About the book

Perfect for fans of Marin Keyes and Motherland – and for all women who have found their happy-ever-after turned out to be no fairy tale. Grown-up, sparkling, funny, poignant and ultimately uplifting.

If she tries very hard, Ami can remember when she used to have a dynamic and exciting career and a husband who she loved more than life itself, and who was equally smitten with her…

Now she has two children, a terrifyingly large mortgage, and no idea who she has become – or why she and her husband can’t even be in the same room anymore.

With life as she knew it in tatters around her, Ami is heartbroken, and in no way pulling off ‘consciously uncoupling’ like a celeb. But she’s starting to wonder if she just might come out the other side and be….happier?

As funny as Helen Fielding, as poignantly touching as Marian Keyes, Fiona Perrin’s dazzling debut is a story that is as much about finding out who you really are again, as it is about the exhausting balancing act of motherhood. Unmissable for women everywhere.

My Review:

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Fiona Perrin’s debut novel, The Story After Us! After years of arguing over her husband Lars not being around and always being away on business, Ami hears the words she never truly expected, “I want a divorce.” As Ami tries to come to terms with her husband leaving, caring for their two young children, and struggling to keep her small business afloat, she reflects on their past and what she really wants for her future. She quickly realizes that her children are most important, but as she tries to save her ad company and Lars suddenly starts making changes she never believed possible, Ami wonders what is really best for all of them.

Congrats to Fiona Perrin on publishing her debut! The Story After Us was a fantastic novel that I quickly found myself engrossed in. I truly disliked the husband Lars, regardless of which phase of himself he was in, but I did like Ami and sympathized with the changes in her reality. Ami was probably one of the most honest characters that I’ve come across in a while, but oh my goodness this woman was as indecisive as they come. I appreciated her commitment to her children and her job, but as her parents guilt-tripped her and Lars was busy proving what a changed man he was, I felt worn out and frustrated both with her and for her.

Ben was by far the best part of the novel, almost a light at the end of the tunnel. Despite his occasional arrogance and the complications regarding logistics and circumstances between him and Ami, I thought he was absolutely fabulous. Moreover, Ami’s best friend Lily was amazing. She was gorgeous, drank too much, hooked up with too many men – but was not only a wonderful friend to Ami but an overall bright light whenever she was in the story.

I feel that Perrin’s writing was incredible, especially coming from a debut author. Unfortunately, I have two bits of criticism… First, I felt the book was too long. Honestly, when I came to part 2, I felt like it should be nearing the end. Then came part 3… However, a lot did happen in this novel and I can respect the fact that Perrin was letting everything play out. Secondly, I feel like I’ve read similar stories so often lately! I was looking back at other novels I’ve read over the past few months and the reviews and I realized I am seeing a trend with novels that begin with a relationship ending, then weaving the tale of their relationship between past and present explaining what went wrong, and then the inevitable “will they or won’t they reconcile?”

Despite my issues with the familiarity of the main theme of the novel, I recommend this one to lovers of women’s fiction, especially those that realize the perfect ending isn’t the same for everyone!

*Thanks to NetGalley and Aria Fiction for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Buy now links:

Amazon: mybook.to/StoryAfterUs

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2JTLSHq

iBooks: https://apple.co/2MsSMlE

Google play: http://bit.ly/2JJ3PVP

About the author

Fiona Perrin was a journalist and copywriter before building a career as a sales and marketing director in the industry. Having always written, she completed the Curtis Brown Creative Writing course before writing The Story After Us. Fiona grew up in Cornwall, hung out for a long time in London and then Hertfordshire, and now writes as often as possible from her study overlooking the sea at the end of The Lizard peninsula.

Follow Fiona

Website: https://fionaperrin.com/

Twitter: @fionaperrin

Facebook: @fionajperrinauthor

Instagram: @fionaperrin