Randy Susan Meyers

I'll say right at the beginning that I loved this book and if possible I would give it more than 5 stars. It's one of my favorite books of 2024. This book gave me a 'book hangover' and I couldn't start a new book for a few days because the characters stayed lodged in my mind long after the last page. It's a book about mothers and daughters and how working to make the world a better place can cause upheavals that exist for generations

This book takes place over a 40 year time span from 1964 through Covid in 2020. It was interesting to see the growth of both Annabel and Ivy over the years as they struggled to find their places in the ever-changing world. Both women were well written and felt like good friends by the end of the book. Annabel especially reminded me of women I knew in college in the 60s and I felt like we could sit down and have lunch together.

This book was a beautiful and well written look at mothers and daughters and the way that the world affects their relationship with each other but ultimately their love for each other brings them together. I find myself still thinking about the characters and events in the book long after I finished it. For me, who usually can't remember the name of the book that I'm currently reading, this shows what a great book this is. This is a book that you don't want to miss.… (more)

I have to be honest, this is a tough book to read. Not because the writing isn't great (it is!) but it is the subject: a marriage that could have gone so right, instead has gone so wrong due to a violent temper.

Two people (Maddy and Ben) love each other, yet Ben's inability to control his temper over the years has worn thin the threads of what could've been a strong marriage. When a car accident puts Maddy in a position of fighting for her life, she also finds herself wondering if she has the strength to fight for her marriage that has been an endless walking-on-eggshells strain for years.

I've read all of this author's books, and her background knowledge and research in domestic violence helps bring this (tragic) story to life.… (more)