From the bestselling author of The Girl in the Corner comes a story that asks: how do you forgive the family that lied to you, and love the mum you never had?
When her loving, free-spirited grandmother Primrose passes away, Victoria is bereft, yet resilient—she has survived tragedy before. But even her strength is tested when a mysterious woman attends Prim’s funeral and claims to be the mother Victoria thought was dead.
I love to see people in love. I think it is one of the most hopeful sights known to man. I think as long as people love one another, then there is hope.
As the two women get to know each other and Victoria begins to learn more about her past, it becomes clear that her beloved grandmother had been keeping life-changing secrets from her. Desperate for answers, she still struggles to trust anyone to tell her the truth.
To live a full and happy life, Victoria knows she must not only uncover the truth, but find a way to forgive her family. But after so many years, is trusting them even possible?
Amanda Prowse likens her own life story to those she writes about in her books. After self-publishing her debut novel Poppy Day in 2011, she has gone on to author twenty-five novels, six novellas and a memoir about depression co-authored with her son, Josiah Hartley. Her books have been translated into a dozen languages and she regularly tops bestseller charts all over the world. Remaining true to her ethos, Amanda writes stories of ordinary women and their families who find their strength, courage and love tested in ways they never imagined. The most prolific female contemporary fiction writer in the UK, with a legion of loyal readers, she goes from strength to strength. Being crowned ‘queen of domestic drama’ by the Daily Mail was one of her finest moments. Amanda is a regular contributor on TV and radio but her first love is, and will always be, writing.
You can find her online at www.amandaprowse.com, on Twitter or Instagram @MrsAmandaProwse, and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/amandaprowsenogreaterlove.
This was a good lesson in reading the synopsis before reading the book. If I had read it and realised it was about Victoria’s Grandmother passing away, I would have avoided it as my own beloved grandmother passed recently and it’s still very raw. Needless to say, I cried through the whole book instead!
Poor Victoria, an 18-year-old who has decided not to go to Uni and to save to travel first, has been bought up since she was born by Prim, the only family she had left after her father’s death before she was born and her mother’s shortly after, both from drug overdoses. Her grandfather died when she was 8 and as her mother was an only child, she has no cousins or extended family.
Victoria has an awesome best friend but otherwise not many to speak of and is now alone in the world. The relationship between Victoria and her grandmother, Prim, is so wonderful, they are very close and from the first few pages, you feel like you know them. Their conversations and emotions feel very real, the same with the others throughout the book. Victoria is a very real character who you just want to hug and make feel better, you want her to know how loved she is.
The plot is brilliant, this book is beautifully written. You begin learning about Victoria’s life and the shock of finding her grandmother, Prim, after her passing. Then a strange woman arrives at her funeral and claims to be Victoria’s mother, Sarah. Victoria has a lot to deal with; her grandmothers passing, this new stranger and who she really is as well as learning to live alone in a big house and how to deal with being lied to her whole life. She has a strong need to find out the truth about what happened and why. It’s a difficult journey but with the help of a series of beautifully written and very emotional letters she begins to learn the truth.
Despite being an emotional read it was positive and uplifting at the same time. Filled with sensitivity, grief, loss, addiction, reconciliation and above all, love, this was a quick read as I just couldn’t put it down. Amanda Prowse, in her usual style, has delivered another exceptional book.
Sometimes you the perfect book has a way of finding you at the exact right time in your life and for me this was it. While grieving myself this has helped heal some of the pain and to focus on my own wonderful grandmother. That is the true magic of reading and this was perfect!
Thank you to Net Galley, the Publisher and the Author for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
| Title | The Day She Came Back |
| Author | Amanda Prowse |
| Series | N/A |
| Format | eARC |
| Page Count | 317 Pages |
| Genre | Contemporary Fiction |
| Publisher | Lake Union Publishing |
| Release Date | 7th July 2020 |
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