Inspired by the author’s real-life struggles with anxiety and panic attacks, this is a fictional story of a woman whose life falls in around her - three traumatic events in the space of a week wrecking both her personal and professional life leave her in a full-blown breakdown state. Two years later, Mercy Blain hasn’t left her house… and now she has no choice, because it’s literally burned down around her ears. Desperate for somewhere, anywhere, to hunker down in, Mercy finds herself in possession of an ancient campervan and sets out heading north from Adelaide, with a sudden wild plan of driving ‘to the other side’... to Darwin, on Australia’s far north coast, the opposite side of the continent, accompanied only by her sausage dog Wasabi. On the way she meets an intriguing cast of characters, from the expected grey nomads, some of them living in every luxury a premium motorhome can provide, to a Scotsman with a man-bun out to explore the Outback and hide from his own demons.

Really, this is a story about mental illness. And there are no magical cures here; while yes, Mercy does find her way to ‘the other side’, what she really does is develop new coping mechanisms when she discovers she’s capable of more than she believes when forced to rely on her own resources. What I really liked about it is that Mercy doesn’t find herself ‘fixed’ and go back to who she was before; at the end of the book it’s clear that she’s moving on, and she doesn’t know exactly what’s coming next but she does think she has the tools to create a life she’ll enjoy.

There are some sensitive topics handled really well here, and one thing that’s made really clear is that no matter who you are, no matter how successful you might be, a knock at the wrong moment can break anyone’s mental health, and even those with the greatest access to healthcare and treatment (Mercy is a fully qualified obstetrician) can’t just be ‘fixed’. Mercy does eventually come to the understanding that she had to get out of the comfort zone she’d been ‘hiding’ in if she was going to get better… it’s obvious that she’d had therapy, though that isn’t depicted here, but hadn’t been able to follow through on the therapist’s recommendations until she was forced out of her house.

This is a genuinely great read, gutwrenching at times, unflinchingly honest. I absolutely loved it and I will be eagerly looking to see what Kim Lock writes next.

This was a very different read for me but I absolutely loved it. Set in Australia it was great to hear all the beautiful places mentioned as the main character Mercy took her journey of discovery. This book covers difficult subjects and the author does them well. Anxiety, PTSD, Loss and Grief are explored in a respectful way. The eclectic mix of supporting characters Mercy meets makes for a rich story. Andy was a personal favourite and I like to think of them enjoying a sunset together somewhere along the coast.

Australian author Kim Lock’s fourth novel is The Other Side of Beautiful and involves an unexpected road trip from Adelaide to Darwin. Mercy Blain is a paediatrician who hasn’t gone outside for two years, when her house burns down. So begins a journey both physical and life engaging that questions the meaning of pain and suffering. More than a travel log or tribute to grey nomads, this general fiction is an exposé of one woman’s grief and its culminative nature. An enjoyable read and tender narrative of running away, only to turn full circle to the same but new. A three-star rating, with thanks to Harlequin Australia and the author for an uncorrected proof copy for review purposes.

What a delightful read.
Mercy Blain has anxiety and has not left her home in two years. Until one fateful night where her house burns down. Mercy is not only forced to leave her home but she has to spend the night with her ex husband and his new lover.

On a whim and feeling she doesn’t have much choice Mercy buys a camper van and sets of on a trip of a lifetime.
Along the way she meets retirees who are trekking across Australia in there shiny new caravans and a Scotsman who she slowly becomes friends with.
All Mercy wants to do is get to Darwin and along the way she soon rediscovers who she was as a person before she shut herself away in her house for two years.

What attracted me to this story is that it was set in Australia. Some of the descriptions of the characters were also very Australian, I could clearly picture the older men in there shorts with long socks, extremely suntanned and trying to put the world to rights with a beer in there hand.
I could also picture the small towns that Mercy traveled through with the dry heat and red dirt that gets everywhere.

The only thing I was not sure of was how quickly Mercy seemed to manage her anxiety. I have never suffered so I wasn’t sure if what the author wrote was accurate but I guess it is different for each individual.

I love discovering Australian authors and I would definitely read this author again.

Thank you to Harlequin AUS and HQ Fiction for my gifted copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Mercy Blain finds herself on the street, watching her house go up in flames, with nothing but her little sausage dog Wasabi in her arms. But strangely, this isn’t Mercy’s biggest problem. Mercy has been overcome with crippling anxiety and hasn’t left her house in two years. Her Ex-husband Eugene offers to take her in, but living with her ex-husband and his on-again, off-again boyfriend is not an option. So, with nowhere to go, Mercy buys a tiny, beat up campervan and heads north for Darwin.

This is a beautifully constructed novel about embracing life and facing one’s anxieties head on. I loved the main character Mercy, who was authentic and relatable. I enjoyed following her journey as she rediscovered herself and began to enjoy and experience life again. I found myself grinning and cheering on Mercy each time she took another small step towards reclaiming her life.

The grey nomads in this novel had me laughing out loud. As my parents have now joined this club, I know them all too well and this book portrayed them perfectly. The need to be first and the constant happy hours are hilariously accurate! The kindness and compassion of strangers was certainly highlighted throughout this book. Never once was Mercy judged for her behaviour which may have been seen by some as rude or standoffish. The ending was not what I expected but I think I loved it more for that reason. I need to know what happens next!

When your life is turned upside down, it’s not easy to put the pieces back together and I think Kim Lock portrayed this perfectly. This book truly shows us what it means to be home.

An adorably beautiful cover for an adorably beautiful novel. I always look forward to each new novel by Kim Lock because I know that I would love it. I always find myself smiling unconsciously when reading her books; I don't know how she does it. That is not to say that her novels are happy or funny but that there are happy & funny moment in amongst the detritus that is life. Trust Kim to always get into the heart of things.

The novel opens as Mercy's house is on fire and we meet Mercy as she stood in the middle of the street in her jammies. She was understandably confused and trying very hard to hang on to the last shred of her sanity. Her house, the only place she felt safe in, is burning down and she is forced to take her first step onto the street after 2 years of hiding. Then the only person she could turn to is her not-quite-ex-husband, Eugene, but he couldn't shield her either. If she can't hide, maybe she can run... and as fate has it, her mode of transport is right outside.

Bending over, she howled into her hands. She couldn't take this anymore. She couldn't take the feeling of her body in a constant state of anxiety, everything tensed like a rabbit awaiting a fox. Unrelenting guilt ate at her, acid sloshing her insides. The waiting, the endless waiting. For what?

I have no idea what panic attacks are like. I just know that they are supposed to be absolutely terrifyingly bad. From reading this novel, it does feel that author has done her work in research but this is a novel and should be read as such. Mercy's journey as she faced down her troubles is heartachingly beautiful but again it is fiction and should not be used as basis of advice.

The world wasn't safe. Nothing was safe; nowhere was safe. I couldn't even human.

Mercy may have begun her journey with only the van and her faithful dachshund, Wasabi, but there was a community of travellers out there. I loved this community and especially Andy, being the one she opened up to & tell-all person. Their acceptance, non-judgemental, and generous attitude towards others and life is delightful; something for us all to emulate.

Be here now, and know that whatever now is, is transient.

I may have started reading The Other Side of Beautiful with a tiny bit of trepidation because her last novel, The Three of Us, was rather hard-hitting (I rated that one 5-stars too) and I'm really not in the mood for that sort of read. However, The Other Side of Beautiful proves to be such a balm in the midst of a lockdown. Being in Mercy's shoes while she traversed the great Australian landscape, it was truly an escape that I vicariously loved.

My thanks to Harlequin Australia via The Book Stack for this paperback copy of book in exchange of my honest thoughts

This book opens with Mercy Blain’s house burning down, a house that she hasn’t been able to leave for 2 years. Dealing with grief, anxiety, panic attacks and more, she escapes it all by buying a run-down old van and taking off up the highway. Leaving Adelaide she decides she wants to reach the other side, Darwin! In the end I found this story quite moving. As she travels through the outback, gradually all of Mercy’s problems are revealed. The other travellers she meets, mostly grey nomads add some light relief and it’s definitely not all fear and anxiety. An interesting read.

I was given this in exchange for a review from NetGalley, and what a pleasure this book is. It's very cute, with a sausage dog called Wasabi, and a van with the words "home is wherever you ARE" but also addresses deeper topics, including family, grief, anxiety and responsibility. As my followers know, I love an Australian book, and this one captures the size and feel of the Outback, without being touristy or forced. It was a particularity refreshing read coming off lockdown number four in Victoria, with all the other States in various forms of trouble - arm-chair travel is the beast we can get, and I'll take it.

I did take one star off because the very end was a bit twee for me. I often wish authors would leave things one chapter earlier, and that was the case here. But it was very sweet. I'll be looking out to see what Kim Lock does next - she is definitely one to watch.

Review in 10 words: This book made me miss home. It was a giant, reassuring hug.

Synopsis:
Mercy Blain has not left her house in two years.
She spends her days with her sausage dog, Wasabi, trawling the Facebook advice groups she is a part of.

She is propelled out of her house and into a Daihatsu Hijet which forces her to reacquaint herself with the world she has spent all her energy hiding from.

With Wasabi on the passenger seat and a box of suspicious cremated remains in the back, she sets out to make her way from Adelaide, South Australia to Darwin, Northern Territory.

Mercy may be out of her house, but she is not done hiding from everything.

Eugene, her ex husband won't stop calling her, and why was she hiding in her house to begin with??

My thoughts:
I really enjoyed this read!
As an Aussie living overseas this was the slice of home I needed. I loved all the nuanced references to Australia. Stopping in at Coles, the caravan convoys and bumper stickers, friendly strangers. It was all perfect.

The author spoke about reaching out to different people in her acknowledgements to fact check parts of this book and I really appreciated the effort they went to make this as authentic as possible.

I think Mercy is a very relatable character. She is not shiny, unpolished. She is very real. I found myself right there with her in the back of the Hijet. It's a great story that gives us all a reminder of the importance of being present and embracing life- even the hard parts. Over the last week I have somewhat subconsciously adopted Mercy's mantra of 'be here, now.' I also appreciate seeing an 'older' MC (I am aware Mercy is only in her thirties but this is relatively older compared to most contemporary books I have been reading lately).

Her descriptions of Mercy's experience of anxiety and panic attacks were well described. And although this is a heavy topic area I think the overall 'feel' of the book is one of hopefulness and resilience. Did I mention it had me laughing as well?

I have half a mind to go on the same trip when I visit home again.

You know the feeling when you need something but you don’t realise you needed u til you get it? That’s what reading this book felt like to me. The emotions, thoughts, feeling and even some of scenarios are ones that I have had before in my day to day life. Anxiety is a b/“$&v and once it takes a hold it’s so hard to overcome it. I felt Mercy’s struggle lining up at the checkout at woolies because I’ve been there, I felt her devastation when she heard a knock on her van door to announce an unexpected visitor because I’ve been there, the way she pets the ever loving shit out of her dog in an attempt to calm down, I’ve been there. This book hit ridiculously close to home in so many ways and I didn’t know how I felt about it as I was reading it; now that I’m done I can say it gave me hope, that I to will get to other side of beautiful one day. I just loved this book. So so much. Do yourself a favour and give it read, you won’t regret it

If you are looking for a warm hearted easy to read book to uplift your spirits, this is the book for you.
Mercy takes the reader through the centre of her pain by taking a road trip through the centre of Australia in an old van with Wasabi her beloved Dacshund. The journey we go on with Mercy is a fun road trip shared with grey nomads and their opulent caravans but more importantly her journey of healing.

A super easy read that will have you cheering for Mercy as she transforms throughout your pages. Highly recommended.

Thank you Harlequin Australia and NetGalley for this ARC and the opportunity to review this book.

I loved this book … the characters, the setting, the story … perfection!
Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

This is a brilliant story it is filled with so many emotions, all of the emotions rolled into a story that I found very hard to put down I loved getting to know Mercy Blain and feeling her struggles as she journeys on a road trip to find the other side, the side she used to be on before everything happened.

Mercy’s house has just burnt to the ground, what on earth is she going to do now she hasn’t left it for two years, there is just her and her sausage dog Wasabi, her anxiety levels are rising and fast when her sort of ex-husband arrives, Eugene takes her to his house but that is uncomfortable and staying there is not possible.

A chance to purchase a small very old rusty campervan jumps up and Mercy takes it this can be her and Wasabi’s home till her house is re-built but no, Mercy decides on a trip to Darwin, she discovers the cremated ashes of an unknown person in the back and they all start their journey north and what a journey it is. There are so many people along the way that offer assistance and slowly Mercy starts to let the fear and anxiety go, she is opening up and talking about what happened and doing things she has not done for two years, even meeting up with the last person you think of seems to see her strength grow a little.

This is a beautifully written story that takes in anxiety and fear there are so many fabulous characters in it that MS Lock has bought to life. Mercy really showed strength in what she did on that trip on her own it something I would never be able to do and she found the other side the beautiful side and I was cheering her on so much, there were some really fun parts in this story, so many ups and downs it is adventurous, witty and moving and yes a few tears from me and a story that I would highly recommend, really a must read.

My thanks to Harlequin AU and Netgalley for my copy to read and review

A beautiful story, giving perspective on PTSD, and a rich understanding of the customer, but in an entertaining way. Definitely one I would recommend! Adventure and rich characters.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Mercy Blain's house burns down and her life is totally u[ended. In the best of situations, this would be a seriously difficult situation but it's not the only problem for Mercy. She hasn't been out of her house in the past two years and now she is outside and exposed to the world. She is taken in by her ex-husband Eugene who lives with his current partner, Jose. This is a truly uncomfortable arrangement so when a neighbour offers to sell his old Hilux to her, she accepts and begins a journey of discovery and healing with her beloved dog, Wasabi. She just starts driving from Adelaide and by a certain amount of chance heads north.

This was truly a lovely story and even before we know the reasons for Mercy's isolation, we can feel her pain as she tries to navigate a terrifying world in these difficult circumstances. This journey takes her through the middle of Australia, meeting, often reluctantly, many colourful characters along the way. Through her many experiences, she finds ways of letting go of a past that has caged her for two years and learns to reengage with life. As a reader, I was right there with her all the way and could feel her pain and her triumphs as she found her way to the top end.

There is nothing rushed about this story. It just ambles along, just like the Hilux she is driving. And that's just fine because it needs the time it takes for change to occur. It's not even about stopping to smell the roses but to just be in the world. Again, this was a great read and I highly recommend it.

I've giving this 4.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Australia for sharing an advance reader copy for free. I am providing this review voluntarily.

This is an entertaining contemporary Australian novel.

It’s relatable, sad, funny and moving.

I really enjoyed reading about Mercy’s life and following her journey.

This would be an excellent holiday read.

I would read another book by Kim Lock.

Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Australia, HQ (Fiction, Non Fiction, YA) & MIRA and Kim Lock for this ARC.

This was amazing. The fact I got to go along on Mercy's journey with her, and see her develop and watch as she slowly unfurled and learnt to handle her PTSD and emotional trauma was incredibly rewarding. It was, at times, uncomfortable and difficult to read, but as it should be! This is life, and it isn't easy.

The Other Side of Beautiful is a Lovely Book set in Australia, about a woman’s journey out from the prison of crippling anxiety, on a road trip from Adelaide to Darwin in an aged campervan with only her beloved dachshund for company. I was invited to read this by the publisher via NetGalley, which was fortunate as I probably wouldn’t have found it on my own and it was a welcome break from all the thrillers. I loved the combination of wacky travel adventure, heartwarming emotional recovery and sweet love story.

Mercy Blain is dragged out of her burning house - that she has not left in two years after simultaneous crises ended her career and triggered a severe nervous breakdown - having saved only her dog and her phone. Her ex-husband Eugene takes her in, but his new boyfriend makes it clear she can’t stay. With nowhere to go and no one else in her life to help, she is talked into buying a grubby old Daihatsu van by an elderly neighbour, and sets off on an aimless drive out of the city with absolutely no preparation. Thanks to the beauty of the Outback, the quirky oddballs (and handsome Scotsman) she meets along the way, and by managing to survive a series of near disasters, Mercy comes to realise that she can actually cope with life and that the world is not so scary after all.

In the foreword the author explains that this book was inspired by her own history of mental illness and subsequent recovery. The heroine is a doctor who despite all her insight and knowledge, has fallen victim to panic disorder, through a combination of events beyond her control. It’s a long way into the book before we learn what these were - this aspect was drawn out a bit too far in my opinion, as there were plenty of hints, so the eventual reveal wasn’t a surprise. Mercy’s road to recovery is rapid by most standards, but doesn’t happen overnight, and there are certainly bumps along the way. I thought the well-signposted romantic subplot would annoy me, as I don’t like the idea that all it takes to cure all forms of distress is the love of a hunky stranger, but this isn’t actually the message here - Mercy does actually heal herself and the hot Scotsman is more of a bonus.

The writing here is gorgeous, with vivid descriptions of the dramatic scenery and weather as Mercy crosses the continent from bottom to top, through sweltering heat and frigid nights. There are funny moments and some near-scary bits too, (the Huntsman spider in the car brought back a similarly traumatic experience when I first arrived in Sydney!) and various interesting characters. I could picture the Grey Nomads in their mansions on wheels, obsessed with Happy Hour - a trip like that is on my bucket list, but I would never do it on my own!
Recommended for fans of Eleanor Oliphant, but certainly no copy-cat, I’m happy to round this up from 4.5. I received a free ARC and am posting this review voluntarily. The Other Side of Beautiful is published on July 8th.

I loved this book! It was like Eleanor Oliphant meets Rosie’s Going Nowhere but with a heart and soul all of its own. I loved the look at grief and anxiety, I loved the road trip and I loved Wasabi the dog. I really liked how the romance was only secondary to Mercy’s healing. The writing was fast and fun. Highly recommend!

‘Mercy Blain’s house was on fire, but that wasn’t her biggest problem.’

Mercy has been in hiding for two years, rarely venturing outside the safety of her house. What will she do when it burns down? After a brief stay with her ex-husband Eugene and his current partner Jose (it is complicated), Mercy and her dachshund Wasabi head off into the unknown.

So, how does a woman afflicted by agoraphobia, and subjected to crippling anxiety and panic attacks handle a road trip from Adelaide to Darwin? Slowly, and one step at a time. Slow is easy in the elderly Daihatsu Hijet Mercy bought on impulse. But it is the journey here that is important, rather than the destination. Mercy learns how to re-engage with the world by disengaging from the past and future, and by living in the present. And we learn why Mercy has been in hiding.

I must admit, it takes more courage than I have to set off on such an adventure. Ms Lock drew me in from the beginning and held my attention to the end. I worried about Mercy, sometimes shaking my head but mostly just cheering her on. I found the descriptions of life on the road fascinating, especially Mercy’s encounters with the grey nomads and others in the caravan parks where she stayed.

This really is a lovely story, which Ms Lock writes was inspired by her own experience with anxiety and panic attacks. There are a couple of twists which make Mercy’s achievement even more enjoyable.

‘All she had to do was be.’

Recommended.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Australia for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith