Because there’s never enough time to say goodbye…
Sylvia knows that she’s running out of time. Very soon, she will exist only in the memories of those who loved her most and the pieces of her life she’s left behind.
The Exiteers existed to support people with terminal illnesses and for whom pain meant their lives were no longer bearable
So she begins to write her husband a handbook for when she’s gone, somewhere to capture the small moments of ordinary, precious happiness in their married lives. From raising their wild, loving son, to what to give their gentle daughter on her eighteenth birthday – it’s everything she should have told him before it was too late.
But Sylvia also has a secret, one that she’s saved until the very last pages. And it’s a moment in her past that could change everything…
In Rebecca Lay’s words:
My debut novel For When I’m Gone is coming out in September 2020. It’s about a young mother with terminal breast cancer who writes her husband a guidebook to their family life. In it, she reveals a secret that threatens to change his perception of her forever.
The subject is obviously a sad one. Like my main protagonist Sylvia, both of my older sisters were diagnosed with breast cancer in their thirties. While they are doing really well (touch wood, a million times) I’ve witnessed first hand how hard it is.
But For When I’m Gone is also an uplifting read (I hope!). It tells the story of Sylvia’s relationship with her husband Paul – from the beginning until the end. It’s about being a mother, sister, daughter and wife. How our lives are played out in the little moments.
I am new to being an author, but the idea that people might read my work and want to connect with me about it is honestly my biggest dream. I would love to hear what you think of For When I’m Gone. You can find click the ‘follow’ button on Amazon, or find me on Twitter or Instagram, where I share fragments of my life raising three children in Hackney, east London. I grew up by the sea in Cornwall and never expected to be raising a family in the inner city, but here we are!
I have spent the last sixteen years working as a journalist. I’ve worked on staff at The Times, Sun and Daily Mail, as well as writing a column in The Guardian about my father’s dementia. I’ve also freelanced for a variety of other papers and magazines, including The Telegraph, Psychologies, Mother and Baby and Grazia. And I write scripts for an animation company too.
This obviously deals with a sensitive subject as Sylvia is dying from breast cancer. Beyond her cancer, Sylvia is a loving wife to Paul and mother to Megan and Jude. Devastated by the loss of their third child and some complicated relationships with her family this guides you through Sylvia’s life through the manual she leaves for her husband, not to be shared with anyone else.
An emotional read that not only chronicles her life but gives insights into her relationships and regrets. Her struggles with bulimia and her emotional traumas, her deceptions, lies and betrayals. She leaves information for Paul on how she wants their children raised and the things important to her that she wants them to know and enjoy.
There are a lot of complexities in Sylvia’s relationships, especially with her mother, father and sister. Sylvia wasn’t the perfect mother or wife, but she tried her best and loved her family. She is human and relatable.
A real heartfelt read, funny in places, enjoyable seems the wrong word but it definitely was, and all handled so well.
Thank you to Net Galley, the Publisher and the Author for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
| Title | For When I’m Gone |
| Author | Rebecca Ley |
| Series | N/A |
| Format | eARC |
| Page Count | 368 Pages |
| Genre | Contemporary Fiction |
| Publisher | Orion |
| Release Date | 3rd September 2020 |
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