A beautifully written book, touching upon a horrific disaster in a respectful way. I loved the main character and wanted to keep reading to find out what the future had in store for him after witnessing aftermath of the mining tradegy.

A beautiful and moving story, well written, emotional, sad and heart warming. A place to lose yourself, it's hard to put down once the story captures you. Recommended read.

On the 21st October 1966 the Primary School Abergan in Wales had been buried in a landslide from a local coal mine killing 116 children and 28 adults.

William Lavery aged 18 is at a flashy black tie event celebrating his qualification as an embalmer. The celebration is interrupted by an appeal from Aberfan for help after the unspeakable disaster and William instantly volunteers.

William leaves for Wales but his days they're tending to the bodies of the children are traumatic and will have lasting repercussions in the years that follow.

A well written debut novel that pulled at my heartstrings and had me gripped from the start. The characters were unforgettable and I loved how the plot moves along at a good pace.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

I thought A Terrible Kindness was going to be about the rebuilding of a community following tragedy, but it's a bit different than that.

The majority of the book is about William’s, the MC, time at a choir school, as he has a talent for singing. His mother takes him there after the death of his father, determined to stop him following his father’s footsteps as an embalmer. We know from the start ‘something’ happened that caused a rift between William and his mother, and for him to stop singing, but we don’t find out what this is until really late in the book. It’s hard to sympathise with William in a situation he created. Throughout, we see William act selfishly, whether it’s the way he treats his best friend at school, the way he looks down on another boy during his embalming training, or how he later treats his wife. His mother isn’t much better, her homophobia driving a huge wedge between her and her brother-in-law, who quite honestly puts up with way too much from her and is an absolute saint about the whole thing.

Unlikeable characters are one thing, but in a novel that hinges so heavily on emotion, it feels overdone. And William’s love interest (later wife) is one-dimensional, another character who comes in purely to serve William and nothing else. For the most part, so much of the book just felt like it dragged on, with William’s whining, self-pitying, nothing is ever my fault attitude becoming boring too quickly.

October 1966 and William Lavery has passed his embalmer exams with flying colours. He's at a prestigious dinner with his friend Gloria when they learn of the tragic mine collapse at Aberfan which kills 116 children and 28 adults. He thinks nothing of rushing off to help, a kind act which will have a lasting effect on everything he does.

The story jumps back in time and we meet with William and his joker pal, Martin at boarding school in Cambridge. He's joined the choir and hoping against hope to be lead chorister before too long. His mother, Evelyn has been pushing for him to use his voice rather than end up at the family business.

She has a love hate relationship with Robert as she's still grieving her husband, his identical twin. She detests his friend Howard - they just don't see eye to eye. She always feels they are trying to steal her boy which causes some friction! And then that day at school happens and William banishes her from his life.

Dear Gloria is always there for William, wanting and wishing for that one thing. It takes him going back in time to realise life is sweet. I really enjoyed the story which made me cry. Would recommend.

What a book, and what beautiful characters! From the larger than life Martin, to the haunted William, the beautiful Gloria, the grieving Evelyn and the heartwarming Howard and Robert. The book had unexpected turns but was wrapped up beautifully at the end. However I cannot imagine what the people at Aberfan must have felt after that awful event. This story has also highlighted the incredibly important and invaluable job that embalmers have that is not widely talked about / known.
All in all a beautiful book.
Thank you to Netgalley for the arc and the opportunity to read this.

Weirdly, I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I really did enjoy it, but i feel it's a tad misleading. The descriptor really leans on the Aberfan tragedy,however I really found that in terms of the story it was such a small part of it that I felt it was just a little unnessary to use such a horrific tragedy to give it 5 mins space within the actual book.

The story actually focuses more on the life of William growing up, where he'as a choir boy in Cambridge. Now this bit I did really like as I learned a fair bit about the songs famously sang by the Cambridge boys Choir. It made me go listen to the songs mentioned.
I also enjoyed the relationships and the friendships William had growing up and his inevitible career as an undertaker.

The writing is excellent, the story is engaging and I really did enjoy the story, I just felt that the premise was just a little misleading overall.

The wee book lady xx

William Lavery is 19 and has just qualified as an embalmer when the Aberfan disaster occurs. He is one of a group of volunteer embalmers who go to the Welsh village to help but it has terrible repercussions for William. Combined with events in his childhood, he puts obstacles in the way of his happiness - can he overcome this?
A poignant tale but a good read.

What a great book! It was both an eye-opener and an enjoyable read. The book centres on the life of an embalmer whose first real job is dealing with the aftermath of the Aberfan coal mine disaster. Being only 19 this comes as a great shock. The day's events come back to haunt him and we learn how and why he became an embalmer. Mixed in with this part of his life is an unexpected twist. As a young man he was a chorister. His life starts out very different and veers off course due to the relationship with his mother. Two unlikely stories that meld together as you venture deeper. I really enjoyed this even if a few bits were uncomfortable to read .Don't be squeamish!

Absolutely stunning, heart-rending and immersive read, following newly-graduated William through dual timelines before and after volunteering to help at the Aberfan disaster where a landslide at a coal mine buries a school.

William's mother has always been against him joining the family business and is overjoyed when he receives a choral scholarship to a prestigious school in Cambridge. But the experience is marred for William by the unease between the members of his small family, with far reaching consequences.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, we alternate between past and present, learning how William came to be where he is and how the tragedies in his life affected him and shaped his future.

This book will stay with me for a long time and even more astounding that this is a debut novel.

Absolutely stunning. Heartbreaking yet reassuring, completely immersive, an absolute gem of a book. Even more impressive that it's a debut. All I can say is read it.

I found the sections of this book relating to Aberfan emotional. The story is of William a young embalmer who goes to help following the tragedy and how it impacts his life. There are sections where we learn about William’s early life and how he became an embalmer.

I enjoyed the book, not sure the link to Aberfan is as strong as the publicity around the book made out.

I loved this book! I love all of Joanna Cannons stories and this one did not disappoint. I actually bought a copy as I know I will read it again!

A Terrible Kindness by Jo Browning Wroe


I will start by saying that my book club recently read A Terrible Kindness and I was the only one (of 9) who didn’t absolutely love it. Maybe it was just the wrong time for me but I’m afraid I didn’t enjoy it & struggled to finish. The story was good, the writing was good but overall it was just a little …twee. Sorry.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

How do I start to describe what this incredible book gave to me and made me feel? This is a poignant and heartfelt story centred on the 1966 Aberfan disaster. A young man, newly qualified as an embalmer volunteers to give his services, a terrible kindness, to the village. He has 2 main gifts, one as an embalmer, the other as a chorister: both were desperately needed during this tragic time. Terrible nightmares and flashbacks haunt his future, which impact on his decisions and relationships.

I was only 10 years old when this disaster happened but have carried the memory with me. Thank you Jo Browning Wroe for writing this much needed book. It unlocked a poem I’ve held within me and wanted to write for so many years. Finally it is done.

I cannot imagine the sorrow felt by parents and families who lost loved ones when happiness was buried that day but communities are strong. Grief can allow hope to enter in and flourish.

Thank you Net Galley for an advance copy of this book.

It’s took me a while to get into this book but I’m glad I kept at it.

You can’t help but love William. He’s a lovely man that you just want to be happy. He goes through a lot of hard times during his life, making you pray for a happy ending for him.

I never thought I’d read a book about embalmer’s and choir’s. I’m surprised at how much I enjoyed it in the end.

A beautifully written and deeply moving book, based upon the unthinkable tragedy that happened to the small mining town Aberfan in October 1966.

Stunning! Powerful! Emotional. Utterly wonderful!!

It's very difficult to review this book other than to say it is one of those stories that sticks with you, the characters become people you feel like you know and it packs those gut wrenching emotional moments in with style and complete sensitivity.

It's a story of regrets and reconnections, the art of forgiving and those little acts of kindness that may go unnoticed by many but to the recipient means the world! I was utterly spellbound as the story unfolded, set against the backdrop of the awful tragedy of Aberfan, showing the impact on the families involved alongside that of the wider community. It's a story about making peace with others and, more importantly, with yourself and it was just the most beautiful book... if you've not read it already, what are you waiting for??!!

Such a beautifully written book and emotional storyline. The parts covering the awful Aberfan disaster were quite harrowing yet they set the scene for the rest of the book perfectly. A very moving story and one that will stay with me for some time to come.
Highly recommend.
Many thanks to Faber & Faber and NetGalley for the review copy.

William enters the family undertaking business, and has only just completed his studies when an appeal goes out for embalmers to go to Aberfan, where the primary school has just been buried by a landslip. He volunteers, little realising how this event will affect his future life and his relationships.
Flashbacks to his musical childhood as a scholarship choirboy are interspersed with the unfolding story of William’s life, and his relationships with his widowed mother, his uncle and his partner, his wife and his best friend from his school days.
I was totally gripped by this novel and rooted for William throughout, willing him at times to make other decisions. Characterisation is deft, detailed and sympathetic, the cast likeable and credible with their only too human flaws which the reader, as an outsider, is able to understand and contextualise.
This is a mesmerising novel, with a protagonist immersed in a profession that most of us give little thought to. I will be recommending it to all my fellow booklovers.