Published by Quercus Books
Publication Date: 22nd July 2021
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Book Description:
Kate Sullivan has a beautiful home, a job she loves and a handsome fiancé: all she's ever dreamed of since getting sober and painstakingly piecing her life back together.
But a chance encounter with her old best friend, Becky, threatens Kate's newfound and fragile happiness. She remembers nothing of their last drunken night out, the night Becky broke off their friendship without warning or explanation.
With Becky back in her life, Kate is desperate to make amends for the past. For the closure she craves, Kate needs to know what she did that ruined everything. But what if the truth is worse than Kate could have imagined?
My Thoughts:
I picked up this book at my local library while in search of Emily's more recent release entitled What She Left Behind. I have that on hold at the library and am even more keen to get my hands on it ASAP now I've read her previous work.
This is one book I wish I hadn't read the prologue as it unfortunately gave away the whole direction of the plot. We meet Kate Sullivan and her dad as they stand all dressed up but with nowhere to go as Kate's jilted on her wedding day. We then back track to how and why we end up there but personally I feel the book would have worked better without this scene.
Kate is a high school English teacher, her class of year 11 students in final preparation for their GCSE exams. It's a job she loves and which she's had to work hard to achieve. She's also an alcoholic, six years sober thanks to the AA 12 steps plan which helps people on their journey back to sobriety. The book takes us through Kate's 12 steps, explaining which of them she has been honest with herself with and which she's still in denial or studiously avoiding. Then Becky, her best friend from her teenage years who she's not seen in a decade or so, suddenly arrives back in her life and everything starts to go off the rails.
I found this to be a very honest account of how hard getting sober (and staying so) must be, the self-doubt and paranoia which can easily ambush any and every situation. The temptation to have just one sip of alcohol is everywhere, trying to build a new social life while avoiding temptation is a steep hill to climb. My opinions of Becky kept swinging between whether she was being a genuine good friend or whether she was deliberately trying to wreck Kate's newly found happiness. All became clear on that one however the prologue had already influenced the general flow of events. We may have lacked the detail but we certainly knew where the endpoint would be.
That said, I did enjoy this book immensely, especially Kate's interactions with problem student Lily. If only there were more teachers made in her mould. Also, Kate's dad Johnny and his new partner Ronda are fabulous characters - I would have liked to have heard their voices more throughout the book too.
I would definitely recommend this book, although maybe skip the prologue for a better experience overall.
About the Author:
Emily Freud has worked on Emmy and BAFTA award winning television series including Educating Yorkshire and First Dates. Her debut novel My Best Friend's Secret publishes in 2021. Emily lives in North London, with her husband and two small children. She is currently working on her next novel.
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