FRIENDS FOR LIFE.

My sincere apologies to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources and authors, Liz Murphy, Becky Papworth and Anita Kelsey. Unfortunately ill health which resulted in a hospital stay has meant that I have been unable to post these blog tour reviews as agreed to. 

The first of three reviews I shall be posting today. Please be sure to keep a look out for Janet Jackson Superhost by Liz Murphy and The Little Book of Extraordinary Cats by Anita Kelsey which I shall be posting later. FGT

FRIENDS FOR LIFE by LIZ MURPHY.

Genre: Contemporary women’s fiction

Tour Dates: 8th - 14th May 2024

Publication Date: January 2024

Estimated Page Count - 390

Standalone Book

Author content warning ... There are three death scenes at the beginning, gambling addiction, emotional bullying, dementia, adultery, bereavement

Purchase Link

Three deaths...three grieving women...one unbreakable bond that changes their lives ...

Kate, Rose and Pascalle are thrown together because they share one experience – they have each lost their husbands. Shocked and bewildered, all three try to work out what it means to be suddenly alone with no partner, no security and their entire future wiped out. If that wasn’t enough, they are also faced with family conflict, elderly parents, and a support network that turns out to be lacking. And for each woman, secrets from the past threaten to derail their attempts to move on.

On the surface, Kate’s husband Jason was fun-loving and generous. Only she knows differently. In the months after his death, her attempts to rid her life of the things that trigger bad memories are also driving her son away. By keeping Jason’s secret is she in danger of losing her son as well?

Rose and Richard were soul mates. Married straight out of university, they shared a business and a love of the good life. Childless, they lived only for each other, or so Rose thought. That all changed the night Richard was killed in a car crash.

Once spirited, vibrant and flamboyantly French, Pascalle is now a grey shadow of herself. Her husband Trevor’s death has left her so emotionally paralysed, she can’t accept that he’s gone. Then one day her daughter offers her the chance to create a new life for herself. But will her past help or hinder her decision?

We follow Kate and Rose through their first year without their husbands. As their friendship with Pascalle grows they encourage each other to be brave, to take control of their lives, and to begin to heal...but can they overcome their grief?

As much a story about the power of friendship as it is about the nature of grief and grieving. 

A raw, emotional read {I'd advise you have a box of tissues to hand} and yet for all of that, amongst the tears of sadness there were also some tears of mirth as I journeyed with Kate, Rose and Pascalle, all of whom I came to feel very protective of.

The short chapters drawing me in, the story thoroughly engaging. Plot wise, I can only describe Friends For Life as being akin to being on a roller-coaster ride of emotions as I traversed the many facets of grief as we follow these three different women all of whom have lost their husbands in very different circumstances and grieve in quite different ways.

Definitely an author to keep a look out for. Its hard to believe that this is a debut novel, such is the power and the conviction of the writing. 

Originally from Scotland, Liz Murphy moved to London in the mid 1980s as a features writer on Woman’s Own and since then has worked on some of the biggest weekly and monthly magazines in the country including Good Housekeeping, House Beautiful, TVTimes and Sky The Magazine, where she held senior editorial positions. Liz is also a qualified mat and reformer Pilates teacher.

The sudden death of her husband, Steve, prompted her to reassess her priorities, following which she left magazines and now focuses her time on teaching Pilates, playing tennis, working at tennis tournaments, singing in a choir and sitting on the governing body of a federation of three primary schools. She has two grown-up daughters.

Social Media Links ... Instagram Website FaceBook

With thanks to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for organising a paper copy. One of several bloggers participating in the Blog Tour of this book, agree or disagree with me, all opinions are my own; no financial compensation was asked for nor given; threats of violence towards my favourite teddy bear went unheeded as did promises of chocolate.

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