Archive | July 2026

The Glass House by Eve Chase

Jul2

It’s A Small World

The Glass House by Eve Chase is a powerful dual timeline novel that I adored and read it in just one sitting. It is set in present day and alternates with 1971 as we witness the action from various points of view.

We follow a family with a nanny. It is a dysfunctional family on so many levels but the nanny is a stabilising influence.

Nature is important. Being located in a wood is far better than busy London streets.

We see the strain that the loss of a baby has on a mother. She is hospitalised for a month in an institution in 1971. There are women who have been interred for decades without visitors. It was barbaric.

People tiptoe around the grieving mother. Only one character mentions the baby. “Thank you… for acknowledging my baby existed. Not many people do.” In order to heal, we need to grieve.

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The Woman With All The Answers by Linda Green

Jul1

Until The Wind Changes

The Woman With All The Answers by Linda Green is a very entertaining contemporary novel that I absolutely loved. I read it in just two sittings.

The plotline is unique and perfectly executed – what happens when Alexa goes rogue and is merely Pauline from Halifax? Surprisingly it seems to have a plausibility to it!

We witness the importance of mothers or mother-like figures in lives. Mothers spend all their time juggling life, and may forget who they once were. “What… happened to the person I used to? Who had a life of her own, dreams for the future, time to do the things she enjoyed doing.” Mothers need to practice self-care.

Within the book we see the sandwich generation, balancing the needs of both elderly parents and also teenage children. The novel is partly seen through the eyes of a mother who falls into this category. The needs of the two generations are similar but different. Both need to be helped through the minefield that is social media, and also outside pressures.

Mistakes are made. Bad choices will have consequences. We need to own them.

Life is full of regrets. We need to forgive the face in the mirror.

External pressures have kept a teen prisoner in her own house, fearful of the outside world. We see the difference an elderly labrador can have on her life. Owning a dog gives her a purpose, and a reason to get out.

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