I’ve read a couple of books by Alice Peterson before, and enjoyed them both, add that with all the hype I read on twitter surrounding this book, I knew I was in for a treat. This book was certainly something special.
The power of this book is shown by how hard it was for me to write this review, and how many times I’ve re-wrote the intro. Basically this book had me tongue-tied. The writing is beautiful. It is a book that begs you to take your time over it. You could easily read this in a day, but it made me want to take my time over it and savour each page. T
he characterisation is as wonderful as the rest of there book. You hear from 3 different people, Alice, Tom and Alice’s mother. They were all unique perspectives on their feelings on Alice and how they deal with Alice’s illness. I absolutely adored Alice’s mum’s perspective, they were incredibly moving.
Alice herself is incredibly determined, headstrong and at times stubborn. Her passion for music was clear and her obvious passion for life was inspirational. Of course she worries and is increasingly scared as the book continues, but she constantly pushes herself to make the most of life. Following her dreams is important to her, however far away they may seem, and it’s something we could all learn from.
Tom, for the most part was absolutely lovely. He clearly loved Alice and cared for her. Though their relationship is complex at times, and at times he disappointed me, but would I act differently if I was in the same situation? I don’t know, so I can’t act all self righteous.
Their romance was wonderful to read however, his caring side was beautiful and their playfulness together made me smile.
It’s only February and am positive this will be in my top ten books of the year. It is loosely based on the life of Alice Martineau and that just makes it all the more emotional and special. It is heart-breaking, uplifting and inspirational. This book will stick in my mind for a long time.
Published by: Simon and Schuster
Gratefully received from the Publisher for review
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