you need for the holidays."--Entertainment Weekly

Meet The Adults.

Claire and Matt are no longer together but decide that it would be best for their daughter, Scarlett, to have a "normal" family Christmas. They can't agree on whose idea it was to go to the Happy Forest holiday park, or who said they should bring their new partners. But someone did--and it's too late to pull the plug. Claire brings her new boyfriend, Patrick (never Pat), a seemingly sensible, eligible from a distance Ironman in Waiting. Matt brings the new love of his life, Alex, funny, smart, and extremely patient. Scarlett, who is seven, brings her imaginary friend Posey. He's a giant rabbit. Together the five (or six?) of them grit their teeth over Forced Fun Activities, drink a little too much after Scarlett's bedtime, overshare classified secrets about their pasts . . . and before you know it, their holiday is a powder keg that ends where this novel begins--with a tearful, frightened call to the police.

What happened? They said they'd all be adults about this. . . .

Praise for The Adults

"A delectable premise . . . Hulse skewers her characters uproariously, zeroing in on every quirk, and she humanizes them, too."--Entertainment Weekly

"The ending is worth every page turned in this funny, redeeming wade through the rough tide of blended family."--San Francisco Chronicle

"Caroline Hulse's farcical debut is an ode to the big personalities and drama you find in families--unconventional and not."--Real Simple

"This wry holiday novel will make you chuckle and remind you that nobody's family is perfect. If you've ever sat through an awkward family dinner (who hasn't?), you'll relate so hard."--HelloGiggles

"Brilliantly funny."--Good Housekeeping (UK)

"Razor-sharp comedy."--Sunday Mirror

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0525511768
• ISBN13: 9780525511762
• Release Date: November 2019
• Publisher: Random House Trade
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.63 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.1" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

By Far the Worst Book I've EVER Read. But. You should read it anyway.

I bought this book December 2019 & finally read it over Christmas 2023. Its a terrible book, horrible story, unlikeable characters, all the way down to the 7-year old girl, & uncomfortable scenarios. These people are idiots, a few Narcissists in the bunch. The only Redeeming Quality this book has is that is was like reading an FML Novel & it made me thankful for my life & the people in it. The fact that I read it at Christmas time was literally the Icing on the Cake. It does suck you in & I would recommend reading it if you want to be angry at all the deceit, denial, betrayal, injustices & adult head games. Ugh!!! But. I still read it until the end.

Good writing but not my favorite story

A weekend away with your ex, their current partner, and your current partner are bound to get crazy. Claire and Matt are Scarlett’s parents but have since separated and moved on. Matt was an aggressive main character and seemed to be very judgemental if his girlfriend, Alex. Patrick, Claire’s boyfriend, is very methodical and I could see instantly why he wouldn’t blend extremely well in this situation. Scarlett had an invisible friend, a rabbit named Posey, that was a prominent secondary character and quite annoying. The rabbit was rude and not a very good influence on Scarlett. Overall I enjoyed the writing style of the author but I didn’t care much for this particular story.