You Never Told Me – Sarah Jasmon
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Published: 19th March 2020, Black Swan
Rating: 4/5
About the Book
A year ago, Charlie’s life seemed to be following a plan: she had a beautiful house, a lovable dog and an upcoming wedding. But she felt trapped. A few months before the big day, ignoring the warnings from her family, she abandoned her life and fled to the other side of the world in a bid for freedom.
But when her mother unexpectedly falls ill, Charlie has to cut her trip short. She flies home, but by the time she gets to the hospital, it’s too late. Her mother is gone, but she’s left a mystery behind. Why did she buy a canal boat, and where did the money for it come from? As Charlie attempts to work through her grief and pick up the pieces of her life, she follows the threads of her mother’s secret past – but has she missed her chance to learn the truth?
Swathi’s Thoughts
Charlie is in Thailand when she hears from her sister about her mom Britta being sick. Without any money to get back home any sooner, Charlie finds herself in a tough situation and somehow gets back only to find her mom already gone. It’s been long since she left home, abandoned her marriage and her son and her family. It’s all weird to come back home and Charlie is not sure how to handle it all. She also doesn’t have a place to stay as her sister and father have decided to sell their childhood home. That’s when she discovers about Britta’s boat that her mother has somehow purchased and left it for her to find. Why had her mother bought a boat? Charlie has less options than staying in a boat and with the help of her new neighbor, she learns a few driving lessons and starts her journey to explore her mother’s past.
I really liked Charlie. She’s human with flaws and doubt about herself. She makes daft decisions and regrets them. She’s awkward, kindle, gentle and emotional. She’s just like any other woman who is desperate to find her own self in the world. This is not a fast paced book, but the author takes her own time to develop the premise and characters making the journey a very memorable one. Highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good literary fiction. Thanks to Emma from Damp Pebbles for having me on the blog tour. All opinions and solely mine.
Meet the Author
Sarah Jasmon lives on a canal boat near Manchester with her children. She has had several short stories published, is curating a poetry anthology, and has recently graduated from the Creative Writing MA course at Manchester Metropolitan University. To find out more, visit
www.sarahjasmon.com
One Comment
Emma @damppebbles
Thank you x