Helga Flatland is an acclaimed Norwegian writer. I am delighted to be part of the celebrations for One Last Time. and to be able to offer you the chance to win a print copy. Details on how to enter are at the foot of this post. I thoroughly enjoyed reading A Modern Family, which was her first novel translated into English.
Anne’s life is rushing to an unexpected and untimely end.
But her diagnosis of terminal cancer isn’t just a shock for her – and for her
daughter Sigrid and granddaughter Mia – it shines a spotlight onto their
fractured and uncomfortable relationships.
A spur-of-the moment trip to France
acts as a catalyst for the three generations of women to reveal harboured
secrets, long-held frustrations and suppressed desires – and to learn humbling
and heartwarming lessons about how life should be lived when death is so
close.
With all of Helga Flatland’s trademark insight, sharp yet warm wit and
deep empathy, One Last Time examines the great dramas that can be found in
ordinary lives, asks the questions that matter to us all – and ultimately
celebrates the resilience of the human spirit. An enchantingly beautiful novel
that urges us to treasure what we have and rethink how we live our lives, from
one of Norway’s most distinguished literary novelists.
My Thoughts
This is a quiet but powerful novel which shows you the complicated dynamic in one family, across the generations. In fact, you discover that there is a complex relationship between Anne and her daughter, Sigrid and the impact of that on Sigrid's daughter, Mia. After the shattering cancer diagnosis, you are shown the effect on the family. Sigrid, with her medical background understands too well the prognosis. As the story evolves, you feel the tension between them tighten.
Everything seems economical in the writing. It is pared back and so effective for that. It seems raw and heartrending at times. The point of view alternates between Anne and Sigrid. Sigrid finds it difficult to show her mother her true feelings. Carrying her resentment against Anne for what she perceives to be her neglectful parenting, she has to come to terms with the present and the bleak future. Anne has an independent nature and , as you discover, has her own worries. In showing you different viewpoints on an evolving situation, you feel almost part of the group. This is a sensitive handling of a difficult subject but ultimately, a picture of a complex but very human family.
In short: a quest for understanding between the generations.
About the Author
Helga Flatland is already one of Norway’s most awarded and
widely read authors. Born in Telemark, Norway, in 1984, she made her literary
debut in 2010 with the novel Stay
If You Can,
Leave If You
Must, for which
she was awarded
the Tarjei Vesaas’ First Book Prize. She has written
four novels and a children’s book and has won several other literary awards.
Her fifth novel, A Modern Family (her first English translation), was published
to wide acclaim in
Norway in August
2017, and was
a number-one bestseller.
The rights have
subsequently been sold
across Europe and
the novel has
sold more than
100,000 copies. One
Last Time was
published in Norway
in 2020, where
it topped the
bestseller lists, and
was shortlisted for
the Norwegian Booksellers
Award.
Thanks
to Helga Flatland and Karen Sullivan and Anne Cater of Orenda Books
for a copy of the book and a place on the Blog Tour.
Check out these great blogs on the Blog Tour!
To win a print copy of One Last Time, just Follow and Retweet the pinned Tweet at @bookslifethings and good luck!
Closing date is June 24th 2021
and there is one winner.
*Terms and Conditions –UK only. The winner will be selected at
random via Tweetdraw from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter
and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right
to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the
competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with
third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed
to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize. I am not
responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
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Thanks so much for the blog tour support xx
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