Cover Image: The Girl in the Corner

The Girl in the Corner

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Member Reviews

Amanda Prowse never lets her readers down, and this book is no exception.

She writes about topics which we can all relate to, have experienced, or are struggling with.

I was instantly drawn to Rae Valentine, as I feel we are all "in the corner" at some point in our lives, and she showed us how we can cope/change our outlooks, and be brave.
The twists and turns were quite unexpected at times, but in true Amanda Prowse fashion, the book was hard to put down, once started.
I do so hope there is a "follow on" to this book, as I feel Rae Valentines journey has just begun.

I absolutely loved another brilliant book from this author

My thanks to the author, and Netgalley for the arc copy, in return for an honest review .

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Amanda Prowse never fails me. Even though I felt this book dragged on a little bit, the story was powerful and engaging.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free copy of this book.

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A really enjoyable book by an author I haven’t come across before. I will definitely look out for title by Amanda Prowse in the future.
This is the story of a marriage, a friendship, betrayal, and reevaluating life choices. It is written in a believable way that draws you into the feelings of the main character, Rae, and makes it impossible to not sympathise with her situation.
At times I found her character to be annoyingly indecisive and I wished for her to be more proactive, but in reality with a family and so much to lose you can’t blame her for the choices she makes and has to live with. The ending was worth it!
Overall a compelling story about love, respect, trust and fidelity which I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys a non-cliche contemporary romance novel.

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The transformation of Rae, the girl in the corner, to Rae, the girl who finally decided to stand up for what's right, was amazing. Though, I would like to add that I wish the story wasn't more inclined towards how Rae felt helpless and indecisive. More than half of the book is about Rae's issues and her feeling helpless about it. The ending is really good. This might be a spoiler but I am going ahead and saying it. Rae stands up for what is right. It was really nice to see Rae finally being a strong and independent woman. But, I wish there was more of this in the story than Rae being delirious.

I loved Amanda's writing style. It keeps the reader engrossed until the end. The storytelling was good too. I might seem repetitive here but I liked the way she included real-life scenarios in this book. It even makes you feel like you could relate to a few things mentioned in the book. The story highlights the emotional side of the character, a tad too much if you ask me, but with such an awesome ending, I really did not mind it at all.

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I received a netgalley of The Girl in the Corner by Amanda Prowse, in exchange for an honest review. Rae-Valentine and Howard were childhood sweethearts that have been married for 25 years. They were introduced to each other thru Howard's sister, Dolly. On the night of their monumental anniversary, Rae is learns of a betrayal that puts her in a tailspin. Instead of taking her husband on their anniversary vacation, she takes Dolly instead. This trip will bond her and Dolly. It will also make Rae look at her choices thus far and how she is going to proceed with her future.
I felt for Rae and was rooting for her. I enjoyed the book and recommend to those who like women's fiction.

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An author who I love, but never fails to surprise. Amanda Prowse knows how to have you gripped from the start. Not your typical love story, this covers 25 years of a sometimes difficult relationship. A perfect ending too.

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Loved this book! Thank you so much for the opportunity to read. Can’t wait to read more from this author.

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First book I have read by Amanda Prowse and I really loved it, so am now reading all her other stuff as it’s on my kindle unlimited subscription.

This book is about evaluating life choices after after finding out your partner has been unfaithful after many years of marriage. It looks at the consequences of betrayal, how it affects families and friends and well as the couple.

Beautifully written book and you could understand the emotions that the main character was going through and only admire her bravery.

Thank you for letting me review such a great book x

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I really like the Amanda Prowse novels I have read so far, but I struggled a bit with this one.
Rae and Howard are a happily married couple but it turns out Howard has a secret.
Response to a novel is probably influenced by the frame of mind of reader at that time, but even so, neither Howard or Rae, or for that matter her best friend Dolly felt real, likeable or plausible, and the story seemed to move in endless circles without progression for much of the time.
With thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing UK

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Another emotional family story from this talented author. Some wonderful happy and sad moments. Amanda Prowse isn't afraid to tackle any subject and this book does not disappoint. Highly recommended

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Rae has always been the girl in the corner, the quiet youngster sister. When she goes to college she meets the loud brash Dolly, and again is the quieter follower, but she falls for Dollys's brother Howard and the two get married. Rae is still the one though that is running round doing everything for everyone until after 25 years of marriage Howard makes a big confession......... will Rae now finally stick up for herself and put her own life first?

A good story and I liked the character of Rae, although at times you wanted to shake her and make her stand up to everyone, but she was a genuinely nice person a and needed the shock to evaluate her life. Another good book by this writer.

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Rae-Valentine is the youngest of two girls. Her sister is all singing, all dancing and always has to be the centre of attention. Rae has always felt as though she was just the girl in the corner.
When Rae is 16, she meets Dolly who soon becomes her larger (and louder) than life best friend.

All of the characters in this book are believable and although I’m nothing like her, I really felt for Rae-Valentine and I had her back all the way through the book.
I’ve lost count of the amount of times that I rolled my eyes because of they way that poor Rae was being treated – or how she hadn’t stood up for herself.

This book shows us how important family and friends are. How much we rely on them and how much we allow people to get away with because of how close we are and how occasionally we can lose sight of who we are because of how we feel we should be.

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What a story! It is so emotional, and feels so very real. Rae-Valentine had always been a quiet, shy child, ‘the girl in the corner’. Then she went to college to learn secretarial skills, and met loud, brash Dolly. They got on well, and each loved the others family, because they were so different to their own. Very soon Rae was going out with Dolly’s brother Howard, and in no time they were married. The family owned a chain of restaurants, and very soon Rae spent her life looking after everyone, her husband and two children, her parents, and collecting and delivering any urgent supplies or help required by the restaurants. There was no time for her to pursue her own ambitions. But she was happy.

Then it was her twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, and before the day is out her happy life has been destroyed. Her emotions are so well written, she is in turns sad, angry, vengeful, bewildered. The book leads you to think about how you would feel in the circumstances, and it all feels very real! The story twists and turns, then twists again with even more for Rae to be unhappy about. There are lighter, even amusing moments, but overall a sad but realistic story, ending with a note of happiness perhaps returning in Rae’s future. A fine story by a fine writer.

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I really felt for Rea the main character of this book, like a lot of women her family, (parents, children, husband) come 1st, the book goes through the emotional turmoil of her husband's bad behaviour. While also dealing with other family related problems.
A great thought provoking book.
Thank you netgalley.

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A really interesting story of two friends, who also happen to be sisters-in-law. Cue interesting dynamics, divided loyalties and family feuds. There's a couple of scenes that are so realistic, i could run them through in my head - Amanda Prowse has such a way with words.

A really powerful message - summarised as the mouse that roared (took its time and took everyone by surprise too). Another excellent and thought-provoking book from this talented author.

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Great story, glad it ended the way it did (won't leave spoilers). I really wanted the main character to step up throughout the book though. There were little twists and turns as she found her way, I think she would relate well to people feeling the same way as she is very relatable.

Would give another book by the author ago however wouldn't be staple to go to though.

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Delightful! As a woman of a certain age, I identified with Rae Valentine and I was screaming at her from early on . Forced headlong into a mid-life crisis, not of her making, I defy you not to will her on.
A lively narrative and strong female lead character makes this an enjoyable story, full of twists and turns. It has made me so desperate to go to Antigua, I need that soft white sand in my life!
Ladies, don’t ever let anyone put you in the corner.

#netgalley #Thegirlinthecorner

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I have read a few books by Amanda Prowse by now, and what never ceases to impress me, is how well she portrays ordinary people living ordinary lives, and how they deal with their personal extraordinary events.
In 'The Girl in the Corner' we are introduced to shy, quiet reserved Rae-Valentine, the embodiment of the 'girl in the corner' who at 16 meets the lively, loud and big hearted Dolly. They become best friends, and in the fullness of time Rae-Valentine meets and marries Howard, Dolly's brother, and becomes absorbed into the family's restaurant business. So she devotes the next 25 years to her family, her friends and the business, meeting everyone's needs but her own.
Our first meeting with Rae-Valentine is at the 25 year marker; the party to celebrate her silver wedding anniversary, the big one! Instead of being the best night of her married life however, the evening crumbles along with her heart as Howard confesses to a two week fling with a young waitress who worked for them. Heartbroken, Rae-Valentine flees to Antigua with best friend Dolly, on what should have been a second honeymoon celebration, but which instead becomes a reflection on her life, her marriage, family and friendships as she desperately to find a way forward through the shambles of her marriage. Can she forgive and forget, returning to her life of the past 25 years, or is it time, finally, to listen to her own heart and forge her own path ahead, but alone!
This was a very satisfying read; I give it 4 stars.

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Adored this book , love everything Amanda writes. Her characters are the woman next door, your work mate, even you. True to life and believable.

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Amanda Prowse can do no wrong in my eyes. I love her story telling and her characters. this seemed different to her other books in some ways but thoroughly enjoyable and great ending x

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