Friends of the Museum by Heather McGowan
Friends of the Museum
by Heather McGowan
Contemporary | Literary
496 Pages
Released April 2025
Rating: ★★★★ 1/2
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Content Warnings
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books (Washingtons Square Press) for a copy of this ARC! This book was a crazy ride from start to finish!
When I read that Mona Awad blurb this book, I knew immediately that I had to read it and after perusing the first few pages and seeing a character list was provided, I knew I was in for a wild and unique ride.
Diane Schwebe is the director of a famous New York Museum. Supporting her are a whole array of other Museum workers: Chris, her steadfast and reliable assistant; Henry, the Museum’s lawyer; Shay, the Museum’s head of security, and many more. Friends of the Museum takes place over the course of 24 tumultuous hours on the day of the Museum’s annual Gala - meant to woo donors for their continued patronage. But as tensions mount over the course of the day, each of the characters break in their own way, one of them with their life.
This book was such interesting concept, both in topic and design. There are no chapters, which may be dismaying to some readers. Instead, this book is laid out in a sort of minute-by-minute breakdown that span approximately 24 hours. Another thing unusual about this book is the way McGowan tackles dialog. There aren’t quotation marks and words are often intermingled with action. It’s like a whisper of a screenplay that’s been novelified. It took a little bit getting used to but once my brain wrapped around the strange approach, it felt more organic and realistic than what you normally get in a book. This book is a masterclass in storytelling - specifically showing not telling.
This story also follows a very large cast of characters. At first I was concerned that I’d never be able to tell them all apart but McGowan does an incredible job of giving each character their own voice. By about half way through the book I had a strong grasp of who each person was. That said, I appreciate that the beginning of the book starts with a quick summary of the cast because I referred to it often (I thought this would be annoying but surprisingly it didn’t bother me much). These characters are all riddled with flaws, weighed down by their personal and work-related dilemmas.
I also really enjoyed the atmosphere. Over the course of the day you can feel the stress building across all the characters as they suffer mishaps both in the workplace and in their personal lives. This story is an incredible pressure cooker of a novel, a delicious slow burn tension that you can feel is building up to some sort of tragedy and McGowan does not let down. This story is gritty, uncomfortable and unapologetically human.
This book will not be for everyone. The departure of traditional dialog and chapters will no doubt worry some, as will the massive cast of characters. But I strongly encourage readers to push past these concerns and give this story a try. It’s a fantastic book!
This book releases on April 15th, 2025.