📖 Book Review ~ Somewhere Else by Alex J. Milan

 

2022
My thanks to the author for a copy of this book

Haunted by a past tragedy, thirty-one-year-old Isabel leads a nomadic lifestyle, following her two golden rules: never stay anywhere for more than two years and never get too close to anyone. When she meets the charismatic Vanessa, she breaks her second rule, only for their friendship to come to an unexpected and inexplicable end.

Months later, on a stiflingly hot day in the Spanish city of Seville, Isabel receives a message from her former friend, suggesting they reconcile at Vanessa's new home in Lisbon. Keen to escape her problems in Seville and to resolve her differences with Vanessa, Isabel agrees to go.

When she arrives to find that Vanessa has disappeared, it marks the start of a chain of events which will turn Isabel’s life upside down. She finds herself unwittingly drawn into a game of cat and mouse against an adversary who will stop at nothing to drive her to the brink. Meanwhile, she is troubled by her growing attraction to the one man who seems determined to help her and who threatens to overturn her ordered and deliberately isolated life.

Somewhere Else blends mystery and romance in a compelling narrative which moves between Spain and Portugal.

📖 My Review..

Haunted by her past Isabel is living an isolated life in the Spanish city of Seville when she is unexpectedly contacted by Vanessa, a former friend, who seems to want to rekindle their friendship. Willing to give Vanessa a second chase Isabel makes the long journey from Spain to Vanessa's home in Portugal only to discover that this planned reunion is fraught with difficulties and intrigue. What then follows is an emotional cat and mouse drama, with the two women constantly chasing each other and as the tension heightens so Isabel gets drawn deeper, and deeper, into Vanessa's dangerous web of intrigue.

The story has a sense of darkness, as well as a hint unresolved guilt, and from the snippets of information we are given about Isobel's past life we can sense an aching vulnerability in her personality, which the author explores well. The other characters who flit into, and out of, the story are not always very likeable but that's where the strength of the story comes across as although I disliked Vanessa I was fascinated by her ability to always keep ahead of the game. Counteracting the darkness of the story is Nuno, who is truly lovely, he brings so much to the story, and I really hoped that everything would work out well.

Somewhere Else is a well written mystery drama which explores the complex nature of unrelenting loss and grief in a cleverly thought out mystery, which intrigues from start to finish.

About the Author

Alex is the author of four novels. Her most recent book, The House in the Clouds, was released in July 2023. Apart from writing, she is passionate about music and is often to be found continuing her quest to learn to play the guitar.

📖 Book Review ~ Love Letters from Paris by Nicolas Barreau

Piatkus
February 2021
My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

Julien Azoulay is famous around the world for his beautiful romance novels. But last year he stopped believing in love. When his beloved wife died, leaving him alone to raise his young sun, Julien lost his faith in the happier side of life - and with his ability to write. But his wife was clever, before she did she made Julien promise to write her one letter for each year of her life, and now, in this moment, in the most famous cemetery in Paris, he stands with his painful first letter in his had. Here, even though he wouldn't believe it, something wonderful is about to happen...

This is an ode to love, Paris and friendship. A love letter to readers and to anyone who believes in the healing power of the written word.

📖 My thoughts..

Author, Julien Azoulay is finding life difficult after the loss of his beautiful wife, Hélène and the thought of continuing to write his romance novels is something of an anathema to him. However, he promised Hélène that, after her death, he would write her a letter for each year of her life but even the very first letter is proving to be a difficult place to start.

With a gentleness which belies its strength this is a love letter not just to the wonderful city of Paris which Julien takes us around with startling precision but it's also a love letter to a woman who was everything to him and whose loss is heartfelt. Beautifully written, and tenderly described, the story is filled with a lyrical quality not just from sharing snippets of poignant poetry but also about the sights and sounds of living in a world where a profound sense of grief overshadows everything.

Love Letters from Paris is a sweetly, affectionate story about the effects of grief and loss and the utter belief that great love remains with us forever.

About the Author

Nicholas Barreau was born in Paris, the son of a French father and German mother. He studied romance languages and literature at the Sorbonne and worked in a bookshop on the Rive Gauche in Paris but is far from an inexperienced bookworm. He has sold over four million copies of his books across Europe

 Twitter #LoveLettersFromParis

@PiatkusBooks

@LittleBrownUK

💔 Jaffa, 2007 - 2021 💔

Last photo 
31 May 2021

💔

On Wednesday, after a swift and sudden illness, we had to say goodbye to our beloved cat of glory.

Our hearts are broken into a million pieces.

💔

Jaffa, Cat of Glory

Once, so golden in the gleaming sun,

now gone, with a rainbow of lights to guide his way.

No more the patter of quiet paws, which touched soft earth

to feel the crisp of green, or the snuggling caress of yellow.

No more gentle touches from vibrant orange

or the soft, sweet companionship of quiet love.

Just a whisper of pristine white, as he moves, with silent grace,

towards the glorious morning only he can see.

🌠

Jaffa 

2007 - 2021

💔

🌠 Always our shining star 🌠

📖 Publication Day Book Review ~ Ever Rest by Roz Morris

Happy Publication Day

📖 

Spark Furnace Books
3 June 2021

My thanks to the author my my copy of this book

Twenty years ago, Hugo and Ash were on top of the world. As the acclaimed rock band Ashbirds they were poised for superstardom. Then Ash went missing, lost in a mountaineering accident, and the lives of Hugo and everyone around him were changed forever. Irrepressible, infuriating, mesmerizing Ash left a hole they could never hope to fill.

Two decades on, Ash’s fiancée Elza is still struggling to move on, her private grief outshone by the glare of publicity. The loss of such a rock icon is a worldwide tragedy. Hugo is now a recluse in Nepal, shunning his old life. Robert, an ambitious session player, feels himself both blessed and cursed by his brief time with Ashbirds, unable to achieve recognition in his own right.

While the Ashbirds legend burns brighter than ever, Elza, Hugo and Robert are as stranded as if they were the ones lost in the ice. How far must they go to come back to life.

My thoughts..

Twenty years after hearing the devastating news that her fiancée, Ashten Geddard had been lost whilst climbing Mount Everest, Elza is still mourning his loss, caught up in the limbo of never having full closure. At the time, Ash's disappearance sent shock waves around the musical world as he was the frontman of a phenomenally successful rock duo whose music is forever locked in time. Ash's partner in the duo is Hugo who, twenty years on, remains in Nepal, as much caught up in the tragedy as if happened yesterday. With a resurgence of interest in the Ashbirds, Robert once a session musician, finds himself caught with questions of what might have been if Ash had not disappeared.

Ever Rest opens up to scrutiny all the minutiae of what is left behind when someone leaves us, and shows that even after a number of years have elapsed, closure can be just as ethereal and out of reach as it was at the start. Each of the main characters in Ever Rest are beautifully described and the question of unresolved grief comes up time and time again. There is so much to be explored in all the relationships especially that between Ash and Hugo but also in the indecision which still surrounds, Robert and the way in which Elza finds it difficult to leave behind her memories of the charismatic, but somewhat mercurial, Ashten Geddard. 

The author writes well and with an empathic way with words she describes the minutia of living life under the spotlight with a keen eye for detail and an interesting look at the shaping of lives as each of the main characters have their own particular memories and are all carrying their own burdens of loss and that age old questions of what might have been. Ever Rest is an interesting look at the vagaries of the music industry, the grief of those who are left behind, and of those who want to manipulate and exploit that loss.

About the Author

Roz Morris writes fiction and essays about unconventional ways we can be haunted and how we seek people and places we belong with. Her work has been profiled by The Guardian, Literature Works, the Potomac Review, Foreword Reviews, Rain Taxi and BBC Radio.

Her fiction has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide, although you won't have seen her name on the covers - she began her career in secret, ghostwriting fiction for big-name authors.

Now she's coming out of the shadows. Her own novels have been described as 'profound tales and compelling page-turners', with fine-honed language, unforgettable characters, and gripping, unusual storylines. Plaudits include a top-ranked title in the American Library Journal programme, a longlisting for an international award alongside Neil Gaiman and a finalist position in the People's Book Prize 2017.

She is also a fiction editor and writing coach. She teaches creative writing masterclasses for The Guardian newspaper in London, based on her series for writers, Nail Your Novel.

If you want to get to know her a little better, drop in at www.rozmorris.wordpress.com and her blog www.nailyournovel.com - or sign up for her newsletter about creative life . Her latest novel, Ever Rest, releases on 3 June 2021.

Twitter: @Roz_Morris 

Facebook page

Blog 

website

🌠

📖 Publication Day Push ~ A Thousand Goodbyes by Ruth Graham

 

📖 Delighted to be part of this Publication Day Push today 📖 

for

A Thousand Goodbyes

The Surprising Life of a Funeral Celebrant

Independently Published
10 May 2021

My thanks to the author for my copy of this book
and to Rachel's Random Resources for my invitation to be part of this one day push

If you liked Adam Kay’s book, ‘This Is Going To Hurt’, you’ll love the joyously life affirming memoir, ‘A Thousand Goodbyes’.

When Ruth Graham left the world of stand up comedy to become a funeral celebrant, she’d imagined a less combative career.Over a thousand services later ... she knows better.

Probably her most demanding role to date, Ruth has needed every ounce of diplomacy, courage,humour and her wits about her to juggle the daily challenges. From grief stricken families to amorous widowers through to plate smashing, warring siblings and even a flock of stoned doves at a Rasta funeral.

As the story unfolds we witness her new career developing into a 24/7 commitment. Will it break her?

Or will it be the spur she needs to get her own life in order?

Jaw dropping, informative, moving and hilarious in turn, ‘A Thousand Goodbyes’ is a reminder that nobody is guaranteed a tomorrow; whilst encouraging everyone to seize their day.

My thoughts..

I've been to many funerals over the years. All of them unique, some more poignant than others but all with a distinct sense of completing the circle of life. Mostly the funerals have taken place in church with a religious celebrant, but I have also been to services were religion was not the main focus and through thoughtful meditations,often chosen before death, the funerals were as special as the person who had died had wanted it to be.

In A Thousand Goodbyes, the author tells of her varied experiences as a Funeral Celebrant, from the funny and downright bizarre, to the incredibly sad and deadly serious, but one thing is certain, there is never a dull moment when participating in a funeral. Throughout the book I was struck once again by the vagaries of human nature, and I think that anyone who has spent time at the end of someone's life, or with grieving families, know that nothing is ever straightforward.

I've never considered the work of a funeral celebrant before, they are, quite simply, the people who you see calmly standing before a weeping congregation of people, bringing the deceased back to life for a moment with wise words and compassionate readings and eulogies. The author takes us through some interesting anecdotal stories, sharing her experiences in a thoughtful way neither making light of the work she does nor of making everything seem overly complicated. The book is written with warmth, and wit, and a much need sense of humour, and yet the author also oozes compassion, and a passionate belief in the unique service she offers to grieving families.

Despite everything we have been subjected to in this global pandemic when so many people have lost their lives, we still see death as something mysterious and to be avoided at all costs, but death is inevitable, and thank goodness we have people like Ruth Graham, and all those special people who offer a unique service to help saying goodbye to our loved ones a less painful process. 

A Thousand Goodbyes is a fascinating insight into the work of someone who, quite often, blends into the background but who is always there we need them most.

About the Author

Ruth Graham has written for many publications over the years on a variety of subjects. Initially working for Emap Elan on Period Living and Traditional Homes magazine, she then moved onto freelance for titles as varied as The Evening Standard and The Daily Mail.

A move back to the Midlands in 2000 brought her first big break with her own weekly gossip/opinioncolumn in The Sunday Mercury (Trinity Mirror), where she was billed as ‘Ruth Graham: More Balls Than Your Average Bloke’!

She then went on to launch her own magazine ‘Midlands Homes & Interiors’.Two years later (2007), came her first series of short comedy books, ‘The Bible Series’ (Know TheScore Publishing). One of these ‘The Break Up Bible’ was cunningly launched on Valentine’s day,gaining great publicity, and a spot on GMTV and Channel 5 news!

Since then Ruth has written and performed her own one woman show (Just Sayin’); become a celebrant; and subsequently collaborated with writer/performer Cat Weatherill on the British Arts Council funded show ‘Unforgettable’celebrating the lives of those we’ve loved and lost.

And then came the book ‘A Thousand Goodbyes’all about Ruth’s work as a celebrant, the people she meets and the bizarre, touching and hilarious circumstances that constitute the average day, and life, ofa celebrant.

Twitter @CelebrantRuthG

@rararesources

Celebrant Website

Amazon

Review ~ The Last Time I Saw You by Liv Constantine

Harper Collins
30 May 2019

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

Secrets, lies, betrayal…and murder.

Dr Kate English has it all. Not only is she heiress to a large fortune, she has a gorgeous husband and daughter, a high-flying career and a beautiful mansion anyone would be jealous of.

But all that is about to change. One night, Kate’s mother is found dead, murdered in her own home. And then Kate receives a message: You think you’re sad now, just wait…

Evidently, all is not as it seems in Baltimore high society, and as scandals, infidelities and betrayals are exposed, tensions rise to boiling point. The murderer could be anyone – friend, neighbour, lover, relative. And Kate is next on their list...

My Thoughts..

The writing duo who brought us The Last Mrs Parrish have once again given us a complex psychological suspense story. The enjoyment from reading these accomplished novels is that you never really know who to trust, or indeed, who is even telling the absolute truth.

The story opens after a high society funeral reuniting two friends who were once close but through circumstances have lost touch with each other. The main protagonist, Dr. Kate English seems to have it all, money, privilege and yet, she is not immune to sadness, and as the story proves, grief, loss, secrets and lies can pretty much turn your world upside down. Losing her mother in tragic circumstances haunts Kate in more ways than one and she turns to her childhood friend, Blair,  in order to make sense of what's happening in her life.

The plot is both convoluted and complex and there are many twists and turns before the final denouement and lots of people who could be suspects. The characterisation is strong and whilst some of the characters aren’t particularly likeable, they do add a sense of drama and intrigue. 

I did enjoy reading this novel, however, being honest I don't think it quite held my attention as much as  The Last Mrs Parrish, but hey, that didn't matter. The Last Time I Saw You is still a convincing psychological drama from a writing duo who mix together great ingredients for a thought provoking read.

About the Authors

Liv Constantine is the pen name of sisters Lynne Constantine and Valerie Constantine. Separated by three states, they spend hours plotting via Face Time and burning up each other's emails. They attribute their ability to concoct dark story lines to the hours they spent listening to tales handed down by their Greek grandmother. Lynne lives in Milford, Connecticut. Valerie lives in Annapolis, Maryland.

Website

Twitter @LivConstantine2

@HarperCollinsUK @fictionpubteam

Blog Tour ~ My Mother's Daughter by Ann O'Loughlin

Delighted to be sharing my book review on the last day of this blog tour 

Orion
16 May 2019

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book and the invitation to the blog tour

County Wicklow, Ireland. Margo has just lost her husband Conor and is grieving his passing, unsure how she and her daughter Elsa will survive without him. Then she receives a letter that turns everything she thought she knew on its head. Not only has she lost her husband, but now Margo fears she could lose her daughter as well. 

Ohio, United States. Cassie has just split from her husband acrimoniously. Upset and alone she does not know how to move forward. Then her ex-husband demands a paternity test for their daughter Tilly and sorrow turns to anger as Cassie faces the frightening possibility of losing her daughter.

My thoughts...

So many emotions run through this book that it's really difficult to say much about the plot without giving far too much away. However, it's safe to say that I was completely engrossed in the combined story of Margot and Elsa in Ireland, and Cassie and Tilly in the US. Both women have had their fair share of heartache as each is grieving the loss of their marriages, albeit for very different reasons. Not content with the trauma of coping as a single parent both women are devastated to learn that the daughter they each cherish could by some dreadful quirk of fate not be their biological child.

Getting right into the emotional heart of a story is what this author does best and My Mother's Daughter certainly shares some really tough emotional issues which, at times, threaten to engulf both Margot and Cassie. Throughout this emotional story there are some wonderful mother/daughter moments to cherish but equally there's also some really heart-breaking decisions to be made which the author handles with thoughtfulness, compassion and a real sense of empathy.

My Mother's Daughter covers some really sensitive issues around love and loss, and with some really sad stuff towards the end of the book which had me reaching for the tissue box, and yet, it's also a really uplifting story about the powerful bonds of both motherhood and friendship. 

Throughout this excellent story I was reminded of the lengths that mother's will go to to protect their children and that sometimes the strongest emotional bonds are not forged by blood but by unconditional love.

About the Author

As a leading journalist in Ireland for nearly thirty years, Ann O'Loughlin has covered all major news events of the last three decades. Ann spent most of her career with independent newspapers where she was Security Correspondent at the height of The Troubles, and was a senior journalist on the Irish Independent and Evening Herald. She is currently a senior journalist with the Irish Examiner newspaper covering legal issues. Ann has also lived and worked in India. Originally from the west of Ireland she now lives on the east coast with her husband and two children

Twitter @annolwriter #MyMothersDaughter

@orionbooks

Amazon UK

Blog Tour and Author interview ~ The String Games by Gail Aldwin

Jaffareadstoo is delighted to host day two of this blog tour 

and to share an interview with the author 

Victorina Press
28 May 2019

My thanks to the author for inviting me to read her book and to take part in this blog tour

Hi Gail and welcome to Jaffareadstoo. What inspired you to write The String Games?

One of the worst experiences of my life was losing my three-year-old son for forty minutes on the beach at St Jean de Luz. I was rubbing sunscreen onto my daughter and when I looked up, he was gone. Although this episode ended happily it made me think about different possible outcomes, the vulnerability of little children in countries where they can’t speak the language, and the parental fear of losing a child. I decided this would be a good hook for novel readers but instead of telling the story from a parental perspective, I decided to explore the legacy of loss from the viewpoint of an older sibling.

Tell us three interesting things about your novel. 

😊 there are characters who are strung along, others who are puppets on string and those who need to cut the apron strings – string is the controlling metaphor of the novel

😊 it’s a three-part novel but I wrote the middle section last

😊in terms of structure and themes, The String Games has similarities with the Oscar winning film Moonlight

Are you a plotter...or ...a start writing and see where it takes you sort of writer?

I started writing The String Games with an end in mind and could see the last chapter as if it were the closing shot to a film. However, the writing journey to get from start to finish was rather like entering a maze. Many chapters took circuitous routes, some paths led to dead ends where I had to backtrack, other chapters flitted around the outskirts and I needed to navigate a new path. When the first draft was completed, every subsequent draft (and there were many over the five-year period it took to finalise the novel) brought me closer to the heart of the novel and the completed story. 

In your research for The String Games did you discover anything which surprised you?

When I began the novel I also enrolled on an MPhil programme with the University of South Wales. I enjoyed the practise of creative writing alongside academic study so much that when the two-year course was over, I transferred to PhD. The String Games became the creative element of my submission and I wrote a thesis to accompany this. One chapter of my research looked at feminist theories about women writers. In “On Female Identity and Writing by Women”, Judith Keegan Gardiner describes the relationship between women writers and their female protagonists by use of the analogy “the hero is her author’s daughter”. This caused me to reflect on my relationship as a writer with my protagonist and to build greater understanding and empathy for her mother, who is quite a tricky character. 

What were the challenges you faced whilst writing this novel?

I am the sort of writer who wears the shoes of my characters. When writing about devastating events, it’s inevitable to feel something of the characters’ pain. To avoid this spilling into my everyday life, I’ve developed the habit of closing my workroom door whenever I finish writing. This helps to separate the experience of engaging with the tragic events in my novel from my life with my family. 

What do you hope that readers will take away from reading The String Games?

The String Games is a celebration of human resilience. It is possible for people to experience heart breaking events and become reconciled with those experiences. 

When do you find the time to write, and do you have a favourite place to do your writing?

I’ve got into some very bad writing habits. The other day I started a writing task at 8am and didn’t leave my desk until 2pm when I was absolutely famished. My writing life spreads into all aspects of daily living like some amorphous creature. I always have several writing projects on the go at any time so it’s more a question of finding time to do the necessary that keeps a home functioning rather than the other way around. 

I share a desk with my husband and although he rarely works from home, his stuff takes up a lot of room. I pile all my notebooks and papers at one end and this has become my writing space. Once I’ve got my head down, it doesn’t matter that I’m in a tiny room. My writing takes me to many different locations. 

How can readers discover more about you and your work?

I write a blog called The Writer is a Lonely Hunter which includes lots of information about me, my projects, publications and events. I’m also part of a collaborative writing trio called 3-She. Together we write short plays and comedy sketches. We’re currently working on a show that will be staged as part of the Shaftesbury Fringe. I’m active on social media so please find me on Twitter and Facebook.

Social Media links:

Twitter @gailaldwin

Facebook 

Blog

Link to pre-order The String Games from Victorina Press

My thoughts about The String Games..

It's every parents' worst nightmare to have a child disappear, I can well recall that heart stopping, gut-wrenching feeling when my daughter, then aged six, went missing for about half an hour and the sheer relief when she was found safe and well. 

The String Games reminds us of that feeling but it also cleverly focuses on the effects on the sibling in a missing child case, people who are, so often, overlooked, as so much emphasis is concentrated on the distress of the parents. Nim is only ten years old when her four year old brother, Josh, goes missing on a family holiday in France, and, whilst the impact of this devastating event on the parents is never underestimated, it is Nim's reaction to her brother's disappearance which becomes paramount to the story.

I found The String Games to be a very insightful family drama, which never over-sensationalises what has happened, but which looks introspectively into how much Nim suffered and of the grief and sense of loss that she carried with her and her need to have answers to so many unresolved issues. In a way The String Games is a rather poignant coming of age story as we witness Nim's constant search for resolution.

The author writes really well and the attention to detail and the authentic feel to the narrative make this a compelling and thought provoking read.

Review ~ Dark Blossom by Neel Mullick

Rupa Publications
2018

My thanks to Ben at Cameron  Publicity and Marketing for my copy of this book

Sam returns home from a business trip a day before his son's thirteenth birthday and is looking forward to being with his family, when his world is cruelly shattered in one fell swoop. Initially he thinks he can cope with the loss, but finally seeks the help of Cynthia, an experienced therapist, to regain his equipoise. What he does not know is that Cynthia herself is trying to cope with a debilitating divorce and the sinister shadow of her ex-husband over her daughter...

What happens when doctor and patient find themselves in the same sinking boat? Moreover, when they are rowing in opposite directions--one clinging to the past, and the other unable to get rid of it! In the midst of it all is Lily, Cynthia's daughter, who harbours a secret that has the power to explode the lives around her.

My thoughts..

Sam is grieving for the catastrophic loss of his family, whilst Cynthia is trying desperately to juggle family life with her teenage daughter, Lily, and at the same time trying to cope with the aftermath of a painful separation from her abusive husband. On the surface these two characters have little in common, only coming together initially when Sam attends clinical appointments with Cynthia in her role as his  therapist.

When then follows is an interesting study in the way that trauma affects people, not just in their daily life but also in the long term effects on mental health and well being. The story builds slowly and the author does a great job in allowing the characters enough time to develop slowly, never rushing the action, and always with a considered response to what makes people, under pressure, act in the way that they do.

The author has an interesting writing style which took me a little while to get used to, but once I had the characters' individual characteristics firmly in mind the story became much more interesting. The action is rather slow which I think is quite deliberate, as this isn't an all action story, but is rather more a reflective piece about coping with psychological stress and the subsequent mental health issues which may arise from dealing with some quite dark and complex issues. There's also an interesting suspenseful element to the story which becomes more apparent as the story progresses.

Dark Blossom took me by surprise, as I wasn't sure what to expect, but drawn in by the rather interesting book cover I found the story to be both clever and complex with an interesting twist.

About the Author

With degrees in Software Engineering from Carnegie Mellon, USA, and Business Administration from INSEAD, France, NEEL MULLICK is the Head of Product and Information Security at a Belgian family-office technology company.

He mentors women entrepreneurs through the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, is involved in raising a generation of digital and socially-aware leaders with the Steering for Greatness Foundation (Nigeria), supports improvement in the quality of life of domestic workers at Emprendedoras del Hogar (Peru), and is helping IIMPACT (India) break the cycle of illiteracy plaguing young girls from socially and economically impoverished communities.

He lives on three continents, dividing his time between between New York, Brussels, and New Delhi.

Blog Tour ~ Love and Fame by Susie Boyt

✨Jaffareadstoo is pleased to be involved in the Love and Fame Blog Tour✨

Virago
7 June 2018

My thanks to the author, publisher and Random Things Tours for my copy of this book
and the invitation to be part of the blog tour

Susie Boyt's sixth novel is the story of the first year of a marriage. Eve a nervous young actress from a powerful theatrical dynasty has found herself married to an international expert on anxiety called Jim. Could it work? Should it work? Must the show always go on? This is a highly-strung comedy about love, fame, grief, show business and the depths of the gutter press. Its witty and sincere tone - familiar to fans of Susie's newspaper column - will delight and unnerve in equal measure.

My thoughts about it..

Beatrice, a bereavement counsellor, her sister Rebecca, a journalist, don't seem, on the surface to have anything in common with Eve Swift and yet, this nervous young actress, who comes from a well-known theatrical family are soon to meet, and when they do their worlds collide in fascinating way. 

From the start it is obvious that Eve is riddled with insecurities, never quite matching up to the ideology of her talented, and very famous, actor father, and even being newly married to Jim, who is an expert on anxiety issues, is for Eve both a blessing and a curse. Beatrice and Rebecca have their own deep rooted problems, closely bonded since the death of their mother when they were children, Beatrice has always protected and looked after Rebecca, they still have a strong relationship which has continued long into adulthood.

Mostly Love and Fame is about grief and loss and how we cope in so many different ways, not just with the loss of people who are dear to us but also in the shared grief of past traumas and missed opportunities. And yet, it's not a sad book, far from it, parts of it made me laugh and smile at the absurdity of people's behaviour and reactions, whilst other beautifully written sentences struck a deep chord of acknowledgment. Love and Fame is an altogether different view of living with loss, and, for Eve especially, of coping with that loss in the full glare of unwanted public scrutiny. 

Within the novel there’s skilful writing and some lovely observations, which, on occasion, I had to go back and re-read and like a comfort blanket, this sentence stayed with me "Loss lapped at her feet, it bit at her heels. She had made friends with it, bathed in it, wore it like an overall" Loss distinguished her.” I think we’ve all shared that emotion at one time, or another.

About the Author

The daughter of Suzy Boyt and artist Lucian Freud, and great-granddaughter of Sigmund Freud. Susie Boyt was educated at Channing and at Camden School for Girls and read English at St Catherine's College, Oxford, graduating in 1992. Working variously at a PR agency, and a literary agency, she completed her first novel, The Normal Man, which was published in 1995 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson. She returned to university to do a Masters in Anglo American Literary Relations at University College London studying the works of Henry James and the poet John Berryman.

To date she has published six novels. In 2008, she published My Judy Garland Life, a layering of biography, hero-worship and self-help. Her journalism includes an ongoing column in the weekend Life & Arts section of the Financial Times. She is married to Tom Astor, a film producer. They live with their two daughters in London.

Twitter @SusieBoyt #LoveAndFame

@ViragoBooks

#RandomThingsTours

Review ~ Thinking Out Loud: Love, Grief and Being Mum and Dad by Rio Ferdinand

Hodder & Stoughton
October 2017

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

I'm not a football fan and couldn't name one footballer currently playing top level football. However, I have heard of Rio Ferdinand and was rather disappointed in myself that I had failed to watch his BBC documentary, Being Mum and Dad, when it aired in March of this year, in which he talked about the loss of his wife, Rebecca, who died in 2015, from cancer, aged just thirty-four. This autobiography is inspired by that documentary and explores, in candid detail, the profound sense of loss and sadness which threatened to overwhelm Rio's life, and that of his children, following Rebecca's passing.

Rarely have I read a celebrity autobiography is one sitting but there's something so profoundly moving about Thinking Out Loud that I really couldn't put it down and read several chapters with tears streaming down my face. The heartbreak and loneliness, and the sheer bewilderment of such a tragic loss comes through with every sentiment expressed and every emotion observed.

Rio acknowledges how difficult is was for him to express his grief, and his interaction with other men who had also experienced loss gives valuable insight, not just into the way that men cope with grief, but also in recognition of how dealing with loss in a positive way can aid the grieving process. His insightful inclusion of some of the letters he has received since the documentary aired on television, are some of the saddest, and perhaps the most inspiring things I have read in a very long time.

Not just dealing with his own grief, Rio also had to try to make sense of the senseless for his children. I think it is in these chapters where my heart broke again into a million pieces for this little family who struggled to understand just how different their lives were without their adored mum. I think amongst the most poignant of memories shared was the idea of starting Rebecca's Memory Jar and of  just how important these memories were to her children and also to everyone who knew Rebecca.

They say, what breaks us, makes us stronger and most certainly for the Ferdinand family, who have endured more than their fair share of loss in recent times, I would hope that they now have a period of calm, of course, never forgetting the pain of their loss, but hopefully they can now carry the love they shared into the future.

About the Author

Rio Ferdinand is one of the most celebrated footballers of all time. He played eighty-one times for England and in three World Cups and helped Manchester United win six Premier League titles and the UEFA Champions League.

Follow on Twitter @rioferdy5 #ThinkingOutLoud

Amazon UK

~****~