But I Smile Anyway…

You all know I am a HUGE Amanda Prowse fan and I was honoured to have been asked to review some of her recent releases, Anna and Theo, two books in a mini-series entitled One Love Two Stories, and was delighted to discover there was a third book joining those two, about a third character from the story, How To Fall In Love Again (Kitty’s Story).

A couple of months ago I was asked if I’d like to be sent an ARC (Advance Reader Copy) of Amanda’s new release, and well, obviously it was going to be a YES!!!!! Along with the promise of a review and a date set for the official Blog Tour, my copy came winging its way to me.

My ARC and the real deal!

And here it is. The Coordinates of Loss.

A truly beautiful cover, I’m sure you’ll agree!

About the book:

When Rachel Croft wakes up on her family’s boat in Bermuda, it’s to sunshine and yet another perfect day…until she goes to wake her seven-year-old son, Oscar. Because the worst thing imaginable has happened. He isn’t there.

In the dark and desperate days that follow, Rachel struggles to navigate her grief. And while her husband, James, wants them to face the tragedy together, Rachel feels that the life they once shared is over. Convinced that their happy marriage is now a sham, and unable to remain in the place where she lost her son, she goes home to Bristol alone.

Only when she starts receiving letters from Cee-Cee, her housekeeper in Bermuda, does light begin to return to Rachel’s soul. She and James both want to learn to live again—but is it too late for them to find a way through together?

It took me a bit longer to read, but that has nothing to do with anything more than the fact that it is term-time now and teacher exhaustion hits fast! But this book has been with me all the time so I could squeeze in a few pages here and there, wherever possible.

My Review:

Are you ready with your tissue box? No, well then, if you want to read this book, you need to be prepared to be assaulted by a wave of emotions hitting you hard.

Amanda Prowse has done it again. With powerful words and descriptions, she sucks you into the lives of a couple who are going through the toughest time of their life.

Rachel and James are living an idyllic life in the Bahamas with their seven-year-old son, Oscar – until he disappears one day, from their boat.

Sitting in a home, far away from their loved ones, this story takes you through the journey of emotions of a couple torn apart with grief and disbelief.

Is he still alive?

Has he been taken?

Was he dead?

They begin to be a burden upon each other, rather than a support, leading Rachel to run away back to her British home in Bristol, to be near her own family and best friend Vicky, leaving James to deal with the grief in his own way.

Rachel finds solace in the words of her beloved Bahamian housekeeper, Cee Cee, who herself suffered a loss, and writes poignant letters filled with hurt, hope and honesty.

I can’t tell you what happens at the end, you need to read it yourself, but be prepared for a rollercoaster of a read, as you really feel the emotions of a mother coping with the loss of a child, and a husband and wife trying their hardest to deal with the cruellest challenge parents could ever have to.

What are you waiting for? Go, read it!

Star Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(⭐) If I could give it six stars, I would

My Amazon Review: here

My Goodreads Review: here

The Coordinates of Loss by Amanda Prowse is out now, published by Lake Union and available to purchase here:http://amzn.eu/d/9RDjJIT

About the author: I have to tell you, Amanda’s story reads like one of her own books, there is joy, sadness, suffering and success in her own life – no wonder she is the most amazing writer, with such a wealth of experience behind her! I have heard from Amanda about her journey to become a published author too and she is just inspiring!

Amanda Prowse is one of the UK’s most prolific and loved storytellers with global sales of 6million copies and legions of loyal readers (me included!.) Based near Bristol, Amanda is the author of 25 novels and novellas, with books sold in 22 countries and translated into 12 languages – no mean feat when you consider her first novel was only published in 2012. (There’s hope for me yet then!)

A passionate reader since her first visit to the local library aged 6, Amanda would read everything and everything and – armed with her precious library ticket – would spend hours reading Enid Blyton, Anna Sewell, Judy Blume and Nina Bawden, while scribbling short stories of her own. As time passed, she moved on to the more risque delights of Lace, The Thorn Birds and A Woman Of Substance; gritty, emotional stories that would inform her writing. (Mandy, we share the same taste in reading material!)

A powerful storyteller and a master of the addictive plot, Amanda wasn’t always marked out for literary success – for one, she hated school! Born in 1968 in The East End Maternity Hospital, Stepney to young parents, Amanda’s mother was a model for Mary Quant in the ’60s and her father was an engineer for Ford. One of four children – and the only girl – Amanda moved around a lot in her childhood so often felt misplaced. She also suffered from a congenital pelvic defect that went undetected until she was 9 years old and from the age of 11 to 18  underwent numerous operations, spending a lot of time in hospital. Reading became her friend and it was while attending school in St. Albans that an inspirational English teacher – Mr Green – recognised her talent and encouraged her to write and read more widely

Eager to make money, she started work in her late teens and after a series of eccentric flatshares – one with a drag queen and a shoplifter – she went to live with her Nan and Grandad in Dagenham working her way through a number of jobs, trying to figure out what she wanted to be when she grew up!

Against the odds with her medical history in 1996, Amanda gave birth to her son, Josh. With her parents helping to look after Josh, Amanda continued to forge a career, travelling the world to set up offices in Chicago and Europe for a data analytics company. It was then that Amanda met the love of her life, Simeon Prowse. A single dad with a son of his own, they met at the school gates and before long, became a perfectly blended family with Ben becoming a much-loved brother to Josh. Happy and more settled than she had ever felt before, life was about to put another obstacle in her way when Amanda was diagnosed with cancer. A timely wakeup call, she left her job and set up an interior design shop in Bristol whilst starting to write.

Saddled with debt and struggling to keep things afloat, Amanda wrote Poppy Day and, on the 11th November 2012, her life was changed forever when she was approached by a leading literary agency and her first publishing deal was signed.

Since then, Amanda’s rich imagination and prolific writing talent has seen her write over 20 bestsellers with millions of copies being sold across the world. She often writes for 15 hours a day and sees her plots like moves in her mind that she’s compelled to get down on paper. These heartfelt human stories have made her one of the most successful female writers of contemporary fiction today and she has become a regular interviewee in TV, radio and in print.

Amanda’s ambition has always been to create stories that keep people from turning the bedside lamp off at night; great characters that stay with you and stories that inhabit your mind so you can’t possibly read another book until the memory fades. She is also a passionate supporter of military charities and those that support women’s causes and holds regular ‘Evenings with Amanda’ events as fundraisers for her chosen charities.

I was even featured on Amanda’s website if you fancy a read! Just click here!

And I fangirled like mad when this ⬇ happened!

Follow Amanda on Twitter @MrsAmandaProwse, Instagram @MrsAmandaProwse or join Amanda on Facebook.

Check out her website: https://www.amandaprowse.com/

I received a free copy of this book with no obligation to post a review.