Laura Pearson's writing goes from strength to strength and her many fans will praise her latest book, albeit there should be a warning that it contains domestic abuse. Shelley Woodhouse wakes up in hospital after being in a coma. All she remembers is that some years ago her husband David tried to kill her. Nobody understands her concerns and fears as she tried to recall her prior life. The difficult subject is written with great sensitivity and I found it unputdownable.

Shelly Woodhouse has woken up in the hospital, with fractured memories of her husband trying to kill her. What follows is an exploration of the nature of memory, the importance of family, and the cyclical nature of domestic violence. We follow Shelly as she recalls her life from childhood to the present, and as she remembers more details a little at a time.

I was pulled into this story right away, and quickly grew to love many of the characters (and hate others - who deserved it). It's a compelling read, as we unravel the mystery of Shelly's life right along with her. It was confusing and frustrating, but it was supposed to be because that's exactly what Shelly was experiencing.

There were things that I guessed before they were revealed, and others that I didn't. Either way, I couldn't put down the book and it was responsible for several hours of missed sleep as I read late into the night. The writing is simple but creates a nuanced and layered story, and masterfully conveys complex emotions.

I would have liked to see one specific character receive their comeuppance, which would have made the ending more satisfying. But aside from that, it leaves the reader with a sense of closure and hope.

If you enjoy stories that peel back like an onion, characters with both flaws and charm, and a focus on the love of family (both found and biological), I highly recommend this book. **You should know going in that there are detailed scenes of domestic violence**

Resilience & second chances: loved it😍

I loved the way author Laura Pearson turns tragic abuse into inspirational recovery and growth. And highlights the insidious, multi-victim nature of partner abuse. The Now and Then alternating format worked well, having Shelley's lost memories come back slowly to detail the long history of family troubles that started in her childhood and her slow path surmounting them. I found the reading experience moving: not a tear-jerker for me but it resonated strongly and the ending was even more positive than I had hoped.

Shelley's mom Tina takes up with a man to ease her loneliness as a single mom and he and his violent ways affect the whole family. Shelley's abuse while still a child and later as a married woman is no less tragic but she escapes earlier and finds her calling helping other women.

As the story flows, it speaks of a domestic mystery that must be uncovered before Shelley can recuperate and brave the world again. It kept me totally engaged and new twists and revelations popping up made the book a great read. And the final element to cap it off for me was Shelley's connection with Matt, so different from the men who had terrorized her life and sapped her ability to trust men.

This is the third Laura Pearson novel I've read in a matter of months and I can't wait to find her next work.

Thanks to Boldwood Books for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

This review will be shared on Amazon, B&N, kobo, Goodreads and Bookbub.

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I enjoyed reading this book.

It’s about Shelley, who awakes after being in a coma and begins to connect her memories together. Slowly we begin to know about what her life before coma was like.

I highly recommend this book.

I didn't realise the subject matter when i requested this book, it was triggering for me and I didn't finish it, sorrry.

Another great book from this author who never disappoints me, great story-telling with well described characters who I felt I got to know them personally.

I usually read Psychological thrillers but can never resist books from this author they are just brilliant and I was involved in the storyline from the beginning until the very last page.

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC which I have no hesitation in recommending.

This kept me guessing for awhile. Very well-written, moving back and to in time. A heavy subject matter, which was dealt with sensitively. I don't know what's stopping me giving it five stars, maybe because I never got that feeling that I couldn't put the book down. I'm glad I read it though and I look forward to reading more by this author. With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Shelley Woodhouse wakes up in ICU. All she knows is her name and she believed that 2017, that her husband David has tried to kill her, but there are many things that are less clear in her memory and she is unsure she can trust those memories? The story is told in dual timelines, Then and Now.

I really enjoyed the characters they held intrigue and you got invested in the outcome of Shelley and her recovery of her memories. I understand that doing a book on the topic of DV is difficult and overall it was handled well but — I guess I felt that the nail was hitting me over the head too many times-something just didn’t sit right with me. I much preferred the character interactions and Shelley learning about herself and her memories, she struggles and overcomes.

With thanks to NetGalley, and especially to Boldwood Books for this ARC. This is my honest review.

What an usual book but I enjoyed it. Waking up from a coma and not knowing why and what has happened. Shelley is blindsided by memory loss. Locked in a time capsule on of memories it's hard to understand that it's 7 years later than what Shelley thinks it is.
Hard hitting with domestic abuse at it's core but handled with sensitivity.

When Shelly wakes up in the hospital she only has one thing on her mind, telling the police her husband tried to kill her. But no one seems to be very concerned about that, they keep telling her to focus on what she knows, and telling her she is safe. As she lays in her hospital bed recalling her childhood, adolescence, and adult years and every moment that brought her to this one she knows she needs to make some changes to give herself a future.

If you don’t like books where your heart gets ripped out, this may not be for you. I personally love when a book emotionally destroys me so this was right up my ally. I will put an additional warning, this book deals heavily with domestic violence and might not be something everyone is comfortable reading. I do love the way @laurapauthor handles it, with kindness and love for her characters and respect for the incredible hard place they find themselves in. The love and friendship in this book is the bright light that gives this story it’s soul. I enjoyed it immensely and cannot wait for everyone else to get to read it. Look for it April 6 2024.
Thank you to @netgalley and @theboldbookclub for letting me review this one a little early.
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This latest book by Laura Pearson is an excellent, but at times a difficult, read. Telling the story of Shelley, piecing her memories together after coming out of a coma, her past life is gradually revealed. The story is sympathetically told, and the characters are realistic and empathetic. I highly recommend this incredibly loving novel.

Get your box of tissues ready when you read this book. Laura Pearson has written another beautiful story with a great emotional punch, and I loved every minute of it. A tough, eye opening and important story told with compassion and sensitivity and characters who came alive on the page. An absolute must read.

I love all of this authors books! Beautifully written and draws you in right from the beginning and doesn’t let you go. She is able to tackle difficult topics in a unique way and create a great book to read. Her books are very emotional and I really connect with her characters in each of her books. A brilliant author! Thank you to NetGalley, Laura Pearson and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Such a touching story, the trigger about abuse is such a delicate subject to touch on. It so well done in this book. Made me sad, mad happy,
Loved reading this book had me feeling the emotions.

Thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an early release of this book.

A sweet and sad story, told carefully and sensitively, with a message at its core that is grimly realistic and at the same time, somewhat hopeful.

When Shelley Woodhouse comes to in a UK hospital, very few things are clear. For Shelley has suffered a significant brain injury, has been in a coma, and is afflicted with catastrophic memory loss. As Shelley painstaking sorts through her flickering memories, working her way back to what she hope will be a version of “now” she fully remembers, the reader is invited to unpack her life with her (or at least, the bits she finds herself remembering).

As piece by piece is uncovered, the author’s elegant and gently-paced surfacing memory timeline introduces a bit of a mystery element, as we come to know Shelley, the horrors she’s suffered, and the friends and family who have suffered along with her. Without giving the plot away (no spoilers here), Shelley has faced the terrors of domestic abuse, both with an intimate partner and in her childhood. And it has left scars, as we come to learn, as the cycle, poignantly, continues, with escape and safety a much more difficult outcome than can be easily imagined.

Raising awareness of what we, as a society, need to know if there is to be any possibility of change, this thoughtful book is both a quick and absorbing read, and a lovely heartfelt homage to the women who suffer, tragically, at the very hands of those who were intended to love them.

A great big thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.

Another triumph from Laura Pearson. Immediately engaging tale of Shelley who wakes up with memory loss and insists she's married to David who put her into a coma. But why is her best friend Dee avoiding her questions as to why David hasn't been arrested, who is the handsome stranger who visits her every day in intensive care, and why can't she get she contact her estranged mother?

A deft and well structured tale that blends the past and present together seamlessly.

Well worth your time.

WOW!!! Tough but really good book to read. This is the third book by Laura Pearson that I have read recently and I have to say that she is now one of my favorite authors! This was a stunningly accurate and realistic story of generational domestic violence, friendship, love and perseverance. As a retired Healthcare Professional, I found this book to be well researched. Thanks #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks #LauraPearson

*Contains Potential Spoilers*

I only came to Laura Pearson last year, with The Last List of Mabel Beaumont, and she instantly felt like someone I wanted to be friends with, and so I was really keen to read this latest offering.

It's set in the present time, but every other chapter is set in Shelley's past: her childhood, her adolescence, her family life, her marriage - so it helps build this picture of what she's like and what has got her to this point, without relying on clumsy memories.

It does contain some difficult topics such as domestic violence, fractured relationships, abandonment, and loneliness, and critical illness. It's not an easy read. I mean, it is in the sense that I read it in a day, as it's so seamlessly and excellently written, but the topics mentioned are difficult, but important. They're not used gratuitously or over-the-top, they're very real and unfortunately something that many readers can relate to.

I really liked Shelley, both in the present scenes and the flashbacks. We learn things about her as it goes along, sometimes learning things at the same time as her. There are of course other characters, friends, partners, relatives, nurses etc. and they're all great in themselves, but Shelley stole the whole book for me, the others there just to lift her up. She shines and you really root for her on every page.

I mean, luckily I don't know what it's like to be in a coma, but Laura has depicted that uncertainty, the fear, this sense of bewilderment and confusion and discombobulating (I've always wanted to get that word into a review) that one must feel when waking up from a short or long spell. It must be very confusing and scary, and it sounds very real and very moving in this book.

It ticks along very nicely, it's very enjoyable, watching Shelley through his recovery. And then at about halfway through there's a bombshell - which I won't spoil, obviously - that it completed turned what I thought, and what Shelley thought, on its head.

It is very emotive, very moving. For sad reasons, happy reasons, and angry reasons. Laura has pitched it just right. It's uplifting without being too sweet, sad without being morbid, frightening without being too scary. It shows humanity at its best and its worse.

This is my second book of hers and I now aim to read them all.

Shelley Woodhouse wakes up in ICU. All she knows is her name, that it’s 2017, that she’s 30 and the landlady of the Pheasant pub and that her husband David has tried to kill her. She just knows it, her memory of it is clear. However, there are many things that Shelley has forgotten, including memories from long ago, but can she trust those memories? Has the past confused the present or vice versa. In addition, who is the hospital volunteer called Matt? Why does he seem familiar? The story is told in dual timelines, Then and Now.

I really like the way that Laura Pearson tells the story as it seems to fit with Shelley trying to grab hold of her memories and to understand her situation. The two timelines fuse well and there’s a flow to the writing. It’s a puzzle at times, but just imagine what it must’ve been like for Shelley, as she tries to establish the truth about David. It must feel like she’s trying to grab hold of fog. Her past and the recent present are not easy stories for obvious reasons, but it is sensitively told, allowing the reader to understand the truth without overplaying it. Shelley’s story is complex and complicated and you really feel for her as she’s such a lovely character.

Although this is a tough subject, there are some truly wonderful characters whose support of Shelley gladdens your heart. From her childhood, there is the protective rock in Granny Rose and in the present day, a truly fantastic friend in Dee. I enjoy the way the Matt part of the story is told too.

The novel has its shocks, but it’s never gratuitous and it tells us enough. It’s also poignant, moving and heartwarming, and although I like the ending I think it might be a stretch in terms of accuracy but it’s fiction and I’m happy to go with the flow!

Overall, it’s another winner from this talented author who sure can weave a good story.

With thanks to NetGalley, and especially to Boldwood Books for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Shelley wakes up in the hospital telling everyone that her husband has beaten her. But is she remembering everything correctly? loved this story.