Chances Are BOOK REVIEW

• Date Published:
  2019
• Length:
  320 pages—Listening Time: 11 hours 17 minutes
• Genre:
  Fiction
• Setting:
  2010s, with flashbacks; Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts
• Awards
  Christian Science Monitor Best Book Fiction 2019; The Guardian Book of the Day 12-26-2019
• Languages:
  Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Korean
• Sensitive Aspects:
  Toxic masculinity and male misbehavior, reductive political stereotypes (Democrats portrayed as impotent and fearful, Republicans as clueless and controlling), depiction of Trump voters as racist, sexist, and violent, physical violence and explosive rage, portrayal of Christian tourists as ignorant and rude, a subplot involving spousal abuse heavy-handed and one-dimensional treatment of the Vietnam draft era's social anxieties, opioid addiction
• Movie
  Chances Are... does not have a movie or television adaptation at this time.
• Recommended for Book Club:
  Yes

This book feels like it belongs in your beach bag—sun-warmed, a little nostalgic, and quietly compelling. As part of the Readers With Wrinkles Beach Reads Series, Chances Are... by Richard Russo instantly stood out, not with splashy hype but with the promise of something deeper. Set against the breezy, deceptively calm backdrop of Martha’s Vineyard, it invites you into a story that unfolds like a long conversation on the shore—unhurried, reflective, and just mysterious enough to keep you turning pages.

If you’ve read Russo before, you probably associate him with big, character-driven novels that earn critical acclaim and plenty of buzz. This one? It’s different. It’s what I’d call one of his “sleeper” books—the kind that didn’t quite get the attention it deserved when it came out, but absolutely should have. Because quietly, almost effortlessly, Russo delivers a story that lingers.

At its heart, this is a novel about three men reconnecting later in life, carrying decades of memories, regrets, and unanswered questions. And if you’re at that stage where you find yourself looking back—replaying choices, wondering about the roads not taken, trying to make sense of loose ends—this story might gob-smack you. It feels personal. It feels honest. It feels… familiar.

But don’t let the reflective tone fool you into thinking this is a slow or overly introspective read. Russo threads in a subtle mystery—one that hovers in the background and gradually pulls you closer. What really happened all those years ago? Why does it still matter? And can the past ever truly stay buried?

I found myself completely absorbed, turning pages not just for answers but for the emotional unraveling of these characters. Russo’s writing is so natural, so deceptively simple, that you don’t even notice how invested you’ve become until you’re in deep.

This is the kind of book that feels made for summer. Picture it: a beach chair, a soft breeze, the steady rhythm of waves in the background—and a story that quietly hooks you and refuses to let go.

Three aging college friends reunite on Martha’s Vineyard for one last weekend together at a weathered beach house that has witnessed more than its share of secrets. Lincoln, Teddy, and Mickey first met in the late 1960s at a small Connecticut college; bonded over work-study jobs in a sorority kitchen; and cemented their friendship during a post‑graduation trip to this same island. Back then, they were young, broke, and standing on the edge of adulthood, with the Vietnam draft, complicated families, and uncertain futures pressing in from every direction.

Now it’s decades later, and all three men have taken very different paths: Lincoln is a successful real estate broker and family man; Teddy is a sensitive small-press editor wrestling with anxiety and self-doubt; and Mickey is a hard‑living musician who never quite learned how to slow down. They’ve each brought their own private regrets and unfinished business to this reunion, even if they’re not ready to say it out loud. What they do share is a lingering ache over Jacy Calloway—the magnetic, wealthy classmate they all adored, who vanished after that long-ago Vineyard weekend and was never seen again.

As the men settle into the familiar house and wander the island’s beaches, bars, and back roads, memories begin to surface, and the past presses in on the present. Old loyalties and rivalries shift, long‑buried questions about Jacy’s disappearance resurface, and each man is forced to reckon with what he remembers, what he’s chosen to forget, and what he might have misunderstood all along. The novel blends the gentle rhythm of a character-driven story with the slow burn of a mystery, as the weekend on Martha’s Vineyard becomes less about nostalgia and more about finally facing the truth—about Jacy, about their friendship, and about themselves.

Chances Are... is not loud or flashy but rather quietly powerful in a way that sneaks up on you. If you’re an older reader, or just someone who’s started looking backward as much as forward, this one has your name all over it. Here are some reasons I think you’ll genuinely enjoy it:

It understands later-life reflection

This book gets that point in life where you start asking, “What exactly happened back there—and what did it all mean?” The three main characters are in their sixties, looking back at old friendships, missed chances, and the choices that shaped them. You’re not watching young people “find themselves”; you’re watching older adults reassess themselves, which is a very different, more honest, journey.

It’s a mystery… but not a gimmicky one

Yes, there’s a mystery at the center—a disappearance that’s gone unsolved for decades—but Russo doesn’t treat it like a puzzle box thriller. Instead, the mystery is woven into the emotional lives of the characters: what they remember, what they’ve buried, what they can’t forgive themselves for. You get the satisfaction of wanting to know “what really happened” and the deeper satisfaction of seeing how that answer changes the people involved.

The characters feel like real people you might know

These men aren’t idealized, polished versions of aging; they’re flawed, funny, stubborn, and sometimes a little lost. You’ll recognize pieces of people you’ve known—a brother, an old friend, maybe even yourself—in their mistakes and their tenderness. Their banter has the lived-in feel of friendships that have survived marriages, careers, disappointments, and time.

It’s perfect for older readers wrestling with loose ends

If you’ve ever found yourself replaying old decisions, wondering if you misread someone, or wishing you could go back and ask different questions, this book will resonate. Russo leans into the emotional work of tying up loose ends—not in a neat, tidy way, but in a way that feels grounded and believable. It’s comforting to watch characters your age (or close to it) do that same hard, messy mental sorting you’re probably doing, too.

The writing is smooth, smart, and easy to sink into

Russo’s prose is unpretentious but sharp. You’re not wading through dense, showy writing; you’re gliding through sentences that feel natural, like someone telling you a great story over coffee. He’s funny without being cute, thoughtful without being heavy-handed, and succinct without ever feeling shallow. It’s the kind of writing that makes you say, “Just one more chapter,” and suddenly it’s midnight.

It’s a “sleeper” gem in Russo’s catalog

This isn’t one of the Russo novels everyone shouts about, and that’s actually part of the charm. It feels like discovering a great little restaurant the tourists haven’t ruined yet. You get that satisfaction of reading something beautiful and thinking, “Why aren’t more people talking about this?” It gives you that little thrill of having found a hidden gem—and then recommending it to your friends.

The Martha’s Vineyard setting is pure summer escapism

You get the sea air, the old house, the island rhythms, without ever leaving your chair. It has that delicious “off-season beach town” mood—beautiful, a little melancholy, and full of memories. If you like your summer reads to give you both sun and shadow—something thoughtful but still absolutely vacation‑worthy—this setting makes the story feel like a long, absorbing beach day.

It respects your intelligence and your experience

This isn’t a book that talks down to you or rushes you. It assumes you can sit with ambiguity, mixed feelings, and complicated people. It trusts that you’ve lived enough life to appreciate nuance: friendships that are both loving and fraught, memories that are both golden and painful, endings that are satisfying without being saccharine.

If you’re craving a book that treats aging as something rich and complicated rather than a punchline, and you like a gently suspenseful story that keeps you turning pages without cheap tricks, Chances Are… is absolutely worth your time.

Here are some books that will hit similar notes for readers who loved Chances Are…—older protagonists, long memories, friendships under pressure, and secrets that don’t stay buried.

That Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo
A middle‑aged Hollywood screenwriter returns to Cape Cod for back‑to‑back weddings and finds himself ambushed by memories of his parents, his marriage, and the life he thought he was building. Like Chances Are…, it blends rueful humor with emotional reckoning, using a coastal setting as the stage for one man’s late‑life stocktaking about love, loyalty, and the stories we tell ourselves.

Empire Falls by Richard Russo
Set in a fading mill town in Maine, this Pulitzer Prize–winning novel follows Miles Roby, a weary restaurant manager juggling divorce, small‑town politics, and the long shadow of his past. It shares Chances Are…’s deep compassion for flawed characters, its slow‑burn revelations about old secrets, and its interest in how the choices we made decades ago still shape who we are now.

Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo
This sprawling novel traces the intertwined lives of Louis C. Lynch, his wife Sarah, and their charismatic childhood friend Bobby through decades of small‑town history and personal disappointment. Readers who appreciated the way Chances Are… moves between youth and old age will find similar pleasures here: long friendships, buried regrets, and the uneasy realization that your memories may not match the truth. Read my full review here.

Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
Stegner’s quiet classic follows two couples whose friendship begins in the 1930s and stretches across a lifetime of career struggles, illness, and shifting power dynamics. Instead of a central crime, the “mystery” is emotional: how love and loyalty endure—or don’t—over time, making it a natural fit for readers drawn to Chances Are…’s reflective tone and older characters looking backward.

The Guncle by Steven Rowley
A semi‑retired, middle‑aged former sitcom star unexpectedly becomes guardian to his young niece and nephew and retreats with them to his Palm Springs home for one bittersweet summer. While lighter in tone than Chances Are…, it similarly mixes humor, grief, and second chances, with an older protagonist forced to reexamine his past and decide what kind of future he’s willing to risk.

This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper
When their father dies, the Foxman siblings are summoned back to their childhood home for a week of sitting shiva, reopening old wounds and long-buried rivalries. Like Russo, Tropper balances sharp, often dark humor with genuine feeling, using a family reunion structure that will appeal to readers who enjoyed Chances Are…’s reunion‑plus‑reckoning setup.

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The Cider House Rules by John Irving
This expansive novel follows Homer Wells, an orphan raised in rural Maine, and his surrogate father, Dr. Larch, over decades marked by ethical dilemmas, forbidden love, and wartime upheaval. Readers who liked the moral complexity and long historical shadows in Chances Are… may appreciate Irving’s similarly rich character work and his interest in how private choices collide with public events.

A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon
A man in his late fifties spirals into anxious obsession over a minor skin lesion just as his family descends into chaos around an upcoming wedding. Haddon’s novel, like Russo’s, treats aging, fear, and family dysfunction with wry humor and empathy, giving older readers a protagonist whose midlife unraveling feels both absurd and painfully recognizable.

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