Thank you to Netgalley and Thistle Publishing for the opportunity to write a review in exchange for a free copy.

This is a raw book. It singes with the raw emotion of a mother who lost both her daughters too young. This is not a fun book to read, in fact I found it excruciating. The author is honest with her bitterness and anguish. I've never read a book that made me feel so close to what it feels like to have a family member murdered.

Well written emotional journey through a family's tragedy.

A friend recommended this book to me. I hesitated to read it a little while as, as a mother myself, I 'didn't want to go there'. I just don't want to think about what it would be like to lose a child. I got a copy anyway and started to read Cathy Broomfield's heart wrenching story.

The book turned out a bit different to how I was anticipating. On the cover is a picture of two very young girls, so I had thought that the girls had died at a very young age. Kirsty is grown-up at the beginning of the book and telling her mum that she's going to get married. Cathy Broomfield then tells us of the girls' earlier years, about happier times, of fond memories before everything happened. Also mentioned are events from the times, things in the news, on TV at the time etc. This was written very simply and concisely and I was soon glued to Cathy's story. I was intrigued about who could be responsible for the murder. I was soon gripped by the case.

This was a very interesting read as I hadn't heard of this case in the news or seen it on TV-I can't recall it anyway, so it was all new to me. I certainly didn't know what was going to happen next. This is a terribly tragic story-and for someone to lose a second daughter as well-well, it's just unimaginable. This was well-written and well put-together. I am hoping that pouring out her story and her feelings in this way will be cathartic. I'm sure it will help other parents who have gone through similar circumstances too. An emotional and moving book. An absolute tragedy. A double tragedy.

If you are suffering from the loss of a child and need reassurance that the emotions you are going through are not something no one else can sympathize with, this book may be helpful to you. It is extremely sincere and blunt from the grieving mothers point of view. I would not say I enjoyed it, because to enjoy reading someone else's suffering would be terribly wrong, and insensitive, and also I found it a very difficult book to read because as a mother I can not imagine going through this sort of ordeal to lose not one, but TWO of your children.

As a narrative, it is realtively short and never lags, but it does tend to ramble a bit in places, often jumping back and forth to contrast happy memories with the current tragedies. This is clearly the case of the author trying her hardest to express her own emotions in a way that the reader will understand and can comprehend the difference in the actions of her children between childhood and the turmoil of their adulthood, and for a victim of this sort of violence it is a brave endeavor. I hope that in writing this, the author has found some peace by being able to fully tell her point of view of her daughter's murder.

My sincerest condolences to the family for their losses.

This story was moving and inspiring how a mother losing two daughters is still standing. The story was written beautifully and it allowed the reader a glimpse of what the mother went through.

This book explores the anguish suffered by a mother who loses two daughters, one to murder and the other to grief. The author is the mother herself, and does a good job conveying the facts and the feelings which are experienced - as a reader, I felt empathy and commiserated with her for those losses which upturned her life and the lives of her family.

People who are interested in Biographies and Autobiographies will want to read this book! This book was very well written and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I give this book 5 stars. Provided to me through NetGalley. Thank You!

Through A Mothers Tears is a truly heartbreaking read, to lose one child in a horrific way is bad enoughbut then to lose another, words fails me, it's such a sad story.

A personal account of a family tragedy, honestly and candidly narrated by Cathy Broomfield whose daughter Kirsty was brutally murdered, and in which she describes the agony of that loss and how it affected the whole family. A moving and compelling story.

Heartbreaking story. I cried through the book. The strength that Cathy shows is amazing. I cannot imagine what she went through.
Even this is a heartbreaking story I would still high,y recommend it

This was an unrelievedly sad story written by the mother of a murder victim in the UK who recounts the tragic events leading up to her daughter’s horrific killing. Written in an everyday manner, Cathy Broomfield shares how she found out about the murder, and how it impacted her family. They were all terribly traumatized, but especially her other daughter who was closest to her murdered daughter growing up. After a time, that daughter spiraled and was eventually lost her life too. So much grief and loss, this was difficult to read all at one go, but I did struggle through it. The tears ran many times as I read on.

I really empathized with Ms. Broomfield all through the book and hope it was healing for her in some way to write about it. I hope that her helping other families dealing with similar situations helps her pain also. Such a terrible story, I hope that something positive can come from it somehow. An advance digital copy was provided by NetGalley, author Cathy Broomfield, and the publisher for my unbiased review.

Thistle Publishing
Pub Date: June 28, 2018

I truly appreciate Cathy Broomfield sharing the tragic story about the deaths of two of her daughters. I could feel the emotion ravaging each page. She is a courageous woman for sharing what is obviously a horrific time of her life.

That being said, I can't think of much else to say that would be positive about this book. I am a glutton for true crime, so immediately when I read the blurb on this book, I knew I had to read it. I could tell straight away that it was written very poorly. I don't think that Ms. Broomfield is at the point where she can take the necessary step back to write a comprehensible book that isn't drenched with anger and grief. She really needed a ghost writer to polish the story in a way that is easier to digest for the reader. As it stands, the story feels like a draft of what happened. There was no detail, no getting to know Kirsty and Hayley. In fact, Hayley seemed like an afterthought.

This felt rushed to publication. I think it could have been better fleshed out, with more meat added to the story.

Thank you for allowing me to read and review this book. I feel awful for being so harsh, but I didn't want to be untruthful about how I felt.

3.5 stars!

Thank you to Netgalley & Thistle Publishing for allowing me to read a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review 🙏🏻❤️. This book was released today and I do hope that you will pick up a copy and allow Kirsty's story to continue on through each and every reader. This book may even save lives. Domestic Violence is so very real. I found Kirsty's situation with her husband extremely relatable to my past and I can't stress enough how extremely grateful that I am that my friends & family got me out of that situation. Who knows where I would be or if I'd even be alive today.

Kirsty's story is absolutely heartbreaking, anyone would claim that if they were in an abusive situation such as hers that they would simply leave but it is NOT that easy. You learn to hide even the smallest of things, fighting becomes a norm, you believe they can change, you're embarrassed, you settle, they become your entire life.

My heart aches for Cathy , Dave, Sonya and the entire family for what they have been through. I couldn't imagine losing two children at such a young age, Cathy is such a strong person to be able to carry on and continue living & loving. I commend her for putting this story out there. I agree that with her that 19 years is a disgrace, he should be behind bars forever!

I did find this book to be a bit problematic at times, the writing often shifted from one tense to another. One paragraph would be talking about the present, and the next paragraph would be remembering the past or talking about something that would happen in the future, I feel that that could have been navigated a bit better. Also, there was an excessive use of adjectives such as : gentle, kind, giving, beautiful every single time Kirsty's name was mentioned. The repitition did get a bit annoying. I was also confused by the following : 1. Paul used Kirsty's debit card the morning after he killed her , but I remember Cathy stating that Paul said Kirsty had left her debit card at home, so that to me would have been a red flag either concerning the time of death or who used her debit card at that time and for what. 2. Also,if the downstairs neighbors heard such commotion as arguing and screaming and testified that it sounded like a "body was being drug across the floor" why wasn't that reported before the trial? 3. I feel like Hayley dying from a broken heart feels a bit like reaching. I understand that she wouldn't have begun drinking if Kirsty hadn't been killed but she didn't actually die of a "broken heart" as some do shortly thereafter a loved one dies-- it was a while after & from alcohol unfortunately. 4. The police never confirmed or denied the star tattoo or at least the reader wasn't told about it. The only recognition of the body was her eyebrows, I would have demanded more.

All of that being said I would still highly recommend this book, but maybe make it longer with more " in depth" details. More explanations. My heart breaks for this family and I hope that somehow they find peace.

So heartbreaking. I couldn't imagine losing my child let alone 2. My heart goes out to this family. I do think it is crap the sentence the daughters murderer gets.

The beautiful sisters, Sonya, Hayley and Kristy. All of them with so much love of life, family and friends. Sonya was happily married with children of her own. Hayley was not married, but happy in what she was doing. Kristy the baby, the youngest girl, fell in love and married a young man in a whirlwind romance. .The tragedy that the parents of these girls endure is tragically sad.
One daughter is murdered, the other went into such a deep depression that she quit eating and turned to alcohol. This is indeed a sad book. It is also full of bravery, hope and courage. I recommend it. Great read.

I feel so sorry for this family and what they have had to deal with. I really do wish there was more background on the family. I had a hard time connecting with the people because I felt I didn't know enough about them. This all took place in the UK and I am uneducated on their customs and lives, therefore I had a hard time understanding some of what was going on.

My heart breaks for the Broomfield family. Author and mom Cathy anchors her memories throughout this book with the family's various broken relationships and favorite television shows like X-Factor, Shameless, I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, Big Brother, etc. The trappings of mass-produced popular culture are rife throughout the book: from junk food, tattoos, glamour (meaning nude or topless) modeling, a pink limousine to a pink coffin.

It is clear that these women have limited resources and opportunities; third daughter Kirsty's role model is Jordan aka Katie Price, and second daughter Hayley's is presumably Kirsty. Throughout the book Cathy watches first one daughter and then the next as their lives unravel before her eyes, she worries when they both make terrible life choices but asks helplessly, "but what could we do?" As the mom worries more, she wonders whether each daughter in turn might survive, she waits agonizing for news, hoping beyond hope, tragic, pathetic.

Cathy's helplessness leads her to lash out against medical technicians and the coroner, she considers the press an enemy of the family, and "seriously begins to wonder if the family was cursed; ever since we lost Kirsty it seemed we'd had nothing but bad luck"..."my heart is crushed, my soul destroyed, and all because of one vile person's terrible actions". It is completely understandable that she should blame everything on Kirsty's violent murderer, Paul Grabham; but it is even more horrifying to look at the ills of a society at large where girls are so distracted by the base and tawdry, they are brutally victimized, and fall prey to substance abuse or prostitution.

I’m not sure how I can even begin to ‘review’ this book, because it is the account of Cathy’s experiences and there’s no way you can rate someone else’s book written through their own suffering. What I will say however is that I can easily give this book 5 stars simply for how open Cathy has been in telling her story, and how grateful I feel to have been able to read about Cathy’s two lovely daughters. This must have been so heart-wrenchingly hard for Cathy to write, but I think she has done her daughters proud in writing this account of them, and the love she has for her two girls shines through. Be prepared for a very emotional read.

If there is still a trace of anger within you I don’t blame you, the unfairness of it all was just too much to bear, so yes you are entitled because the love you had when you first laid eyes on them in the hospital room doesn’t die because they did. Your hurt is evident and I realized this is a form of therapeutic healing so I pray you were successful, no matter, your story is a tearjerker for sure. I have two kids and I truly don't want to lose them especially not in the way you lost yours, I don’t even know how you manage to stay sane through it all. It would be totally unfair to say I know how you feel, I don’t. Too many secrets and bravado fills that pride mode to say they can handle at all times, but we must always remember we make our kids but we do not make their minds, they would always do what they think is right for them and what they want, so don’t feel too bad, there is no way you could have prevented the inevitable, know one thing, they living their lives doesn't mean they hate you, their last words can attest to this, they loved you. My heart goes out to you in all your pain and suffering, I know no matter how many years past the hurt and unfairness doesn’t go away it just dims a bit. A heart-wrenching tale of life's trials and tribulations but it also shows the author has a strong will to heal and survive it all, thanks for sharing your tale with us readers, it was indeed a heartfelt and hurtful one, sorry you lost your treasures. A sad but interesting tale.

Through A Mother's Tears is a heart wrenching read. I advise a reader to be sure to have their tissues ready.
I give it five stars.

A really sad read, I read the book in one sitting, would definitely recommend especially for anyone who loves true life reads like me.