COMPELLING DRAMA!

Ashley Farley is one of the greats when it comes to writing Southern Fiction! She delves into family situations and deep friendships as though she’s dissecting them to reveal all their deepest secrets, both old and new. Her latest novel, ONLY ONE LIFE, proves she is a master at her craft.

Farley has chosen to place her novel in the small town of Beaufort, SC, not too far from Charleston. The characters she’s described are so real you’ll feel as though you’re in the room with them watching the drama unfold before your eyes. Oh! What drama there is! Old family money that is guarded until death and beyond. Marriage brought on by “love” or was it our rebellion? Two children - one conceived in love & one conceived in rage. Best friends and best couple friends. Debilitating depression and temptation. Rage, rage and more rage. Lovelessness and going through the motions. Life and death. Best friends through the thick and then. Pure Evil. Death & Dying. Old friends are new again. Hope Springs Eternal. ONLY ONE LIFE Can you live with the choices you make for the rest of your life?

I was provided an ARC of this book by Lake Union Publishers and NetGalley. The opinions expressed here are completely my own and without influence.

A family divided and brought back together through tragedy and a mother’s love. Julia was wealthy and married a man who was not well off. Her father resented it and disowned her. Her mother kept checking on her but did not let Julia know she was doing so. Julia returned home after a tragedy in her life and her mother welcomed her back much to her father’s dismay. Come to find out her mother and father’s situation we’re just the opposite of Julia’s, her father being the wealthy one and her mother coming from a poor background. Her father always treated his wife poorly and did not accept Julia. Julia and her mother developed a beautiful relationship and finally found happiness in their lives. This was one of the harder reviews I’ve written simply because there is so much you could add but it would give away the story. It is a wonderful book to say the least and I would highly recommend it. I received this book as an ARC for an honest review.

How do you live with such secrets for so long without it eating at your soul. This story takes place in the south with a wealthy family. If you're not from a respected family then you're not good enough. Sometimes love has a different path. There is heart break, joy, love and hope throughout this story. I couldn't put the book down once I started. I really enjoy this author's work as she has a talent of bringing a story to life so you feel you are immersed from the beginning.

I started this book last night and was up late reading as I could not find a place to stop. I was pulled into this story.
This is an amazingly, heart tugging, moving story about family secrets that have been hidden and wealth. Can the family heal? Can a mother and daughter reconcile?
A story of family life, how those on the outside looking in see this family, and the reality of what is really happening behind closed doors.

Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read this book.

A heart tugging story of a family of secrets and wealth and what lengths one will go to to protect those secrets even it it means not having joy and happiness. Friendships with secretsp pasts with so many hurts; it will take a strong bond and love to heal them. Loss, heartbreak, murder, wealth, society unacceptance, forgiveness and more will keep you turning the pages with hope for the characters in this book. I cheered for Iris and Julia. Two strong women who you will truly admire for their perserverance. Thanks to the author and publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Received a copy of this book through netgalley.
A novel about family drama and hidden secrets and keeping up pretences in sicuety.
Loved all the characters,but most of all Julia,who was the main thread throughout the book.
This would be a good read for a book club disscusing various topics that the book raises.

Ashley Farley books never disappoint! Only One Life is a story of family drama, hidden secrets, and life long friendships. Within the pages there is a lot of pain and sorrow but there’s also beauty as a mother and daughter find their way back together after years of estrangement all due to the father. It’s a story of healing and forgiveness and learning to choose to live your life on your own terms. I would like to thank NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for allowing me the chance to read an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Read this book in a day!

Family secrets that have been stashed under the carpet is the theme of this wonderful novel by Ashley Farley.
How can Iris reconcile with her daughter when Julia has been disowned by her father for following her heart, finding love and happiness?
Will Iris ever find her own contentment or is she doomed to conceal her pain forever?
This is a beautiful story of redemption, love, family and strength that will grab your heart as read each word.
"True love is a rare gift. You only get one life. Live it."
Loved this book!

An awful book. Couldn’t finish it
Poorly written and rubbish story
Hated it. I wouldn’t recommend reading it. A total disappointment

Ashley Farley is a favorite of mine, however, this time she surpasses any expectations I might have had about this book. Only One Life is one of the best books I've ever read. I love how Farley writes about relationships - the challenges and the satisfaction that they can bring. This book starts in the present day with Julia, who is the estranged daughter of Max and Iris. She was kicked out of her home because she had chosen to marry a man her dad, Max felt was not good enough for her. The story jumps back a number of years to when Iris was a young woman who had been raised by a disagreeable aunt since she was 8 years old because her parents died. Iris met Max while working in a department store. Max came from a wealthy, prominent family, and his family felt Iris was quite beneath him, so they eloped. The story evolves through many challenging circumstances this family faces including dysfunction, secrets, illness as well as forgiveness. This is an absolute must read that you will not want to put down.

A very good book on love, loss and family drama. I was definitely rooting for the main character in the story and glad it turned out the way I had hoped. It goes to show sometimes family are the root of all evil. Read this book in about a day! Highly recommend. Well done Ashley Farley! Thank you netgalley for letting me give an honest review of this book.

Outstanding. Fantastic. Another hit by Ashley Farley. The plot is unique. Lots of angst. Some characters are lovable and others are downright disgusting. There is lots of sorrow. At times one wants to jump into the story and slap the s#@t out of the nasty ones and even at times, give a stern talking to the good ones. Thanks to this author on always giving the reader a different take on family life.

I read this book this afternoon because it just captured me and I had to keep reading. Julia, fell in love and became pregnant when she was in college. Her father disowned her and forced her mother to do so too. As I read the book, I kept thinking you really don't know what goes on behind closed doors. Ashley Farley opened the doors and let us inside to see what does go on. Julia had many miscarriages before being able to carry a baby to term. The night that she went into labor there was a bad storm and a tree fell on their car. Her husband Jack didn't make it. Without Jack's income, their home was foreclosed and she was forced to eventually go back to her parent's house. Her father didn't want her and her son there but her mother stood up to him. After she moved back in she learned a lot about her family. There is what you think from the outside looking in and then there is what is really going on when the doors are open and the light is shed on it. It was an amazing book.