In a Thousand Different Ways: the gripping, unforgettable new novel from the Sunday Times number 1 bestselling author

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I’m not interested in writing the same novel twice. I’m drawn to writing about challenging, transitional moments in people’s lives, and that theme never changes, but how I go about telling the story changes so very much I’m sure it sends my publishers’ heads in a spin. I’m often too quirky to be commercial and too commercial to be literary and while I’m comfortable with not fitting in, it’s never easy when it comes to knowing where to put me on a shelf. What projects are you working on?

Everything I Have" (featuring William Joseph on piano) Written by: Jeremy Bose / Produced by: Humberto Gatica– 4:07 This is my first book of Cecelia Ahern. An unusual story, very well written, and I look forward to reading more of her books. They've worked against everything we've worked so hard to build, and they don't care who gets hurt in the process. Make no mistake, they're the enemy, and they won't stop until we're all destroyed. It's been a long time since I finished a book in one setting and quite liked it. What I didn't expect was for this to happen with a Cecelia Ahern book. Our expertise in roofing contracting is evidenced not only by our 50 years in the business and our staff of qualified technicians, but in the decades of satisfied customers who have come to expect nothing but the best.This book had such potential. Sure, there were moments of insights, but overall it was a disappointment. The entire last chapter was especially rushed and saccharine—very Nicholas Sparks-ish or, I guess, Cecelia Ahren-y. Maybe I've just outgrown these styles of stories. Ahern has unique and beautiful writing with a captivating storyline and characters' depth and development. I loved how she described the different moods and feelings related to the colors. Like a baby is associated with gold color, it’s fascinating when Alice knows that her teacher is pregnant before her teacher knows herself. I have heard of synaesthesia where people see music as colours, but limited on those who see people's auras. It certainly makes you think on how it would affect you if this happened to you. It was one of those books that I became totally absorbed in, not light hearted as I normally enjoy, but contemplative especially towards the end. One to read when you want something a bit heavier, but not depressing, and totally different. Highly recommended.

I found all of the characters well rounded. We get to know them well through their impact on Alice. Her meeting with Naomi is a turning point, where she learns that her life can be different. Her relationship with Andy, after an idyllic start, becomes troubled at times, but they learn to deal with each other's idiosyncrasies. Her love of being out in nature and her growing understanding of plants through seeing their moods and colours was fascinating and and, for her, life-changing. The book itself is just stunning. It is so special and unique and unlike anything I have read before. Alice, our central character absolutely pops from the first moment we meet her. Following her incredible life journey was amazing. I felt like I knew Alice and was in her world in every way. All the characters are very well written and so distinct from each other. Some to love, some to dislike but each one is clearly defined and important to the overall story. This book is the life of Alice Kelly who has the rare condition of Synesthesia (dubbed Aura Migraine) whereby she can see the colour of people's aura and lives in a dysfunctional family. It is not clear if she was born with it or developed it later, but she is suffering alimentation and feels cursed. Ollie her younger brother soaks in his mother's blue and red (Depression and Anger) while Hugh her older brother with his Pink (Love) manages to be the beacon of sanity for Alice.

This brings a unique element to the story so much. Kudos for all the intense and correct research into it. I am excited that so many people who taste this book will know of it. I have a friend who smalls things as colours and tells me mould is like a dark murky purple. This was most interesting, following Alice throughout her life, her struggles with her difficult mum and younger brother, but loved and understood by her older brother. Her best friend in high school becomes a major sports star in the Premier League, she helps him get there. She discovers her husband on the tube, he has no colours, which she has never experienced. Alice is just a young girl when she starts seeing colors swirling around her mother, Lily. Soon she starts seeing colours around everyone and soon learns they are reflecting the person’s mood & emotions. But Alice doesn't want the gift, and struggles with adjusting to being different to everyone else. At times, it's overwhelming for her feeling everyone's emotions, so she hides away from the world and only interacts with very few people.

Overall a lovely read, uneven and sometimes getting bogged down in the middle, but ultimately a very enjoyable journey. Library ebook (GR doesn't recognise). I did an author event in the Margaret Mitchell House in Atlanta, Georgia. I toured the house where she wrote Gone with the Wind. What is the best writing advice you have heard? I loved seeing how Alice learns to live with her gift. The book discusses everything from self-discovery to complicated family relationships, neglectful parents, and a love story. It looks like a challenging topic, but I enjoyed how it was executed within the story. The ending also was beautiful in that it speaks the summary of Alice’s life experiences through colors 🤌🏻 I don’t want to give too much of the story away, which I think is so easy when giving a review – I highly recommend this book. Such a beautiful story of family and love.

Recommendations

This was a lovely book. Alice sees colours in people from when she was 8, her mum and brothers sometimes struggle to understand her, as does Alice herself. In seeing colours in people, she knows their thoughts and emotions, which is often not pleasant, to the point where Alice wears sunglasses and gloves and a mask to protect herself from the bombardment she gets from them. Sarah Gilmartin: ‘A lot more needs to be done to make the reporting of sexual crimes easier for victims’ ] I’ve read that you’re not comfortable speaking in public. What does writing mean to you? Alice has the skill to visualise in colours and fights through life coming from a suboptimal family. How can one master life, if distraction is a steady consonant in life? How can one move in a society without fear, if one can see and feel the darkest intentions of some people for instance at a children´s playground? And what happens, if someone with synesthesia comes across someone who reflects no color whatsoever? From her extraordinarily difficult childhood, we follow Alice throughout her life, dealing with her strange gift which she cannot describe, therefore nobody can understand, and consequently has her labelled a troublemaker. Relationships with her siblings and her mother are complicated. Her school days are fraught with problems due to her condition preventing her from making friends, until she finds people she can relate to in a special school, just one of many breakthrough moments in the story.