Blog Tour and Review of Mother and Child by Annie Murray
Today I am delighted to be part of the blog tour for Mother and Child by Annie Murray.
I was invited by #LoveBooksTours and @panmacmillan and am thrilled that I loved the book.
My Review
I was ever so pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed reading this book. It flows beautifully and really appeals to me as most of the women in it are over 40.
It reminds me a lot of books I’ve read by Amanda Prowse. It’s a very emotional read dealing with some very dark subject matter but its written sensitively and with a deftness and skill that had me galloping through it.
It’s the story of Jo, a middle aged woman going through a dreadful crisis. She and her husband Ian have upped sticks and moved house, trying to create a new start for themselves at a time they are both still grieving over the pointless death of their teenage son Paul. Seething with grief and simmering with bitterness at the feckless youth who’s recklessness took the life of their beloved boy, they bumble from day to day with little to say to one another anymore.
Ian holds in his grief in a blokey manner, going to work in the small garage business he has built up, his grief simmering beneath the surface and threatening to erupt and overwhelm him. Jo can’t face her old job as a teacher, feels she has nothing in common with her friends and for a while her only company is Ian’s Mum Dorrie, ageing and rather frail. The 2 women are very close and as Jo draws strength from caring for Dorrie, the old lady begins to confide about her own past and losses to Jo. This part of the story caters somewhat to Annie Murrays saga fans and is evocative and holds a few mysteries and tragedies of its own as it unfolds.
Bit by bit Jo finds the strength to start trying to build a new life and in a moment of desperation signs up for a yoga class where she finds some great new friends and builds some inner strength.
She reads an article about a 30 year old tragedy in Bhopal India which strikes a chord featuring a photo of a boy who reminds her of Paul, she finds a little solace trying to help the people affected by this tragedy and finds it helps her come to terms with her own loss, little by little. The author has written this book to help raise awareness of this tragic event which 30 years on is still having dreadful repercussions and you can read more about this tragedy on her website and also find out more about her other books.
This novel raises subjects like death of a child, loss, grief, suicide, depression and the aftermaths of industrial negligence so it was never going to be a light and fluffy read.
However it’s also about friendship and support, rebuilding relationships and starting over.
The author, being an accomplished an popular saga writer is reaching out to a somewhat different audience with this book and its possible some of her die-hard fans may not adapt easily to this more contemporary type of novel. I loved it.
The title refers to a statue raised for the survivors of the Bhopal disaster but is also relevant to the theme of a Mothers love for her child, which Jo feels for her son.
The Blurb
Jo and Ian’s marriage is hanging by a thread. One night almost two years ago, their only child, Paul, died in an accident that should never have happened. They have recently moved to a new area of Birmingham, to be near Ian’s mother Dorrie who is increasingly frail. As Jo spends more time with her mother-in-law, she suspects Dorrie wants to unburden herself of a secret that has cast a long shadow over her family.
Haunted by the death of her son, Jo catches a glimpse of a young boy in a magazine who resembles Paul. Reading the article, she learns of a tragedy in India . . . But it moves her so deeply, she is inspired to embark on a trip where she will learn about unimaginable pain and suffering.
As Jo learns more, she is determined to do her own small bit to help. With the help of new friends, Jo learns that from loss and grief, there is hope and healing in her future.
Today I am delighted to be part of the blog tour for Mother and Child by Annie Murray.
I was invited by #LoveBooksTours and @panmacmillan and am thrilled that I loved the book.
My Review
I was ever so pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed reading this book. It flows beautifully and really appeals to me as most of the women in it are over 40.
It reminds me a lot of books I’ve read by Amanda Prowse. It’s a very emotional read dealing with some very dark subject matter but its written sensitively and with a deftness and skill that had me galloping through it.
It’s the story of Jo, a middle aged woman going through a dreadful crisis. She and her husband Ian have upped sticks and moved house, trying to create a new start for themselves at a time they are both still grieving over the pointless death of their teenage son Paul. Seething with grief and simmering with bitterness at the feckless youth who’s recklessness took the life of their beloved boy, they bumble from day to day with little to say to one another anymore.
Ian holds in his grief in a blokey manner, going to work in the small garage business he has built up, his grief simmering beneath the surface and threatening to erupt and overwhelm him. Jo can’t face her old job as a teacher, feels she has nothing in common with her friends and for a while her only company is Ian’s Mum Dorrie, ageing and rather frail. The 2 women are very close and as Jo draws strength from caring for Dorrie, the old lady begins to confide about her own past and losses to Jo. This part of the story caters somewhat to Annie Murrays saga fans and is evocative and holds a few mysteries and tragedies of its own as it unfolds.
Bit by bit Jo finds the strength to start trying to build a new life and in a moment of desperation signs up for a yoga class where she finds some great new friends and builds some inner strength.
She reads an article about a 30 year old tragedy in Bhopal India which strikes a chord featuring a photo of a boy who reminds her of Paul, she finds a little solace trying to help the people affected by this tragedy and finds it helps her come to terms with her own loss, little by little. The author has written this book to help raise awareness of this tragic event which 30 years on is still having dreadful repercussions and you can read more about this tragedy on her website and also find out more about her other books.
This novel raises subjects like death of a child, loss, grief, suicide, depression and the aftermaths of industrial negligence so it was never going to be a light and fluffy read.
However it’s also about friendship and support, rebuilding relationships and starting over.
The author, being an accomplished an popular saga writer is reaching out to a somewhat different audience with this book and its possible some of her die-hard fans may not adapt easily to this more contemporary type of novel. I loved it.
The title refers to a statue raised for the survivors of the Bhopal disaster but is also relevant to the theme of a Mothers love for her child, which Jo feels for her son.
The Blurb
Jo and Ian’s marriage is hanging by a thread. One night almost two years ago, their only child, Paul, died in an accident that should never have happened. They have recently moved to a new area of Birmingham, to be near Ian’s mother Dorrie who is increasingly frail. As Jo spends more time with her mother-in-law, she suspects Dorrie wants to unburden herself of a secret that has cast a long shadow over her family.
Haunted by the death of her son, Jo catches a glimpse of a young boy in a magazine who resembles Paul. Reading the article, she learns of a tragedy in India . . . But it moves her so deeply, she is inspired to embark on a trip where she will learn about unimaginable pain and suffering.
As Jo learns more, she is determined to do her own small bit to help. With the help of new friends, Jo learns that from loss and grief, there is hope and healing in her future.
