And Then There's Margaret

By: Carolyn Clarke

Narrated by: Elly Meeks

For fans of Maria Semple’s Where’d You Go Bernadette or Camille Pagan’s I’m Fine and Neither Are You comes the perfect laugh-out-loud dramedy And Then There's Margaret, a story about marriage, midlife, and a controlling, manipulative, and self-absorbed mother-in-law thrown into the mix.

When Allison Montgomery's beloved father-in-law and long-time confidant passes away, her mother-in-law, Margaret, "temporarily" moves in. From rearranging the furniture and taking over the kitchen to undermining and embarrassing Allie at every turn, including funding her daughter's escape, throwing a hissy fit at the mall, and publicly equating Allie's glass of Chardonnay to full blown alcoholism, Margaret turns Allie's life upside down, causing her to bounce between a sincere desire to support her grieving mother-in-law and an intense urge to simply push her out of the nearest window.

Feeling annoyed, trapped, and even a little childish, Allie struggles to avoid a complete meltdown with help from her fearless and audacious best friend, a plan for reinventing herself, enjoying a second act, and, yes, a few glasses of Chardonnay. Along the way, Allie discovers the reasons behind Margaret's attitude toward her all these years. Does it help? Maybe.

• 2022 Chick Lit Cafe - CLC Book Excellence Award Winner - Women's Fiction/Humor
• 2022 Indie Book Awards Finalist - Chick Lit (Fiction)
• 2022 Maxy Awards Winner - Literary & Humor
• 2022 Readers' Choice Book Awards - Finalist - Best Adult Book
• 2022 Readers' Favorite - Finalist - Humor/Comedy

©2022 Black Rose Writing (P)2023 Beacon Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Perfect for women’s fiction books club wanting to explore complex and turbulent family relationships. It’s a playful coming of (middle-age) novel.” (IndieReader)

Fun Take On Life

Thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook. This book/audiobook is sad and funny both. Very entertaining. Highly recommend.

Catchy Title, Great Book

An Then There's Margaret is a very humorous novel that everyone can identify with as we all have relationships with difficult people. Extremely well written and I loved the narration. I laughed my way through it. Highly recommend.

Familiar Story.....in an eery way

This aubiobook is highly entertaining, and is familiar to everyone who has lived with their own Margaret. Great story, and I think many people with identify with these characters.

Bittersweet and touching

This is a funny sad and hopeful story about third acts and family changes. A fun and enjoyable read.

Relatable laugh!

This book was an easy listening good laugh. I think most married women can relate to parts of it.

Funny Take On Real Life - Thoroughly Enjoyed It

I loved this audiobook. It was funny, sad, real and a total joy to listen to. The author and narrator both did a brilliant job.

Hilariously Funny...well narrated audiobook

Highly entertaining as I think many of us have our own experiences with our own Margaret. Love all the back and forth banter....definitely an enjoyable audiobook.

OMG! Where was this book before I got married?

And I thought I had the snarkiest mother-in-law ever! She was a published writer, and a highly intelligent woman who used the majority of her skills on, trying to make me feel small. Out wedding gift was a meager copy of a Betty Crocker cookbook. Inside the cover, she penned, “Hopefully now you can learn to cook!” Once, kidding, my husband called me a dummy. Her response? “ Don’t call her stupid Jim. After all, she’s a reflection on you! You married her!” When she died, her friends said to me; “Oh Honey! She thought the world of you! I said, “She must have been very dissatisfied with the world!” This book left me not feeling so all one! I laughed and vowed never to be that mother in law to my children’s spouses!

We All Have A Margaret In Our Lives

I loved this audiobook. I laughed out loud throughout. Filled with sarcasm and wit, it is a funny and enjoyable read. It was narrated beautifully. Highly recommend.

Whine, whine, whine

I would hope that in 2023 the old tired stereotype of disapproving mother-in-law’s would be long past. The narrator of the story is overall self absorbed, immature and irresponsible in many ways. The entire story is one complaint after another and never any sense of having any maturity, despite having been in a marriage for 25 years. Even the subplots are weak and contrived. Everytime I thought, okay this will be where the one dimensional characters start having some meat to them, nope - back to the old stereotypical tropes. Women are petty against women, this woman looks for trouble and can’t get out of her own way for 20 years? Ugh.