#Blogtour #Review: Maria In The Moon by Louise Beech @OrendaBooks @LouiseWriter #MariaInTheMoon14/9/2017 Release date - 30th September 2017
Book length - 276 pages Publisher - orendabooks.co.uk Book Depository - www.bookdepository.com Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com ABOUT THE BOOK 'Long ago my beloved Nanny Eve chose my name. Then one day she stopped calling me it. I try now to remember why, but I just can't.' Thirty-one-year-old Catherine Hope has a great memory. But she can't remember everything. She can't remember her ninth year. She can't remember when her insomnia started. And she can't remember why everyone stopped calling her Catherine-Maria. With a promiscuous past, and licking her wounds after a painful breakup, Catherine wonders why she resists anything approaching real love. But when she loses her home to the deluge of 2007 and volunteers at Flood Crisis, a devastating memory emerges ... and changes everything. Dark, poignant and deeply moving, Maria in the Moon is an examination of the nature of memory and truth, and the defences we build to protect ourselves, when we can no longer hide... MY REVIEW Haunting, harrowing, and heartbreaking are just some of the words that I could use to describe this unbelievably emotive novel by Louise Beech. Catherine is the girl to go to if you need to know someone's birthday, or if you desperately need a listening ear over the telephone, but when it comes to her own life there are gaps in her memories that haunt her in their absence, and she runs a mile at the whiff of commitment. Having a strained relationship with her stepmother doesn't make life any easier as Catherine cannot usually be in the same room with her for more than five minutes before all hell breaks loose, let alone have a deep and meaningful conversation with her about her childhood. But when Catherine begins to volunteer again she will be forced to revisit her past as her nightmares start to happen more frequently and the few relationships she has start to suffer, but as the horrendous secret that is hiding deep in her mind is beginning to resurface, will she lose herself completely when the truth emerges? This book broke my heart with its dark and disturbing atmosphere that felt like it was always there, to the side, waiting to suffocate you with its brutality. I don't want to say too much about the plot because you need to read it for yourself, but the characters are flawed, scared, and completely realistic, and I cared about Catherine so much, which shows the brilliance of this writer. Set in the aftermath of the terrible floods in Hull in 2007 added an extra, raw element to the overall storyline which really showed the harsh reality of how easily our lives can be washed away and destroyed, and what happens when you must start afresh one block at a time. The writing style is almost lyrical and you find yourself completely carried away with her words, and as I have never read anything by Louise Beech before, I look forward to reading more from this author. MARIA IN THE MOON by Louise Beech made me cry, made my stomach knot, and made me realise the power and strength of the human spirit. An unbelievable read. Author Bio: Louise Beech has always been haunted by the sea. She regularly writes travel pieces for the Hull Daily Mail, where she was a columnist for ten years. Her short fiction has won the Glass Woman Prize, the Eric Hoffer Award for Prose, and the Aesthetica Creative Works competition, as well as shortlisting for the Bridport Prize twice and being published in a variety of UK magazines. Louise lives with her husband and children on the outskirts of Hull – the UK’s 2017 City of Culture – and loves her job as a Front of House Usher at Hull Truck Theatre, where her first play was performed in 2012. She was also part of the Mums’ Army on Lizzie and Carl’s BBC Radio Humberside Breakfast Show for three years. For more information: Website - louisebeech.co.uk Twitter - twitter.com/LouiseWriter *I want to thank Anne Cater, Orenda Books, and the author, Louise Beech, for the opportunity to review this stunning novel, and take part in this blog tour. Don't forget to check out all of the other stops along the way. Happy Reading!!
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WelcomeHi fellow bookworms. My name is Linda and I'm a reviewer & blogger, wife & mother who loves all things books! Currently ReadingUPCOMING BLOG TOURS
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