Greatest Hits

Absolutely loved this - interesting characters, relatable storylines, and an interesting use of songs list structure to hang the story on, with present and past mixing to create the world of the main character Cass

First, thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this amazing novel. I'd not read Versions of Us but have bought it immediately upon finishing Greatest Hits.

I've had some personal difficulties that have left me, a 3-4 novel a week reader, unable to finish anything other than an occasional graphic novel. Greatest Hits changed that, gripping me immediately and immersing me in the fascinating life of Cass Wheeler. As a character, Cass is so real, so beautifully and empathetically written, that I had to Google her after finishing the novel, so convinced I was that she was real.

This is a story that feels vivid and plausible, full of rich relationships with their flaws and foibles. It is masterfully written and aware, with such a wealth of research into the times and the music industry that the reader completely suspends all disbelief and feels part of it. I could hear the chords, the rising voice, see the art installation (which dissolved me to tears), and the hope in the final paragraphs.

I cannot recommend this book enough and cannot wait to place it in the hands of my readers.

Two decades after Cass Wheeler, a hugely successful British singer-songwriter, retired abruptly from the music business, she is preparing to break her silence and release simultaneously an album of new material alongside an album of her greatest hits. The narrative of Laura Barnett's novel is structured around a day that Cass spends listening to each of the chosen tracks for her Greatest Hits album and remembering the events that inspired them.

Cass's reminiscences stretch right back to the early days of her career and Barnett does a very good job of evoking the heady sense of freedom of the nineteen seventies as the structures of post-war Britain, breached by the cultural explosion of the sixties, begin to crumble away, revealing a world where anything seems possible.

Unfortunately for Cass, the promises that a life of music seemed to offer turn out to be hollow: marital breakdown, the incompatibility of motherhood and the music business, and the mental illness of her daughter all conspire to turn her dream of unfettered creativity into a nightmare of recrimination.

It's an immensely readable novel. For me, however, the weak link is the lyrics with which each new section begins. Significant claims are made for them as the kind of songs that might speak to a generation but I wasn't entirely convinced. But this is no more than a quibble, amply compensated by the strongly drawn personality of Cass - flawed, damaged but always struggling towards redemption - and by the portrait of an era, already almost forgotten, full of arrogance, enthusiasm and a naïve kind of innoce

Laura Barnett's novel 'The Versions of Us' was one of my favourite books of 2015, so it came as no surprise when I found myself equally engrossed in her latest offering, 'Greatest Hits.'

The novel follows the life - and the music career - of Cass Wheeler, using the songs that made her famous before she suddenly abandoned music to set the scene for different chapters in her life. Over the course of one day in her home studio, we see her as a child, a teenager, a headstrong twenty-something, and now in present-day middle age.

You feel the nostalgia and the euphoria, the sadness of each low, and the elation of each high. The characters are richly drawn, and the plot moves quickly without ever being over-dramatic. After all, every reader can identify with the time-travelling properties of the music we once loved and lived life to.

'Greatest Hits' is one of those books that truly makes you forget where you are. While reading Barnett's tale, you're not sitting on your couch at home: you're a world-famous singer looking back on her teenage years in 1960s London. It's the kind of book that swallows you whole, and leaves you thinking of it, and its characters, long after you've turned the last page.

'Greatest Hits' will be released in the summer of 2017, and there's no doubt that - like it was for me - it will be a favourite book of the year for many other readers too.

I had read The Versions of Us, which is why I opted to read this novel, and I was equally impressed by the muscular and thoughtful writing here. Every character is well-developed and rounded so I could empathise with their journeys and I enjoyed the historical features of music through the decades as well. The story is told backwards and forwards so sometimes I wondered if the impact of dramatic events was lessened by the fact that we are told they are coming, but generally I found the story really engaging and would definitely recommend it.

I have waited to read this since I turned the final page of "Versions of Us" nearly two years ago.
I love Laura's writing, her characters and the flawed lives they lead which bring out such warmth towards them from us.

Loved it. This is the story of Cass Wheeler, once a hugely successful singer-songwriter,who disappeared from the music scene after a tragic incident that left her unable to cope with life. Now, she has to choose just 16 songs from literally 100's of songs that she penned for a Greatest Hits record. As she delves into each song, memories surface of a past that underpinned every word.

Ooooohh!!! Good book!! The intense and multi-dimensional aspects of love and loss are so extraordinarily spun throughout this richly textured, deeply layered story; while, at the same time, bringing life and even like-ability to the deeply flawed characters. Wow!! Loved it!!

Barnett has invented a new genre altogether - it's biopic lit, taking us artfully through decades of music and society, as if you were there.

I found Greatest Hits to be an unusual and highly enjoyable read. Singer/songwriter, Cass Wheeler, chooses sixteen tracks of music to define her life. She has retired and is preparing to release an album of new material as well as an album of her greatest hits. Each chapter of the novel revolves around one of the new songs she has written remembering the past events that inspired them.

I loved the novel itself but was not much taken with the 'tracks' at the beginning of each chapter which is whyI have given it four stars not five. This is probably subjective as other readers may appreciate the song lyrics more than I did.

Thanks so much to Orion and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review Greatest Hits.

Beautifully crafted and utterly beguiling from the outset.....as a lifelong Sandy Denny fan I really felt like It was written just for me! I shall be recommending it widely and can't wait to hear to the accompanying CD.

I found this a brilliant and unusual read. It is a fictional biography of the flawed life and times of the British singer and songwriter Cass Wheeler. It rings so true and authentic that it is hard to credit that it is indeed fictional. Cass had been a wildly successful musician until her sudden and abrupt departure from the music scene when tragedy struck and she suffered a breakdown. This has not prevented a host of rumours and speculation as to what exactly happened to her.

Now in the present, Cass is in the process of selecting sixteen songs from her huge back catalogue which serve to inform us of her life story through the songs and lyrics. Each of the songs is the structure for this book. Nostalgia and memories pour out from Cass, going back and forth in time to illuminate her very full life and the artistic and compulsive drive within her that inspires the songs. What emerges is a poignant journey into the past that provides an opportunity to understand her mistakes and come to terms with all that life has thrown at her and find some measure of peace. She had an uneasy childhood, unsettled teenage years, marriage, separation, and became a mother with all the attendant demands that placed on her and having to come to terms with mental health issues. The mismatch between being a mother and a hungry and devouring music industry is outlined.

There is real emotional power to Cass's story and you really feel it in the narrative. The highs and lows of a life in music that captures an era in British cultural history. It gives an unfiltered personal history, with joy, love, failures, regrets and all that it takes to live delivered beautifully through the frame of the music, songs and lyrics which define Cass Wheeler. Such a wonderful and unusual read which I highly recommend. Thanks to Orion for an ARC.

I really enjoyed this. Something a little different to everything else out there.

I enjoyed reading this. Cass was an intriguing character, and I particularly liked the parts of the book dealing with her childhood - the story of her birth, her relationship with her father and everything that happens with her mother were brilliant and, by far, the best parts of the book for me. I also really liked Aunt Lily & her husband John - their kindness and understanding towards Cass was beautiful. It's after Cass runs away from them that I struggled a little, perhaps because I began to dislike Cass for her behaviour. I could understand why she was acting the way she was, but you could see it was going to end in disaster for her.
I wasn't always sure about the songs that began each section - I liked the idea of it, but without any music it was sometimes hard to 'feel' them, and they often seemed a little short! I also felt the book went on just a bit too long. I could see what was coming with Anna, and the run up to that dragged on rather along with the other loose ends to tie up. I think I would have given this more stars if it had finished a little faster. But generally, this was an enjoyable read.

3 stars. This was an easy going read, full of atmospheric writing and story telling.

It takes a while to get going but once it does you really start to connect with the story.

You get a real sense of the characters, good and bad and I liked the journey we go on interspersed with song lyrics.

This is ideal for curling up in bed on a rainy Sunday afternoon, immersing yourself in the characters and rooting for Cass.

Enjoyable.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this copy.

Thank you to Orion Publishing who provided an ARC via net galley in return for an honest review.

It was with a squeal of happiness that I downloaded the ARC to my kindle. The Versions of Us had been one of my favourite reads of 2015 and I nervously started reading Greatest Hits hoping that this would be one of my favourite books of 2017. Needless to say, it is, but my review cannot possibly do it justice. As Cass herself says about the writing process "when she did try to write about them, they seemed to lose something in the recollection, turn to hazy facsimiles of the lucid images projected in her mind"

Cass Wheeler is the singer/song writer who we are introduced to as a recluse in her 60's who has lived the last few decades hidden away in the country, away from the music industry and social life. She is pulling together an album of her greatest hits. Not the songs that sold the most, but the songs that tell the story of her life and hold the most meaning to her.

The songs that she chooses allow the reader to experience the pivotal moments in her life and the family and friends who have had the biggest impact on her. The mistakes that Cass feels she has made and gradual acceptance of her rich and varied life are all explored in her song lyrics and the memories that these lyrics spark in her. The songs and the emotions and meaning behind them that became so much a part of my life over the days that I read the book, I actually feel that Cass Wheeler is a real person and if I google her there will be a multitude of internet articles about her.

The writing is a dream, with musical echoes in the language used. One particular image that stuck with me was the way that the bees buzzing in the garden were described. It is evident that everything has been meticulously researched for the book, but never to the detriment of the story or the emotions hidden in the pages.

I held off finishing the book for as long as I was able, because I really didn't want Cass's story to end.
I shall be buying this in hardcover as soon as it is released.

I loved this book, the idea of telling a story through a choice of songs is great, only problem was it made me cry while I was on a plane which got me some odd looks!

I looked up Weidenfeld and Nicolson, the publishers of this book, on Twitter and they say they 'specialise in exceptional fiction and non-fiction'. I think it is fair to say that Laura Barnett's Greatest Hits comes into the category of exceptional fiction. I loved the author's debut work, The Versions of Us, but think I may like this one even more.

Retired and reclusive singer Cass Wheeler is putting together songs for a Greatest Hits album. As she listens to her songs as she tries to select them, she looks back on her career and reflects on her life. She has written hundreds of songs, had a eventful life, experienced love and loss and stopped singing ten years ago after a personal tragedy struck.

Each of the chapters of the book begins with the lyrics of one of Cass's songs and mentioned when it was written, which album it appeared on (if any) and who was involved in the production. An album of the songs will be released at the same time as the book, with singer-songwriter Kathryn Williams bringing Cass's songs to life. It's a really intriguing concept and I'm looking forward to hearing the songs.

Cass Wheeler is a wonderful character. The way her story is written going right back to her difficult childhood, following her singing career, her love life, motherhood and the sad losses in her life all helps to make her a fully rounded person. In fact she is such a strong believable character that it felt as though I was reading the biography of a real singer, rather than the story of a fictional character.

Greatest Hits is exactly the kind of book I enjoy. It moves effortlessly between past and present hinting at and revealing a little of what happened as the story progresses. Cass was a character I totally believed in and I so enjoyed reading her story. Even though she had known much sadness in her life, she had also known much joy and love and lived a full life. There were other terrific characters in the book too notably Cass's Aunt Lily, her assistant and friend Kim, Ivor her partner both musically and romantically, and her supportive friend Johnny. There were a lot of characters who moved in and out of Cass's life particularly in the music industry and I did on occasion lose track of who was who especially if they only made brief appearances but I'm sure that's down to my poor memory rather than any fault on the part of the author.

Greatest Hits is a book which I am sure will be a huge hit (pun completely intended!) when it's released. It's a book to lose yourself in as, along with Cass, you relive her life through her music and memories. It's a story about loving and losing and coming to terms with your past and is full of emotional highs and lows.

Very unique with the song lyrics and who wrote and produced song. Even had a discography at end of book. At one point during reading I stopped and googled Cass Wheeler to see if she was real.
I really enjoyed it, good story that spread over a lifetime, only reason not 5 stars was because it dragged a bit at the end. Worth a read.

Laura Barnett has certainly succeeded in following up on the success of Versions of Us. This is equally good and original.
The novel is built around songs from the Greatest Hits album by the fictional Cass Wheeler. The 16 tracks lead us through Cass's life from a child through to global success as a singer songwriter and into her later years. They lead us through her childhood and teens, through to early years as an emerging artist through to international stardom, love, marriage, motherhood. Surprisingly, even though this is obviously without sound, there is a sense of the music that forms the backdrop to her life. Definitely recommended.

I loved this. The structure is simple but effective, the story so affecting (it did make me cry) and there was so much to relate to in terms of mistakes, the burdens of sorrow and anger, parenthood and the redemptive power of music. I think I need to reflect on it some more before posting my review online but I wanted to say immediately how much I loved it. Thank you for letting me read it.

Cas Wheeler sets aside a day to listen to the songs that she made as a successful artist, each song bringing back memories of her life. She relives the trauma of her early years when her mother deserted her and her father, her father's retreat into grief and her discovery of music. Her failed marriage and the tragedy of her daughter's life cause her continued pain as she blames herself for her child's demise.

As Cas recalls her life she thinks of more recent events; how she has fallen in love but has pushed the man away, and she fears it is too late to reconcile. Listening to her music is a healing process and by the end of the process she seems ready to move on. As the reader I was willing her on to make the right move, and wishing her a happy ending. This brilliant book keeps up the suspense right to the end - a top read.

Sometimes, rarely, you start a book and it envelops you straightaway. You know that you will follow the adventure to the end and enjoy every last word. Well for me this is one of those rare books; the characters became real their situations believable and it was easy to become immersed in their life stories.
Cass Wheeler singer songwriter, born 1950, looks back on her life and chooses her music tracks which highlight a significant event or chapter in her life. From an unhappy childhood through troubled teenage years and her emergence onto the music scene, each chapter or track is carefully constructed. Looking back from her 60 plus years Cass begins to understand, forgive and maybe just start to live again.
My only adverse comment would be that sometimes it was difficult to keep up with all the different characters, especially those from the music scene.

A different way of looking back over a life. Each chapter begins with the lyrics of a song and then the chapter expands the theme.
At first I found the characters confusing, but as the story became chronological, it became clearer, and I became involved in Cass's life story. Despite this, I did feel it dragged a little in parts.

I received this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review. I am not normally a "biography" reader so this was a little out of my comfort zone as it is a fictional biography but I was drawn in straight away. Cass Wheeler felt 'real', I so wanted to Google her!! All the characters were believable, you felt their joy and their pain. The idea of basing a book around an album of songs really worked, I wanted to hear these songs for real (and I will!!). Cass will stay in my mind long after the book is finished. Thank you Laura for writing it and thank you NetGalley for allowing me the chance to read it, I may never have chosen it. I will be recommending it to friends and family.

Greatest Hits by Laura Barnett covers a myriad of difficult topics and each of them is impressively and sensitively dealt with. This beautifully written book was a pleasure to read and has definitely made Laura Barnett an author I will look out for.
It has been ten years since singer/songwriter Cassandra Wheeler last produced an album. Ten years in which she has secluded herself from a world she felt was too painful to live in.
Now Cass has decided the time is right to being out a greatest hits album with some new material included alongside it. A retrospective look at her life via the medium of song, in particular, her favourite songs. The sixteen songs she picks are songs from defining moments in her life and make for an enthralling read.
She thinks‘I could forget today, couldn’t I? Just lie here, under the covers. Draw them up over my head and sleep. She thinks, No. You have done too much sleeping. Today is the day you wake up.’
One of the first memories Cass introduces us to is the first time she performed in front of anyone other than just her family and a few close family friends.
Laura Barnett has a unique writing style, one that pulls the reader in and keeps them immersed until the last minute. I like the way the songs are peppered throughout the book and the lyrics are brilliant. Common Ground and I Wrote You a Love Song.
She was born Maria Cassandra Wheeler in April 1950. Her father, Francis was a preacher and used to give inspiring sermons at his Sunday service. One of her most treasured memories from her childhood involved spending evenings with her father while he read to her.
Her memories of her mother were much more complicated and painful. Their relationship was always off balance but it was changed forever when Cassandra was around ten and her mother walked out on her and her dad. Contact after that was sporadic and stormy.
She was first introduced to music when her mum’s friend Irene taught her to play the piano. Her love of music really grew though after her mum left and she went to stay with her aunt Lily and her uncle John.
John and Lily played all their favourites to her and introduced her to a number of musician friends. Also, they treated her like an adult and gave her the space to be the person she wanted to be.
The biggest influence in her life, and the cause of most of the issues she had to face, was Ivor Tait. A man she both loved and loathed over the years. Their relationship was certainly a tumultuous one.
This book was impossibly alluring and definitely one I would recommend.

I enjoyed the way Cass' story was told in this book with song lyrics prompting her reflections on different stages in her life. It was also interesting to discover at the end that these lyrics are now fully formed songs which can be listened to.
However, I did feel Cass' story wasn't really a unique one and didn't shed any new light on the era or the difficulties of fame. Sadly I also struggled with the author's style at times and some of her sentences seemed never ending!!

This is a fictional biography of the British singer and songwriter Cass Wheeler. Cass was a successful musician and then she had a breakdown. Cass Wheeler is taking a journey back into her past. After a silence of ten years, the singer - songwriter is picking sixteen tracks that have defined her -sixteen key moments in her life - for a uniquely personnal Greatest Hits album. In the course of one day the story of Cass's life emerges. The highs and lows of music, friendship, ambition, love and great loss.

What a unique idea. To write the story of your life through songs. We all have a song that we remember good and bad times. I loved this book. A good read with some good music from the 1960's and 1970's

I would like to thank NetGalley, Orion Publishing and the author Laura Barnett for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Some writers are good at writing about life, this was seen in Laura Barnett’s debut: Versions of Us. In which Barnett told a story with three versions of a life, each shaped by one chance encounter, being told three times with one minor change, this sent Barnett’s characters in vastly different versions of themselves. In Greatest Hits, Barnett has narrowed her focus down to one person, Cass Wheeler, who is a singer-songwriter. This narrower focus has strengthened the emotional journey that Laura Barnett takes her readers.

Cass Wheeler, after years living a secluded life, has decided to come out of retirement. Cass has finally decided to release the songs that meant the most to her during her career. Over the course of Greatest Hits, we get to follow Cass down memory lane as she revisits sixteen tracks. Although this isn’t a straightforward biography of Cass’ life. Instead, we see the momentous points in time that led to the songs being written, as well as following Cass during the day, as she gets ready to launch her album. Throughout Cass’ reminiscence, there are portentous hints that lead up to Cass’ present-day.

At no point in this story did I feel that Cass wasn’t believable as a character. She has lead both a hard life, but also one with a sense of joy and freedom that few people will get the chance to experience. Cass at her core is strong-willed, but she is also racked with crippling self-doubt, both of which lead to conflict throughout the story. Cass can also alienate other people in her life, as they try to help her when she is struggling to hold it all together.

At its heart, Greatest Hits is all about the life and times of Cass Wheeler, although there are other well-rounded and unique characters, you rarely get to see what happens to them when they are not affecting or being affected by Cass’ life. Even with this focus on Cass there are a number of standout characters including Cass’ Aunt Lily, who always seems so carefree and cool; Ivor, the boyfriend and “bad boy” guitarist who gets her started on her road to fame, Ivor is so eloquently described that you know that whatever happens between him and Cass is going to be epic; last but by no means least is Kim, who is Cass’ rock in both good and bad times. These are just a few of the people who are part of the framework that makes Cass’ life so vivid.

The structure of the book is captivating, each chapter is titled after the tracks on Cass’ Greatest Hits. Track One is titled Common Ground, one of the first songs Cass ever writes. With this track, you can see that Cass channels her emotions into her songs. Some of the Tracks start in the present, with Cass gearing herself up to listen to a song, while others lead us straight into the past allowing us to see the events that led to the song being written. This allows Laura Barnett to slowly fill in the details of Cass’ life, as little by little details are revealed.

Another thing that makes this book so interesting is that Laura Barnett has teamed up with singer-songwriter Kathryn Williams to make the songs in this book a reality. More information on how to access this album can be found here: http://kathrynwilliams.co.uk/. At this time I haven’t listened to the whole album, although you can listen to Common Ground on Williams’ website, which I appreciated as it gave a new dimension to the story being told. Both the book and the album are due for release in Mid-June, so I don’t have to wait too much longer for the full album.

Greatest Hits is an evocative story that hits hard as you follow the ups and downs of Cass’ life. By the time I reached Track 15 I was in tears, I felt more exhilarating and connected to a story than I have in a while. Greatest Hits is an accessible story that may not be for everyone, but if you want to read a story that could easily be identifiable as being written about a real life musician from the 20th Century, I don’t think that you will be disappointed. Greatest Hits is one of those books that is hard to put down, and when you finish you will want to read again. I feel that this is a truly impressive novel, following a very strong debut.

I loved this beautifully crafted book, packed with fabulous characters who I'm still thinking about long after the finish. This is a book that you have to treasure every word, savouring the story instead of racing through to the end. My book of the year so far, filled with love, despair, loss, hope, friendship and music.

Every now and again a book comes along that wows you with its richness; Greatest Hits is one such novel. There can’t be many people who don’t have a soundtrack to their lives, those songs that were the background to early years, the songs we fell in love to and those that we obsessively listened to as we attempt to mend wounded hearts; for many of us there is a tune that can turn back the years to a distant time and place. Laura Barnett has taken this idea and turned it into a densely woven story.
Cass Wheeler is a singer songwriter and Greatest Hits is the story of her life, exploring through her own lyrics the key events in her life from the earliest days with her decidedly less than maternal mother Margaret and her father, the local vicar Francis, who would read to her from adult books to sooth her to the woman she is now, reflecting on her years of silence, having turned her back on music. For Cass there were no songs left to write and no music to fill her days.
Greatest Hits is supported by a wonderful cast of characters who in turn support Cass through her life, most notably Aunt Lily and her assistant Kim. With any book spanning decades the links to the past are most important and in true reflection of real life we also see that some people are in our lives for brief amounts of time, but nonetheless have a huge impact as was the case with her childhood friend, Irene, and perhaps more importantly Irene’s mother who provided the mothering that was bereft from her own life. All of these different yet vivid characters provide the supporting acts to Cass’s story.
Each of the sixteen long chapters are headed up with one of the titles of the songs that Cass is compiling of the music that reflects her life. Below the title we have some lyrics from the songs as well as the fictional release date and other recording details. We therefore dive back to the early days and those memories, whilst in the present we have some clues as to the tragedy that struck Cass and led to her disappearing from her successful music career at its height in the 1970s to the withdrawing from life as well as music in the early 2000s. This layering of a story is exceptionally well done and Laura Barnett weaves the past and the present convincingly with the brightness of the triumphs with the depths of despair not forgetting those more mundane or mixed emotions which all of us experience.
Despite not being a famous singer, and not having spent my life penning songs or living in the lap of luxury and only being born as Cass was releasing her early music, Cass’s life felt like one I could have been part of, so evocative were the descriptions and so rich in both characters and writing style. This is a book to wallow in with a story that transports its reader to a time and place far away. For those who really want to get the full experience a soundtrack is being produced with Kathryn Williams performing the songs contained within the book to be released in conjunction with this novel. But even without the added interactive element Greatest Hits is in my opinion a triumphant second book to follow up to  The Versions of Us which I also adored.
I'd like to thank the publisher Orion Publishing Group for allowing me to read an advance copy of Greatest Hits ahead of publication on 15 June 2017. This honest review is my thanks to them and the talented Laura Barnett for a fabulous read.

Cass Wheeler, a much revered and talented singer songwriter, looks back over her life. Now well into her sixties she has arranged to spend a single day all alone in her recording studio preparing her latest and long awaited new album of sixteen of her songs. She is arranging her back catalogue into an honest and unforgiving musical autobiography straight from her heart. It will include tracks from her meteoric rise to stardom tours and some new songs that will tell of her loves, her losses, her highs and her lows, her joy and her heartbreak; each song written and performed by her, reflecting the various milestones in her life.
A massive party has been arranged for afterwards by her loyal and loving PA and friend. Invited are her friends, her fellow musicians, people who have supported her act and journalists. It is a fully fledged reunion to end all reunions and is the first house party she has hosted for a long, long time. It is set to become the party of all parties and to herald the beginning of her musical and emotional comeback after a sabbatical of a decade. Her fans are ecstatic that she is releasing a new album after all of her trials and tribulations.
I really loved the idea of this novel. It was highly original, very emotional and also well written. The story was told through flashbacks, memories, letters and through the songs Cass had written throughout her life. As she said herself, she had no power over what she wrote as the lyrics just came to her. I particularly loved the story of Maria Cassandra’s early life at the vicarage and also the story of her and her daughter. I thought the relationships were very interesting and well observed. I also felt very sorry for Cass as overall her life was sad and filled with drama, not always of her own making. However none of the main characters particularly endeared themselves to me and I found some of them extremely unlikable.
I would like to thank NetGalley and publisher Weidenfeld & Nicolson for my copy of this book sent to me in return for an honest review. It gave great insight into the pressures of celebrity, of jealousy and of ambition. It made me feel quite downhearted but nevertheless I did enjoy reading it.

Once a famous singer/songwriter, a British rival to Joan Baez or Joni Mitchell, Cass Wheeler has been living a lonely, reclusive life following a personal tragedy and time spent in re-hab. Now she's ready to make a come back. A new album is recorded, a launch party planned, but first Cass wants to spend a day in the studio listening to her old records and picking out the ones that she considers to be her 'greatest hits' - not the ones that sold best but those that are more personal and private, representing key moments in her life. Over the course of the day, listening to her old songs, Cass revisits her fractured childhood, headstrong teenage years, meteoric rise to fame, and the troubles that seemed to follow fast on its heels.


Now, I loved Laura Barnett's debut novel, The Versions of Us, and the minute I heard there was another on the way, I was eager to read it, but at the same time a little cautious as I often am with second novels, plus I thought the theme of ex-rock-star-making-a comeback was maybe a little predictable. How wrong could I have been? I absolutely love Greatest Hits!

For me, this is a story that comes with a huge slice of nostalgia - Cass is the sort of singer I'd have listened to as a young teen, followed in the music magazines of the day, maybe even dreaming of living a life such as hers - but Greatest Hits isn't just a story of music and fame.

I think without the various time-lines of The Versions of Us, there's more opportunity this time to appreciate the author's writing style, and skill at story-telling. Starting in the present day, Cass's life story unfolds in a series of flashbacks; one thread follows her life from childhood to present day; another the more recent events of the past few months. Moving between the two, like adding the layers and depths to a painting, Barnett builds an intimate portrait of a woman and the events that have shaped her.

From a childhood that feels deprived of love, Cass moves through teenage rebellion, an over-confident belief in her own decision making, and rejection of the people who care most for her, to the heady heights of stardom, with its jealousies and betrayals, till she ends up feeling she may have failed at everything - as daughter, wife, mother, musician. Although there are hints at the tragedy that changed her life, there's still enough mystery shrouding it, and the hope that Cass may find happiness at last, to lure the reader on.

Something that really intrigues me is the way that, not only does each chapter start with the lyrics to one of those 'greatest hits', but Laura Barnett has worked with singer/songwriter Kathryn Williams to have them brought to 'musical' life. An album is to be released shortly after the book's publication but for now you can hear the first song "Common Ground" by following the links on Kathryn Williams web site.


Although the story takes Cass on a journey through loss and grief, the overwhelming mood is upbeat. If you haven't discovered Laura Barnett yet, do read it. It's definitely one for fans of Maggie O'Farrell, but with a musical setting reminiscent of Tiffany Murray's Diamond Star Halo, and deserves to be a huge hit itself!

4.5 stars.

Have you ever read a book featuring a fictional musician and thought 'I wish I could hear their work in real life?' 

Cass Wheeler, the lead character in Laura Barnett's new book, Greatest Hits, had such an interesting, attractive and authentic voice. I felt sure she had to be real and was so disappointed when I discovered that wasn’t the case. Then I read about an innovative project between the author and singer songwriter Kathryn Williams, which will bring the songs from the book to life.

An album of 16 tracks, entitled Songs From The Novel Greatest Hits, with music by Mercury-nominated Kathryn and lyrics by them both, is being released alongside the book. 

How cool is that? I've listened to the first song, Common Ground, from the collaboration and it's perfect. There’s no other way to describe it.

Before we get into more detail, here's the blurb for the book:

One day. 16 songs. The soundtrack of a lifetime...

Alone in her studio, Cass Wheeler is taking a journey back into her past. After a silence of ten years, the singer-songwriter is picking the 16 tracks that have defined her - 16 key moments in her life - for a uniquely personal Greatest Hits album.

In the course of this one day, both ordinary and extraordinary, the story of Cass's life emerges - a story of highs and lows, of music, friendship and ambition, of great love and great loss. But what prompted her to retreat all those years ago, and is there a way for her to make peace with her past?

Daughter. Mother. Singer. Lover. What are the memories that mean the most?

This is Laura’s follow up to the hugely successful The Versions Of Us and I think she has another hit on her hands.

It was one of those books where I was frustrated and, at times, a little bit cross to have to put it down and do real life things.

It’s complex and intense but still flows beautifully. Although it covers several decades, it doesn't feel like there are massive jumps. The book is well researched and steeped in nostalgia (for some reason it made me think about my first clunky old Walkman, which I adored, for the first time in years). It's an altogether unique experience – and that’s before you even get to the music.

As I got further engrossed, I longed to hear Cass sing, which is why I went looking to see if she was a real artist. Instead I discovered the fantastic project between Laura and Kathryn, which surely has to be the next best thing.

When announcing the album, Laura, who is also a freelance journalist, feature writer and theatre critic, said: “From the earliest moment of coming up with the idea for Greatest Hits, it was clear to me that I wanted my character’s musical output to have a life beyond the page. I’ve been a fan of Kathryn’s music for years and I’m so thrilled to be working with her - she’s an absolute magician, and I’m so excited about the creative possibilities posed by drawing literature and music together in this way.”

I’m intrigued to see how the album, which is realeased under the One Little Indian label, does, but one thing is for sure - it’s safe to say Laura, like Cass, is no one hit wonder.

A heart wrenching and emotional read, Cass Wheeler looks back over her life as a musician as she picks her Greatest Hits. Really nicely written, this was a lovely read. I really enjoyed the tie in with the songs and look forward to hearing the accompanying album.

This is a really unusual book it is a memoir about a fictional singer songwriter. The amount of detail that the book gives about the life of Cass and the people in her life it is hard to believe that it is fiction. Cass is looking back over her life and career. Like with most lives there are ups and downs. Cass had some definite hard spells in her life but she was lucky to have some good people in her corner holding her up. An amazing book you don't have to be into music to read this book it is a story of life, relationships ,loves and losses. Fantastic

I loved the idea of this book portraying the soundtrack to someone's life and thought it was fantastic when I found that there is indeed a soundtrack courtesy of Kathryn Williams.
The music is the thread that is used to link Cass Wheelers life story and as we meet each song we learn about the events of that time. I did not always find these jumps in time to flow seamlessly and occasionally backtracked to make sure I was clear on what/where we were. All of Cass' relationships are explored, both personal and professional, and she does not always come out well.
The story belonged to Cass although I warmed to other supporting characters more (such as Johnny, Francis,Irene and Lily) and I really wanted to explore them a little more. Interaction with these characters also made Cass more sympathetic as a character than I often felt she was.
This was an intriguing book but one that I liked rather than loved.

Tender, emotional and gorgeously written, Greatest Hits is a completely compelling read. I was drawn into Cass' world and felt every twist and turn of her life. I particularly loved the use of music to frame the story of her life. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.

This was an interesting read for me, I love music as much as I love reading so reading a book about the music industry was bound to be a good fit for me.We all have a musical soundtrack to our lives and this was a good take on an artists soundtrack .I love all sorts of music from quite hard rock to the vast array of singer/songwriters some old school and some more modern ones, I thought this was realistic if a little self indulgent and refreshingly different ,great idea and well executed.Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Wow! What can I say about this book? It is my best read so far this year. It took me a chapter to get into the book, but from then on I couldn't put it down. The book is the story of Cass Wheeler's life, a singer songwriter with a life full of ups and downs. The story is told as flashbacks when the old Cass is creating a soundtrack of her life from her old songs. I was so caught up in the story that I caught my self thinking I should check out Cass's songs and see if she still played at Union Chapel. Clearly silly thoughts as this is fiction novel, I was so surprised and happy to learn in the end notes that a soundtrack to this book actually had been recorded by Kathryn Williams and it will be released on the same day as the book! I will purchase the soundtrack when released.

The Versions of Us, Laura Barnett’s debut novel, is one of my absolute favourites. It made me do big, gulping sobs as I read the final chapters, is a book I have recommended frequently, one I still think about regularly and one of the very few books I have read for a second time so Greatest Hits, Laura Barnett’s second novel had quite a lot to live up to! I am very pleased to say I was not disappointed. Charting the life of Cass Wheeler a singer-songwriter, from her childhood as the daughter of a Vicar to the present day as a successful artist who has sold millions of tracks but has become somewhat of a recluse, we learn through sixteen of her songs the pivotal moments of her life and the people who have been part of it.

Laura Barnett has such a beautiful writing style, it is richly textured and the characters are so well drawn; I could see beautiful Kate, fell in love with Kim and in my mind’s eye saw a gorgeous bad boy in Ivor, a man you know you should stay away from but he is too intoxicating to do so. One of Laura Barnett’s skills is weaving a story that is multi layered with a whole host of characters who, no matter how small a role they play in the book you identify with them. There are moments in the book that are heartbreaking, moments that are uplifting, others that made me angry and some which made me want to break out the pom-poms and do a big old cheer. If a book can make me feel like that then it is, in my opinion, a good one!

I loved reading about the music scene of the 1960s and 1970s and the mentions of bands like Fleetwood Mac. The descriptions of Cass, luminous on stage were so evocative that I could almost hear the songs and smell the cigarette smoke as she sang in bars and clubs.

Greatest Hits is more than a book about music, it is a saga about relationships, family (both those you are born with and those you make for yourself), love, hate and addiction. I couldn’t put this book down and had to ration it as it was so beautifully written and the temptation to gobble it up in one sitting was strong. This is a book that should be savoured.