You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
jamescross 's review for:
Again, Rachel
by Marian Keyes
Ooh did I rub my hands together when I got a new @marian_keyes proof in the post!
Marian was one of the first ‘grown up’ authors I read purely for enjoyment outside of school. Now sure, reading Watermelon, about a newly single pregnant woman returning to her family in Ireland didn’t directly chime with a fifteen year old gently overweight, gay Yorkshire lad. But that’s the thing with The Lovely Marian (tm) - no matter the subject of the book, the characters SING to you. They’re alive. The dialogue is perfection and you would just read and read about them just to spend time with them.
Again, Rachel is no exception. It is a sequel to Rachel’s Holiday, and it continues the stories of the daughters of the Walsh family who I have been getting to know for over 20 years, but Keyes’ writing is so human you need no knowledge of all of this going in.
Rachel, an addict in recovery, is now head counseller at a rehab centre. Her marriage ended abruptly six years before, and an invitation that makes her confront her divorce and gives her an opportunity figure out exactly what happened.
But that isn’t the point. The point is to spend over 500 pages settling into Rachel’s life. Hearing about the people who comprise her friends and family.
Following on from the sublime Grown Ups I really feel that the author has entered a new era where the issues she writes about even more emotionally intelligently handled and more affecting.
Her style is funny, sure, but nuanced, considered and kind.
I could have read another 500 pages! After this, I definitely remain a committed fan.
This was a joy to read, and thank you to @penguinukbooks / @michaeljbooks for the #gifted proof.
CW: This book does have some trigger warnings whereby one of the characters experiences some pregnancy related issues, which I’m happy to explain the extent and nature of if needed - but to say anything specific would be spoiling part of one characters plot lines.
Marian was one of the first ‘grown up’ authors I read purely for enjoyment outside of school. Now sure, reading Watermelon, about a newly single pregnant woman returning to her family in Ireland didn’t directly chime with a fifteen year old gently overweight, gay Yorkshire lad. But that’s the thing with The Lovely Marian (tm) - no matter the subject of the book, the characters SING to you. They’re alive. The dialogue is perfection and you would just read and read about them just to spend time with them.
Again, Rachel is no exception. It is a sequel to Rachel’s Holiday, and it continues the stories of the daughters of the Walsh family who I have been getting to know for over 20 years, but Keyes’ writing is so human you need no knowledge of all of this going in.
Rachel, an addict in recovery, is now head counseller at a rehab centre. Her marriage ended abruptly six years before, and an invitation that makes her confront her divorce and gives her an opportunity figure out exactly what happened.
But that isn’t the point. The point is to spend over 500 pages settling into Rachel’s life. Hearing about the people who comprise her friends and family.
Following on from the sublime Grown Ups I really feel that the author has entered a new era where the issues she writes about even more emotionally intelligently handled and more affecting.
Her style is funny, sure, but nuanced, considered and kind.
I could have read another 500 pages! After this, I definitely remain a committed fan.
This was a joy to read, and thank you to @penguinukbooks / @michaeljbooks for the #gifted proof.
CW: This book does have some trigger warnings whereby one of the characters experiences some pregnancy related issues, which I’m happy to explain the extent and nature of if needed - but to say anything specific would be spoiling part of one characters plot lines.