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A review by beate251
If We Could Turn Back Time by Sian O'Gorman
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.
Alice Murphy, 30, originally from Sandycove in Ireland, has spent the last ten years in Australia but is back for a month long holiday because she misses mother Ciara and grandmother Eve.
Sandycove is a small town near Dublin and the location in a few other books by the author which I haven't read. I'm sure you can read it as a standalone but it might be better for the understanding of the community to have read others. For there is a big community and it took me a while to learn the big players. Apart from the three generations of Murphys, we have the Blake family: Paddy, son Conal and matriarch Dolores, now in supported living, plus friends Becca and Mary-Marg.
There are secrets and lies connecting those two families, and I had a hard time detangling it in my mind once it was all revealed. It's an incredibly Irish story, and the romance subplots were very predictable.
I mainly got this book for the gorgeous cover, and it's well-written but it didn't grab me as much as it could have. There is much talk about the resurrection of a disco for the over 45, and the modernisation of a general shop and deli, something I didn't find terribly interesting.
However, I liked how it gave middle-aged women a voice (menopause is mentioned frequently) and painted a lovely picture of all the scrumptious Irish food to be had.
It's an uplifting story of friendship and second chances. Recommended if you love small town communities with long-held secrets.
Alice Murphy, 30, originally from Sandycove in Ireland, has spent the last ten years in Australia but is back for a month long holiday because she misses mother Ciara and grandmother Eve.
Sandycove is a small town near Dublin and the location in a few other books by the author which I haven't read. I'm sure you can read it as a standalone but it might be better for the understanding of the community to have read others. For there is a big community and it took me a while to learn the big players. Apart from the three generations of Murphys, we have the Blake family: Paddy, son Conal and matriarch Dolores, now in supported living, plus friends Becca and Mary-Marg.
There are secrets and lies connecting those two families, and I had a hard time detangling it in my mind once it was all revealed. It's an incredibly Irish story, and the romance subplots were very predictable.
I mainly got this book for the gorgeous cover, and it's well-written but it didn't grab me as much as it could have. There is much talk about the resurrection of a disco for the over 45, and the modernisation of a general shop and deli, something I didn't find terribly interesting.
However, I liked how it gave middle-aged women a voice (menopause is mentioned frequently) and painted a lovely picture of all the scrumptious Irish food to be had.
It's an uplifting story of friendship and second chances. Recommended if you love small town communities with long-held secrets.