This post contains affiliate links for products and services I recommend. If you make a purchase through those links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
MY REVIEW
Quite an emotional story filled with secrets about 3 women in different timelines – Violet, Ali, and Meg – all trying to survive within the paradigm of their hurt.
My second book by author Leah Mercer, I loved how the friendships developed between them. But they also had a barrier of their lies. I liked how the pages slowly revealed the truth.
Few things I suspected, few were shockers. I loved the women, life happened to all of them. Amongst them, I would have liked Ali to be more forgiving and stronger. That would have connected me more to her. Children come first, not personal issues. But she got there at the end.
The last few pages brought a lump to my throat as I got to know the realities of their lives. The book had a bit of everything, drama, mystery, deep emotions, and a mother’s love for her child. A good, heartwarming read.
MY RATING
BOOK LINKS
As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you at the Kindle and Audible store.
AMAZON USA: https://amzn.to/3A4PON4
AMAZON UK: https://amzn.to/3wV6oNp
BOOK BLURB
Ali turned towards the cottage, anger flooding through her. She’d believed she and Meg were friends; that they’d bonded over a vision of motherhood… a world where your baby deserved everything you could give it. She’d pulled Meg’s words – Meg’s life – around her, like a comfort blanket. But that shared vision had never existed. And Ali was alone now, with nothing to protect her.
When Ali Lawton flees her broken marriage to spend the last months of her pregnancy in her late grandmother’s seaside cottage, all she wants is to be alone. Then she meets Michael and Meg, the couple next door, and she’s drawn into their idyllic family life – a vision of what she could have had if things were different.
When Michael suddenly leaves for a work trip, Meg invites Ali to move in. The women form a close bond, but the more time Ali spends with Meg and her baby daughter, the more she notices her friend’s erratic behaviour. As time passes and Meg spins further out of control, Ali begins to wonder where Michael actually is and why he hasn’t returned. Is it possible he’s not on a work trip at all?
When Ali gives Meg a beloved childhood toy as a peace offering, she hopes it will give the friends a chance to heal. But Meg becomes distressed when she sees the toy and it’s clear that something far darker lies behind Michael’s disappearance.
Ali had always thought returning to her childhood safe haven would be the start of a hopeful future for her and her baby. But is she about to expose a past secret which will threaten everything she has ever known?
BOOK DETAILS
Publication Date: June 2021
I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, and this is my journey down its pages, straight from the heart. STRICTLY HONEST and UNBIASED.
All my reviews can be found here.
5 Responses
Thank you, Shalini! I’m so pleased you enjoyed it.
A gentle review of what sounds like a gentle book. Thanks, Shalini.
I haven’t read anything by Leah Mercer before but this sounds like a very intriguing read 🙂 Thanks for putting it on my radar.
– Megan @ Bookstacks & Golden Moms
A lovely heartfelt review, Shalini. I also have this on my shelf. Am quite behind with my reading at the moment. 🤦♀️❤📚
Good review. It sounds like a story I would enjoy.