This story is about Luke who owns and single handedly runs a barbershop. Luke is a very pessimistic person. We find out later on why this is. One day Luke is walking home from work when there is a bad storm. He takes shelter under some scaffolding where a woman is also sheltering. The scaffolding is not secure and the woman pushes Luke out of the way. In doing so she saves his life. This sparks a change in Luke and he decides to change his life for the better. 

I did enjoy this book overall but I felt that Luke was portrayed as a much older man than he was supposed to be..  I thought that incorporating Luke’s dreams into the story was really clever. I had a lot of sympathy for Luke. The ending was too predictable for my liking.

When Iris pushes Luke out of the way of falling scaffolding- everything changes.  He's had a really rough go and is in the pits, not so much living as existing.  Her selfless act, however, makes him rethink his life and he realizes that he has to wake up.  It's not this easy, really, to deal with depression but Robertson has written the sort of novel that argues for kindness.  Paying it forward means more than dropping extra change at the cash register; Luke slowly comes around to the realization that he to act.  Thanks to Netgalley fo the ARC.  This was a good read in the midst of the current troubles but its positivity will resonate whenever you pick it up.

Absolutely a perfect read in this pandemic season.  It offers a really important lesson at choosing positivity instead of negativity as the way to move through life.  Wonderful characters who choose to make a difference in the life of the homeless.  Loved this book!

This is such a different read ,Luke is a hairdresser ,a bit grumpy with a very pessimistic attitude but he gets through life though it is a lonely one .Then his life is saved one night in a freak accident by Iris and he decides to change his life and turn it around because of her.This is a heartwarming story that is full of hope.There are some brilliant characters and  I enjoyed this book very much .Many Thanks to the Publishers the Author and NetGalley for  my preview copy in return for an honest review .

A feel good book about a guy down on his luck who seems to get a second chance at life! Heartwarming with lovable characters who really make the story great!
Luke is a glass half empty kind of guy, looking down on others and just plain miserable after losing his parents and getting divorced in the same short span. It doesn’t matter that it has been several years since those events, he still hasn’t gotten over it. This all changes the day of his brief meeting with Iris. Standing under scaffolding, waiting out a storm, the two strangers strike up a conversation but then tragedy strikes and the scaffolding comes down and Iris pushes Luke out of the danger and herself into it. Luke has no idea why he was the one who survived instead of the kind hearted doctor who everyone loved. He goes to her funeral and finds himself so overwhelmed that he vows to lead a better life and honor the woman whose life was lost!
Luke makes several new friends along the way who help him see a different side of life and change that half empty glass into a full one while helping others!
Thank you netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

An absolutely heart warming and inspirational read, a very happy read, despite death and depression being a major part of this very thought provoking book. It is lovely to have a male lead character, who is not a person that you can immediately warm to. 
Luke is a hairdresser, 40 years old, who is a grumpy sod, and carries a great deal of emotional baggage. His parents are dead, he is divorced, and he had a quarrel with a family member that he used to get on with. 
Walking home one night, in a storm, he takes shelter under some scaffolding on a building with a young woman. The wind strength increases, and there is an accident, he and this woman end up underneath the metalwork, both badly injured. Through this misfortune, Luke gradually starts thinking of others, and being a more content person, as he realises that he has been given a second chance to turn his life around and make a difference, not only for his own well being, but for others in society, that are neglected and need a hand up, rather than a hand out.There are lovely interesting and compelling characters, and they challenge perceptions and values that have been instilled from childhood, a happy life, or disappointments. Part social commentary and part ghost story, this looks at homelessness and focuses upon dignity and kindness, and how the aim should be to support, not denigrate and humiliate those more unfortunate. 
I loved the character of Rita,, she is a real tour de force, so full of energy and no wonder Luke feels comfortable with her. It’s like having his mother back, he feels safe. Meg, his cousin, is very supportive, once their quarrel has been acknowledged and sorted out. This story is full of hope and positivity, life isn’t plain sailing, and the average person gets knock backs, but learns how to survive. 
Well researched and so positive, the perfect book for the COVID-19 crisis. Things will get better, you must try to find the hopeful person inside. I will leave reviews later. Thank you for such a thought provoking read.

This is a completely unexpected treasure.  As we set off on our journey with Luke, I was not sure I liked the style, or indeed the character, in this book.  The dialogue and explanations of Luke’s inner voice seemed over simplistic and somewhat unsophisticated: we join him as he is closing up his (cheap as chips type) barber shop and makes his way home through the inclement weather.  Then alarmingly his life is in danger, he survives but only due to a stranger’s bravery – a doctor – and she saved his life at the cost of her own.

Slowly we learn that Luke’s life has fallen apart over the past few years, first the death of his parents and then the end of his marriage.  However, the death of Iris, the doctor, has led Luke to examine his own life and his negative viewpoint and he determines to be more positive.

What follows is very uplifting.  The simplistic revelations of the plot are a device that manages to conceal the huge changes that Luke is undergoing.  Changes that have dramatic impact for him, his friends and acquaintances, and the growth of a more positive attitude, demeanour and a return to Luke’s engagement with the wider world and Society.

Top notch tale bursting with optimism and a salutary tale in this Covid19 lockdown days.  Think positive and be kind.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.
 
He goes through a long battle with himself and goes through more than anyone could imagine but he is a fighter although he wouldn't admit it himself! All in all a great read and I would recommend.
Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this advance copy for my honest review (less)
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I loved this book. It follows the main character Luke - a barber who tends to be pessimistic about life and has had a few tragedies in his past to deal with. He is saved during an accident by a stranger who passes away from her injuries. Attending her funeral Luke comes to understand the person she was and the importance she played in so many peoples lives. He decides then to embrace his second chance at life and live his life as fully as possible no matter what life throws at him. As we follow Luke's journey it provokes questions of can he keep being this going especially when things get difficult,
It made me think - is it possible for one moment to change your life? and if you make those changes whose life would it impact? 
This book for me was about strength and resolve and the importance of love. There were lots of characters I love and it was a life-affirming, heart warming and emotional read.
I would recommend this book, it is not an author I have come across before but I will be looking out for more books.
I gave this book 3.5/5 and many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

This was an interesting story, how does one come back from the experience that Luke had? Being a pessimist, Luke looks at life as the glass is half empty until he experiences situations that would affect anyone. I enjoyed how he re-discovered the meaning of life and those around him. I have since added more of his books to my TBR pile. 

📚Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC📚

I have read all books by this author, all different and enjoyed them all.  This was a heartwarming story, beautifully written with good descriptive characters.

I can thoroughly recommend this book and thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

I really enjoyed this book, as soon as I started reading it I was attracted by two facts. 1 - that it was written with a male main character and 2 - that it was set in Manchester, the Northern Quarter to be precise. I can’t think of many other books I’ve read that have a male lead so this was interesting to me straight away. When I discovered the setting it was another reason why I had to read the book. 

I could picture the scenes and events of the book from recollections of streets that I’ve actually walked down myself. I’ve even had my hair cut in the northern quarter albeit it not from a local barbers! 

The story takes you through the ups and downs of Luke’s life and although I couldn’t directly relate to any of the issues he faced, I felt like I wanted to know what was happening. There are a few quite vivid scenes which I think the author writes about so well. You get the seriousness of them but don’t feel too grossed out. 

I also really liked the inclusion of the homeless community in this story, a subject a lot of people would avoid but it actually makes you open your eyes to the things happening around us. 

Really enjoyed reading this book, it wasn’t what i expected on the tin but I’m glad I read it and will seek out more books by S.D. Robertson in the future.

A fantastic story where bad luck just seems to follow Luke around but what seems to be bad luck changes his life forever and for the better. A lovely uplifting book that kept me engrossed throughout the day.

I find myself unexpectedly disappointed by this book. It is incredibly slow, and oddly, the description of poor Iris’ tragic death felt as if it was from another story entirely, and not related to Luke. 
I found his character objectionable and self indulgent, descriptions of his lonely life with his cat, and pages given over to details  of his dreams boring, and this did not endear him to me one little bit.
I felt sorry for him, but only in a superficial way. I found it very hard to identify with such a morose, surly,  glass half empty kind of man, maybe because I’m the opposite myself, definitely one of life’s optimists.

When I reached the part where the departed Iris appeared in his flat, I realised this book was not for me. I persevered for a few more chapters, but I was not sufficiently interested in Luke’s story to continue to the end. 

I realise I’m in the minority here, amongst many 4 and 5 star reviews. But this just wasn’t my kind of  book.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this title.

<b>***I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book will be out on June 11th, 2020***</b>

This book touched me on various levels.
In perfect SD Robertson's style, the reader is dragged into the main character's feelings and life with such a force that s/he ends up feeling genuinely for the guy, as if he was family or a close friend.
It's the fifth novel from this author I read and I can safely say he is an artist of feelings.

Life has put Luke, a thirty-nine year old barber in Manchester city centre, through a fair share of grief and loss. Pain and delusion have made him become selfish, cynical and isolated. At home his only company is Alfred, his cat, having recently fallen off with his cousin, his only true friend and only relative living close-by.

One stormy day Luke finds himself looking death in the eyes. Only the prompt, selfless intervention of a stranger will save him from a horrible ending. The stranger, a young, brilliant doctor, won't make it. Her death will affect Luke in ways that go beyond the survivor's guilt. It will force him to put his own life into perspective, realize how he has let the events make him be someone who he did not use to be.

In an effort to keep his promise to honor that life his savior will no longer live, Luke decides to turn on a new leaf and start seeing the world in a more positive way. He will start saying yes to people and things he would have neither replied to before. He starts to open up to new possibilities. He decides to give something back to the community.
Unfortunately, despite all of his good intentions, the road ahead has a few bumps. One of these bumps will see his good intentions being seriously tested, his old way of doing things pushing to creep back into his life.
At the end it will be once again love, trust and friendship that will save him and make him see how, despite negativity can't always be kept at a distance, there is more to gain in seeing the glass half full rather than half empty.

This is a book that speaks to the heart. It's a book about second chances and the positive outcomes of decisions taken for a greater good. It is a journey inside a man's soul, with hindsight on his past and how sometimes life pushes our tolerance to the limits.

It <I>is</I> indeed possible to change, to be a better person than the one we used to be. The transformation we see in Luke can happen to anyone who truly wants to better him/herself. Just as with Luke it takes courage, trust, determination and selflessness. And time. But it can be achieved.

I am glad I was given the opportunity to read this novel in advance. As it often happens I happened to read it at just the right moment, that's perhaps why it resonated so much with me.

A really enjoyable tale.

Looking at the subject of depression in a way that lends balance and insight.

As the reader you come away with a sense of hope.

This is a powerful book that looks at the idea of how we see things and how positivity can make such a big difference to us all.

Highly recommended

I am a huge SD Robertson fan! This book was bloody brilliant, as is standard. It's easy to read and emotional and addictive!

5 stars

I absolutely loved this book. It was a great story with very relatable characters.
I loved Luke, I just wanted to take him under my wing and help sort him out.
Rita, Meg and Nora were all really strong likable characters too and of course not forgetting Iris, who was a massive part of this story.
I have read all of S D Robertson's books and would highly recommend them. This is one has definitely been added to that list.
I can't wait for more books in the future.

Another excellent read. After surviving an accident where a female, Iris, dies, Luke starts to turn his life around. An emotional and gripping read.

It's not hard to imagine with the current state of affairs during a pandemic why this book might touch so many people in so many ways.
Depression is not a light or airy topic yet for Luke Craven he's a man down on his luck after losing those he loved the most including both parents and his wife.
Now, he's on the verge of fragility when a freak accident changes his entire outlook upon life.
How to Save a Life is an uplifting and powerful read about the random act of kindness that turned into a life saving venture but sadly took a life.
How much is a life worth? What value does each life possess?
Is leading a valued life worthy of a second chance at life?
So many questions arise but one thing is for sure- how can you live your best life- is one the minds of many these days especially those under duress.
This is a heartwarming yet heartbreaking story to live every day to the fullest and appreciate every gesture no matter how big or how small.
What might seem minuscule to you may actually be a huge blessing in disguise and change the trajectory of your life or someone else's.
Never give up is part of the underlying sediment here and the author does a wonderful job showcasing that point of keeping with it and moving forward because health outweighs all else.
Iris gave her life to save his and he'll be darn sure he returns the favor or die trying.
Nora may be the end result of that effort and it signifies the importance of positivity.
Thank you to SD Robertson, the pub, NetGalley, and Amazon Kindle for this ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Really enjoyed the storyline in this book. Have had a reading slump recently and this got me going again. Look forward to reading more from this author