Throwback Thursday: The Mother’s Promise by Sally Hepworth

Throwback Thursday is a meme created by Renee at It’s Book Talk to share old favorite books rather than just the new shiny ones. This is a great idea to bring back to life some much-loved books. Please feel free to join in.

My choice for this week is: 

 

Published February 21st, 2017 by St. Martin’s Press

 

Goodreads Description:

 

With every book, Sally Hepworth becomes more and more known for her searing emotional portraits of families—and the things that test their bonds. In The Mother’s Promise, she delivers her most powerful novel yet: the story of a single mother who is dying, the troubled teenaged daughter who is battling her own demons, and the two women who come into their lives at the most critical moment.

Alice and her daughter Zoe have been a family of two all their lives. Zoe has always struggled with crippling social anxiety and her mother has been her constant and fierce protector. With no family to speak of, and the identity of Zoe’s father shrouded in mystery, their team of two works—until it doesn’t. Until Alice gets sick and is given a grim prognosis.

Desperate to find stability for Zoe, Alice reaches out to two women who are practically strangers, but who are her only hope: Kate, her oncology nurse, and Sonja, a social worker. As the four of them come together, a chain of events is set into motion and all four of them must confront their sharpest fears and secrets—secrets about abandonment, abuse, estrangement, and the deepest longing for family. Imbued with heart and humor in even the darkest moments, The Mother’s Promise is an unforgettable novel about the power of love and forgiveness.

My Thoughts:

 

This was my first Sally Hepworth novel and I LOVED it. It’s one of my favorite novels.

Alice Stanhope has been told that she requires emergency surgery. She’s also told she will need a support person to help her after the surgery. Alice doesn’t have a lot of family and she doesn’t want her teenage daughter, Zoe to know what’s going on. They try to tell her that at age fifteen, Zoe can probably help more than Alice realizes, but Alice is adamant.

“Zoe doesn’t need to be involved in this. She can’t handle this. She isn’t like a normal teenager.”

Kate Littleton is a nurse who has been delivering bad news to people for many years. She can see that Alice is in denial. She knows that Alice will need someone to help her through the hardest time in her life. She will be meeting with the social worker, Sonja to discuss Alice’s case. Sonja is dealing with struggles in her own life, but she’s gotten good at pretending everything is fine.

Alice’s daughter, Zoe is at school. She’s trying hard to follow the rules she’s set for herself. These rules give us insight into the extent Zoe’s social anxiety. She can only be herself around “safe people” and her mother is her safest person.

Many secrets are revealed as we get to know these women who are all dealing with serious life issues. We see how they become integral parts of each other’s lives and how their relationships set off a chain of events that I NEVER saw coming.

This book really is AWESOME! A powerful story with an excellent cast of characters. I shed many tears, but in many ways they were cathartic. Though it’s an emotional read, there are also many lighthearted and humorous moments. Sally Hepworth brings her characters to life.  I was invested in their lives and was completely gripped from the time I started this book until I finished the last page.

A touching story about motherhood, love, friendship, illness, forgiveness and SO MUCH MORE!

“The Mother’s Promise” is a book that’s going to stay with me for a long time. I would love to read it again and it’s a novel that I highly recommend.