Returns and Exchanges

by Kayla Rae Whitaker

A sweeping novel of one Kentucky family’s rise and fall throughout the 1980s—a tragicomic tour de force about love and marriage, parents and children, and the perils of mixing family with business, from the acclaimed author of The Animators

It’s December 24, 1979, just before closing at Baker-Taylor’s discount department store, and Fran (née Baker) is surveying her domain. Her husband, Fred, is charming customers in the front of the store, while last-minute shoppers in the toy aisle are fighting over the lone remaining Atari. The older Taylor kids are on register, while the younger ones’ chaos is contained to the stockroom. All is right in the world as the new decade approaches.

With four healthy children and financial stability their own parents could have only dreamed of, Fred and Fran are the picture of the American Dream—rags to riches—with a successful chain of family-owned stores built on years of hard work and long hours. Underneath the surface, however, the business is changing at a breakneck pace, and each member of the family is struggling to keep up.

Money is transforming Fred, and the extremes he will go to in order to fit in with the slicked-back high society crowd of Lexington, Kentucky, are embarrassing, if not downright dangerous. Josiah, the oldest son, wants nothing to do with the family business; Sam is seeing things that might not really be there; and Benny and Birdie are growing up with a fraction of the parenting that their older brothers had. Meanwhile, Fran, her family’s stable core, is falling for Wendy, a cashier at Baker-Taylor’s, risking everything along the way. While trying to maintain the facade of a perfect success story, Fred and Fran learn that in matters of love and money, once it’s gone, it’s gone—no returns, no exchanges.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary, Family Drama, Audiobook, Adult

419 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 19, 2026

About the author

Kayla Rae Whitaker’s work has appeared in The Los Angeles Times, Buzzfeed, Literary Hub, Electric Literature, and others. Her debut novel, THE ANIMATORS, was named one of the best debut novels of 2017 by Entertainment Weekly and one of the best books of 2017 by NPR, Kirkus Reviews, and BookPage. Her second novel, RETURNS AND EXCHANGES, will be published by Random House in May 2026.

Reviews

[Kristy]

An absolutely excellent generational saga, chronicling the rise and fall of the Taylor family, headed by Fran (Baker) Taylor and her husband, Fred. The pair are expanding their chain of Baker-Taylor stores, while raising Josiah (their eldest, who wants little to do with his family); Sam (struggling with mental health issues); and their youngest, Benny and Birdie, who are enjoying the freedom that their newly distracted parents bring.

Following the family from the 1970s and beyond, this story is incredibly well-written, giving us well-drawn characters via a multi-POV tale. It's heartbreaking at times, exploring the concepts of motherhood, patriarchy, and money, money, money! Fred wants more of it while Fran finds herself falling for Wendy, a cashier in one of their stores.

The story highlights how different LGBT individuals were treated in the 1980s--Fran is the heart of her family, yet her heart is with a (forbidden) other. The relationships are nuanced, taunt, and fraught with emotion.

This story starts a bit slow, but it's incredibly compelling. I was completely caught up in the trials and tribulations of this family, and I think you will be, too.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Random House in return for an unbiased review.

[Emily Poche · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Random House for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker is an impressive, sprawling American family novel. Concerning the Taylor family, the owners and operators of Baker-Taylor discount store, it follows them through their rise and inevitable fall. The story is at once a portrait of the pitfalls of the American dream and of an evolving American family.

This book was absolutely captivating. Even though the pace of this book is slow and measured at times, it manages to maintain a high level of engagement as it skips from family member to family member. The way that the shifting focus and relatively leisurely pace manage to hold the reader’s attention is through absolutely meticulous character work. I thought that Whitaker did some of the most impressive character building I have recently read. Each of the Taylor family member, and many of the secondary characters, is distinctive and deeply detailed. They have speech patterns that are distinct, and unique emotional reactions that feel so natural to the characters the author has created. As the book progresses, each of the characters evolves and changes, in a way that is both interesting and realistic. There’s never a whiplash of choices or a complete 180 in terms of characterization. The ways that the players in this story evolve is so thoughtful and sensible. I also appreciated that there are very few true black-and-white characters in this story. Our main cast of six are given layered and complex attributes. Characters can be unfaithful wives but doting mothers, or driven businessmen who are out of touch and personally ineffectual.

I also loved the way that the American South plays its own character in this story. The economic and business climate is what underscores the story, including the looming threat of “the Beast,” a thinly veiled zeal-Mart clone. Whether it’s the attitudes of the established, moneyed, Lexington class or the reaction to the Taylor’s divorce, the role or the late 80’s Kentucky features heavily.

I was so happy to receive an ARC from NetGalley because this was a book that I really sunk my teeth into. I thought it was fascinating and yet not completely gut wrenching. I would recommend this as a book to both read and keep an eye on, 5/5 well-deserved stars.

[Liz Hein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kirkus called this a blue collar Franzen novel, and…yes.

[Tess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Completely blown away by this epic novel! I had just been wondering when her follow-up to her incredible THE ANIMATORS would be and I understand the wait. This sprawling family drama, which spans decades, is juicy, heartfelt, and quite the deep dive into a family business struggling to come of age, alongside the family itself. You are going to love this one, put it on the top of your 2026 reads NOW

[Rena Boord · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this arc form the publisher. This is an absolutely wonderful novel that will stay with you long after you have finished reading it. The characters are so finely drawn (especially Fred!) that you will start to recognize them as people from your own life.

[Miss Murder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Real rating: 3.5 stars, rounded down

I was super into the first 200 pages of the book and was surprised I was only halfway through after all of the plot that happens that I figured would naturally come to a close soon. Instead, I got another 200 pages of what felt like very slow character development to make up for a very fast-paced beginning.

Unfortunately, that left me feeling bored at times and wondering what the meandering character vignettes meant to accomplish. I’m sure the purpose was to get that “second generation” feel from it, but it fell somewhat flat at times. Wish it would’ve started from the beginning without solely focusing on the children in the second half of the book.

Regardless, it was interesting to me and I liked the overall story & feel. The writing was a bit confusing at times in the beginning because it seemed as thought characters were thrown in without introduction and was very confusing.

[Sheila The Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really excited to start Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker because everything about it sounded like something I would normally really enjoy. I loved the cover right away, the description hooked me immediately, and I was especially interested in the late 70s and 80s setting because this is basically the world I grew up in. Fred and Fran are around my parents age, so I really thought this was going to be one of those family stories that pulled me in emotionally.

And honestly, I did really enjoy the beginning. I liked the whole family-owned department store setting and the way the story starts out right before Christmas in 1979. It had a lot of potential for me.

But somewhere around the 30% mark, I realized I just wasn’t feeling much emotionally from the story itself, and I think that ended up being the biggest issue for me. I kept wanting to feel more connected to these people and more invested in what was happening to them, but I never really got there. The story moves around between a lot of different perspectives, and instead of making me feel closer to the family, it actually made me feel more disconnected from them.

I also think I wanted a little more nostalgia from the time period than I ended up getting. Since this is such a familiar era to me, I thought that alone would make me connect more deeply, but it just never fully clicked for me the way I hoped it would.

A lot of the book focuses on Fred and how frustrating everyone around him finds him, and after a while I just found myself losing interest instead of becoming more invested. By the end, I finished it mostly because I wanted to see it through.

I can definitely see this working better for readers who love big multi-generational family stories, but for me, I just never found that emotional connection I was hoping for.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

[Stephanie Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book. It will without a doubt be in my top three this year. I loved the characters, the story, the writing. It had grit and heart.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

[Kris V · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read The Animators when it first came out and was blown away, so I knew that whatever Whitaker wrote next I had to read and I was *not* disappointed. What we have here is an epic tale that spans generations within a family line. What begins on Christmas Eve in 1979 in Kentucky, and ends in 2015 and told by the Matriarch of the family, is a story about a family’s journey with their line of discount stores and their evolution of each member as they change and grow and branch out into who they’re meant to be. It’s a whirlwind of a novel that was impossible to put down, writing that pulls you in and makes you laugh as hard as it makes you cry for their losses. I honestly found myself initially saddened by the ending only because I realized I hadn’t wanted it to be over, which is a sign of a really good book.

I thank Random House for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I have pre-ordered my own copy because I want this beautiful book on my shelves, and I highly recommend everyone else purchase a copy as well.

Kayla Rae Whitaker is a treasure.

[Jillian B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a family undergoing constant change: rising and falling wealth, mental health crises, and marital tensions. Though they are, at times, cruel to one another, the Taylors remain connected. The complexity of the relationships feels realistic. Readers will enjoy following the deeply imperfect Taylor clan through all the messiness of life. Full review on BookBrowse: https://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/in...

[BookByBook karenreadslotsofbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

BOOK REVIEW:
Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker 4.5⭐s
PUB DATE: May 19, 2026

I was immediately drawn to this work of historical fiction for the 1980s nostalgia. Whitaker’s family drama takes place in 1980s Kentucky and provides a unique premise that tells a story about the trials and tribulations of mixing family and business.

Synopsis: The story centers around Fred and Fran, the owners of a chain of Taylor-Baker’s, discount stores that provide a second home for the four children they are raising: Josiah, Sam, Benny, and Birdie. The cast of characters includes board members, extended family, friends, and neighbors. Fred and Fran begin from humble beginnings, work hard, and grow their business. As business grows and as the economy changes, so do the power struggles, the lifestyle, the dynamics of the marriage, the parenting, and how each child’s relationship with their parents and the feelings about Taylor-Baker’s changes. It is evident that each character’s feeling of self-worth directly impacts the choices they make. Despite the tumultuous dramas and ups and downs the family experiences, a tight bond exists. Each character’s willingness to self-reflect and determine the importance of money, success, love, and acceptance helps this family to continue to remain united, valuing family over glory. However, when one family member continues to seek money, material possessions, and praise, greed and pride threaten the foundation of this family.

My Thoughts: This family feels real. Each member struggles with their own demons during a time period in the South that has deep rooted societal expectations of the roles of husbands, wives, sons, and daughters. It is interesting and at times sad to see how greed, money, power, and “the good old boys’ club” mentality affect people who love each other. I rooted for Fran and the siblings as they each come to terms with their relationships with each other and are able to empathize with each other, seeing things from the other’s perspective. Whitaker satisfyingly draws the story to a conclusion by fast forwarding to 2025 as the new generation learns the story of the rise and fall of the Baker-Taylor family.
The only reason I did not give this 5 stars is because of the first 20% of the book. The story immediately kicks off with a large number of characters and what feels like a constant dialogue between them. I struggled to figure out who was who and how to make sense of the dialogue as it jumped from one conversation to another. After passing the 20% mark, the story settled into a steady flow allowing me to get to know each character deeply. I am glad I stuck it out and kept reading. Reflecting, I am guessing the author’s purpose in the chaotic beginning was to paint the picture of the hecticness of life for this family trying to run a business and raise a family.

I highly recommend reading Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with a digital copy of this book.

[PJ S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Random House for this ARC.

Wow, I was not prepared for how much I loved this book. Such an emotional journey through the Taylor family’s rise and fall … and rise.
What started somewhat slow and benign quickly became a page-turner, riding a roller coaster of emotions through an entire family’s worth of riveting characters. There wasn’t a single person in this story that I wasn’t invested in. Even the ones I hated, I was rapt by.

I was definitely not at all prepared for a heartbreaking story about anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, or criminally egregious sexism. I’m old enough to remember the before times, but not old enough to really understand how bad it was. Kayla Whitaker has done such a thorough and historically accurate, and also gut-wrenching, job of recreating that world for us. I imagine we will be seeing this book all over ‘recommended reads’ lists, for its cultural relevance and highlighting of the stories of marginalized peoples.

Beyond the cultural context and morality play of it all, Returns & Exchanges is such a good story. A narrative so deep and descriptive that I felt like I was a member of the Taylor family myself. Watching the kids grow up. Watching the adults grow up. Predicting how they would lash out, based on historical behaviors, like how I’d gossip within my own family. The lit-fic version of “world building,” I guess.

I would be happy to see this one optioned for screen. But I’d also be very happy to preserve it in print, in its perfect form, where Fran and Fred and Wendy and Luce and Jack exist only in my mind, untainted by some Hollywood director’s perception of what they should look and act like. Which would be very ironic, for a story whose entire premise is about the dangers of hubris and living for your public image.

[Caitlin Underwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First, thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC of this incredible book.

I’ve been really into family dramas lately, especially if they take place in the 80s, so every bit of the description of this book spoke to me — but I had no idea how much I’d absolutely fall in love with the Baker-Taylor family. I loved the structure of this book, with (nearly) every family member getting a strong focus. I love that it spanned decades, letting you really fall in love (or not!) with each character. Even the side characters were dynamic and well fleshed out. The entire book was completely engrossing and I found myself getting lost in it over and over again.

I hope you all fall in love with this book, and this family, as much as I did.

[Caitlin Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dang this was SO GOOD. Easily a favorite of the here for me. I stayed up too late many nights unable to pull myself out of it, such is the magic of her stories, characters, and the way she writes. A sweeping character-driven, family saga, hard to put down. A journey through the rise and fall of a family business in Kentucky from the 60s-ish (?? The dates were sometimes hard to parse) through the 90s. Heartfelt, somewhat nostalgic and often frustrating for its realism, and so very well done. Her writing is a subtle wallop, she trusts the reader so beautifully and has a way of bringing you along with characters you feel you know, even when you wish you didn’t.

We waited a long time for the follow up to her debut, The Animators, but read this and you’ll understand why. KRW has done it again. Pick that one up while you wait for this to drop on May 19! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC and please immediately add me to the list for her next one!!!

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker is a solid family saga about ambition, money, and all the messy dynamics that come with both.

It reminded me a lot of books by Jonathan Franzen—that same close look at family, success, and the quiet damage people do to each other without meaning to. It’s not a fast read, but I stayed invested in the family and how their choices played out. Thoughtful and well written.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

[This Curly Arab · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Baker-Taylor family is complicated, and the story leans into that. It’s divided into three parts, with each section giving perspective from different family members. You end up experiencing the full scope of the story through these varied viewpoints, which adds so much depth.

What stood out most to me was how the characters evolved into their truest selves over time. Watching who grew and who regressed felt very real and honestly a little uncomfortable in a way that works.

At its core, this is a story about how messy and complicated family can be. Whitaker does such a compelling job exploring obligation, love, and the choices people have to make to move forward.

This book pulls you in slowly. At first, it feels like you’re just reading about a family dealing with everyday hardships, but then it opens up into something much richer layered with complexity, devotion, and emotion.

I was really impressed by this one. Such a strong second novel, and Kayla Rae Whitaker is definitely an author to keep an eye on.

*ARC provided by Random House through NetGalley for my honest review

[Edie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I make every attempt to hold back from doling out a 5 star review too often because I feel it dilutes my words/voice. Still...Returns & Exchanges is a 5 star read & deserves your time &/or a purchase. I was initially confused by the table of contents because of the book's chapter structure, but it makes complete sense when you start reading.

I was alive & in college when the book's timeline first started. By the time it ended, I was juggling a career, a house, a newborn & a Husband. Sadly, the same issues that this book discusses are still front & center with working Families (no matter the wealth or lack thereof).

The reality of Family can be painful & these characters (Fran & Fred) will stay with you long after you finish. (I personally pictured "Fred" as orange, bloated & well you probably have an idea of who I might mean)?

I had each of the 4 living Children pictured in my mind, too - In the early chapters, there are 5 so you aren't confused. I have an imagine of Fran & how she juggled an ever-expanding full-time retail business, She also pulled her car into Fred's dream home each evening & started her 2nd shift with her large Family. Everyone seemed to deposit their problems at her feet.

I applaud the book's platform of writing individuals that were in same-sex relationships, dealing with white male supremacy in the home & business setting, infidelity, divorce & mental health. Coming from a legal background, the depiction of the inequity of divorce courts was 100% accurate.

I felt reading Returns & Exchanges was a sort of time travel. I remember a Family that had department stores in my small town growing up. I knew them well & I knew the turbulence of retail in the late 1970s - the early 1990s. This book went from starting it & not being so sure to a growing admiration & a final 5 star review for how precise & vivid of a snapshot appeared on the pages. I look forward to reading the author's previous book & I hope this is only the beginning of her writing.

I thank NetGalley, the publisher & the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair & honest review.

[Sara Jayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 🌟 rounded up

"It's what they believe being a man is that's the issue. Imagine you are told that you are in charge of every room you enter from age four on. You are told how paramount you are. That you're the best and brightest and strongest and most beloved - and that, in the end, you will win."

"Returns and Exchanges" follows the Taylor family through the decades as they achieve the American Dream and find the fractures in the reality behind the empty promise.

This story is 100% character driven and centered - everything that matters in this story comes down to the family (both blood and found). It's told through grief and anger and happiness and love and spite and desperation and every other emotion that comes from a dysfunctional, imperfect family. The quiet consistency of homophobia and sexism and racism (though the last is not as thoroughly explored in this, merely gestured to). Bittersweet in a lot of ways, where no magical solution is presented and people get unfair treatment that doesn't go fully answered, but even in those moments, find joy and love with who matter.

It's a simple plot with a complex story and I found it to be excellent, personally - a wide cast of characters that doesn't feel bloated or stretched thin and uses each POV to it's strength.

My one criticism is that the epilogue feels a touch rushed - that could've maybe been split up, have part be a regular chapter, then made the epilogue a bit more concise at the end.

If you need a story that has a big, external plot and motivation to move it forward, this won't be for you. But if you enjoy character dissection and internal motivations that make you swing between rooting for characters to being quietly disappointed then back again (along with some to flat out love and others to flat out hate), you should pick this up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this early!

[Stuart Rosen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In an ambitious follow-up to her wonderful The Animators, author Whitaker creates a saga of a family, the owners of a growing regional department store chain.

This is a deceptively complex novel, dashing your expectations along the way, all to the benefit of the book. You think it's going to be a love story between the married matriarch of the family and a younger woman, and it is, but much of that relationship is played out off-screen, and the novel is more interested putting that affair in the context of family dynamics and the the social attitudes of the time (1979-1985, by and large). You think that the younger two children will be unexplored background characters, but over the course of the book they take center stage and, ultimately, the book is as much about them as about the ostensibly central relationships.

The book, while stuffed to the brim with ideas, characters and relationships, would benefit from an even longer length, to allow for what happens to the oldest sibling after he recedes from the main story, and to perhaps add some shading to the character of the father; in his case, there is some effort to provide some ambiguity around what would otherwise be a pretty unsympathetic character, but those efforts seemed almost tacked on. And I was hoping for more about the nuts-and-bolts of running their business (and its looming Walmart-like competition), which was more a part of the beginning of the book than the end.

But these are minor concerns - the book is alive with ideas and characters and, indeed, some of my favorite people in this book are on the periphery of the story. Whitaker writes with sympathy for her characters and with an ambitious scope. I can't wait to read what she comes up with next.

Many thanks to Random House and NetGalley for the advance copy.

[Jesaka Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kayla Rae Whitaker's THE ANIMATORS is one of my favorite books, so I was thrilled to see she had new novel coming out. RETURNS AND EXCHANGES is an interesting concept, starting with a family-owned discount retail store in the 1980s. The through line of stores like Baker-Taylor's and the disappearance of family-owned regional stores is fascinating. The arrival of the Beast stores felt like the arrival of the Costco-type warehouse stores and the way this is treated in the novel--with characters worried about it, gossiping about it, finding it shrouded in some mystery--was excellent.

Overall, I was not sure why I was reading RETURNS AND EXCHANGES. In THE ANIMATORS, the narrative driver was largely what the two main characters would do as a follow-up to their first film, a breakout success. It had an urgency to it. In contrast, RETURNS AND EXCHANGES did not have any urgency in its storytelling and, as I read, there was nothing I was asking myself as I turned the pages. However, I kept turning the pages. Was it the writing? Possibly! I highlighted quite a few great sentences. Was it the characters? Maybe. I was especially interested in Benny and Birdie as they grew up; although in the earlier chapters I was so very confused about their ages. I found the story of Sam to be very compelling and really enjoyed getting to read some of the book from his perspective. I also found Fran and Wendy's relationship very interesting and I did care about where that would go. (I do confess, however, that I skipped to the ending to make sure there was no "kill your gays" trope, especially give then time the story takes place and the family's worry about Fran's safety.)

[Liz Aguiar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital copy of Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker publishing May 19, 2026.

Requested this ARC based on a review from Amy Allen Clark from The Book Gang and was lucky to receive approval also.

A family drama in the 80’s, combined with making your mark in the discount retail market; rags to riches is a recipe for disastrous events. The Baker-Taylor’s… mom of 4, running the department store with her eager husband. Told from multiple perspectives of the players in their story over 20+ years.

Admittedly, the first 40% is setting the stage and introducing several characters of leading the store/family into the hearts of the shoppers. How much do you sacrifice of your morals to keep up with charade? Time will only tell.

The first 2 children were able to experience the “old” days before the blast of wealth while the other 2 youngsters only know the “after”.

Definitely more character driven plot with focus of the environmental factors that mold each and everyone’s values. Feel I cannot describe much more without any content spoilers.

The author’s ability to be so thorough with each character development had me hate and love them too throughout the plot. Though; will say I had a negative opinion of most of them which may be a good reason to pick up the book or the opposite effect…

I would rate this 3.5, rounded up. This one was struggle to continue to pick up and did take me a month to complete. There was enough to continue to see how it all played out vs a DNF.

Thank you again for the opportunity to share my thoughts and opinions.

[Stephanie Peterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker. i typically find the multi-character POV writing style difficult to follow (and there were a lot of key players in this book) but the way this novel was written, i found that i enjoyed it immensely – shifts were subtle and deliberate, adding depth and context to the narrative.

the first half relays the struggles of managing a burgeoning business and keeping up appearances through the eyes of the store's owners, Fran and Fred, and their oldest children, Josiah and Sam. the latter half then takes a darker turn into what feels like a reckoning, focusing on their younger children Benny and Birdie, who watched their parents painstakingly build a business in their youth only to witness its slow demise in their adulthood. as Fred continues to lose purchase with the children, Fran becomes more self-assured in living as her true self, extending grace and understanding to a community that doesn't accept her way of life. it's deeply moving and powerful.

i really loved this story, but felt that it dragged a bit in the beginning and could have benefited from some editing. now i'm really looking forward to reading The Animators for book club this year!

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Family. And a family business. This is the sprawling story of the Fran and Fred Baker Taylor, their children Josiah, Sam, Benny, and Birdie and their retail business. It's also the love story between Fran and Wendy and its impact on everything. Fran is the driving force behind all of it, the one who keeps the business and family together while Fred just wants more and more. Know that you might be a bit confused in the beginning keeping the members of the board straight and that this might feel slow but it's deliberate and devastating in spots. The story is moved through the perspective of each of the children. Of Josiah who goes to Vanderbilt and wants more, of Sam who struggles with his mental health, of Benny of the huge heart, and Birdie, the athlete. Fran and Wendy can't quit each other (although Wendy tries) and eventually their relationship brings everything to a head. Whitaker leans in on attitudes toward LGBTQI in Kentucky in the 1980s. There's a lot to chew on here with characters who feel very real. My only quibble is the time jump at the end which was hazy (to me) on who was related to who. Regardless, it's beautifully written and compelling. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Terrific read.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kayla Rae Whitaker’s Returns and Exchanges is the kind of sprawling family saga that completely pulls you into the lives of its characters, tracing the Taylor family’s ambitions, fractures, and shifting loyalties across decades in the American South. What stood out most to me was how layered and human everyone felt; no one is simplified into a hero or villain, even as greed, patriarchy, repression, and the pursuit of status steadily reshape the family and their discount-store empire. The novel takes its time early on, introducing a large cast and a busy web of relationships, but once the story settles into its rhythm it becomes deeply absorbing. Whitaker does an incredible job capturing both the intimacy of family dynamics and the broader cultural realities of the 1980s South, particularly the hostility faced by LGBTQ people and the pressures placed on women to maintain appearances at all costs. By the end, I felt completely immersed in the Taylors’ world, invested in every heartbreak, compromise, and hard-won moment of understanding between them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!

[princessguayaba · Rating 5 out of 5]

6 freaking stars!!!! WHAT A BOOK! 🩷📚

I couldn't put this book down! Every time I would pick it up I would be reading for hours on end and couldn't stop. This story is so unique and enthralling it's like nothing I've ever read before. This story is drama filled and emotional. It made me feel probably every feeling known to man.

This story keeps you on your toes! Every other chapter there is something going on and honestly I couldn't guess what would happen next. I didn't know how much queer represantation there would be in this book since I went in totally blind but what a pleasant surprise! This made the story even more perfect, made the decisions and the family bond feel more real. I felt like all of these characters were real people and I was going through everything with them!

This is a book that I will definitely be remembering for a long time! I am going out to buy a book trophy IMMEDIATELY when this comes out!

Thank you so much Net Galley and Random House for this truly amazing arc! I was so impressed!

[Jessie McKinnon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

I hate when I dislike a book, but this is what happened with Returns and Exchanges. I keep thinking that there is something I did not "get", maybe because I wasn't born yet in the 80s, or I'm not from the American South.

This is a family saga revolving around Fran, mom, wife, businesswoman, the backbone to everyone and everything. Her husband, Fred, is a small, small man. Really, he's infuriating. Most characters were rather bland. Only Benny was sometimes funny. Everything led me to imagine the atmosphere as stuffy, dusty and smoke-filled.

Since I enjoy lists, here's one of reasons why this book wasn't for me:
- Changing points of view made the story feel incomplete; principal characters moving to a secondary role.
- Many (many) pages were about hating Fred without much else happening.
- The writing often left me wondering what the author was trying to say.
- The part in court was not in the least realistic.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.

We start off slow, the setting Christmas Eve 1974. A discount store has just closed for the night, cleaning up the mess a last-minute rush has caused. We're introduced to the Taylors, a family consisting of Fred, Fran and their four children. Return's and Exchanges chronicles the lives of these 6 individuals as their family business successfully grows and declines, and how that influences social and family dynamics.

I was presently surprised at how much I ended up enjoying this book. I found the characters, even the minor side ones realistic and relatable. And while the story does take a while to grab your attention, once it does, it does not let go. I liked the pacing of the book, the movement through the years, since it spans decades from 1974-2015 were smooth and effortless.

[Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader 2.0 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the title of this novel, which is about a family-owned discount department store in Kentucky over the 1970s and 80s. We'll see the ebb and flow of family relationships, retail development and the alleged payoff of ambition and endless hard work.

Returns and Exchanges is a rise and fall novel. It starts out with an overall view of the Baker-Taylor family--Fran, Fred, and their four children. The stage-setting takes a lot of space, with the impact of success on the individual family members. About halfway through the novel's pace starts to stutter, becomes uneven, and caused me to struggle and realize that I had not become connected enough to the characters to dig into their individual journeys.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a digital review copy of this novel. You know, I'm still thinking about this book.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of Returns and Exchanges by Kayla Rae Whitaker.

Okay, I'll be totally honest, the first few chapters had me desperately worried that this book was going to be a slog. It's a lot of business, and establishing plot, but I'm SO glad I didn't give up on it. I also kept going because years ago I read Whitaker's The Animators. And while I couldn't tell you a thing about it, I remember loving it dearly.

This is a family saga, and I'm going to warn you now, it's quietly heavy. There might be a few moments that do acutely slap you in the face, but overall, it's just...cloudy. The best way to put it is that everyone is truly doing their best, working within their capacity, and accepting truths they know they can't change. Some moments will be heartwarming; others will piss you OFF, but the whole story grabbed me as so true, real, ugly, and beautiful.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was filled with a mish-mash of types of characters, but most of them were pertinent to the era this takes place in (late '60's to the mid 80's).

We deal with things that are typical of the era -sexism in the workplace, the deprivation of women who are not homemakers. However, we also delve into the darker depths of the era -lesbianism, homosexuality, drugs, mental illnesses and more.

While this book may not be my particular glass of wine, it will make a perfect group or book club read because there is so very much to talk about and explore.

*ARC supplied by the publisher Random House, the author, and NetGalley.