One Day meets Up: The House That Made Us is a love story – and a life story – told through a series of photographs and based on a true story
When Mac and Marie marry and find a home of their own, Mac takes a snap of themselves outside their newbuild bungalow, the garden bare and the paint on the front door still wet. It becomes a tradition, this snap, and slowly the photographs build into an album of a fifty-year partnership.
Every year they take a photo and though things change around them – the garden matures, the fashions change, they grow older – the one constant is their love. Every year, come rain, come shine, from the Seventies through the decades, every photo tells the story of their love.
Until the last photo, where the couple becomes one, and their story comes to an end…
What did I think?
Oh my goodness, I am a total blubbering mess after reading this outstanding book. Knowing that it was based on a true story, I was reaching for my tissues just reading the dedication at the front, and that wasn't the only tear I shed. Yes, it's heartbreaking but it is filled with so much love and I enjoyed every beautiful moment.
I simply adored Mac and Marie and how their story played out over a series of photographs in a treasured album. It's an album that has found its way into new hands where each photo is discovered for the very first time. It's a dual storyline of sorts, as the photo album is being looked at in the present day and each photo tells a story from the past.
The characters are larger than life and Mac and Marie instantly found a way into my heart. It's nostalgic at times as the decades pass and colour choices fade but Mac and Marie's love grows stronger. Every anniversary they take a photo in front of their house and I couldn't read fast enough to discover their story, whilst simultaneously dreading the final chapter as I was so emotionally invested.
Emotional doesn't even begin to describe The House That Made Us and to say that Alice Cavanagh put me through the emotional wringer is an understatement, however, it's an emotional journey I feel privileged to have been on.
Beautifully written and filled with heart and soul, The House That Made Us is a stunning novel of a full and happy life, with inevitable tears at the end (and the beginning and everywhere in between). Have your hankies at the ready as you discover Mac and Marie's story for yourself. An easy five stars and more - completely unmissable and very highly recommended.
I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
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