Never Greener

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Ruth Jones' writing is so impressive. She captures the everyday lives of her characters, she injects humour and laughter in with the total devastation and sadness, she keeps it incredibly real and believable. Imposterò questa recensione diversamente da come ho sempre fatto. Non mi è possibile spiegarvi un po'di trama prima, perché è un libro un po' complicato. Tutto ha inizio nel 1985 quando Kate ha ventidue anni e incontra Callum, un uomo sposato con una donna stupenda e con tre figli. Tra i due la passione scoppia all'improvviso e non riescono a stare lontani. Quella che doveva essere una storiella diventa amore. La storia, grazie ai salti temporali, ci porta al 2002. This isn’t a book that romanticizes infidelity by any means – it really is warts and all, and examines the effect of an affair not only on those involved but on those on the periphery. It is difficult and upsetting for all concerned and wasn’t an easy read/listen at times especially as Ruth Jones highlights the selfish nature of affairs and the almost disdainful way in which those having the affair treat the people they have hurt. My heart broke for both Matt and Belinda – their sadness is palpable. The book leaps between 2002 and 1985 – describing Kate and Callum’s intense love affair when it first began (then ended in heartbreak) and again when it’s rekindled in 2002 after a chance encounter, when Callum is now in his 60s (still happily married to his wife) and Kate is a famous British actress with a husband and five-year-old daughter. Ruth Jones is excellent on human nature and why we make the mistakes we do. I felt for every character. Unputdownable.' Jojo Moyes

L'autrice è stata brava a far vivere le emozioni dei protagonisti e a creare un epilogo non scontato.. When Kate was twenty-two, she had an intense and passionate affair with a married man, Callum, which ended in heartbreak. Kate thought she'd never get over it.

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I decided to read this novel after enjoying her second novel 'Us Three'. This is her debut novel Never Greener and tells the story of two marriages. One couple who are enjoying married life and the other one less so mixed with an old affair that is rekindled and threatens to rip them apart.

Callum is married to Belinda and they have two children with another on the way. Everything seems to be going well now after surviving an affair twenty years ago when he cheated on Belinda with aspiring actress Kate, just hours after meeting her. It's an affair that threatened to end their marriage and hurt so many people. So when seventeen years later Callum and Kate meet by chance, marriages and lives are threatened again. On reuniting they both find it impossible to stay away from each other and the troubles begin. La moglie vuole fare l'amore con lui (giustamente, essendo suo marito) e lui si sente in colpa di tradire Kate e pensa a lei durante l'amplesso. Ho pensato: "ma non ti fai schifo come uomo? Questa donna ti ha amato, perdonato e ha cresciuto i tuoi figli e tu hai il coraggio di riempirla di bugie per una donna che ti fa perdere il senno?". Saying that though, Ruth Jones really can write people and she writes them incredibly well. Kate is brittle, fake, toxic and a huge contrast to her kind, loving, compassionate husband Matt (who I really liked). Callum and his wife Belinda are both brilliantly written and the insights into relationships of both couples are drawn with an expert eye and deft touch. It is also laugh out loud funny in places with clever observations of emotions and the complications of life.

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There's been a trend popping up recently, at least in my life, of unlikeable characters. No, this isn't a thinly veiled attempt to shame my colleagues and peers or my nearest and dearest in the national press, but rather a nod to the books and TV programmes I've been consuming. Louise O'Neill's recently released Almost Love struggles to present you with even one character you feel deserves your pity or empathy or forgiveness. I love books about gnarly, messy relationships and this one kept me gripped from the beginning. A great read.' Jane Fallon