Tuesday 25 August 2015

BLOG TOUR: My Everything - Katie Marsh

I am delighted to post my review for this wonderful book as part of the My Everything blog tour.  Thank you to Ellie Cheele from Hodder & Stoughton for inviting me to participate!



On the day Hannah is finally going to tell her husband she's leaving him, he has a stroke . . . and life changes in an instant.

Tom's only 32. Now he can't walk or cut up his own food, let alone use his phone or take her in his arms. And Hannah's trapped. She knows she has to care for her husband, the very same man she was ready to walk away from.

But with the time and fresh perspective he's been given, Tom re-evaluates his life, and becomes determined to save his marriage. Can he once again become the man his wife fell in love with, or has he left it too late?

My Everything is an unputdownable debut novel. It will make you cry, laugh, and stop to think about what's really important in life.

What did I think?

I read this book so quickly as once I started it, I really couldn't put it down.  The writing is like a big fluffy duvet that wraps itself around you and warms you up from top to toe.  It's an exceptional debut from Katie Marsh and I'll be looking out for her next book.

The night that Tom has his stroke was described so vividly that I don't think I let out a breath until the paramedics arrived.  Hannah's conflicting feelings then went into battle and my heart went out to her.  She was planning to tell Tom that she was leaving him and had already started to detach herself from the marriage, that Tom played a big part in breaking, I might add.  Hannah probably thought she had no loving feelings left for Tom until he has his stroke and the little bit of love that never dies is reignited.  We watch as the flame grows but Hannah loses more of herself and she becomes all about Tom, never doing what she wants. 

The turnaround in Tom was amazing - I think he experienced almost every emotion.  He went from being a selfish workaholic, blaming Hannah for everything that went wrong in his life, to a selfless and brave loving husband, with the inevitable emotions of anger and sorrow in between.

I enjoyed reading about Tom's relationship with his sister, Julie, and felt that she transformed from a caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly over the course of the book.  Julie is harbouring a lot of anger following the death of their Mum, as she felt that Tom didn't spend enough time with them.  Tom is a lawyer and we read about times where he intended to put family over work but his boss wouldn't allow it.  In difficult economic times, employees do feel grateful to have a job and this is often exploited by employers.  I doubt Tom would have been sacked for leaving work at 10pm on a Friday to attend his wife's 30th Birthday, but I have no doubt that his boss would have made it his mission to find another reason to put forward for dismissal.

Each chapter ends with the story behind a memento of their relationship, such as ticket stubs and receipts, that reminds us how much in love they once were.  I found that I looked forward to this at the end of each chapter so I could see what item would help me get to know more about Tom and Hannah.  I do love a good flashback!

This is an invaluable book as we always think of stroke victims as of the older generation, but in reality it can affect anyone.  This book will raise awareness of stroke and give people hope when it does happen to them or their loved one.

It really is an exceptional heart-warming book.  It's like a massive hug and shows that even when you think you have lost someone's love, you can always rekindle that flame.  Never give up on a relationship, you just have to work at it and remember why you fell in love in the first place.

I received this book from the publisher, Hodder & Stoughton, in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:




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