I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. 

I really wanted to like this book and the main character since I think any professional woman nowadays can either relate personally to the main character's struggle or they know someone who can. But honestly, don't these people realize they could talk to each other?! I felt like the main three characters were not believable because they were essentially living in parallel universes instead of just being honest with each other. That disconnect with reality tempered the story for me.

This review was posted on Goodreads.

Lucy Carpenter, with her fortieth birthday approaching 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, or could it? 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… Will their marriage survive?

I absolutely loved this book! 
Amanda Prowse is always quite brave in her writing, often tackling sensitive subjects that are difficult to discuss with skill and empathy. 
This book is so captivating and vivid and draws you in right from the outset making you feel like its real life and you’re actually in the story, in their homes witnessing the trials and tribulations of one woman’s heart-breaking struggle to become a mother. She is under pressure from her body clock, not just from herself but from friends and siblings to get find a husband and get pregnant before it's too late…
After going through several agonising miscarriages. Lucy struggles to cope at work and with her family, she kept her pain to herself, secretly hoping the next time she gets pregnant, she won't miscarry.  However the focus shifts for Lucy when Jonah's teenage daughter Camille comes to stay with them, bringing a whole load of teenage angst. Camille unknowingly comes between them despite Lucy going over and above to make her feel welcome, Lucy is so full of grief she is struggling to bond with Camille and the difficulties of bonding and rejection puts strain on their marriage.
The story was crafted so well that I felt I was right there with her; I felt a sense of privilege being part of Lucy’s journey and I really rooted for her as her story unfolded, I physically felt her conflicting emotion and the struggles she faced; Lucy yo-yoed between being a strong, independent, controlled, envied and successful woman and a fragile, emotional, lost and desperate little girl.
I liked the surprise at the end, its not quite the outcome she wanted, but she managed to fill that nurturing void in her life, it gives a good message that we don’t always get what we wish for but making the most of what were given can be just as sweet.
I didn't want this book to end and I want more !!!!

This was a really enjoyable and well written story from Amanda Prowse. Having read one of her books recently I had high expectations for this one too! I thought that it was well written considering what a sensitive topic it is, although maybe I would be able to emotionally connect with it a little more if I wanted and/or had children. I found it a little bit too one tracked at times, but again this may just be because of the topic! Although I didn't particularly like Lucy most of the time, I did love her efforts for Camille and appreciated the relationship between those two. As a step daughter myself I could understand the difficulties! Thank you for the chance to read and review.

Rather sad but predictable story which I'm sure will hit home to many. Love this author, easy reading and mostly gripping storylines.

Lucy is a 39-year old advertising executive who has just about given up on marriage and motherhood after her fiance left her to marry her cousin. But when she attends the christening of her godson, she meets Jonah Carpenter who immediately is smitten and so is she. They soon marry and try vigilantly to have a baby with tragic results. Life gets even more complicated when Jonah's 16-year old daughter, Camille, comes for an extended visit.

I couldn't decide for quite some time whether I liked Lucy or not but as the story progressed, it occurred to me that it wasn't about liking or disliking this character. She's experiencing the normal feelings you would expect of someone of her age and circumstances. Lucy is just human and I ended up admiring her for being authentic in her reactions to miscarriage, a resentful stepdaughter and a husband in denial. 

What's distinctive about this story as the characters show up as very real. I found myself wanting them, particularly Lucy, to behave differently but would then realize that she was reacting in ways I probably would have behaved. There was an unforeseen revelation late in the story that answers many questions while at the same time throwing gasoline on the Carpenter home. It's provocative, emotionally and intellectually. Though the author could sometimes be overly descriptive of non-essential details, I thought it was well written and paced. I'm glad I read it as I learned so much about the emotional long term toll of miscarriage on everyone involved.

Sometimes what you wish for isn't the best thing for you, and sometimes it is. Lucy's story is one of love and loss, and finding a balanced and fulfilling life amidst her experiences. 
Prowse takes a heavy subject matter and addresses it in a way that is bearable and sweet, while also being realistic. Her voice is at times humorous, witty, humbling and heartbreaking while she delivers one heck of a love story.

This book was beautifully written, but terribly sad. I couldn't finish the book, it broke my heart.

I can understand Lucy wanting to finally meet the man of her dreams because, ahem, that's what I'm currently hoping now. But I'm not a fan or whirlwind romances just like what to Lucy when he met Jonah. I think that's what the complications always start if a marriage is a product of these hasty love stories. Lucy wasn't prepared to what could happen after getting married; and she's either overwhelmed by her new situation or she just didn't expect them. 

Overall, the elements of a chick-lit book are all included in this magnificent novel. If you are a fan of chick-lit, I highly recommend to add this to your collection because it is definitely a must-read.

The Idea of You is a great title and the idea it put in my head made me gravitate to the book.  Lucy is an enjoyable character for whom the reader feels empathy and or sympathy.  Her story is sometimes frustrating but it is highly readable and kept me interested to the end.

The idea of you

This is not a read for the  overly sensitive as it packs a wallop to your heart a as you follow through the  traumas of past, present and future in Lucy's life.  

It reflects how the world has changed in how we deal with motherhood but the stresses remain the same.  The biggest, clearest message is just how important family is to a child.

The characters are extemly well written and I laughed and cried with them feeling immersed in their world.

If  I wasn't reviewing it not sure I would have carried on reading past chapter one but once I did I wanted to get to the end and find out how it ends.

Well worth persevering with if you find it difficult subject matter.  A beautifully written novel. 

I received a free copy from net galley.com for my fair and honest review.

This review is written with thanks to Lake Union Publishing and Netgalley for my copy of The Idea Of You.
Lucy Carpenter is almost forty. She has a loving husband, Jonah, and a thriving career, and it appears to her friends and family that she has everything she could ever want. But what Lucy really wants is to be a parent, and her difficulty in achieving this dream is putting a strain on Lucy and Jonah's marriage. Can they survive through the hard times?
The subject of miscarriage is a very poignant one, and I admire Prowse's ability to write about something so emotionally raw with honesty and compassion. She has clearly researched the subject very well, and used not only the facts about miscarriage, but the feelings surrounding it to evoke an emotional response in the reader. However, whilst I felt that the emotional aspects of the novel were very strong, for me, this was at the expense of the plot. It is well over half way through The Idea Of You before there are any major plot developments, and this made the beginning of the novel drag for me. When the plot developments came, I found them slightly predictable, therefore despite the emotional pull of the writing, there were times when my interest waned.
In Lucy, Prowse has created a protagonist with whom many of her female readers will identify. She is intelligent, ambitious and tends to speak her mind. However, I struggled to warm to Lucy, despite sympathising with her plight. For the majority of the novel, I found her to be cold, jealous and immature, and this frustrated me, making parts of The Idea Of You difficult to read.
In November, I reviewed The Food Of Love and enjoyed the way that Prowse had raised serious contemporary issues in a highly accessible way. Here, she has done the same with the subject of miscarriage (and other themes which lie below the surface), although in this case, I found it more difficult to connect with the characters, and this left me a little underwhelmed.

This was the first book I've read by Amanda Prowse and I have to say, I'm hooked! I love finding new authors to keep my mind busy, but I don't always find an author that I simply love right off. The Idea of You is a wonderfully written book that touched my heart. The subject matter can be delicate and sad, but Amanda Prowse did a beautiful job of telling the story and making me smile. The writing is smooth and grammatically correct (a huge thing for me). I look forward to reading more by Amanda Prowse. She may very well become one of my favorite authors, thanks to The Idea of You.

A solid, but unimaginative, story with a slightly misleading blurb. Read this independently and while I didn't think it was terrible, the writing was fairly one-note, as was the story - not really my kind of thing.

I managed to finish this book but considered it time wasted.  The characters were too good to be true and behaved in cliched, predicatable ways.  I thought the husband must be more than he seemed and kept waiting for the twist, but there was none.  Romance readers would probably enjoy this book as there is a lot of description of the characters feelings, but they seemed very cliched to me.  If the reader likes books where everything is resolved and everyone is happy at the end, they will like this book.

I did not care for this book that much. The characters were bland with no real development until the final pages when back stories and designs were finally implemented. The text moved slow and there was no conflict or interesting interaction until the stepdaughter was brought into the picture. I liked the story of Lucy trying to start a family and how she deals with her disappointment, but that ends far too soon for my taste. The story is something I would read once and never again as I didn't find it something I would care to read over and over again or share with others. Just bland.

This one broke me! Having been in a very similar situation as Lucy, this story was very close to my heart. Another great story which I'm not ashamed to say reduced me to tears. Highly recommend.

Interesting story about a woman struggling to have a baby and how those problems affect her life. Another feel good type story with rather predictable ending, but well written and enjoyable.

Enjoyable read for summer. A 40 year old, Lucy, is obsessed with wanting to have her own child. Lucy is a bit whiny and got on my nerves at times. But she has experienced a great deal of loss with being dumped by her boyfriend before meeting and marrying her sweet husband, Jonah. She is a strong character and for the most part likeable. She has several miscarriages and struggles with work and family life. Her husband, Jonah, has a daughter, from another marriage. When his 16 year old daughter, Camille, comes to live with them problems develop. Lucy feels it is a very a painful reminder of what she most wants in life but cannot have. The rest you'll have to fill in for yourself. No spoilers here. 

This is my first Amanda Prowse. I have another by the author on kindle I haven't read yet but I am looking forward to it. I think she is a good writer and will add more titles to my TBR. 

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital addition to read in exchange for a review