This is a review of "A Sense of Occasion," Brodie Crellin's debut novel, which follows a dysfunctional family thrown together for a funeral. The Guardian's critic praises the book as a surprising and darkly funny work that finds power in depicting relationships that resist any conventional idea of family, giving it significance as a notably assured first novel.

The story centres on Patch, an anxious and friendless young woman; her father Robin, whose sexuality is "mutable"; and her domineering cousin Jude, a playwright. They are connected by the recently deceased Mary, who was Robin's ex, Patch's mother and Jude's aunt, with other characters such as Jude's wealthy mother Juliette and Mary's neighbour Mel orbiting the group. The reviewer highlights Crellin's skilful handling of multiple viewpoints and flashbacks, sharp dialogue, and candid treatment of sex, drawing comparisons to Dorothy Baker's "Cassandra at the Wedding" and Edward St Aubyn's Melrose novels while noting the book's distinctly modern edge.