Someone Elses's Shoes by Jojo Moyes
Published by Penguin Michael Joseph
Publication Date: 2nd February 2023 (hardcover)
Book Description:
MEET SAM
She's not got much, but she's grateful for what she has: a job she's just about clinging on to and a family who depend on her for everything. She knows she's one bad day away from losing it all - and just hopes today isn't it . . .
MEET NISHA
She's got everything she always dreamed of - and more: a phenomenally rich husband; an international lifestyle; and . . . she's just been locked out of all of it after her husband initiates divorce proceedings...
Sam and Nisha should never have crossed paths. But after a bag mix-up at the gym, their lives become intertwined - even as they spiral out of control.
Each blames the other as they feel increasingly invisible, forgotten, lost - and desperately alone.
But they're not.
No woman is an island. Look around. Family. Friends. Strangers.
Even the woman you believe just ruined your life might turn out to be your best friend.
Because together you can do anything - like take back what is yours...
My Thoughts:
I've not read a Jojo Moyes book for a fair few years now but have always enjoyed those that I have. My partner bought me this one for my birthday - he always says he never knows which ones I've already got on my TBR mountain, so I specifically asked him for this one as it always feels good to receive a book on your special day. I liked the idea of this story: two very different women accidentally exchange bags in the changing room of their local gym and from there on their lives take on a very different path.
Sam is very down to earth. Mum of one, shops at Primark and whose husband is struggling with his mental health following the loss of his dad and his job in quick succession. This leaves Sam to take on the lion's share of keeping the family on track.
Nisha lives in a very different world. She's from the USA, only in the UK to accompany her very wealthy husband on his latest business trip. She's a kept woman, with access to all the trappings her husband's credit card will allow. Until it doesn't, and Nisha finds herself literally out in the cold. In a "borrowed" spa dressing gown and flip-flops.
Sam and Nisha visit the same spa on the same morning - an everyday trip for Nisha, but a special treat for Sam which she's just about managed to squeeze in before her gift card expires. Little do the two women realise just how entangled with one another's lives they are about to become.
Some people have said that this book is a little far-fetched at some points, and yes, I suppose you could say that - but hey, this is the world of fiction and you can give a little in order to make a good story. I'm not sure whose world falls apart the most out of the two women - Sam is accused of theft, adultery and goodness knows what else along the way whereas Nisha has to go back to a place in her past that she thought she'd long left behind across the pond.
I loved most of the characters in this book - even the not so pleasant ones as karma is a wonderful thing in the fictional world. There are some fantastic moments of comedy throughout this book as the women's world cross paths more and more as time goes on and Nisha fights tooth and nail to get back what is hers. My favourite characters were those with more supporting, yet pivotal roles in the story. The staff at the hotel where Nisha's husband is holed up, and Sam's best friend who is battling cancer, together with some of her colleagues at Uberprint, all made their mark on me to the point where I can't choose a favourite amongst them.
There's definitely a moral message in this book, but not to the point of being preachy - it's too much fun for that. This was the perfect book to get me away from the psychological thrillers and crime novels which I had embedded myself amongst recently.
A shiny 5 stars for this one, which I wholly recommend.
About the Author:
Jojo Moyes is a novelist and screenwriter. Her books include the bestsellers Me Before You, After You and Still Me, The One Plus One, The Giver of Stars, the forthcoming Someone Else's Shoes and her short story collection Paris for One and Other Stories. Jojo's novels have been translated into forty-six languages, have hit the number one spot in twelve countries and have sold fifty-one million copies worldwide. Me Before You has now sold over fifteen million copies worldwide and was adapted into a major film starring Sam Claflin and Emilia Clarke. Jojo lives in London.
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