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Solène Marchand, the thirty-nine-year-old owner of an art gallery in Los Angeles, is reluctant to take her daughter, Isabelle, to meet her favorite boy band. But since her divorce, she’s more eager than ever to be close to Isabelle. The last thing Solène expects is to make a connection with one of the members of the world-famous August Moon. But Hayes Campbell is clever, winning, confident, and posh, and the attraction is immediate. That he is all of twenty years old further complicates things. Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing and Amanda Prowse for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Krischer, Hayley (December 5, 2017). "We're Going to Need More Gabrielle Union". The New York Times. I'm 39 myself and I just jumped right into this book and became Solène for a few hours! I was right in there living this amazing adventure. All those amazingly adorable & sexy & emotional & just beautiful moments in hotel rooms in New York City, at a pool in the South of France. All the ups and downs of such a complicated new love. All those new feelings and fears. You can see why she is acting the way she does and towards the end I was on her side and angry with Jonah.
The characters in this novel are easy to identify with and likeable, making you actually care about what happens to them. The protagonist, Lucy, seems really great and I warmed to her instantly; she’s not always perfect in the way she handles things but she seems real , like someone you’d know and probably like. I really felt for her as things just seemed to get harder and harder, and sometimes the situations that were thrown at her with her ‘new’ step-daughter Camille were so difficult – I won’t give away any key plotlines but it just felt like things got more and more difficult for her with Camille’s behaviour and insensitive - although well-meaning - comments from family and work colleagues. Deeply moving and emotional, Amanda Prowse handles her explosive subjects with delicate skill' - Daily MailThe Idea of You is going to cause a big stir this year. I can see some people finding their new book boyfriend in Haye’s Campbell or his bandmates. I wouldn’t be surprised if I see this being adapted for the big screen in the future as it has the kind of plot you can perfectly visualise and characters that are in a situation I doubt happens often but were completely realistic within it. But can an almost 40 year old lady and a world famous superstar half her age have anything real and lasting? Solène's daughter and the rest of the world think NOT - once they find out.... Apparently none of these two lovers will be crumpled and brought to his/her knees (except maybe in the end Haynes and this happens with so much coolness and detachment that I wanted to scream).
A popular TV and radio personality, Amanda has appeared on numerous shows where her views on family and social issues strike a chord with viewers. She also makes countless guest appearances on BBC national and independent Radio stations including LBC, Times Radio and Talk FM, where she is well known for her insightful observations and her infectious humour. Described by the Daily Mail as ‘The queen of family drama’ Amanda’s novel, 'A Mother's Story' won the coveted Sainsbury's eBook of the year Award and she has had two books selected as World Book Night titles, 'Perfect Daughter' in 2016 and 'The Boy Between' in 2022. So am I. But I’m all right with that. If I get hurt, I get hurt. It happens, right? Someone always gets hurt. But I don’t want to miss out on us because I was afraid.” – Hayes
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Lucy is a 39-year old advertising executive who has just about given up on marriage and motherhood after her fiance left her to marry her cousin. But when she attends the christening of her godson, she meets Jonah Carpenter who immediately is smitten and so is she. They soon marry and try vigilantly to have a baby with tragic results. Life gets even more complicated when Jonah's 16-year old daughter, Camille, comes for an extended visit. The Idea Of You,' 'Everything Must Go' & Other Female-Strong Projects Join Welle Entertainment Slate". Deadline. December 19, 2018. Do I recommend this book? Yes, I do. Just know that this book isn't for everyone. You have to go into it with an open mind.
Like every great book, the writing is the core of its beauty. The dialogue between Solene and Hayes was superb; the playfulness, the intensity, the tension . . . their differences and their love all played out within the subtlety of their words. "It’s only been two weeks," I said.Hathaway will play a 40-year-old divorced mother named Sophie, and Galitzine will play Hayes Campbell, the lead singer of a boyband. I couldn't decide for quite some time whether I liked Lucy or not but as the story progressed, it occurred to me that it wasn't about liking or disliking this character. She's experiencing the normal feelings you would expect of someone of her age and circumstances. Lucy is just human and I ended up admiring her for being authentic in her reactions to miscarriage, a resentful stepdaughter and a husband in denial. Speaking to “ Vogue“ in 2020, author Lee confirmed the novel was loosely inspired by Harry Styles of One Direction, as well as Eddie Redmayne and her real-life husband — but that it's not "fan fiction." This book is about a women's longing for a family, however mother nature has other ideas and she suffers several agonising miscarriages.
Overall , this was a solid read. I will definitely remember it and I'm looking forward to the possibility of a sequel. But sadly it didn't move me or gutted me or the sort, like I expected it. It was just fun and entertaining while it lasted. I definitely recommend it if you're looking for something a little different (unless you read 1D fan fiction all the time), although St. Martin's is doing this book a disservice by pricing it that high. However, I will disclaim in a spoiler tag that this book does not have an HEA, not even a HFN, the MCs do not end up together So keep that in mind and read at your own risk. So, what’s a woman to do when she finds herself in that situation? Of course. . . sleep with him – too bad that decision was going to change to course of their lives that no one could have predicted. The real question here was, how much would that decision affect those they loved as well? For you it’s been two weeks. For me it’s been ten cities.” He reached for my hand then. Suggestive. Let me start by saying, I don't think I was the right target audience for this. It was a free book from NetGalley so I thought I would give it a go. I found it very difficult to connect with Lucy. She seemed so dreamy and was far too idealistic for me. Her expectations of life with a teenage stepdaughter seemed rather unrealistic to start off with. Actually, her entire idea of motherhood was a bit like that. Don't get me wrong, I have two daughters and love them dearly, but this was all a bit too rose-tinted glasses for me. I couldn't understand why Lucy simply wasn't more open about everything, as it would have avoided a lot of issues. There wasn't a lot of depth to it and in the end, conflicts were resolved pretty easily. Thus in the whole book you have these two people who meet other people who are friends with other people and who live the high life who travel all around the world who make love like they don't care and there is no tomorrow.The slowly developed relationship between Lucy and Camille was a real contrast to the way Lucy and Jonah got together after their whirlwind romance. Bringing Camille into the family dynamics brought an edge that cut through the sentiment, providing a stepmother/stepdaughter relationship with all the difficulties that possibly brings. I loved all the extended family and their dramas, again I found them very true to life, all of them adding to the bigger picture showing that the life Lucy was chasing was far from idealistic. Lucy wasn’t always the most likeable of characters but her emotions and reactions were always absolutely spot on and I empathised with her totally.
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