Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a huge fan of Amanda Prowse so I was so excited when my review copy of her latest book The Idea of You arrived. I kept looking at it (well it's just so pretty isn't it?) but didn't want to read it too soon because then it would be over. If you love books as much as I do then you'll know exactly where I'm coming from when I say that, I soon gave in though and I can assure you that it's another stunning book from this hugely talented author.
Lucy Carpenter unexpectedly meets Jonah, the man of her dreams at a christening and after a whirlwind romance the couple are soon married and life is perfect. . . . .almost. The only thing missing in Lucy's life is a baby. While Jonah's teenage daughter, Camille, lives in France with her mum, Lucy yearns to have a child of her own. When she discovers she's pregnant the couple are overjoyed but it's a short-lived joy as a few short weeks later she miscarries leaving her devastated.
The couple manage to muddle through this devastating time but it's clear that Lucy is hiding her distress and sadly this is just the first of several unsuccessful pregnancies. Each time the loss hits Lucy harder and the once blissfully happy marriage starts to show the strain which is only made worse by the arrival of Camille who has come to stay with them for the summer.
I have to admit that not being maternal myself, I did have a slight niggle in the back of my mind that I wouldn't enjoy this book as much as other novel's by Ms Prowse due to the subject matter but of course I needn't have worried. The Idea of You is a sensitively written and emotionally charged novel - everything that I have come to expect from Amanda and knowing that she has her own personal experience of this subject makes it even more moving. Hard to read in places, especially when you see some of the somewhat seemingly harsh and heartless medical terms for some of the procedures, but is difficult to put down.
Dealing with every aspect of motherhood as well as family, love, courage, loss and acceptance, this is a book that highlights a difficult to broach subject with real compassion and honesty. Amanda never fails to deliver a beautifully written story that grips the reader right from the outset and one that will resonate with many women. This is another brilliant book and one that I would highly recommend.
With kind thanks to author Amanda Prowse and publisher Lake Union Publishing for the review copy.
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