Sunday 27 September 2015

Books Read: Alice Peterson - The Things We Do For Love

Love may hurt, but not loving hurts even more...

January Wild loves her daughter, her dog Spud and her childhood home by the sea.

Single parenting is tough, but January has no regrets. She has a job she loves, a happy home, and the support of her beloved grandfather. The arrival of a new boss, however, threatens to shake up January's safe world.

Ward Metcalfe loves great sales results and a well-run office.

Everyone at her office agrees: Ward is a soulless, corporate slave driver. Even Spud, the company mascot, dislikes him.

A secret stands between them.

Yet over time January realises first impressions aren't always right. Slowly she unravels more and more about her new boss, things she couldn't possibly have imagined, nor expected...

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

Firstly I owe Alice Peterson, and her publishers, a massive apology for the delay in uploading this review which was originally scheduled for publication day but broadband connection issues, illness and sadly life has gotten in the way. 

In The Things We Do For Love we meet single mum January Wild who hasn't had the easiest of lives, a tragic accident when she was a child saw her moving from London to live with her grandparents, and then in her early twenties she finds herself pregnant with the prospect of bringing up a baby on her own, one who is later diagnosed with a debilitating illness, after her boyfriend announces he's not ready to be a father. But are the changes that are now happening at work one hurdle too far for her to cope with, is it finally time for her to re-evaluate her life? 

Through a series of flashbacks between the past and present day, we are taken back to various dates in her past to see everything that she has had to deal with and how her resilience has made her the strong woman that she now is. Isla has always been January's number one priority, so much so that her own love life has been put on the back burner, so she's flattered with the attention that new manager Ward gives her but at the same time she's wary as to whether there's room in her life for him and will he accept Isla? 

January was such an inspirational character as I'm sure that for most of us we would have just curled up into a ball and crumbled in any one of the situations, but with the love and guidance of her grandparents she was able to accept the hands she'd been dealt and just coped the best that she could to provide a good life for herself and her young daughter Isla. Even when Isla's condition was diagnosed she didn't take the facts at face value, she researched herself to see what other treatments were available to give Isla the best chances to lead a full, normal and happy life.  

Over the years Alice Peterson has become one of my go-to authors, you know those authors whose books you eagerly await news for, as she's never afraid to tackle sensitive topics in this instance grief, unplanned pregnancy and a disabled child.  It's clear that Alice has done a lot of research about Isla's condition to enable her to write about it, but at the same time it's not too overloaded with details and medical terminology to put readers off.  

Having loved her previous books especially By My Side which is still my favourite, The Things We Do For Love had a lot to live up and I'm pleased to say it did.  It's an emotional but uplifting tale of a mother's love for her child that will pull at your heartstrings and have you rooting for January to find the right balance for providing for her daughter but also allowing herself to be loved.    

The lovely Alainna at Quercus Books sent me a finished copy of The Things We Do for Love as well as a proof copy, and I already had a copy of the eBook, so I have decided to run a giveaway for one of you to win the paperback.  Simply enter via the Rafflecopter form below, the winner will be selected at random next Sunday and contacted for their address to enable me to post the book to you.

 Rafflecopter giveaway

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