Today I am featuring an emotional read by Amanda Prowse, Waiting to Begin.
From the bestselling author of The Girl in the Corner comes
a story that asks: what would you risk for a shot at happiness?
1984. Bessie is a confident sixteen-year-old girl with the
world at her feet, dreaming of what life will bring and what she’ll bring to
this life. Then everything comes crashing down. Her bright and trusting smile
is lost, banished by shame—and a secret she’ll carry with her for the rest of
her life.
2021. The last thirty-seven years have not been easy for
Bess. At fifty-three she is visibly weary, and her marriage to Mario is in
tatters. Watching her son in newlywed bliss—the hope, the trust, the joy—Bess
knows it is time to face her own demons, and try to save her relationship. But
she’ll have to throw off the burden of shame if she is to honour that
sixteen-year-old girl whose dreams lie frozen in time.
Can Bess face her past, finally come clean to Mario, and
claim the love she has longed to fully experience all these years?
My Thoughts
This is an emotional read which spans time and shows you the effect that events have had on people's lives. You follow Bessie's life at two points in time, 1984 and 2021. The young girl you meet in 1984 is young and naive and very susceptible to what people have to say about her. You feel real anguish for the pain she feels and desperately sorry for the pain that she has carried throughout her life. It is striking that she lives in a close family and yet has shut aspects of it off as she has tried to forget the past.
I enjoyed the twin aspects of this story as you followed Bessie's life as a young girl and later as a middle aged woman. You see the effect her actions have had on the whole family dynamic and how secrets from the past have altered her life. It was an emotional read which left you wanting to know what happened next. In other words, you realised that you cared about the characters.
In short: An emotional read with believable characters.
About the Author
Amanda Prowse is an International Bestselling
author whose twenty seven novels and seven novellas have been published in
dozens of languages around the world. Published by Lake Union, Amanda is the
most prolific writer of bestselling contemporary fiction in the UK today; her
titles also consistently score the highest online review approval ratings
across several genres. Her books, including the chart topping No.1 titles 'What
Have I Done?', 'Perfect Daughter', 'My Husband's Wife', 'The Girl in the
Corner', 'The Things I Know' and ‘The Day She Came Back’ have sold millions of
copies across the globe.
A popular TV and radio personality, Amanda is a regular panellist on Channel
5's 'The Jeremy Vine Show' and numerous daytime ITV programmes. She also makes
countless guest appearances on BBC national independent Radio stations including
LBC and Talk FM, where she is well known for her insightful observations and
her infectious humour. Described by the Daily Mail as 'The queen of family
drama' Amanda's novel, 'A Mother's Story' won the coveted Sainsbury's eBook of
the year Award while 'Perfect Daughter' was selected as a World Book Night
title in 2016.
Amanda's ambition is to create stories that keep people from turning the
bedside lamp off at night, great characters that ensure you take every step
with them and tales that fill your head so you can't possibly read another book
until the memory fades...
You can follow Amanda here: Twitter | Website | Facebook | Instagram | Amazon Author Page
Book link: Amazon UK
Thanks to Amanda Prowse, Lake Union Publishing and Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
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