The Red Bike by Tara Delaney is a hauntingly familiar book about mothers and daughters. However, it doesn't address the usual mother/daughter conflicts. It goes much deeper so don't stop reading after a few chapters.

I received an email about this Debut Novel, loved description, had to read

Photographer for National Geographic
is sent away for a-once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity-shoot
observes a protective mother - wonders why own mother could not have done same for her.
Returns home determined to build relationship with mom
when mom receives a diagnosis the family has to deal with and come to terms with prognosis.

Motherhood - say is to be the most wonderful thing in world
our past shapes us, so it is part of us ...
how do we let go? ...
what lengths will you go?

Overall I did like the book. The plot hooked me but I was expecting just a bit more and I somewhat feel like I still need answers. The push and pull of this family’s relationship is relatable and I could see how everyone fell into their role. I did like the parts that flashed to the past that show us more of the backstory.

The Red Bike
by Tara Delaney
The cover is beautiful!! Gorillas!!
Description
When wildlife photographer Abbey captures the protective bond between a gorilla and her newborn baby, she becomes determined to restore her relationship with her own mother. The anger she holds after her mother's affair has bled into Abbey's romantic relationships, stopping her from embracing love. Shortly after she returns to Austin, her mother is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. The secret layers of her mother's life are peeled away, and unsettling truth is revealed. Will this new revelation allow Abbey to forgive her mother and release the hurt and anger that has held her back from living her life?


It was a good read. I wanted it to be as beautiful as the cover. I was waiting for the "red Bike" to tie into it. I would of course recommend it to others. Mother/ daughter is a real component in life. It was pretty good. read.

Tara Delaney has written a wonderful book demonstrating the complexities of relationships and family dynamics. She manages to pull on your heartstrings, laugh, love, cry and get angry as she weaves through a painful relationship between mother and daughter.. She demonstrates how Abagail sabotages her relationship with her boyfriend of 3 years due to her insecurities, brought on by her toxic relationship with her mother.. I found myself wanting to turn page after page as this story is woven in different directions, until near the end of the book, and then only because I didn’t want it to end. I definitely will be looking for other books written by Tara Delaney!
My sincerest thanks to Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read this amazing book.
Irene Geller

I loved this book. It is well written. You connect with the characters. Emotions at their best. Recommended!

So much anger. This read is a whirlpool of disappointment, deception and anger. Heartache for a young woman who faced much real life trauma without the support of her family. Which leaves her emotionally bereft mostly spurred by secrets and misunderstandings on both sides. This is a good story, sad but with a light at the end. Enjoy this one.

Abigail Gallagher was a woman who did things her way, she decided to go to Africa for a year, and she did. She didn't get along with her mother, and she just expected her boyfriend to just accept the decisions she made. When she came back from Africa, she still didn't get along with her mother, and she found out her mother had breast cancer. She would have to have both breast removed and go through chemo.
Her Dad had a talk with her, and she decided she would try to understand her mother, When her mother decided to have a dinner party for the family, it didn't go very well, and her brother's boyfriend whispered, you're scared.
She denied it, but she seemed to change after that. She made an effort with her mother, and she saw a different side of her mother that she had never seen. When Abigail showed her mother the photo she took in Africa, of the ape and her infant, her mother asked her if the mother ever protected their babies from their fathers. She thought that was odd, and the day came when she found out why her mother said it.
Abigail overheard things when she was young between her parents that affected her because she didn't know the facts. When she finally discovered the love her parents had for each other, and what they did for her, she had to go to New York. She got more answers there, and she really started to see the things she had always missed. She also learned that love is many things and everyone loves differently. I enjoyed the story, it was complicated, there were things that was just under the surface, but a spark can lead to many wonderful things, that changes so much.
I received an ARC form Treaty Oaks Publishing through NetGalley.

Title: The Red Bike
Author: Tara Delaney
Publisher: Treaty Oaks Publishers, AuthorBuzz
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Five
Review:
"The Red Bike" by Tara Delaney

My Opinion:

"The Red Bike" was quite an exciting story about Abigail Gallagher and her mother Rebecca, who couldn't get along. Now, why was this? Well, believe it or not, sometimes children are placed into a situation of hearing things they should not have heard! And this is what had happened to Abigail, and it seemed to mess up her life with anger toward her mother. This author works to get the reader to understand what had gone on earlier from the read; it is found that maybe there is more to this story that Abigal thought she knew, but had she gotten it all wrong? While all of this is going on, it seems that Abigail has problems with commitment. What was going on with her and Ryan? Was she committed to the relationship with Ryan or not? One would feel sorry for poor Ryan because one could tell he loved Abigail, but the way she acted still had a lot to do with her upbringing. As the story continues, Abby finally realizes how wrong she had been about her mother's past. It was so good to see that ...well, I will stop here and say this is a story; I would recommend it being picked up and see how well this author brings it all out with a great understanding of how much love and protection this mother had for her child. The interweaving about 'The Red Bike' was so beautiful as it is brought into the story of its essential. All in all, this story will keep your attention as one keeps turning the page to see what is coming next.

Thank you, NetGalley and Treaty Oaks Publishers, for the opportunity to read this novel and leave my review.

The struggle is real for a young woman trying to heal her relationship with her often critical mother as time runs out on her mother’s life.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Three stars for the story, but an unfortunate 1 star for writing style. The novel if filled with misspellings, grammatical errors and inappropriate use of words. (Wretched, instead of retched, osmosed?) It's also interspersed with graphic sex scenes that are not in the least erotic.

Abigail, a rape survivor who thinks her mother did not nurture her, is a gifted photographer who travels the world to take unusual animal portraits. The best of these show a mother gorilla cradling her infant. This appears to be a metaphor for the caring she feels she did not receive from her mother. So as a result, Abigail is incapable of loving any one man. She is promiscuous and not faithful to the one man who truly loves her.

There are many (too, too many descriptions of breasts. He mother's are pillowy and always on display. (Her own are small and pink tipped, but otherwise she looks like her mother) How, therefore, can it not happen that her mother has a double mastectomy to head off her breast cancer diagnosis.

The red bike of the title is mentioned once, briefly, earlier in the book and again at the end. I suppose it is a symbol of something. Much like the bike, the novel meanders around scenic Austin, smelly new york and descriptions of drinking and drunken behavior. Nothing much really hangs together but I finished reading, while rolling my eyes often, to see how Abigail's story develops. And it is that story and wanting to know how it ends that made me finish reading it..

Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My opinion, as I was reading this book, ran the gamut. I vacillated between liking and disliking it, and ultimately, I enjoyed it. What resonated to me, is that children really do not know the intricacies of their parents’ marriage. They may think they know and are convinced they know but it is all speculation and determined by what they “see” before them. The mother/daughter relationship, in The Red Bike, was complex. Abagail’s life’s direction unfolded, by her own admission, due to her conception (ultimately misconception) of her parent’s marriage, where she is very bitter toward her mother. I want to add, that it can be very easy, often times. to blame parents for our life’s projection, and many adults carry these judgements throughout adulthood. But there comes a point, when one has to take responsibility for one’s own life, regardless of past family relationships. In The Red Bike, Abagail needed clarity, regarding her mother’s actions, in order to achieve perspective. Thank you NetGalley and Treaty Oaks Publishers for the opportunity to read this novel.

The Red Bike is a complex, heartbreaking, heartwarming story of a young photographer, her family and possibly the love of her life that she denies. Tara Delaney has written it beautifully with the complicated relation of the mother and daughter. It had me in tears at the tender ending.

Wow! I really loved The Red Bike by Tara Delaney! What am interesting story centering on a mother/daughter relationship that is based on misunderstanding. Once Abigail Gallagher understands her mother better, she can finally let go of all the anger and animosity towards her, can she finally live her best life. Abigail has “the eye” and is becoming a renowned wildlife photographer. She constantly is running from her life: a committed relationship with Ryan, her longtime friend and boyfriend, and a nurturing relationship with her mother. As Abby comes to understand the truth about her and her mother’s past, she comes to a deeper understanding about a mother’s love and protection of her child.

5 stars!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.