I have read three of this author’s books in the last year (check out my reviews in “Book Reviews”) and to say I had very high expectations going into this book is an understatement.
The story begins with three women who have been stood-up by the same man on Valentines day and it follows their individual journeys through life and relationships. Although I am not a lover of love triangles or quadrangles, I was willing to brave it for the sake of the author. However, this book turned out to be something totally different from what and how I thought it would be.
I really struggled with the first half of the book and considered DNFing because I just didn’t relate with most of the characters especially the women and there seemed to be a disconnect somewhere which I couldn’t put my finger on but, late in the day things began to unfold and a clearer picture emerged which gave me mixed feelings as to whether I liked the story or not. Although it explored very important themes such as dealing with grief, trauma, love and new beginnings which I am a sucker for, I think it came too late in the day when I was already exhausted with the story. The revelations, the mysteries and the different layers of time that were hidden in the first part of the book and brought to the fore towards the end are the only reasons for my rating. I wish they would have come out earlier in the day.
Nevertheless, Beth O’Leary is still a fantastic writer and I would still read whatever she comes up with in the future. I would therefore recommend it to lovers of contemporary fiction considering the fact that many people seem to love this book and the story. You may just like it too but for me it was just an okay read.
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Published: April 12th 2022 by Quercus
Pages: 341
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
The Author:
Beth studied English at university before going into children’s publishing. She lives as close to the countryside as she can get while still being within reach of London, and wrote her first novel, The Flatshare, on her train journey to and from work. You’ll usually find her curled up with a book, a cup of tea, and several woolly jumpers (whatever the weather).
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