About Us by Sinead Moriarty

 

Sinead Moriarty is back with her new novel About Us which I found myself completely hooked on and unable to put down. This author always manages to write from the heart and this book in particular many of us will relate to in all walks of life.

Three couples. One therapist's couch ...

Alice and Niall used to be lovers, best friends and parents, in that order. Now they're no longer on the same page or even reading from the same book.

Ann thought when she and Ken retired, it would be their second spring. Instead, it feels more like an icy winter.

Orla is falling in love with boyfriend Paul, but her complicated past makes her unsure if she can ever be intimate with anyone.

Three couples find themselves telling a stranger about the most private part of their lives - their hopes, their disappointments, their awkward realisations.

Can they learn to be honest with each other? And what life-changing decisions will be made when they do?

 

Each of our couples are from a different generation and point in their lives, but all have one key issue in common, the effect sex has on their relationships and also what the lack of intimacy can actually be hiding underneath. Now don’t read this and see the word sex and think this is going to be some cheap bonkbuster that will have you running in the other direction this runs more deeply than that and I am sure so many of us will relate to one character or another.

I love how the author has managed to bring awareness of issues that effect women out there and weaved this into a storyline full of emotion, insight and self care and I particularly think that Orla’s condition being spoken about is a great thing because so many people have never even heard of her condition which makes sufferers feel less of a woman.

I sympathised with all of our characters other than Niall who I just wanted to shake and make him grow up.

Ok here is my only negative……. Sinead ….. you can not leave then ending there! I actually looked to see if pages had been torn out from my cover and now I am left guessing!

This was a insightful and honest read that I loved and have already recommended to a couple of people, because I know they will enjoy it but it may also help them to not feel alone too.

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The Secrets Sisters Keep by Sinead Moriarty

The Devlin sisters rely on each other - but some things are just too painful to share, even when your sisters are your best friends ... Mum-of-four Julie thought that if her family had more money, life would be easier. But now that they've inherited a fortune, her problems are only starting. Lawyer Louise is used to having life go exactly as she wants it to. So accepting that she cannot control everything in her world is beyond her. And former model Sophie can just about cope with getting older - that's until her ex-husband finds a younger model. All three women think that some battles are best fought alone. Maybe they need to think again ...

The Secrets Sisters Keep is the first book I have read by author Sinead Moriarty and if her other books are as good as this I will be working my way through them all.

This book is about three sisters Julie, Sophie and Louise they are a tight family unit but each of the ladies lives seem to be in turmoil at the moment and sometimes when you are in so deep you can’t turn to those closest to you which is what we see with these sisters. Sophie had everything and lost it all and now she is a single mum who is trying to bring up daughter Jess with strong values to make sure she works hard and relies on no-one but daughter Jess is bored of this talk and just wants to spend time with cool Pippa her new step mum! Louise is a single mum who is very career focused and both her and her daughter like routine but people are trying to label her daughter and she will not stand for it. Then we have Julie who is mum to triplets and the lovely little Tom, they have just had their lives turned upside down when husband Harry is left a small fortune but it goes to his head leaving poor Julie lonely. At times like these it should be family that you can rely on.

This was a wonderful read the opening chapter had me giggling away and I felt like I had already been captured by this storyline. The author has a very easy writing style and sets a perfect pace for this book. The chapters alternate between each of the sisters and there is never a dull chapter, each of them are going through very trying times in their lives which not only affect them but also their families. When the book began it felt like a nice light easy read but as the storyline progressed and we got to know the characters and their problems more it soon took a different path and become a more emotive and tender read and I think because my spirits were lifted in the beginning of the book by the time some of the problems were revealed I actually had a lump in my throat.

When we first met each of the sisters Louise was the one I warmed to least but by the end of the book she was my favourite. She came across as a very hard and cold character and although she clearly loved her daughter she seemed to be so career focused that she didn’t see the problem with her daughter and refused to listen to others but towards the end of the book it soon became clear that this wasn’t the case and she does have a heart it is just something that is hard for any parent to accept.

The book touches on a delicate subject and also of typical family problems that people face. You will be laughing one minute especially with the scene in Stars and Stripes! Then in the next your eyes will be glazing over, I enjoyed each and every page of this book and I can not wait to try another book by this author. 

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