Henry Morris has a pretty tough life at the moment. His beloved wife Chloe is slipping back into her dementia and he needs to up her medication. Unfortunately, times have changed and it's looked down on for elderly or sick people to keep on taking medicine with little or no hope of recovery. The done thing now is to head over to the Moving On house and willingly take some pills to end your life, rather than using up more than your fair share of the world's resources. It's not just something that is now widely accepted - it's pretty much expected and you are seen as very selfish if you don't go along with it.
Heading into a local cafe for a cup of tea to boost his mood, he meets Kaitlyn, a young and very disgruntled waitress who is faring no better in the current system - her brother has been on a life support machine for years and she is having a tough time getting the money together to continue paying for his care.
The pair of them come up with an unconventional way of making enough money to cover their costs, but will they manage to pull it off and get their happy-ever-after ?
It's an enjoyable and surprising novel, set in a time that (luckily) we can't really relate to, but it really tugs at your heart strings. Both of the main characters learn a lot about themselves and those that they love as the novel progresses, and their viewpoints change quite a lot. They are both incredibly strong and generous characters who really go the extra mile for those that they love and, for that alone, you can't help but slightly hero-worship them. I still can't decide if it is ultimately a happy ending or not - maybe for some but not for others - but it certainly makes you think and smile fondly as you remember the strong bonds that tie people together in unexpected ways.
star rating : 4.5/5
RRP : £8.99
- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: Legend Press (1 Sept. 2019)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 178955022X
- ISBN-13: 978-1789550221
Disclosure : I received a review copy of the book.
Thought-provoking novel. I wasn't sure whether to agree to review it, but from your review I now think I want to read it.
ReplyDeleteI was the same, but it is really uplifting.
DeleteAs I began to read your review, I thought it must be another spine chiller. Pleased to see that it isn't and am intrigued by your comment that their viewpoints change quite a lot.
ReplyDelete