Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and Amanda Prowse for the ARC provided via NetGalley; this is my honest review.
*spoilers*

The Idea of You by Amanda Prowse
Lake Union Publishing, 21st March 2017
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis:
With her fortieth birthday approaching, Lucy Carpenter thinks she finally has it all: a wonderful new husband, Jonah, a successful career, and the chance of a precious baby of her own. Life couldn’t be more perfect.

But becoming parents proves much harder to achieve than Lucy and Jonah imagined, and when Jonah’s teenage daughter Camille comes to stay with them, she becomes a constant reminder of what Lucy doesn’t have. Jonah’s love and support are unquestioning, but Lucy’s struggles with work and her own failing dreams begin to take their toll. With Camille’s presence straining the bonds of Lucy’s marriage even further, Lucy suddenly feels herself close to losing everything…

Review:
The Idea of You has a great many highly rated reviews, so it's clear that a great many people enjoyed it immensely. Lucy and Jonah's relationship is examined well, and there are aspects of both characters that really draw you into the story.

Despite Lucy's struggles with pregnancy, including miscarriage, I really found it difficult to connect with her. I should have found it easy - I've had several miscarriages myself, so I have been in her shoes, but something just didn't click. So, I felt somewhat detached from the book as I read.

I wanted to enjoy this book much more than I did, as the author is well respected, but I strive for honesty in my reviews. I'm hoping I enjoy the next Amanda Prowse book I read more.

#TheIdeaOfYou #NetGalley #LakeUnionPublishing #WomensFiction #LiteraryFiction

Amanda Prowse is one of my auto buy authors, and I was overjoyed to get the chance to review this book. I enjoyed it as much or even more than her past books. I will continue to purchase all of her books.

A great story, well written if a little predictable. I always get a lot of enjoyment from Amanda Prowse books and I'm sure I'll read more in the future.

An emotional and heart breaking read about a woman's struggle to conceive. Amanda never fails to deliver a great book.

A well written book dealing with fertility struggles and the longing to become. I thought the subject was dealt with really well with great characters. Recommended.

*I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

A story about a woman longing for motherhood, but facing the struggles of achieving that. This was a good read. Beautifully written.

I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review. This review is based entirely on my own thoughts and feelings.

Overall rating : 4*
Writing skill : 5*
Plot: 3*
Pace: 3*
Characters: 5*
Emotiveness: 4*

Another bloody book I've put off since 2017 that I received for free, that's been sat on my kindle abandoned all this time. And it was a sad, beautiful, emotive read. This is my second book by this author, and I will definitely chip away at some more.
Her writing is flawless, I felt all the emotions of the characters, who by the way were all excellent. A great read for fans of domestic dramas and books surrounding family life.

I was unable to download this title in time to leave an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity though.

Another fantastic gem on my shelf of netgalley reads that I wish I had read sooner!
Lucy and her new husband, Jonah, are trying to become parents but it’s a very hard journey. When Camille, Jonah’s teenage daughter arrives things go wrong and everything is at stake.
As always Amanda gives all the emotions with her characters and I loved this. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers in exchange for my honest review.

I was worried about this book hitting a little too close to home since I myself am infertile and my partner had already had children of his own before we met. I felt like Lucy had a lot more promise as a character that wasn't met.

Lucy has it all except for the family she always dreamed of having. At 39, Lucy meets Jonah. They marry and Lucy finds herself pregnant. But things don't go as planned. Jonah's teenage daugher from a previous marriage and, although things are rocky, Lucy sees that her dream of a family may still be realized.

While the writing was solid, I found the characters to be a bit one-dimensional. But in the end, it was a very emotional (and a bit heart-breaking). If you enjoy family dramas, this book is for you.

Unfortunately, I found this book difficult to get into and it just wasn't for me, despite the intriguing premise.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC

Very well written novel dealing with the struggle to become a mother and the domestic issues that go hand in hand. Absolutely heartfelt dealing with such a sensitive topic. Highly recommend!

Unfortunately this book took way longer to read than it probably should have but in the end it wasn't just for me. I wanted to love it but I didn't.

A very well written book which follow the story of Lucy and Jonah and their journey to becoming parents. Throw in an ex-wife and stepdaughter and you know you are in for an emotional rollercoaster.
Highly recommend

Amanda Prowse spins a tale about longing, family, and loss. Lucy and her husband are trying to have a baby of their own. When her husband's daughter come to live with them, she reevaluates what becoming a parent means. She also looks at where she is in her life and what means the most to her.

It has some good characters and a good story but its not one of my favourite books. It’s worth reading but just didn’t quite manage that feeling of wanting to pick it up and keep reading. It sat around for a few weeks before I picked it back up.

The storyline of a woman hearing her biological clock ticking away and resorts to desperate measures is a time old one, and the manipulation of this woman by her new husband is a little creepy, especially as he marries her before she’s even met his daughter.
In summary, whilst I finished the book I didn’t really enjoy it.

Emotionally moving story of motherhood and what it means from either desperately craving motherhood during several miscarriages and the meaning of motherhood from an unwanted pregnancy. Main character Lucy has a successful career and only needs the husband and baby to complete her life. At 39, Lucy is feening for a husband after seeing all of her friends, colleagues and sister with their spouses and kids. She ends up meeting Jonah and life is great, but she is obsessing for a baby. It was an emotional ride of heartbreak, tears and grief as Lucy comes to terms with what it all means in addition to welcoming Jonah's 16 year old daughter in their life and his not so cool ex-wife are all thrown in the mix. I really enjoyed this story of family, dreams and heartbreak and what it means to be a mother.

This story is the ultimate in escapism. The main characters rich in colour, the destinations perfectly described and the love story every woman’s fantasy.