I have never read a book by Maeve Binchy that I could put down easily, and this was no exception. The plot wasn't particularly exciting, the characters weren't her best, the outcome wasn't a surprise, but I still read more than I should have every night. ( )

What can I say. It's a Maeve Binchy short story and I devour these things like chocolate. Anytime I am feeling under the weather I will bust out one of her books or short story collections and read for a bit. Since her death, I have found that I don't have every one of her books in my possession. So I decided this year I was going to make sure I got around to reading all of her works this year.

For long time fans of Maeve Binchy this is a great short story. We get some glimpses of prior characters we met in older Binchy works (Scarlet Feather, Heart and Soul, Minding Frankie) and we get some insight into a family that we have never heard of before.

Dee Nolan loves her three adult children, but is getting a bit tired of being expected to cook and clean up after them. Returning home one day to find out her husband Liam is about to be laid off, she finally decides to do something about the fact that she and her husband have managed to raise three oblivious and at times thoughtless children.

I don't know how Maeve Binchy is able to instill such life into the characters we meet in this short story. Right off the bat I felt for Dee and Liam. I can't imagine how happy I would be if I was always running around after my adult kids who seem to expect it. I mean we get one scene where Dee is telling the children about their father being laid off and they all just want to know about supper. I would have been smacking some heads with a frying pan, that's just me though.

We hear more about Rosie, Helen, and Anthony through a series of texts they send to each other and some more scenes we get when they start to realize that their mother is not going to clean/cook for them anymore and also decides to let their rooms in order to bring in extra income.

The writing is typical Binchy which to me is it's excellent. There is one scene that stood out in my mind. Dee the mother is getting extra work in order to provide for the household. The job is at the same place that her daughter Rosie works in, and Rosie tells her mother to not speak to her while she's there. I mean, can you imagine?

The flow works really well, and man oh man I wish that this had been longer. I was enjoying the story a lot.

The ending made me shake my head, because in typical Binchy fashion you get the sense the children still don't get what the big deal was and that they still feel outrage towards their mother who decided she wasn't going to be their unpaid servant anymore. ( )

The first Maeve Binchy book I've read. It's a book from the quick reads series. It was an easy, simple storyline but unrealistic at times. However it passed the time and was a good short story to curl up with on a winters evening. ( )

Full House by Maeve Binchy is charming short story. Dee Nolan is a wife, mother, and partner in J.D. Contract Cleaners. Josie is Dee’s partner in the business. After a day working cleaning homes and offices, Dee gets to come home to her loving husband and three grown up children. Dee thought when her children grew up, they would move out of the house. Unfortunately, all her children are currently living at home. Rosie is married to Ronan?? But they are experiencing troubles (a lot of fighting) and Rosie moved back home. Helen is a teacher and still living at home. Anthony is a musician, cares only about music, and still lives at home. Dee does the cooking, shopping, cleaning, and laundry. The children do not pay rent. Dee comes home after a hard day of working and is greeted with a messy house and people asking what is for dinner. One day Dee comes home and she can tell something is wrong with her husband, Liam. Dee finds out that Liam has been laid off. Liam is an electrician for Mash Macken, a builder. It is a rough economy and people are not building. Dee states that the children will have to help. When Helen, Rosie, and Anthony are told about the situation, they do not believe it is fair that they have to pay to live at home. Dee does not know what she did wrong when raising her children, but she is going to fix it.

Dee comes up with a plan and slowly executes it. Full House is an appealing story. I give Full House 5 out of 5 stars. Full House was enjoyable to read, interesting, engaging, and a nice moral. Maeve Binchy did it again! I will certainly miss her books.

I received a complimentary copy of Full House from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are strictly my own. ( )

My first encounter with the massive-selling Maeve Binchy. Am not really a fan of her straightforward commercial style, but have to admit it's hard to dislike Ms Binchy's compassionate and big hearted approach to her characters. ( )