Saturday 24 October 2015

183 Times a Year - Eva Jordan



Mothers and daughters alike will never look at each other in quite the same way after reading this book—a brilliantly funny observation of contemporary family life.

Lizzie—exasperated Mother of Cassie, Connor and Stepdaughter Maisy—is the frustrated voice of reason to her daughters’ teenage angst. She gets by with good friends, cheap wine and talking to herself—out loud.

16-year-old Cassie—the Facebook-Tweeting, Selfie-Taking, Music and Mobile Phone obsessed teen—hates everything about her life. She longs for the perfect world of Chelsea Divine and her 'undivorced' parents—and Joe, of course.

However, the discovery of a terrible betrayal and a brutal attack throws the whole household into disarray. Lizzie and Cassie are forced to reassess the important things in life as they embark upon separate journeys of self-discovery—accepting some less than flattering home truths along the way. 

Although tragic at times this is a delightfully funny exploration of domestic love, hate, strength and ultimately friendship. A poignant, heartfelt look at that complex and diverse relationship between a Mother and daughter set amongst the thorny realities of today’s divided and extended families.


What did I think?

From the opening pages of this wonderful book I knew I was about to read something special, so I gleefully hopped aboard the emotional rollercoaster that is 183 Times a Year.  The story is told mainly from the perspectives of Lizzie (mum) and Cassie (daughter) and Eva Jordan effortlessly changed writing style to step into these very different shoes.  We are privy to so many of their innermost thoughts, or outermost in Lizzie's case as she often talks out loud, that I felt like I was seeing the world through their eyes.

At times, I laughed so much that I cried, but as with all ups and down of family life my tears of laughter turned into tears of despair as events unfolded.  I completely bought into the characters and felt like I knew them inside out and I was just settling in to the family life and putting my slippered feet under Lizzie's table, when tragedy struck.  Reading the thoughts of other family members had me reaching for my tissues; in particular, Maisy (aka Mania) - I have never known one simple line bring me to tears.  Eva Jordan is an absolute genius - she knows how people tick, both young and old.

This book really had me considering my own actions and reactions.  How we often hit out at those closest to us and how our actions don't always reconcile with our feelings.  It's only in the face of tragedy that our real feelings reveal themselves, but for many people this can be too late.

To be able to write from such different perspectives is an amazing feat and I urge you to head over to Amazon to read 183 Times a Year for yourself, then tell your Mam/Mum/Mom/Mother that you love and appreciate her.  Thank you Eva, this wonderful debut novel is such a candid account of family life that we can all relate to.  Be prepared to laugh and to cry, this book is so full of surprises that it's worth reading all over again.  An absolutely astonishing, thought provoking, hilarious and life affirming debut novel.

So what does 183 Times a Year mean?  You'll just have to read the book to find out!

I received this e-book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

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