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Everything is Beautiful: 'the most uplifting book of the year' Good Housekeeping

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Bob Mortimer wins 2023 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction with The Satsuma Complex Now her house is overflowing with the objects she loves - soon there'll be no room for Amy at all. But when a family move in next door, a chance discovery unearths a mystery long since buried and Amy's carefully curated life begins to unravel.” The digitally native, all year round, online literature and books festival, with new content released every week is a free-for-all-users festival.

As the story progressed, I really didn't know where it was going, for me the plot was barely passable. The writing is plain and there is really nothing special about it. Then, when I was just about going to give up on reading about another teacup that had to be rescued and brought home, Ray introduced the only bright sparks into the story. New neighbours move in with two rambunctious little boys and whether Amy likes it or not, her life is about to change. Thankfully, this added a much needed dimension and direction to the story. There's also a compelling mystery that is slowly unravelled and I was eager to find out what happened to Amy's boyfriend after he and her best friend disappeared twelve years ago. Right around the time Amy's hoarding started. They even share a flat together which makes Amy feel warm and happy to have the two people she holds dearest with her always. Until Tim and Chantel disappear leaving Amy to wonder what happened to them. The LoveReading LitFest invited Eleanor Ray to the festival to talk about this wonderful debut Everything is Beautiful.I liked the way this story was told. A chapter from the present day interspersed with chapters from Amy’s past that explain how she ended up where she did as a hoarder. It is easy to empathise with the likeable Amy. Put quite simply, I cared what happened to her and was with her every step of the way. Richard is a great character and Charles is a delight, though sometimes he does sound somewhat older than the child he is. Now her house is overflowing with the objects she loves - soon there'll be no room for Amy at all. But when a family move in next door, a chance discovery unearths a mystery long buried, and Amy's carefully curated life begins to unravel. If she can find the courage to face her past, might the future she thought she'd lost still be hers for the taking? I loved this charming, endearing novel...it will melt even the hardest of hearts...If ever there was a time for a book like EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL to lift us above the every day doom and gloom, it is now. -- Joanna Nell, author of THE SINGLE LADIES OF JACARANDA RETIREMENT VILLAGE

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Hachette UK Audio via Netgalley for providing an audiobook ARC of Everything is Beautiful by Eleanor Ray for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions. The story starts slowly and I was afraid we'd have to meet every single item in Amy's hoard but that didn't happen. Instead we meet Charles aka Charlie, 8 1/2 years old (almost 9!), the oldest son of Amy's new next door neighbor, Richard. Charles loves Amy from almost the moment he meets her and he's good for Amy, such a smart, insightful little boy, with answers for almost everything. He makes no secret of the fact that he favors Amy over his dad's dreadful, evil girlfriend. EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL is heart-warming and thought-provoking, a mystery with a difference. It's beautifully constructed around the everyday items its central character hoards, as she slowly uncovers the secrets of her past. I loved it. -- Andrea Mara, author of THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WALL Meet Amy Ashton. Amy’s life has been dormant and stagnant ever since the disappearance of her boyfriend Tim and best friend Chantel eleven years ago. Eleven. Long. Years. Ago. The mystery of what happened to Tim and Chantel is an integral part of the plot and, is what drives Amy's obsession with " things". And by "things", I mean just that, tea cups; newspapers; wine bottles; vases; disposable lighters and ashtrays (even though Amy doesn't smoke); garden pots; oh, and bird figurines just to name a few. She has filled her house so full of things she can no longer see the floor in most rooms, she sleeps on the sofa because her bed is full of 'things'. She has left herself thin slivers of space so that she is still able to move throughout the house, albeit perilously. I’m also more than happy to report that while I had assumed upon starting (and would have most likely been A-okay with it) that this was going to be a romance it ended up not being one at all. I definitely would have made a gripe about magic penises fixing broken women being a trope I don’t love, but again I usually get over that reaction because I like feel good crap as much as the next gal. But as I said yaaaaay for this not being a kissing book at all.An intriguing mystery with a quirky but lovable protagonist - funny, sad and perceptive. This will appeal to fans of The Girl on the Train and Elizabeth is Missing. -- L C Tyler, author of A Cruel Necessity

Amy has found her best friend for life in Chantel and the love of her life in Tim. They even share a flat together which makes Amy feel warm and happy to have the two people she holds dearest with her always. Eleanor Ray has an MA in English Literature from Edinburgh University. She lives in London with her husband and two young children. I absolutely loved EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL - a novel filled with beautiful things, mystery and Amy, one of my favourite characters of the year. I couldn't put it down. Book grief when I had to leave Amy behind. -- Rachael Blok, author of UNDER THE ICE

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I loved how the chapters in Everything in Beautiful swiftly changed between two timelines. The “past” chapters were always titled (I think the finished copy will contain illustrations of the objects too, the e-ARC didn’t have those, sadly) with the name of the treasure that Amy collected during that time. This made reading the book really fascinating! There was also a mystery aspect to the storyline, and I couldn’t wait to see how everything turned out in the end. The supporting characters were beautifully written as well. I especially loved Daniel and Charles – Amy’s littol neighbors who made her come out of her shell with their loving nature.

That is until a new family moves in next door and with them two rambunctious little boys. A friendship begins first with the children and then with their father Richard. Richard can see Amy is in pain and he will do whatever it takes to be there for her.

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EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL is a truly beautiful book, and wonderfully written. The title is perfect too. Amy is an enchanting character, and I found her story deeply moving. Ray's portrayal of her hoarding in response to grief and trauma was convincing and original, both tender and funny. The novel manages to accommodate so many qualities that might be presumed to be in tension, but in Ray's hands are brought together powerfully, so that it is charming and thrilling, romantic and gripping. The mystery of what happened to Tim and Chantel is compelling and immersive. -- Claire Kendal, author of THE BOOK OF YOU Take a Look at Our Summary of November Highlights, Whether You're Looking for the Latest Releases or Gift Inspiration I loved every bit of it. I think the term in book reviewer lingo is “utterly captivated”– and I was, as it was not only so beautifully written but the story was brilliant, too’ FLISS CHESTER

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