I wanted to like The Jetsetters, because the premise of a dysfunctional family on a luxury cruise seemed so promising. I loved The Nest, The Heirs, and family sagas in general. There’s also a light King Lear theme in The Jetsetters, with the three siblings, Lee, Cord, and Regan. The names really highlighted their parents’ early marriage, and forced readers to think about what kind of young couple would name their firstborn daughter after King Lear. 

The book veers between a dark family saga, with loads of huge secrets, and a summer beach read, with goofy characters and mocking descriptions of a cruise. The end result is too many deep, dark secrets revealed and then resolved into unsatisfying, forced humor. A suicide attempt lands a spot on a reality show, for example.

I just didn’t really buy any of the problems. Cord has proposed to his boyfriend, but he hasn’t actually told his family that he’s gay. This seems a bit overdone, especially since his mother is excellent at ignoring anything she doesn’t want to discuss. Cord’s also a semi-recovering alcoholic, who keeps throwing himself headlong off the wagon towards the cocktail bar, which seems like a much bigger issue and one that’s never addressed. No one mentions his drinking problem! Do they know he’s meant to be in recovery?

Lee, a struggling actress, runs out of money and moves home. (Also! Lee’s most recent ex is publicly dating his co-star, but her mom still thinks they’re together?)  Regan’s husband is cheating on her, and Regan’s a peacemaker who’s more like a doormat.  (Also! She lives for her daughters, who are shipped off to horse camp in the beginning  of the book and not mentioned again until the epilogue.) Charlotte talks about all the years of money troubles, raising 3 kids after her husband’s death, but then mysteriously has plenty of money when her kids need it?

Dramatic events happened, but nothing was resolved in a meaningful way, whether it was an accidental pregnancy or a shipboard romance. Unable to decide if it’s a story of dark family secrets or a cruise life comedy, the book falls short in both.